Storybook Forest

Last night we took the kids to the Storybook Forest at Lake Arcadia. For those of you who don't live around here, Storybook Forest includes a tree-lined trail for children to walk where they collect treats and visit scenes from classic stories and rhymes, including the Three Little Pigs, Sleeping Beauty, the Itsy Bitsy Spider and other stories. Other activities include listening to the reading of classic stories and nursery rhymes, a hayride and a few carnival type games. There are also campfires for roasting hot dogs and marshmallows.

I have wanted to go in years past but never worked it into our schedule. Unlike most other Halloween activities this one is only open from the 25th - 31st. We had plans every other night and last night was our only night we could go.

Here are a few pictures from last night.

First we walked through the trail, then did the hayride, followed by the cheesy carnival games and then we roasted hot dogs and marshmallows by the fire. We had a great time, but I had to wash my hair 2 times to try and get the smell of the fire out.

Here we are on the hayride. I think it is a very unflattering photo of me, but I guess no one really cares but me.

When we got back home Chris decided that he needed to sort through all the candy the kids have accumulated in all the Halloween festivities so far. He made different piles on the coffee table.

He then decided that we needed to weed through what we didn't like or had to much of and that is what will be sitting on our porch tonight (shh don't tell anyone!) The candy and stuff in the purple bowl is what Chris thinks we can choose to part with. The big container is what we are keeping.

This is kind of insane. They haven't even done the real trick or treating yet and we have all this candy. When I was little Halloween was a one night activity with maybe one party before. Now there is so much going on for kids to do. I decided not to have the kids wear their costumes last night. I think they needed a break from them. They had each worn theirs 3 times already and I didn't want them to get tired of them before tonight.

Trick or Treat at OC

Tonight was the annual Trick or Treating at Oklahoma Christian. It is so fun for the kids to have one more chance to go trick or treating. It is fun for Chris and I because we always get to see some old college friends that we haven't seen in years. Tonight I saw one of my really close friends from college that I hadn't seen in almost 4 years. So that was fun too!

It is usually very crazy and crowded up there and tonight was no exception. It seems as if they hike up the heater on purpose. I don't think it was just my pregnancy hormones, I really think it is way too hot in there. However the kids really enjoyed themselves and that is what is most important.

Here are the kids with our good friends and next door neighbors.

Here is Caden with her good friend Molly.

Overall we had a great time. The kids already have way too much candy and it is not even Halloween yet! Good thing mom is prego and wants to help them eat it!

Halloween AGAIN

I just love this time of year!! We had an adults only (love those) Halloween party on Saturday night.

Here is the picture of Chris and I before we left for the party. Try to guess what Chris is suppose to be.

On Sunday night our church had their annual fall festival and "trunk or treat." Inside they had carnival type games for the little kids and then outside they had the trick or treating out of the car trunks. Some of the "older" members of our congregation decorate the trunks and sometimes are even sitting in the trunks handing out candy to the little kids. Inside they also had an area with a Halloween backdrop and other decorations for you to take your own pictures. I got my kids sitting on the hay stacks all ready for the picture and then the camera says - "please change the battery pack." Oh well, I am sure I will have pictures of the kids from one of the next few Halloween activities we attend.

Oh and if you haven't figured out what Chris is suppose to be - he is a "one night stand" and I am a pregnant witch. (possibly the result of that his one night stand.) You may not be able to tell from this photo angle, but in addition to his lampshade hat, there is a box of Kleenex, a cup and a remote control glued to the top of the box.

Halloween Part 1

Today we had Caleb's fall party and costume parade at school. The kids got changed into their costumes and then we all went into the gym for the parade. Sometimes they have it outside. I wish they would have this year it was so crowded in there and it was so beautiful outside - sunny and 65 degrees. (Lately crowded places make me a little nervous - especially if I have to walk through Journeyland after bible class. Without fail some kid runs into my belly.) Anyway, back to the fall party. As we walk into the gym they have fun and scary music on while the kids are walking across the stage. It was a little loud in there and shortly after we walked in Cali decided to wake up and was moving all over the place - LOVE IT!!!


