10.31.2010

Happy Halloween

We had a fun Halloween week with lots of class party's, church trunk or treat's and scoring lots of candy. (Just in time for my diet to end!)  We even went to the State Fair with Grammy, Leksi, Amie and Brax.  It was one busy week and we loved it!!!


This year we had a Mario, a Luigi, a Witch and a Wal*Mart Greeter.  So fun!!  Lewis wore his costume everywhere we went, except the fair, the whole week.  He only answered to Luigi and he loved his outfit!! Mario had a birthday party and a class party that he loved and he has eaten his body weight in candy since Friday night.

Halloween has been a hit!  Now on to Thanksgiving and Christmas!  Let the fun begin.
This is our Daisy pumpkin.  It's gonna be her last halloween with us so we had to pay tribute to her.  She's had a good run but her health is really declining and it's time to make the tough decisions!  UGH.

10.30.2010

Auntie Paula and Pirate Island

This past summer Auntie Paula took the kids and I to a super fun place....Pirate Island.  We ate yummy, delicious food and got lots of tokens to play games with, win tickets and claim prizes!  It was our last day with Auntie Paula and she made sure we went out with a bang!!!  THANK YOU Auntie Paula.

Auntie Paula and kids.  She ROCKS!
quote at front of store
winning tickets, Grif shows Mary what to aim for.
Our "money maker" for tickets.  Slam a winner rocked!

10.28.2010

Pumpkin Crafty-ness

So my friend Jo got this super cute pumpkin from one of her friends and I thought I could copy it and give it to some of my friends.  So she sent me a pic and I showed it to Brad and he decided to 1 up it.  He did.  It is great!  I made some for my mom and she liked it so well she put in an order for a few more that she'd pay us to make.  She wasn't very specific so we made her 20!  (We really needed the money!)

It was fast and easy and I think it's so cute.  I gave them to lots of people but I am thinking the shape can be made into a Christmas ornament or Santas face and Brad can probably make some egg shaped for Easter so be looking out for those!  It was a fun, inexpensive but cute way to decorate for Halloween.


10.25.2010

Fall School Pictures

Here are my 3 lovelies.  Aren't They co cute?!


10.21.2010

my baby is 4

It is so weird to think that we have lived in Phoenix for 4 years already!  I keep good track of this because Lew was born 3 months after we got here.  He is an Arizona Desert Rat as my friend calls himself and all those born in Phoenix. 

Since Lew doesn't really get birthdays yet we didn't have a party.  My parents were down here for a meeting so they took Lew and I to lunch at BJ's.  Sooo delish!  Lewis was in Heaven with Grammy and Pap as his lunch dates.  He really enjoyed the men's bathroom with my dad because it had the urinals that go all the way to the floor and then "the waterfall" came down to flush the pee all gone. He had to do the bathroom twice while we were there just for the pure fun of it!
say cheese
makin a wish

i love Percy

We did take cupcakes to preschool so Lewis considered that his birthday party. Grammy and Pap got him a McDonald's gift card (which we plan on using today!) and he used Grandma and Grandpa's money they sent to buy himself a Percy the #6 engine train. Daddy and Mommy and Griffin got him a huge train set, because 6 buckets of train tracks is clearly not enough, and the girls got him some Toy Story 3 action figures.

He is one happy boy!

10.20.2010

1st day of school

Here are the kiddos on their 1st day of school this year!
3 happy back to school kids!
Helen has the huge bandage because the Sat before school started she got a huge road rash riding sitting down on a skate board at my bro's house.  Her shoulder was all scraped up and her elbow/arm took the brunt of it.  The giant ace bandage keeps on the giant bandage that never wants to stay on an elbow!
Grif and Mrs. Bulger
  
Lewis is doing preschool 2 days a week and loving it!
Yeah!  My 1st day of Preschool!!
Lew and Mrs. Sterr

10.04.2010

Lewis' birdhouse art project

the master at work
 Lew found himself an art project one day.  Mary has had this little gem in her room in a box for 2 years.  Lewis decided it was time for it to come out and be painted.  He got it out all by himself and started painting away.  I was able to talk him into letting me open the paint, set him up with a plate and give him a little water to wash the paint brush with but other than that, he did it all by himself.  I like it!


10.03.2010

Nephew Missionary in the General Conference Choir

My nephew, Elder Joseph Cruz, is 3:23 into Priesthood Session of General Conference. Joseph was in the MTC choir which got to sing for the evening priesthood session. He's the handsome Elder in blue tie next to Elder with yellow tie when song says "truth", so listen for..."all may rejoice the long night is o'er, truth"...and bam...there he is!!! Yeah for my missionary nephew!!!!   I might be tearing up just a little as I type, I won't lie, it was a thrill to see him and then to listen to the words to the song to Hark, All Ye Nations. . .   "Chosen by God to serve him below to every land we'll go!"  (Yep, I'm fully crying now!)
Click on the link below to see him.
http://new.lds.org/general-conference/watch?lang=eng&vid=621787340001
He is in the next song, Go, Ye Messengers of Heaven too, beginning of 2nd verse 8:29, 9:15 and 9:34 in I believe. 
and last song Called to Serve 1:52:14 in case you were wondering.

9.25.2010

Summer 2010 Swimming Lessons

The boys took swimming lessons this summer for 3 sessions which equals 6 weeks.  They did fantastic!  Lewis was the smallest in his class because he is so advanced in his swimming.  I took him to swimming classes all last year so he could learn the lifesaving techniques--the ones where they teach the kids to roll over and float on their backs then flip and swim then roll over until they get to the side of the pool, so if they ever fell into a pool they wouldn't drown.  

So lets just say Lew is a very advanced 3 year old swimmer.  They only reason they didn't bump him up to Griffin's class (learning the strokes) is because he was so little!   So in class you are supposed to hold on to the side of the pool until it's your turn for whatever they are doing next.  Lew just couldn't do it!  He had to let go and swim to the bottom and pop back up which made for some very nervous lifeguards.  By the end of the first session they had his number and it was just a matter of time before he was sitting out next to one of them until it was his turn.  He really never learned his lesson (stubborn little thing) and had to sit out often but not daily by the end of the 3rd session. 

both boys with their teachers
lew has the floating down pat, dave isn't even touching him
lew demonstrating he knows how to hold on to the wall
sit and kick with lifeguard teacher david
sitting out










Griffin spent this summer learning the strokes.  The plan is for him to do swim team with the girls next year.  He did pretty well.  He gives it all he's got, it's not pretty but it gets the job done.  It is quite comical to watch his teachers swim after him as he heads into another class.
grif with his teacher kicking for all he is worth!

Grif beginning freestyle on one end
Griffin in middle of pool going full length


The Return trip

9.24.2010

Terrin & Andy's Baseball Wedding

Happy Couple with us
My niece Terrin got married last weekend to Andy.  Terrin belongs to Brad's brother Dave and his wife Terrie.  She is their oldest and 1st to get married.  

Brad and I drove up to Logan so we could go.  It was such a fun wedding with a Baseball Theme.  They got married on home plate and the food was all baseball food, hot-dogs, watermelon, lemonade, cupcakes with baseball rings, water bottles with their pictures on them and the wedding cake itself was a baseball.  They even had kids walking around passing out popcorn.  It was so fun.   

Enjoy the photos!
Happy couple on Home Plate
Terrie, Terrin and Dave
Jenkins and their boys
The Jenkins Family
The Jenkins Men
Wedding Cake
Yummy food
Brad and Dave