Monster Tag

If you're looking for a last minute game for your Halloween party then go for this one!  Or play it anytime.  It's really fun!  Austin had to teach a Halloween game to the scouts in his group for their Halloween party last week.  This is the one he chose.  It's super easy and a fun twist on tag.  We happened to have a monster mask and hands in our costume bucket from a random costume.  First time we ever used the mask!  Ha!  You could look for one on clearance, too.  We used one of my wide stretchy headbands for the blind fold.  It worked perfectly!

All you need is a monster mask, blind fold, monster hands, and a circle marked off with tape or rope.  You can play it indoors or outdoors, just make sure there is nothing the players can trip on.

Mark off your circle.  We made ours probably 10 feet with the three boys playing.  Large enough to get around but small enough to where the monster isn't running around crazy trying to find anyone.

The person who is "it" is blind folded.  Then he puts on the mask and hands.  The trick to the game is whenever the monster moans, groans, or growls, then everyone else has to, also.  That is how the monster finds everyone.  If you step outside of the boundaries or if you are tagged then you sit out until everyone is out.  The first one out is the next "it".  Super fun with lots of scary growling going on!  And you've got to admit...seeing that scary monster face coming right for you gets you movin'!  My boys especially loved playing it after it got dark!  OooOooOooo....

P.S.  I would not recommend this game for kids 3 and under

and

I would recommend wearing shirts

and

please wear shoes.

Just a few things these crazy kids of mine learned...the hard way.  

But why wouldn't you wear shoes, right?  And who goes around in October without a shirt?  One of these days it will get so cold they'll be forced to dress appropriately.  Until then...we'll just keep working on it.

Happy Halloween!

The Whole Crew

Austin the Headless Horseman

Dallin the Count Dracula

Coen the Knight

Claire the Witch

Beckham the Giraffe

Happy Halloween!

Thunderbirds

So, like I mentioned a couple posts ago, Tory's brother, Jason, came to visit us this last weekend.  He is in the Air Force and works with the Thunderbirds.  He gets to travel around and go to lots of air shows in the States as well as many other countries around the world.  Well, last weekend was the Fort Worth air show.  We got the kids out of school early on Friday so we could go to the pre-show with Jason.

Uncle Jason with the family.

We got to check out the jets up close.

Then it was time for Jason to get to work and for us to enjoy our front row seats!

Jason doing his "thing".

Taking off.

Jason and Tory

Jason has communication with the pilots, crew, and pretty much everyone else.  I don't know how he keeps it all straight.  Ha.  Tory got an extra headset and got to listen in on everything.

It was fun to see the show and we all had fun having Uncle Jason at our house for dinner, movies, playing, etc. every night.  They even requested that he tuck them in at night.  He didn't have a moment's peace while they were awake that's for sure!  Not only was HE super fun, but Aunt Wendy sent him with surprises for each of the kids.  They were in heaven.  The kids were all sad when he had to leave.

Thanks for the fun visit!

Sleepy Hollow

We always watch Disney's animated Legend of Sleepy Hollow outside for one of our Family Home Evenings in October.  Last night was the night.  We anxiously waited for Dada to come home from work so we could start the fun.  He got the laptop all set up outside, we moved a bench out to sit on, and favorite blankets were brought out to snuggle with (although they weren't really needed as you can tell from the way Coen is "dressed".)  I made hot apple cider for everyone with fresh sliced pears to chew on.  It was fun and cozy.  One of my most favorite Halloween traditions.  Maybe one of these years we'll actually have a night cool enough for a fire again.  But fire or no fire, it is always very cozy!  

Accomplishment

I weeded yesterday.

It was cool and the ground was still wet from the rain earlier in the week.

Perfect.

And it was much overdue.

Once I start weeding I just can't stop until the job is finished.

It only took about an hour and the pile of weeds was at least to my waist.
My dry hands are cracked and I've scrubbed all the dirt off that I can.

The weeds were taking over the backyard.

I've hardly touched them for months.

It was a long hot summer and my poor plants suffered.

There were some fatalities.

But now I can open the back door to my patio and enjoy the view again.

It's stressful to me to have a messy yard.

For me, my yard is like an extension of my home.

I love it.

We love it.

Now I just need my porch swing hung up again.

That would be perfect.

Keeping Busy

It's been a busy month.  We've had:

-Parent teacher conferences-Boys are doing great!

-General Conference-So many great talks!  I can't wait to read through them all again.

-Pumpkin patch-Lots of fun as usual!

-Pack Meeting-Austin received his Bear!

-Ward Family Campout-I LOVE camping but this time I chose to stay home with just Beckham while the older 4 went with Dada camping.  I seriously needed some down time.  It was HEAVENLY!  I put him to bed at 7:30 and it was the first time in I don't even know how long where no one woke me up in the morning.  I woke up all by myself when I was good and ready.  You just don't fully appreciate what an experience that is until it happens.  Ahhh...so wonderful!  I sent the camera with Tory with instructions repeated at least 5 times to be sure to take pictures.  He came home with...zero.  Oh, well.  We'll all just have to imagine the jug band that they participated in and all the fun they had.)

-Science projects-Austin chose to see if ice floated in rubbing alcohol compared with water.  Do you know?  Ice sinks like a stone in rubbing alcohol and floats in water.  Now you know.

