Bates Nut Farm

Every year we go to Bate’s Nut Farm and every year it is jammed packed.  I swear, there was one year nobody was there.  Regardless of all the people, it was super fun.  The weather was true fall weather.  I love it.  Even though we didn’t have much of a summer, I still was looking forward to the fall.  Something about the angle of the sun or the shadows on the trees always tells me its autumn.

The boys had so much fun with their baby sister.  She especially loved the maze. 

The kids went nuts running around.  Henry was especially excited.  They made it sort of like a treasure hunt in which the kids received a map.  Each time they discovered certain areas they received a sticker for that area.  It made the maze a lot of fun for the boys who like to think they are turn of the century explorers.

 

We got to go on the hayride which is always a highlight for me.  I love watching the kids look around with wonder as they get to see the entire farm.  It almost feels like we stepped into The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.  So awesome!

At the end of the day we got our pumpkins.  The kids had so much fun climbing around in the pumpkins and taking pictures.  They had a blast hamming it up.

We had a great time and I totally look forward to going again next year.  I think next year, we will go during the week when its less crowded though.  =)

Brain Cake

 

Intriguing isn’t it?  My 6 year old is obsessed with brains for some reason.  So, for his birthday I decided to make a brain cake.   It was sooo easy once I looked up “brain cake” online.  I baked a couple of round cakes, slapped them together and then coiled rolled fondant on top.  I added some raspberry jam for the bloody effect. It was pretty gross when it was all done.  Even my 13 year old thought it was disgusting.  Mission accomplished!

I also had a Halloween themed birthday party for him.  I had all these games planned which I thought would take up the two hours I allotted for the party.  We played 3 games in only 15 minutes!  Luckily, my mom was there to sing some silly songs with them.  

We played mummy wrap, pin the mouth on the jack-o-lantern, daylight/darkness (vampire version of red light/green light) and the Frankenstein walk.  Before we opened presents, I read a scary story to them while they passed around bowls of “body parts.”

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The party was such a great success and I loved every minute of it too!  The kids were so cute dressed up in their costumes.  They had so much fun.  I can’t wait to do it again next year!

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Swimming Pool

Ok, I know I TOTALLY stink at posting.  But, I was on Facebook for about 3 months and posted there.  That's my excuse and I'm stickin' to it.  I've decided FB is a big waste of time not to mention a privacy nightmare and spam headache.  Unfortunately, I had a few friends who posted EVERYTHING.  So, every time they posted something I got a whole wall of "so and so just bought a cat on animal farm"  or "help!  so and so forget to feed their pet platypus"...so ridiculous.  I digress...

Anyway, we had an interesting Spring.  Julia got pertussis (whooping cough) and was hospitalized at Children's for a week after she kept throwing up and passing out after coughing spells.  Luckily, we got it in time (just barely) and she's fine with no permanent damage.   If you don't know already, make sure you have your pediatrician test for pertussis if your kids have a bad cough.  Its a very simple test and the disease is treated with antibiotics.  However, it can get out of hand quickly as we found out.

We decided to put a pool in this year, as you know from my previous post, and were so grateful for it after all the crap we'd been through the past year.  Its absolutely beautiful and we LOVE it.  The kids go in it almost everyday, even after school.  We have solar so it stays warm although, its not quite warm enough now for me to go in it, but the kids love it.  We take Julia in the spa before her bath time and she absolutely goes crazy.  I hope you like the pictures.

This was actually 4th of July

Julia trying on her new swim suits

General Conference

This weekend was General Conference. I've been a member of the Church for about 2 years and have been attending for 3 and I've never really watched it before. I did order the BYU channel some time last year but only watched about 10 min. of one of the talks. I know this sounds awful, but I get so bored sometimes watching people speak. I don't want to de-value the message by being disinterested so I really avoid watching General Conference. I usually read the talks in the Ensign. I like to save them and put them into a journal when one particular talk speaks to me.

Anyway, on Saturday morning, I was playing with the baby and watching some show on HGTV with Cade when all of a sudden, I felt I should be watching General Conference. I switched the channel and thought I'd give it another chance. I caught most of the morning session and was SO glad I did. I really enjoyed watching our leaders in the Church speak to us with heartfelt sincerity. I was so touched by the impromptu tears. Many of the talks were about our youth. Did I need to hear that! I really felt like they were speaking directly to me. I felt so much more focused about my calling, my kids, FHE...everything. I had to take Cade and the baby down to San Diego to pick up some huge pots for the pool. I left after the morning session was over and was able to get back right before the afternoon session started. How's that for timing!?! I really felt like the Lord wanted me to hear those words.

I had such a wonderful experience. I was so glad that I was able to watch it with my kids. I felt like I was being a good example and hope they heard something that will bless them as issues come up in their life when I can't be there. As most of you know, I'm not remotely close to Molly Mormon. I might not be on top of everything and I didn't have time to watch it Sunday or do any Conference activities with them BUT what I did do, I felt like I was heading in the right direction. Some day I'll be one of those people that have discussions and make coloring books about the talks and the leaders. But for now, I'm just glad we watched it together and that I am looking forward to watching the next one.

Pool!

We are putting a pool in our backyard! We started construction about a week ago and the whole process is going really fast. I am so excited! We've had one minor glitch - we hit rock during the dig. We were about 6 feet in the deep end when we hit it. I really wanted the pool to be 8 feet since I know my boys are going to be jumping off anything they can. Well, we asked the crew to stay another day (this was expensive) and they hit 8 feet! I was so excited. It was well worth the extra money.

Anyway, I'll try to post pictures as the construction process continues. We should be done with the whole thing by mid May. I can't wait to sit outside, watch the kids play in the water, grill out and relax. Totally well worth it!

Measuring the space

Who's that old geezer?

The demolition crew

You guys ain't got nothin' on us!

I don't know about you, but I get pretty sick of hearing men talk about how bad it hurts when they get hit in the (you know). I am especially irritated by the drop to the ground and writhing about when it happens as well. Besides the lovely sensation of giving birth, we girls have other areas that make me want to tell those wimpy men: you ain't got nothin' on us!

The other day I was nursing my daughter. Poor thing had been sick with a cold and was snarling at me when....she bit me with her nasty little gummers! Oh my gosh did that hurt. So I yelled, "that hurt" and warned her if she did it again, I might not be feeding her anymore. Incidentally, I've had this conversation a few times with her. My husband was lying in bed and said to me in an admonishing tone, "she's sick, she can't help it." To which I replied, "how would you like it if she bit one of your testicles?" He looked stunned and said, "why do you have to go there?" I was thinking 'ditto'.

Wanted: Cheerleaders!

After having Julia, I haven't been able to lose much weight. I'm sure the 10 or 11 Oreos I eat late at night doesn't help either. I used to be slim but now I feel like a disgusting blob. I ordered P90X after hearing really good things about it from others who had tried it. In fact, I have a friend who has lost about 110lbs by doing the exercises.

I started watching the videos yesterday and I am dying I tell you!!! I am so out of shape - bleh. Geez, who knew an extra 20 lbs would kick your butt!?! I started the program before getting pregnant with Julia, but did way too much on the leg video and could barely walk. I figured it was time to quit when I became too afraid to walk down stairs for fear of falling, my legs were so tight. I need to stick with it this time though. I even took pictures for "before and after" purposes. Ughhhh... what a disgusting reality that was! I need a cheerleading team to help me stick with it because the videos are an hour long and 5-6 days a week. Bring on the cheerleaders, please!!!