The Rest Of October 2010

Sea World put on a little trick or treating under the sea bit for the kids, so we decided to go and check it out! Can you believe we are in shorts in the middle of October, I love it!!! The kids had a ton of fun and they got to dress up. There are no pictures of Linc because he was being Lincoln and didn't want to be in any.

I love this girl!









We went through the haunted house area which Avery clung to either Jared or I, and then rode a few a rides. The kids loved the fact that they could see each other as we went round and round and I got sicker and sicker! I just can't do rides any more :(



On the 28th Lincoln had his preschool Halloween party. Jared had the day off so I was able to volunteer along with one other parent to run his class booth. He wanted to be batman again, but since it was about 25* warmer here his costume was way too hot, so he settled for his favorite cape! All the kids had a little parade through the chapel and then went outside to the gym for class pictures, games, and treats! He was so cute hanging with his friends and I loved the fact that every time he saw me he would smile and wave, if he got close enough he would run over and give me a hug. Made my whole day.









I took him home early with me since we were expecting Anita and Steve (My awesome aunt and uncle from Wyoming) to fly in that day. As an added bonus my sweet cousin Sarah was also here for a work conference. I would drive out each night and bring her back to eat dinner with us, it was so much fun! It had been about three years since I last saw her. She looked amazing and was very prego with baby #2. It was so much fun and I didn't realize just how much I missed her. I love you Sarah!!!




Anita and Steve you two do not look scary at all in the picture!





Anita and Avery got our pumpkins all ready to set out on the front porch. They looked awesome!! Liam was in desperate need of a hair cut! Anita and I took him in later that day, thank goodness!





Anita And Steve got the kids and early Christmas present! They ordered it and had it shipped here so we could get it all put together and ready for when they got here. This was the largest power wheel Jeep I had ever seen!! Honestly is huge!!! Needless to say they were ecstatic!!! Liam LOVED it too. He sat shotgun the whole time and didn't move in fear he would have to get out. There are 3 other neighbor boys that also have them so it was a ton of fun to watch all these kids and their "toys".
Thank goodness they are still building behind us so we had plenty of room to just go crazy!







They did get stuck, once.


Halloween day was such a beautiful day!! The weather was perfect! We first went to the kids friends house and got a group picture, are they not all just so darn cute!! Avery decided to be Heidi, Lincoln was in the o so small spider-man costume that he was continually digging out of his butt, and Liam donned a sweet cape! I love it when it's easy. They had a blast running from door to door. Liam's little bag got a bit full and he ended up dragging it up to the front doors, it was so cute. My amazing mother was also here to help us celebrate, but hurt her hip and had to wait for us at home :( I would have more pictures of her, but she runs away when I bust out the camera!











The next day it was time to say goodbye to Anita and Steve :( We were all so sad to see them go and can't wait until they are able to come back for another visit. My mom was able to stay for a few more days and of course we would keep her forever if we could. She is great with the kids and there is nobody like Nana! Love you mom.
So all in all, we had a GREAT October!

The Pumpkin Patch

Every Friday we have family night as long as Jared is home. We let the kids stay up a bit later and we get a movie and have snacks. We also have FHE (family home evening). Last Friday we decided to go to the pumpkin patch. I packed a picnic for dinner and then we were on our way. The kids had so much fun running all over the place looking and feeling all the different pumpkins. I would tell them to try and find the biggest pumpkin, the smallest pumpkin, the craziest pumpkin and so on. They had a blast with it! Liam just liked being outside running around doing whatever! Once he figured out he couldn't really lift the pumpkins, he was done with them.












Liam was bound and determined to climb up these stone steps. He was so proud of himself when he reached the top and kept yelling for all of us to look at him. He is such a doll!







Eating our dinner!



A Boy and his dad!
Jared is such an amazing father! As I am typing this post he is playing star wars with the boys and has been playing with them for almost two hours now. To some this may not be much, but he was on call last night which means he just finished doing a 27 hours shift with a whopping, combined, 3 1/2 hours of sleep. He could very easily lay down and drift off into a comma, but instead he chooses to stay up all day and dote on the kids. You are so loved by us all Jared!

Orange And Black Day + A Teacher Birthday = A Crazy Night!