When the parade was over we had games in the classroom, then pizza, cookies etc. The game was sort of like pin the tail on the donkey, but it was pin the face, stem, etc on the pumpkin. They had 2 set up and they played boys against girls to see which one looked the best. The boys won BIG, but it was because they cheated. The boys were telling the blindfolded kid - lower, higher, left, right etc. The girls did not cheat and theirs looked like a really deformed pumpkin.

Here is Caleb and Caden in his classroom.

Here is Caleb and one of his classmates Austin. If you look closely you can see a scar on Austin's forehead. I think he really could pass for a young Harry Potter!

Here is Caleb's class picture.

Here is what Caden and Ethan were doing during the costume parade. Aren't they just the cutest little kids. Andrea and I love it every time they do this. It never gets old to us.

A Nice and Quiet Weekend

A nice and quiet weekend was probably had by some of you, but NOT us. Last Thursday (fall break) the kids and I went down to TX to visit my family. My mom, Ed and grandma were moving this weekend. It was SO CRAZY! We stayed with my sister and her family, but it was still crazy. They of course hired movers to pack up their house and move it all over to the new place but it was CHAOS!

They had been living in Grand Prairie and now they live in Arlington, so it is only about 10-15 minutes from their other house. It is much bigger than the other house with a few acres. Anyway the kids really enjoyed the new place and had a TON of fun playing in the huge backyard. I purposely didn't tell the kids anything about the house I wanted to see their reaction when they saw the backyard. The house has a pool which obviously isn't a big deal for Caleb since we have a neighborhood pool. However, I thought he would get REALLY excited about the diving board, since our pool doesn't have one and he lets me know often that he wishes it did. The backyard also has a swing set, a playhouse that needs some work, a cabana/pool house, a big workshop for Ed and a volleyball court. The kids had fun exploring.


Since I couldn't be of much assistance with the move I got to hold my adorable niece Dakota a lot. She just turned 6 months old and is SO CUTE!!!! We didn't take any pictures over the weekend until Sun morning. Here are some of the cute ones with the cousins - Alyssa, Dakota, Caleb and Caden.

Some of Dakota's facial expressions are priceless! My favorites are the ones of Dakota and Caden together.

Caleb had more fun playing with Dakota than Caden did. She likes her and talks about how cute she is, but she had more fun chasing Angie's cat around or playing with her uncle Brian, which is ironic because up until this trip she has been afraid of her uncle Brian. (long story - but basically she doesn't get to be around him enough to get used to him)


Isn't Dakota just adorable!!!

Pregnancy Update 31 weeks

I had my follow up level 2 ultrasound this morning. Everything looks great. The choroid plexus cyst that they found on her brain at 18 weeks is COMPLETELY GONE!!!! They told me it probably would be, but it is very reassuring to know for sure.

I will be 31 weeks tomorrow and she is measuring anywhere from around 31 weeks 4 days to 32 weeks 5 days, so she is growing right on schedule. Her head is already so low that they had to push kind of hard to get some good facial shots. Here are a few of the good pictures from the ultrasound.

She FINALLY has a NAME!!!

And it is going to be Cali. I think it is official now. We still haven't thought of a middle name, but I am up for suggestions. Just don't get mad if I shoot down your suggestion, give you a weird look or make fun of you. But don't let that scare you away. If this helps at all, Caleb's middle name is Austin and Caden's middle name is Elizabeth.

Busy Saturday

So you would think with us getting in late on Friday night that Chris would not make us all get up early - WRONG!!! We were all out the door by 7:15 to catch a few garage sales before Caden's first soccer game of the day at 9:00. Caden was her usual self at the game. I can see other kids improving but not her. She just doesn't get the concept. I finally figured out why! It goes against her nature to run around or in front of other kids. In school and in gymnastics they line up when they walk. She doesn't ever cut in front of other kids or if someone cuts in front of her she just backs up and lets them in. She is NOT aggressive with anyone but her brother. So this makes perfect sense as to why when other kids are running on the field she doesn't run to the ball she waits until everyone passes her and then runs at the back of the pack. This is obviously something we will need to work on. I didn't take my camera this past weekend, but here is one from 2 weeks before. It is another one of those deceiving pictures. She had just kicked off and was still in the right place at the right time. Doesn't she look cute!!!!

