Happy Halloween!

 So, we're a little late with the sentiments, but what's new? We're always late now! Fall is here and Halloween was a little hectic, but always fun. William was Fix it Felix, Lily was the girl version of the Lone Ranger, and Jane was a pumpkin. I put together their costumes this year and I made Lily's vest and mask. It's was a lot of fun to do this year. I got them all done before our Trunk or Treat. For some reason if you tell the kids to do a scary face they automatically go to zombie mode.

 Wreck-it Ralph and Vanelope were at the Trunk or Treat too. Of course we had to take a picture!

Our little pumpkin girl.

 Lone Ranger. She had to pose so you could see her holster and gun.

 Fix it Felix with his gold hammer.

 Matthew took William and Lily to Bass Pro Shops one evening and they had this Great Pumpkin set up to take pictures. They were so excited to show me when they got home.

 We went to the pumpkin patch during the kid's fall break to pick our perfect pumpkins. We love Walden Farms in Smyrna. It's a lot of fun and there's so much to do and look at.

Here is our big haul!

 We had  a pumpkin carving party and watched Halloween movies! Lily's pumpkin is Monster High. William's pumpkin is Mario. Jane's is the owl and Matthew's is the scary face. We did have another pumpkin, but after carving two pumpkins my hands could barely straighten out!

 

The weather ended up being awful on Halloween, so all the neighborhoods postponed trick or treating. Bummer! We still had fun and went to John and Krystin's house for games and cookies. We got all three of the new babies together for a first Halloween picture. Jane was obviously excited about this. 

 When we got home (and the electricity came back on) we continued the party and made some Halloween goodies. William and Lily made mummy pigs in a blanket!

We weren't able to go trick or treating this year, but William and Lily still had a great holiday and had fun dressing up.

Happy Halloween!!

Fall Break: Zoo

 I know, I know! I just did a post about the kids and the zoo, but like I said we have a pass! So, we didn't go once, but twice over the two week fall break my kids had. I just have to say that I LOVE when these little kiddos are out of school. It's the best to do fun things with them and spend time with them. I feel like when they're in school we don't get enough time! Anyway, we first went to the zoo with Krystin and her boys. We went through the new Kangaroo Kickabout exhibit and the kids actually got to pet a kangaroo!

 William, of course, was a little apprehensive!

 The kids got to ride the carousel while Jane and I hung out!

 Lily chose the snow leopard. She's fierce that way.

 William thought he was being funny by getting on the snake because he knows how much I hate them! We actually let the kids play at the "Jungle Gym" playground at the zoo. It's HUGE and so crazy! I usually don't have the kids play there so it was a treat!

 The second week of our break we went to the zoo with Keaven and her girls! This time we actually went through the entire zoo! We started at the farm where the miniature pony, Stormy, begged for fruit snacks. Lily pet him which I'm not sure is against the rules, but I'm betting feeding him would be the biggest no no.

 The zoo was starting to get things set up for Halloween. They had booths throughout the place where children can come and trick or treat after hours. We didn't do this, but it looked fun and we got a good picture and a "scary" picture out of it!

Coloring Contest

 

William came home from school about a month ago and told me that he did really well coloring a picture in his art class that his teacher kept it. I told him I was proud of him and we talked about what he had colored. Fast forward a couple of weeks, William came home and said that the picture he had colored won a contest at school. I told him that he was awesome and I asked him if he got a prize or anything and (of course) he didn't really know. The next week, I got a phone call from his art teacher saying that William colored a picture for a Firefighter coloring contest in Nashville. It's for all 2nd graders and William's picture won for AZ Kelley. It was submitted and his was picked to be in the final three! The Firefighters didn't pick out a winner, but they recognized all three children at a Tracy Lawrence concert at the Municipal Auditorium! Way to underplay it, huh William?

 

 William was recognized on stage along with his art teacher and the dog Flash.

 They had all three of the final pictures up on the screen. William's in the middle. He received an award that had his picture on it. We decided that it was Flash and then William colored the children to look like him and Lily.

Matthew and I are so proud of our William. He is just so awesome and we love him so much. He is incredibly talented in a lot of ways. William has since been telling people that he's famous because he was on stage in front of a bunch of people. Gotta love him! 



Shots are Hard

Jane had her 2 month check up today! And with a 2 month check up come immunizations. She had 3 shots and one oral at the doctor and MAN was that nurse super fast! I'm grateful for that.

Little Jane is okay, but these shots are so hard on little bodies. It's amazing the incredible things that bodies can do and I know she'll fight and feel better real soon.

Jane is growing and is healthy! Hooray! She is now weighing 11 lbs 2 oz and is 22 inches long. I can't remember her head circumference, but I do know that it is in the 74th percentile. Above average, but our pediatrician kept talking about what a pretty shape it was! We talked about some of the things going on with her and figured that she has a mild case of colic and she should grow out of it in a month or so. I know that it's already getting better!

We'll have lots of cuddle time today. I'm all about it and so are William and Lily!

 

2 Months

 Jane is 2 months today. How is it possible? Time has gone by too quickly, but they say that time flies when you're having fun. Life is chaotic, but I am having so much fun with this little lady. Jane is a sweet baby. Probably as sweet as they come. She lets me cuddle her and kiss her all over her face. She lets me squeeze her cheeks. Facial and elsewhere.   

In the past couple of weeks, she's grown out of her newborn clothes. I had to clean out her dresser. Maybe I cried, okay? This little strawberry number is one of my most favorites! Lily wore it too.

 I see this little one grow and I'm so grateful for her health. Jane's getting longer and getting her adorable and squeezable baby rolls. She's sleeping more and more of the nights. I'm so happy to get the rest, but it also means less time to rock and cuddle her little body in my arms.

 

Jane's already passing through milestones and my mother's heart wants to keep her little forever. Hug her tight forever. I know that that is not going to happen, so why not soak in every single moment?

 Every sigh. Every noise. Every crazy arm wave. Every stretch and yawn. Every time she looks at me with her little almond shaped eyes. Every cuddle in bed.

Yes, I know she's only 2 months old and there are other milestones that will blow this out of the water. And I know I'll cry then too.  

I'm just so grateful for this tiny little one and my other two not so tiny little ones. As hard as it is to watch them grow I still love to watch them mold into some pretty awesome people. I wouldn't miss that for anything. I'm keeping my eyes open and hoping that my memory will be kind and store every little detail. 

3 Kids

 It's no secret that I love to take pictures, especially of my kids. I have now come to find that trying to take a decent picture of 3 kids is like a billion times harder! I have about 10 pictures very similar to the ones above. No one looking at the camera, crazy smiles, what is going on?

 

But I think we got a couple of good ones too...