Crazy Hair Day

Today was crazy hair day at school. Byron wanted his hair all spiked up in the front. Thanks to a bunch of gel, it stayed all day!

And Jared with his very spiky hair! :)

Pumpkin Face

I got my fall decorations out...and there is just something abouot these 2 faces that seem so real to me....even though there is nothing "real" about them! And I just can't help but be in a good mood whenever I see them!

I think I've mentioned before on this blog that I have become more of a foliage person than a flower person (as far as our yard goes....) Jared had to bring in 2 leaves for science today, and these are the 2 he chose....I like how they look together! I'm thinking next year I need to move some plants so they are side by side!

Soup's On!

Jared LOVES to do "experiments"...Sunday he came home from meeting with some acorns in his pocket and wanted to do some experimenting! So, first, he boiled them, then added some milk, sugar, salt, and pepper....and of course leaves...he cooked it quite some time, then after it cooled, he peeled them, chopped them, mashed them, etc....it was quite a concoction! He was so proud of the fact though, that I gave him such freedom at the stove! He's always interested in helping us bake and cook, as well....hopefully when he's a chef someday, he'll come up with a little more palatable recipe than this one! Byron, ever learning from his big brothers.

I'm Shrinking!!!

I remember learning in school that we are taller in the morning and shorter in the evening....this is due to the compression and re-expansion of the spine .... and it sure holds true for me! Since Trent has been ever so quickly creeping up on me, he is constantly "measuring" himself against me....well, one night we thought he might have caught up to me, so we measured for real....I was shocked that I was only a bit over 5'9"! Does this mean I've already shrunk 1"??? So, remembering the "tall in the morning" bit, we re-measured in the morning...sure enough, I was a full 5' 10"...WELL...I came home from work the other morning, so it was my "night"(plus, I'd been on my feet most of the day before as well), and Trent's "morning"...as soon as he came down the stairs, he and I simultaneously said "Oh my!"....because he was WAY taller than me!!! Here's the proof!

Then, when I got up (which was actually only about 4 hours), we were much more similar in height! Crazy, eh?

Those chins are a lot more even in this picture!

New Friends

So it seems that Trent and Nick are becoming friends. They go to the same school, and this day was the start of their biking together. They (along with another boy) meet about 1/2 way to school and bike the last blocks together. They wait for each other for lunches...They bike back the few blocks together...Sometimes when I'm in Trent's room telling him good-night, his phone will beep with a text...it is Nick texting him good-night...I'm so glad these two are becoming friends!

"The girl" is 2

Well, Chloe (or "the girl" as she is often called), turned 2 today! Of course, w/ 3 boys in the house, the day cannot go by w/o a bit of fanfare! So, Chloe had a party.....first the pictures with ribbons on her collar.....

Then we had to sing happy birthday, of course!
Then the "cake"...which really was cinnamon rolls as ordered up by the boys, none of which Chloe was allowed to eat! She wasn't quite sure what to think about the liberty she was given to have her paws up ON the table!!!
Then the present.....a new big bone....don't you just love her big ol' tongue in this next picture? I don't think it was because of the bone, however.....I think it was because she was getting pretty close to a cinnamon roll!

And here's a couple of pictures from 2 years ago...this first one is when Kelvin and Leila still had her...what a cutie!
And this was her right after we brought her home.....she was almost 3 months old here.

Fair Day

We took the kids to the fair over the weekend. We lucked out and had fantastic weather! I was sure hoping it would not be 105, and by the time our fair day rolled around, it was in the 80's!! How lucky could we get?! Pardon the pictures.....rather than bringing our "good" camera, we brought our old (first) digital camera....and it does not take very good photos! But it was sure easy to pack around! :) I love this picture of the kids with the llama. They loved the petting zoo. We had to go twice.

Waiting for our pizza to cook.
Byron loved the "carousewheel"....he rode it twice.
The view from the top of the Ferris wheel.
Wow, those seatbelts look like they'd really hold ya in, don't they?

Waiting for a roller coaster ride...they were first in line so got the front seat!
Just coming back in from the ride.
Trent likes these swings.....in the picture below he's the lone rider.
And this one is just perfect for Byron!

18 years!!!

Can you believe it? We've already been married 18 years!!!! And we've been together for 23!! Here we were in 1986....after we'd been dating a year. Robert was 20, and I was 17.We definitely don't look like we did in our 20's!!!Ah....even a little kiss! :)Now that Trent is old enough to "babysit", we left the 3 kids home and we celebrated at the Cheesescake Factory. That place is SOOOO good!This was a Vietnamese wrap....shrimp, noodles, carrots, asparagus, and other veggies wrapped in the rice wrap, then dipped either in peanut sauce or an oriental flavor sauce. Was fantastic! Next, we shared Thai Chicken Pasta....with peanut sauce...maybe doesn't look so good in this picture, but it was delicious!
Oops...guess we started on the white chocolate and caramel macademia nut cheesecake before the picture! It was also sooooo good!