Happy Halloween!!!

So bear with me because I took a million Halloween pictures-mostly of Cart-man in his pea pod costume. So I want to include several of them. I hope this doesn't offend anyone, but seriously people if you dress your dog up for Halloween, you need therapy. It's a dog for heaven's sake! Anyway, we ended up with three out of four of our pumpkin patch pumpkins molding so I only got to carve the small one this year. For those of you who weren't aware, that has become my job over the years. Daddio carved two pumpkins the first year we lived here, but that's been it. So I spent the day doing laundry in between carving and baking cookies for the neighborhood party. I picked the boys up from school and they ran home and got dressed and we were off to the party to play games and frost cookies and have pizza. We came home for about 45 minutes before trick-or-treating the entire neighborhood with friends. Peanut and Cart-man didn't quite last the entire time, but pretty close. There was only one house that Peanut wouldn't go to because it was "haunted." Not really, but they had fog and gravestones in their yard and noises. JP said, "This isn't scary," and then when the guy sitting still like a statue with make-up came up behind him he started speed walking right out of there. He never screamed or ran, though.

-As a side note, today was all red day at school because it's been fight against drugs week. So Bubba wanted some red pants and red hairspray. I got some red sweats at Walmart and then proceeded to go to FIVE stores to find the stupid hair stuff. It ended up being gel so it was spikey today. He thought that was pretty cool and was really appreciative of my hard work to find it.-

So my felt Tinkerbell costume actually turned out really well. I was proud of it. I also had some gold shimmer stuff to wear so I was sparkly. My baby pea pod is definitely the show stealer. Indiana Jones looked good, but gave up on carrying the whip pretty early on. Ninja's ties kept loosening and falling down. Tiger wouldn't wear his head and kept yanking his sleeves up. The costume was really too small so it was kind of funny anyway. Oh yeah, it was unseasonably warm this year, so next year I'm sure it will snow. It was in the sixties! It was the first year we didn't have to layer or wear beenies or gloves. We're so used to buying warm costumes, or things you can wear pajama pants under, but this year we were warm without it.

Wishing you all a fun and spooky holiday!

Primary Program

So I forgot to mention our primary program from Sunday. I know I'm usually very cynical, but I have to talk about our wonderful primary program. I usually don't get very much out of it when they do the program. It seems like the kids always rush through their parts and start walking away from the microphone before they finish reading their part. It seems like a mish mosh of parts that don't usually seem cohesive to me. But our program this past Sunday had me crying through almost the whole thing. I felt so overcome by the Spirit. It was so wonderful. All the kids did such a wonderful job memorizing parts and some of the older boys gave mini-talks on baptismal covenants, temple covenants, and remembering who you are. When the kids sang "Called to Serve" they held up posters with pictures and the names of the missionaries who are out in our ward and I lost it then since my brother is out serving. We had practiced the boys parts in Family Home Evening the Mon. before. JP did exactly what we had practiced. He found me in the congregation, smiled, recited his part from memory, smiled again, and then sat down. We wanted to make sure they knew to slowly say their parts so everyone could understand. Bubba had a scripture, so slowly read it and remembered to cite the scripture. I was so proud of them and was misty eyed the entire time. B was on the stand with his class, so I had the two little ones and was able to really enjoy the entire thing. It was really a wonderful experience.

Clutziest Person in the World

And the winner is...ME! So I've always been a little bit of a clutz. I was pretty much all legs growing up and my hip bones stuck out, so I was constantly walking into stuff. Well, the clutz part hasn't changed, though my body has. It's even worse when I'm pregnant. Well, a couple of weeks ago I walked into their awesomely huge Playmobil pirate ship. Not just the ship, but the pointiest part that overhangs in the front. I hit it right on my ankle, which happened to be my bad ankle that I had surgery on years ago that still has nerve damage. So it shot that pins and needles feeling through my foot when I did it. It's still bruised and hurting when I walk all day. So then, last week, while I was picking the baby up off the living room floor, I slammed my pinky toe on the same foot right into the foot of the couch. Yep, I broke it. So my whole foot is all bruised. B said it looked like I was in a car accident. Then, like the next night while making dinner, I sliced a chunk out of my middle finger. I think my boo-boos must come in threes like Bubba's. Unfortunately, that's one of the awesome traits I passed on to him.