Yesterday Lincoln had Orange and Black day at school. He also had to bring the treat for his class. It was also Avery's teachers birthday and so we had to make her a gift as well. I made the bread for Avery's basket earlier that day and just had to run to the store to get some nice jam. So I went to the bat caves with Ave and her class on Wed. night, which was pretty cool, and we got home around 8:45. Jared, bless his heart, had cleaned the kitchen and was willing to go to the store for me for some jam, bags, and cellophane. I got the two older ones in bed and then made some chocolate chip cookies to go in the basket. I made Oreo spiders for Linc. I made these for Avery's kindergarten class last year and he loved them. So Jared watched Jaws and I made spiders and a basket, It was actually a relaxing evening. Avery's basket turned out so cute! I made a loaf of wheat bread and then also put in a bear full of honey, raspberry jam, and a bag of to die for chocolate chip cookies! Ave made the card and we attached it with the bow! I didn't get any pictures, but Ave said her teacher picked her up and hugged her! She was so excited about that.
Lincoln LOVED the cookies and couldn't wait to get to school! He wore his favorite shirt and was ready to go. I also sent him with some blueberry muffins so they at least had some kind of healthy something ;0).




Jared had the day off so he surprised Lincoln and picked him up. When he walked in he had this giant spider that he made on his head! I couldn't have planned it better if I had tried!

Lincoln And Liam

Lincoln had school pictures about a week ago. He was so cute and had his shirt all picked out! I bet you can't guess what his favorite color is. He is getting so big.

Some of the funny things he has said are:
"mom, I'm a LOT of hot!".
"mom, why is your bum so big?" Thanks Linc.
"Liam is so cute, can I squish him?"
"mom, will you play Star wars with me and jump on the couch when we fight?" Yes, I do do this.
He loves preschool and all that he is learning. I love it when he comes home excited because of something new that he has learned. He can right his name legibly now and know every letter and just about every sound that they make.
I love you Linc!



Most of you know we met with the Urologist on Monday. He went over Liam's history and looked at his sweet little body. He told us that he wants to talk to his partner, Dr. Peppas, as he specializes in what Liam has, and give us a call back. Dr. Peppas trained at Johns Hopkins where they are the leading research experts on Cloacle Exstrophy. One of the other procedures that he needs done is called a Monty and Dr.Leslie specializes in that. He will also need a General Surgeon and possibly an Orthopedic surgeon as well. The Dr. called Jared yesterday and said that they want to do an ultrasound on Liam's kidneys to see how they are doing. Liam has a level 4 reflux, 5 being the worst. He said that as long as his kidneys are fine and he does not get any Urinary or Kidney infections we should be fine to wait a few years until we need to do the surgery. I am praying his kidneys are fine, of course, but to not have another surgery for at least 2 to 3 more years would be heaven! They are going to give us a call early next week to get everything scheduled and add to the tests if they think he needs something else done. Keep your fingers crossed this sweet child gets to have a few years off from the OR rooms!

Some Things To Watch

Liam did not have his appointment with the Dr. :0( They ended up scheduling us with the wrong one, so we see him on the 18th and I will let you know how it goes then :0)

Yesterday I got the boys Light Sabers. I have no idea how to spell it so, sorry if it is wrong. Linc has been asking for one for a while now and Target had them for $8. So we got two. Liam thought it was the coolest thing ever to play with his big brother. Lincoln played with it all day. He and I had quite the battle most of the day. When it came time to walk up to the bus stop to get Ave, yes, the battle did continue!
I love these two and Lincoln is such a great big brother and always looks out for Liam.


Last weekend Jared and I took the kids to Sea World. They have their Halloween celebration going on and I have to say they did an excellent job! I didn't get too many pictures and the video that I got wasn't of the greatest stuff, but the kids LOVED it! They had Elmo and a ton of other characters from Sesame Street put on a Halloween show. Liam loves Elmo, so when he came out he went crazy and started screaming! I can't wait to go back next weekend!

Here We Go Again.......Sigh

This Friday Liam has his first appointment with the Pediatric Urologist here in San Antonio. Most of you know that he still needs one more major surgery. So many thoughts run through my head as we get ready for this appointment, Did we choose the right residency, did we choose the right Dr. Is Liam going to be ok. But, I truly believe that God will take care of him in the way that he was meant to be taken care of, as long as we do all that we can as parents. I love this kid and my heart breaks knowing another big surgery is close at hand.

One Of Liam's new found loves is smarties :0)

A Clean Car..........Finally!

Since it was a million degrees when we moved here, I had not cleaned the van out from driving from Utah. Needless to say, it was in need of some serious attention! On Monday the high was randomly in the high 70's so I put the boys to work! Lincoln vacuumed and gathered the garbage (we all could have dined on what we found for a week!). Liam loves to pretend like he is driving and plays with all the buttons and levers as most kids do. So I gave him a wipe and had him clean the steering wheel. He actually loves to help.








Afterwards we went for a walk and then back home for lunch. I laid Liam down for his nap and when I came downstairs, Linc was out! He doesn't let me take to many pictures of him so I had to take advantage of this. He looked so sweet and piece full there. I wanted to pick him up and just hold him. I love this boy so much and he makes me smile every single day! I love you Linc.






I could watch my kids sleep all day.