She is also very compassionate with other kids. There was this kid on the other team that anytime he fell (whether he was hurt or not) or when someone took the ball away he would lay on the field and cry. Several times Caden would go over and stand above him or kneel beside him. I am assuming she is asking if he was alright. I hope she never grows out of that!!


After the first game we had a few hours before we had to be back for the 2nd game at 1:00. Of course we went to some more garage sales. First we had to stop at Sonic for drinks and sausage burritos. The one up in north Edmond on Covell was running a special and we got good deals on the burritos and got route 44 drinks for only 99 cents!!! Gotta love that!!!

Now here comes the bad part. What do you get when you have 4 huge drinks sitting in the cup holders and Chris decides to make an very quick AND unannounced u-turn at the entrance to a neighborhood?? You guessed it!! My entire route 44 Diet Dr Pepper (that I hadn't even had one sip yet) was thrown or flipped onto the floor! I was helpless. It happened so fast. I had my shoes off and my feet up in my chair and I was eating my burrito. I also couldn't bend down there to pick it up either. So we stopped on the side of the road and cleaned up as much as we could.

So we head back to Sonic for Chris to get me another one. Chris says to the lady over the speaker - we spilled one of our drinks in the car, could we please get a bunch of napkins and a "replacement route 44 Diet Dr Pepper." Replacement sounds like he is expecting to get it for free. Well we did! When she brought it out she didn't ask for any money. That was nice of them. Chris was wanting to replace all the floor mats in the van anyway, I guess he will be doing it sooner rather than later!


Her 2nd soccer game was uneventful and we headed back home to glue ourselves to the TV to watch OU beat Texas. The game wasn't as exciting as I would have hoped and we didn't win by as much as everyone thought we would, but a win is a win!

Caleb had his baseball pictures taken last week. I didn't bring my camera, but my friend Chrisit managed to get a few good ones. We really like these two with their backs are to the camera.

Family Fun!!

We went to Incredible Pizza last night and had a great time. It is nice to go there with just the family when we are not there for a birthday party. Those are so crazy sometimes and a little overwhelming.

I probably ate too much, but that is what you get when you have a yummy buffet. I actually like the food they have there. Normally it is all pretty good. Last night I was NOT impressed with the pizza, but the lasagna, salad, baked potato, chicken pot pie, and cookies made up for it.

My stomach is getting fairly large so I got some stares and smiles and a few kitchen staff were making bets on the sex of the baby. I guess some people think you can tell what you are having by the way you carry. I have carried all three the exact same way, so not true for me.

Here are a few pictures from last night.

Chris did get some pictures of me, but they were very unflattering angles so I decided to leave them out. Caleb and Chris (with Caden too) drove the cars. It is hard to get pics through the glass, they come out bad.

One of the prizes that Caleb got were these big orange glasses. We all took turns wearing them. The kids thought it was funny, so I thought I would include them too!

A little exercise FINALLY!!!

HOORAY for me!!!!

I finally got my lazy butt to exercise again. Seriously you need to be impressed. OK, not really! But I am happy with myself. This morning I went walking up at Mitch park with my friends Kim & Chrissey. I used to go all the time with them last spring, but this is the first time I have been since. You might not be impressed with walking, but it wasn't just some leisurely stroll. We walked 2.75 miles up a few inclines pushing 40 plus pounds in a stroller. I know this doesn't compare to me working out at the gym doing my favorite elliptical but it is a start. I haven't done that much walking since DISNEY WORLD!

Before we left for Disney I put our gym membership on hold because we were just not using it enough. My plan is to start it back up after the baby is born. I need to get back into a regular routine of exercising. Hopefully this will help.

Caden doesn't normally ride in strollers and besides us using it at Disney she hadn't been in one since last spring. This morning when I was loading the stroller in the van she asked if she was going to Disney World. It was really cute!