Peanut has had a fever or "beaver" for a week now, but I think he's finally getting better today. However, he passed it on to baby brother of course. So poor baby hasn't been able to sleep well or eat solids well for the last couple of days. Needless to say, I haven't slept much the last three nights. I got about 8 hours total the first two nights, but luckily he let me nap this morning with him so I caught up a little. He had his 9 mth. check-up yesterday and he's a little small for both height and weight. Peanut had his 3 1/2 yr. well child and he's tall and skinny (which we already knew). So it looks like the two middle boys not only look alike, but have the same body and the bookends look alike and have the same stockier body type. It's funny how that happens.

We had a Halloween party this past Saturday. That was interesting. It's my favorite holiday so I wanted it to be fun, but I was up all night the night before making sugar cookies and rice krispy treats for 35 kids. It's a good thing we have a huge backyard and that at least 3 parents stayed. I guess I would do a couple of more games next time and split them into groups so they wouldn't be running around like mad people while the others were in line or doing a game. It was a hit and there wasn't a single cookie left undecorated.

I was put in as the Den Leader for the Wolves on Sun., which is just a step up from what I was doing as assistant, but I'm really excited. I love this age because they're so excited about scouts and have fun no matter what we do.

The Pumpkin Patch

Last Saturday we went out to the pumpkin patch that we have gone to for the last two years. This year they had a petting zoo and pony rides along with the usual rides they have. We let Bubba go thru the corn maze with Daddio while Peanut and JP did the little barrel train ride. They all went thru the straw maze, which the older two are really too tall to have any fun doing, but JP held Peanut's hand and took him thru the whole thing several times. Then we went on the hayride to the petting zoo. All three boys fed some fun animals. They had the usual sheep and goats, but they also had a coati (kind of looks like a raccoon, but climbs the cage like a monkey), a white donkey (which I've never seen before), a zebra, a camel, a big brahma bull, a llama, and two really mean emus. The two older boys were brave enough to feed the zebra, donkey, and camel (only after mom fed them half the food to demonstrate that it tickeled and would not bite my hand). Then, Peanut and JP decided to ride the ponies. JP's was named Pumpkin and Peanut's was named Casper because he was all white. Then we got back on the hayride to go pick out our pumpkins. Baby Cart-man passed out from all the bumping around, so I carried him around the field while the boys got a couple of pumpkins. It was such a fun day and super nice weather, unlike two years ago when we froze to death!

Captain Underpants

Hooray Hooray for no accidents! Peanut seems to officially be potty trained. Of course, now that I've said that, he'll poop in his pants again. But no really, he's been doing great and going on the toilet every time. It's fabulous! Three down, one to go...

Rantings of a Mad Woman

Okay, so want to know what's really cool? I tried on my bridesmaid dress for my sister's wedding and couldn't get it zipped up! So today I had to send it back to my mom to return to the store for an even bigger size. So, though I thought of eating my weight in tootsie rolls to feel better, I came to the conclusion that that would not help matters. For the less endowed women out there, be grateful. I know we always want what we can't have, but seriously be grateful. That's the whole reason I couldn't zip the dress up. I know I'll get a little smaller when I quit nursing, but not enough. B said, "If you suck it in and don't breathe, I could probably get it zipped." Gee, honey, that makes me feel so much better. I really wish I was like those women out there who quit eating when they get depressed. Unfortunately, I'm the kind that eats their feelings. Lucky for me! Really the whole reason the dress doesn't fit is that it's a junior size. At least that's what I keep telling myself.

My Super Awesome Cub Scout

My awesome scout turned 8 in May. He's been so gung-ho about achieving his requirements. He completed his Bobcat on his birthday and has now completed his Wolf. Unfortunately, he can't move up to Bear until he turns 9, but he can still continue to work on electives and earn more arrows. He earned his wolf patch and 3 arrows last night at pack meeting. He also performed in 2 skits that the boys were required to do last night. Such an awesome boy! He makes me so proud to be a mom of boys. By the time Cart-man is a Wolf, I'll have that book memorized. I'm an assistant den mom and it's so much fun. JP is already looking forward to the scouting program.

In other news, Peanut has pooped on the "toyet" 3 times today! Hooray! It snowed today too! Well, I should say it slushed because it was between snow and rain, but it was COLD! I found a cute pea pod costume for baby at Savers for $4.99 today. I finally found a coat for Bubba to be Indiana Jones at the DI; it's a little big, but it will work. JP is going to be a ninja and I'm going to make a Tinkerbell costume. I found wings at Savers for $4.99 and I plan on making a skirt out of felt or something cheap like that. Daddio hates to dress up. The only reason he has the last couple of years is because I've threatened to cancel Christmas. I hate decorating for Christmas and it's not really my favorite holiday, but he LOVES it. I'm not going to make him dress up this year. But he's still going to have to be the one to decorate for Christmas.

