Happy Halloween!

Halloween is over! I really enjoy this holiday but it certainly wore me out this year. There is something about a bunch of candy and costumes that bring out so much drama! We experienced several tantrums and lots of whining, but we also had a great day.

Here we were last night carving a pumpkin. This event went by with little drama. Whew!

And today we had our friends Mindy, Meredith and Allie over for a little Halloween "party". The kids had fun eating lunch together, decorating pumpkin cookies and playing outside.
Our littlest pumpkin enjoyed the day too...
Here is Levi and Meredith in their costumes. Could they be any cuter?!

It was a quiet afternoon while all 3 boys took a nap. It took A LOT of persuasion and some tears to get Levi to take one but he finally did. Then it was time to put on the costumes. The boys were Buzz Lightyear, Woody and Slinky Dog from Toy Story. Levi wanted Graham to be slinky dog or Mr. Potato Head and since I knew we had a dog costume I agreed to the slinky dog idea. However, when we got it out the boys were quick to point out that it wasn't slinky dog. While Michael wanted to wrap some duck tape around his stomach to make him look like Slinky, I vetoed the idea because I thought he would look like a dog with duck tape wrapped around him.

Anyway, the boys were excited about their costumes until we had to put them on! Ben hated his holster, hat and boots. And come to think of it, the shirt required some persuasion as well. Basically he only liked his jeans. And Levi had to be convinced that not everyone would be looking at him. After a few tears we were all dressed and ready to head to our neighbor's house for a little get-together.

Here's me and "Slinky"...
And Woody...
Here's Levi (while still not convinced that everyone wouldn't be looking at just him!) with his buddy Spiderman...
Buzz, Woody, Spiderman, Mr. Incredible & a firefighter all engaged in some "rough play". We told them that they could only pretend to fight. The joy of boys!
We had a great time trick-or-treating with some buddies and handing out candy at our house. The boys actually got along pretty well and had a great night.
And I'm pretty sure we'll have some tantrums in the morning when we don't let the boys have skittles & chocolate for breakfast.

Happy Halloween!

Evidence of my fabulous cooking skills

I mentioned in my previous post that life has been a bit crazy around here. Hopefully I can use that as an excuse for Ben's following comment...

Ben and I were watching television when a Chick-fil-a commercial came on. Ben got really excited and said, "Look, Mommy. It's dinner!"

Now I'm feeling horribly guilty so I'm off to make chicken parmesan for dinner. Only 2 of the 5 of us will appreciate it. The other 3 would probably rather have dinner from a bag!

My middle man

I haven't been blogging much lately. I don't know why other than the fact that I haven't had much time to even breathe. I've taken on more projects than is humanly possible, and as a result, sleeping and blogging have had to take a little break. The lack of blogging hasn't had any adverse affects on me or our family, but the lack of sleep, well, I'm afraid it has caused a few problems. The biggest problem is that I'm tired! Go figure.


On to more important things...like my little gymnast. Don't worry, Daddy. I don't think Ben is going to be a gymnast. He just absolutely loves his tiny tots gymnastics class which is more like a giant obstacle course. He had his last class of the session last week so I brought my camera along to capture his enthusiasm. Seriously, Ben doesn't stop smiling the entire hour. I think Monday evenings are his favorite time of the week. Last week he wouldn't eat dinner because he said, "I have to go to tumbling class!"

And I have absolutely loved that hour that we get to spend together. Just Ben and I. It's so good for both of us. This little guy is pure joy. He's full of life and just being with him puts a smile on my face. I have worried that being the middle child and having to become a big brother at only 15 months would be hard for him, but based on his constant smile and sweet spirit, I think he's just fine.
I signed Ben up for another eight week of classes, and I can't wait. Michael and I will probably fight over who gets to take him each week. Ben, you are an absolute joy. I'm so glad that I get to live life with you. Thanks for making me smile and laugh everyday!

The Pumpkin Patch

It is one of my favorite activities of the year...I absolutely love it! Even though it was about 80 degrees outside, we spent the afternoon at the pumpkin patch on Saturday with a group of friends. The kids had a lot of fun playing on all the slides, in the sand boxes, seeing the animals, and of course, picking out their favorite pumpkins. I guess I should say that Levi had a lot of fun. Graham had no clue where he was or what he was doing, and Ben got a bit impatient. While out in the field, he just kept screaming, "I want to go home!". The good thing about going when it still felt like summer was that there were hardly any people and there were lots of pumpkins! Here are some pics from the afternoon...

The family in the barn -

On the hayride out to the pumpkin patch -

Levi and his pumpkin -

Levi and Ben and their "baby pumpkins" -

Our 3 little pumpkins -

Handsome Ben -

This is what most of our pictures look like (and our life!) -
With Halloween still a month away, I think we might have to make another trip to the pumpkin patch. Maybe then we won't be wearing summer clothes and have sweaty faces!

Happy Birthday, Graham Oliver!

One year. Really? I'm not quite sure how that could be. I am not exaggerating when I say that it flew by. I hardly remember it happening, and I'm pretty certain I was there for every minute of it. And I do mean every minute. Graham, you are attached to my hip - a permanent accessory to my outfits. Your daddy says you will never learn to walk as much as you like for your mommy to hold you. Somehow I seriously doubt that you'll be army crawling into kindergarten.

