Halloween 2009

We had an awesome Halloween this year. The kids were very creative and found old costumes or made them up. I refused to spend money this year on costumes and I think the kids enjoyed finding a costume to wear on their own. Our ward had a trunk or treat and then we went to our cousin's house for some trick-or-treating. The kids had a great time and that's what counts, plus a little chocolate.

My kids on Halloween 2009

Emily dressed up as Tigger this year, but if you asked her she would tell you that she dressed up as a Tiger and not Tigger. She is quite a little character.

Angela was a witch this year - a good witch dressed in black

Dani dressed up as a teenage witch. Dani is so creative and created with costume and worked on all the details including the cell phone.

Josh dressed up as a jester this year. It was made for him to wear at last year's school Renaissance Festival. I love that he wore it again for Halloween.

Someone took this cute shot with me and the younger girls at the Ward Trunk or Treat. I loved spending the evening with my girls.

Dani with a friend and her cousin at the Ward Trunk-or-Treat

Josh and Seph helping Rora walk in the costume parade. I love it that you can see Dani and Lissie in the background.

Memorable MondayPast visit to Mother's Nature Farm

Josh, Dani, and Angela had been to this special Pumpkin Patch when they were younger. They each went with preschool groups. I wanted to take Emily this year because she is preschool age. Here are some fun pictures when we went earlier.

Josh was in a playgroup just before he went to preschool. There was a small number of kids in the playgroup and Josh enjoyed it. The took a field trip to Mother's Nature to enjoy the small farm feeling while picking and painting a pumpkin. Josh was 4 years old and Dani was just 1/2 years old. It was the first time we had been there and had a great time.

We went again with Dani's preschool class. Dani was 4 yrs old and Angela was 2 years old. Dani loved going with her friends and enjoyed being with her sister too.

Pumpkin Patch

We took Angela and Emily to the pumpkin patch this year. It was so fun to take the girls to pick out some pumpkins, go on a hay ride, see some farm animals, and most of all, play.

Angela and Emily picked out some pumpkins to decorate. They used stickers to decorate and personalize their pumpkin.

They had a great hay maze and Angela led the way with Emily right behind her. After the girls did the maze the first time, Jim and I joined them for the next trip. It was really fun, especially when we made a wrong turns and had to correct ourselves.

There were several different animals for the girls to see and pet. They saw turkeys, goats, pigs, and even fed a cow. It was fun to watch them interact with the animals, especially when they each fed the cow.

We took a hay ride around the farm. It was a great ride and the girls really enjoyed it.

There were also houses to play in and a big bouncy for the kids to jump in. Right before we left to go home, the girls posed for us. Super cute!

Josh's Campout Pictures

Josh had Youth Conference last week and Stake Camporee this past weekend. I gave Josh a few cameras to take on each campout hoping to get some good pictures. It's so fun to see what pictures Josh chooses to take. Here are my favorites from the past 2 campouts.

Memorable MondayLooking Back

This week, Josh and Dani helped their cousins move into their new house. Their cousins moved from Utah to Arizona this past week. Josh went with his dad to start unpacking while Dani went with Grandma to the airport to pick up her aunt and others cousins who flew down. My kids were so excited to see their cousins again and have them live close so they could see them more often. It was so fun to see pictures of them today and back when they were younger.

Josh and Seph were born a week and a half apart. Seph moved to Utah when they were about 2 months apart, so it's cool to have pictures of them together as newborns.

Josh and Seph now

Dani and Lissie met when her parents came down to AZ for a visit. Lissie and Dani are about 3 months apart and its so fun to see them together when they were younger.

Dani and Lissie now

Rim Fun

School was out for a week, so we headed up to spend some time on the rim with Grandma and Grandpa Pace. They were camping and we wanted to visit them. We came up earlier in the summer, but Josh wasn't with us at that time. It was fun for the whole family to go up and visit. When we arrived it was really cold and we stayed in Grandma's trailer for a while. Josh braved the cold and played outside. After a family hike, some of our cousins arrived for a visit as well. It was a great trip and we enjoyed the scenery, especially the colorful leaves.

When it warmed up, the kids found rocks and broke them up to see the treasures inside. It was a fun activity that lasted most of the day.

Grandpa always sets up a hammock. Dani and Emily are taking a short rest for adventures they are planning later.

The fall colors in Arizona - a pretty and welcomed sight.

The kids really enjoyed the hike. Emily found the perfect hiking buddy - Grandma Pace.
When the cousins arrived, my kids were in heaven. It's always better when cousins are around.