More Potty Training Woes

So, for those of you who just absolutely love to hear about my unfortunate potty training experiences, here's another one. So yesterday I was cleaning the play room and noticed a funny smell. It just smelled a little off, like stuffy or something. Well, the boys got home from school and Bubba asked me why the play room smelled like poop. I told him it didn't and that it was just stuffy, but then Peanut was in there, so I asked him if he had peed in there. He said no and I asked, "Are you sure you didn't go potty in here?" He said, "Back there," pointing to the back of the couch. So I went back there and was sniffing the carpet and finding nothing, when he came by the train table and pointed to a spot on the carpet and said, "Right there." I looked down to find a large rock hard poop on my carpet! I asked if he had done it that day and he said, "No, ahmahyo" (tomorrow, which I think meant yesterday). Luckily, it was dry and so didn't make a huge stain and was easy to clean up. I was telling him how he needs to go on the toilet and that it's not okay to go in his pants. He said, "I like to poop in my pants." I could seriously strangle him. What a stinker! Does anyone have any special potty training magic tricks?

Here's another one of JP's famous mis-quotes. I keep writing them, mostly for my sake so I can have a memory of them. We went to the grocery store for ice cream last night with grandma and all got in the car while she was putting the cart away. He asked what she was doing and I said, "Putting the cart away." JP, "She's talking on the phone?" I seriously do not make these up. He said another one today, but I can't remember it.

Someday I'll Sleep Again

So I'm running on little sleep again. Poor baby Cart-man was restless all night because he was getting his first tooth. He has decided that there's no better place to sleep than if mom is holding you in her arms in her bed-just laying next to her in bed just isn't good enough. He's great to just hang out and play during the day, but night time is a different story.

Peanut has decided to be a "tiga" for Halloween. The costume is from another year when JP used it and it's a bit small, but he's decided he likes to roar at people. He asked if he could sleep in it tonight, but I told him he would get too hot, so he's going to wear it "a-mah-yo" (tomorrow). We had some lovely pooping experiences this week. One day he decided to go in his underwear and it was grosser than gross, so I took him in the front yard, stripped him naked and power washed him with the hose. He decided it hurt and was cold and didn't want to do it again. I know I'm a bad mom, but it worked with the other two. So the next day I heard someone go into the bathroom and lift the lid and then close it and come out. I asked if he went potty and he said, "No, I was just putting my poop in the toyet." So I checked his underwear and sure enough he had gone a teeny bit and had put it in the toilet, so we changed pants and washed hands for sure after that one. Today, however, I had success. He told me he had to poop and then he went on the toilet! Hooray! We'll see if this is the beginning of the end.

B left for Vegas this afternoon. I watched conference and was spiritually fed. It was so uplifting to hear all the messages of enduring and hope. It makes me feel like I'll make it through these difficult times. The boys and I went to Deseret Book tonight for ladies night and let me tell you, if you're claustrophobic-bad idea. It was wall to wall ladies trying to win stuff. I think that I will re-think attending with 4 kids next time. I didn't win anything much to Bubba's chagrin, but they did have free cherry chocolate truffles and lots of yummy cookies. I took them to Fudruckers for a treat dinner afterwards and the two big boys got salads. How cool is that? The little one had like 2 french fries. I swear he survives on fruit snacks and cereal.

My sister got the bridesmaids dresses for her wedding and mine is a size ginormous, so I have some excercising to do because I refuse to admit I'm that size. I started walking yesterday and I've been eating better. It's hard to feel good about yourself when you're surrounded by skinny women in the ward that survive on twigs and berries and all your sisters-in-law are twigs. I think excercising is highly overrated and I enjoy eating the occassional dessert, so I doubt I'll ever fit into my purple vinyl pants again, but at least I might lose that baby belly so I don't still look 5 months pregnant. Well, my dad insisted I put an updated picture of myself, so I had Bubba take one. It's even sans make-up, so you can see me in all my natural glory. LOL. I'm growing my hair back out. I thought it would be good to cut it for the summer, but now I don't like it. It took me 4 years to grow it to where it was, so I'm missing it. I'll put a before and after photo. Well, I'm single mom again until sometime Tues. night, so we'll see how it goes this time. I told Daddio he owes me big time because the kids have been home from school all week on Fall Break. They barely started school, so I'm not sure what they were thinking having a break all week. I think they watched every Star Wars movie this week and tried to kill each other playing "life savers" (light sabers). We also discovered "High School Musical" from the library and Bubba loved it. He really likes musicals like his mom. He loved "Hairspray" too. I'm thinking he might even like "Mama Mia." Anyway, I'll keep you all updated on the mis-adventures of the week.