Carving Pumpkins

So we carved pumpkins on Friday night, but somehow forgot to take pictures of the final product. Oh well. Mary's carving was a spooky owl on a tree, and mine (Christian) looked like a pile of skulls. Here are some pics of the fun night.

 We also went to my work on Friday, they had a Halloween party and the kids got to dress up and go trick or treating. Mary made both costumes, and they turned out great. Jack is obsessed with the cartoon Avatar: The Last Airbender, so he had to be Aang. Anna was a donut with sprinkles, which she loved.

More Cousins!

Jen, Jay and Rex stopped by our house on their way back to California. It was great to see them and catch up a little. They left early the next morning before Jack and Anna got up. Jack came down and was crying a little asking, "Where are my friends Rex and Jay?" It was cute. They were so lucky to see all of their cousins in one week. Just wish we could see them all more often!!

Oregon/Washington Trip

I took the kids on a trip up to see family up in the Northwest. We had a wonderful time enjoying good Fall weather and fun family outings. Here are a bunch of pictures from our trip:

Our first stop was down at Em's house in Monmouth. We explored Salem a bit and enjoyed its Childrens' Museum and carousel. Later that evening, we met up with Steve, Amy, Soren, Lucy, Will, and Finn for dinner.

We went to a really fun pumpkin patch the next day with Emily, Steve, Amy, and the kids. It was the first pumpkin patch I have ever been to, and it was incredible. There were so many fun activities for the kids: hay mazes, cider donuts, apple tasting, corn maze, and a patch to pick out pumpkins. I wish we lived closer, because we would definitely make this place a yearly tradition.

Anna's face cracks me up in this one. It looks like she is on a runaway train and Jack is driving :)

My Mom and I took a drive up the Columbia Gorge with the kids one morning. The weather was perfect and we had a great time just making random stops to enjoy the scenery.

John got some great pictures of the kids during a couple park outings. 

We also went to the Portland Zoo which was really pretty.

Finally, we had a chance to meet up with Lizanne, Kirsten and Grayden, which was wonderful. The kids are all so close in age and really enjoy each other a lot.

This was an old fort building in a park we went that we found. Too bad no one answered the door. It would have been fun to see inside!

It was a really wonderful trip. We can't wait to go back, but hopefully with Christian next time.

Silly Kids

It is crazy how fast these two seem to grow. Here are some fun pictures we've caught lately:

They have finally started playing together and having fun. Granted sometimes that means trouble for me if they get in to mischief as a team, but they make me smile when they enjoy each other as friends.

Jack is a little music man. He loves to sing and dance. He gets a little frustrated when he tries to play his keyboard and can't play Mozart songs. 

He has a hard time understanding when to use the word "why." Instead he says stuff like, "What are we going to the store about?" or "What do the birds fly about?"  It is a funny mistake that he always seems to make. 

The glory days of talking him into doing stuff is pretty much over. He has figured out that he doesn't have to obey and let's us know when he doesn't want to listen. I asked him today if he was okay and he said, "No Mom, I am not okay!" It seemed like such a big kid answer. He is still pretty sweet most of the time though!

Anna is figuring out how to talk and babbles all day long. She can tell us what she wants most of the time, which makes life easier for me, and she can stand up to her big brother, which is good for her. She gets in his face and says, "Be nice Jack!" I think she is going to hold her own with him in the coming years.

Anna loves to color and draw. Which is great except for the times she has drawn on the wall with my lip liner. She also loves to dress herself in crazy outfits- exhibit A below. She loves wearing fancy shoes, but if her feet are bare she brings me nail polish and asks me to paint her toes.

Most of the time she is a pretty happy girl. The other day I was sad about something and Anna came up, wiped a few tears off  my cheeks, and said, "Don't cry Mommy." It is crazy she is so little but is big enough to comfort me! She is a sweetheart.

Finally, both the kids are obsessed with Halloween and we have had a lot of fun decorating. Anna kept going around pointing to stuff and saying, "Hillowee Duff" and for days I kept wondering how in the world does this child know who Hillary Duff is. I finally figured out that she was talking about the Halloween Stuff in our house and at the store. That made a lot more sense. You never know with these two though. They definitely keep us on our toes!