I went through the pictures this morning in an attempt to remember the moments of the year, trying to figure out how you are no longer a little baby. Here's your first year in review...

September 24, 2007 -
One month old -
Two months old -
Three months old -
Four months old -
Five months old -
Six months old -
Seven months old -
Eight months old -
Nine months old -
Ten months old -
Eleven months old -
And now, one year old! -

So I guess you really are one. Twelve months have passed us by, and in the midst of the craziness we have fallen in love with you. Graham Oliver, you are an absolute joy. I love the way you grab onto me tightly and lay your head on my shoulder when I get you up in the morning ...how your whole body shakes when you're excited...the little dimple under your eye...the way you army crawl around the house with speed and precision (and the very dirty shirts you have because of it)...how you get absolutely ecstatic when you see grapes and blueberries - you could eat them all day long...your love for Mr. Potato Head - you can even army crawl while holding onto him...how your whole face lights up when you see your brothers...your admiration for doors and your tendency to shut yourself in the laundry room and bathroom...and I absolutely love those big brown eyes.

Your big brothers just adore you too. It's hard to believe, but yesterday you had your first injury caused by a big brother. It was an accident, but a toy smacked you in the nose leaving you to look like Rudolph. A couple of people have commented that you must be used to getting injured by now, but that couldn't be further from the truth. Levi and Ben are both so gentle and protective with you. They watch you closely and quickly make sure I know if you are even 10 feet from the stairs. And you love them just as much. You want to be right where they are at all times. And I'm afraid you are following in their footsteps, as you really want to play with the trains. That doesn't make your brothers very happy because you basically destroy their tracks and throw every train off the table.

We chose a Psalms for each of the boys before their births, and for you we chose Psalms 145.

I will exalt you, my God the King;
I will praise your name for ever and ever.
Every day I will praise you
and extol your name for ever and ever.

Great is the LORD and most worthy of praise;
his greatness no one can fathom.
One generation will commend your works to another;
they will tell of your mighty acts.
They will speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty,
and I will meditate on your wonderful works.
They will tell of the power of your awesome works,
and I will proclaim your great deeds.
They will celebrate your abundant goodness
and joyfully sing of your righteousness.

The LORD is gracious and compassionate,
slow to anger and rich in love.
The LORD is good to all;
he has compassion on all he has made.
All you have made will praise you, O LORD;
your saints will extol you.
They will tell of the glory of your kingdom
and speak of your might,
So that all men may know of your mighty acts
and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
and your dominion endures through all generations.

The LORD is faithful to all his promises
and loving toward all he has made.
The LORD upholds all those who fall
and lifts up all who are bowed down.
The eyes of all look to you,
and you give them their food at the proper time.
You open your hand
and satisfy the desires of every living thing.

The LORD is righteous in all his ways
and loving toward all he has made.
The LORD is near to all who call on him,
to all who call on him in truth.
He fulfills the desires of those who fear him;
he hears their cry and saves them.
The LORD watches over all who love him,
but all the wicked he will destroy.

My mouth will speak in praise of the LORD.
Let every creature praise his holy name
for ever and ever.

This passage could not be more fitting for you and our family. God was so great to us this past year. He is indeed most worthy of praise, and His abundant goodness has called for a great celebration. His faithfulness and compassion have been more real to me than ever. In looking back at all He has taught me this past year, I realized that this has been the richest year of my life!

Graham, this is our prayer for you...that you will know the goodness and compassion of our God. That His awesome works will be evident to you. We pray that you will be "bowed down" in submission to His will for your life. That you will "call on Him in truth" and "fear Him". In a world filled with people searching for something to live for and something to believe in, we pray that your life will be firmly grounded in the truth of God's Word and that your love for Him and His love for you will instill in you great passion and purpose.

We love you, little Graham.
Happy 1st birthday!

It's a monkey party!

Our little monkey. I'm not sure when we started using that name for Graham or exactly why, but it is very fitting for him. He doesn't EVER sit still, and he is constantly climbing on things - mostly me! He's long and lean and reminds us of a little monkey. So we had a monkey party for his 1st birthday, and we decided that it needed to be a big celebration. After a year of craziness, we have lots to celebrate! We had a fun party at our house with friends and family - 20 adults and 22 kids to be exact. Thankfully, it was a gorgeous evening so we were able to be outside.

Here's his cake, which obviously I did NOT make. The same cake genius who made Levi's Gordon cake made this one. Seriously, this girl is talented. She copied the invitation exactly.

Doesn't that banana look real? It isn't.


We had such a great time celebrating sweet little Graham. And most importantly, Graham was happy all evening. Somehow he knew the party was all about him. Here's some pictures of the fun (otherwise described as chaos!)...

Isn't there supposed to be a rule about how many kids can be on a trampoline? -
With Grandma and the sock monkey she made him -

With Mimi and Papa -

So happy! -

With big brother Levi -

With Mommy and Daddy after the party had ended -


Graham LOVED his cake. He did exactly what he was supposed to do - he dug in and was covered in frosting from head to toe.



And here he is opening some presents with lots of help -


And at the end of the night, he let us know that he was ready for bed!

Soon you will be one, little man! I'm still going to call you 11 months until the exact day (tomorrow!) because this mama is not ready for you to grow up!