-Visiting Teaching-I have a new companion and this was our first time out together.  Yeah!

-Playing at the Park many times-Bike rides and scooters and running included.

-Harvest Stew at the Library-One can of vegetables per person gets you a bowl of veggie stew, cornbread, popcorn, and lemonade.  There are games and crafts and bounce houses and all kinds of fun.  And the best part was the hay ride through the neighborhood complete with police escort and guitar sing-a-long.  Very fun. And I got ONE picture of it all.  I snapped my first picture and my camera closed up with the flashing battery sign.  Bummer.  Yet another experience to be remembered in our own heads.

-Primary Program-We practiced for a couple Sundays, had a big dress rehearsal for a couple hours on the 15th and then the big day was Sunday the 16th.  The kids did such a great job!  What a bunch of cute kids in our ward!  It's so fun to be able to work with them each Sunday.  I love being part of the Primary.  But I have to say...kind of glad the program is over with. ;)

-Running Club, Junior Counselor, and Student Council meetings galore.

-Stake Auxiliary Meeting-This is the first time Tory and I have both had to go.  He is the Sunday School President and I'm in the Primary Presidency.  We didn't think we'd both be able to go since it was a school night and finding a babysitter would be tricky.  But Tory's brother, Jason, flew in for the Thunderbird show just in time.  We said hello, hooked him up with a pizza for dinner, and off we went.  Thanks!  (Funny thing is the same thing happened the last time he came on an Air Force work trip when Claire was born.  He's a great "spur-of-the-moment" babysitter!)

-And speaking of Jason...we got to go to the Air Show.  He is on the Thunderbird Team (Team?  Is that what you call it?) so he was here Thurs.-Sun.  He got us in to the pre-show on Friday and it was great!  More on that later.  It was fun having him for dinner each night and the kids never let him have a moment's peace.

-Kite Flying-Perfect wind, perfect skies, and a perfect day together.

It's been a full month!  Only one more week left.  Crazy!  We still have Halloween ahead of us.  The kids declared that they would rather have a family party at home like we did LAST year instead of going trick-or-treating.  Wow!  I guess they really loved that party!  So now I've got to get some planning done!  We also have to watch our Disney's Legend of Sleepy Hollow movie outside in the dark like we do every year.  I'm thinking tonight's the night.  Perfect Family Home Evening activity!  Better go sweep off the porch!

Sparkles

This morning I told Coen to go put some clean underwear on when he got out of his shower.  He came out of his room wearing underwear so I said:

Me:  Coen are those clean underwear?
Coen:  Yes.
Me:  Clean and sparkly?
Coen:  NO!
Me:  Why not?
Coen:  Boys don't wear sparkles on their underwear.

Good point!  I had a good laugh off that one.

Coen's Art

The boys have all been very excited to put up Halloween decorations.  I told them we had to wait until October 1st.  They were ready and got down all of the bins out of the garage all by themselves.  I'm not sure how in the world they did it.  I wasn't even prepared to attempt it.  I guess they were just very determined and very excited to get them up. All the bins were waiting for us first thing in the morning.  Thanks boys!  

But before the 1st they got busy making their own decorations.  I had checked out a few Halloween craft books from the library for them to have fun with.  Here are a few Coen made while the boys were in school.  I thought they were pretty cute all taped together.  He copied his designs from pictures in the book.  See the large buttons on the front of the vampire?  He included those because the craft in the book was a vampire made from a black shirt sleeve with buttons on the cuff.
(It's head was made out of a tennis ball...hence the yellow color.)

He made a vampire for the front door and a pumpkin (see insert on photo) that was hanging inside on the family room wall.

It's looking pretty spooky around here!  

All the decorations are up!  Love it!  So cozy with the fall decorations.

Reading Places

I love to see my kids pick up a book and read.  I hope that they become as obsessed with reading as I am.  I can't imagine NOT loving to read.  I have always loved reading.  I just wish I had more time to read now.  I've got a stack THIS big to read and about this much time.  I've decided I must become a speed reader to get through them all.  What I'd like to know is...if you are a speed reader do you still enjoy the book?  Do you catch the important details and words that really make the book?  I think I'm more opposite of a speed reader.  I tend to go back and reread things over and over again.  Oh, well!  

I guess I'll just enjoy what I do have time to read!

When I was younger I had a favorite place to read.  I also did all my homework and studied for every test in that spot.  Not to mention, it was a great place for Sunday afternoon naps.  It was a little corner in our family room where the couch and fireplace met.  It was right over a vent so in the summer I'd be nice and cool and in the winter I'd be toasty warm.  I always had a blanket and would just put it over the vent and let the appropriate temperature take over.  I'd stack up a couple large pillows we had and it was a great place to "get lost".  

(However, everyone knew that was my spot so they knew where to look when they wanted to find me.)  

That yellow arrow points to my spot.  Usually the recliner was where the Christmas tree is and the couch was pushed closer to the fireplace but you get the idea.  That was my spot.  The best place to read in a house full of people.  I was secluded yet part of all the comings and goings.  Perfect.

But anyway, here are a few places I've found the kids reading this week:

I found Beckham all snuggled up to Austin while he was reading.  Cute and cozy!

(And see that stack of books on the table?  Mine.  See why I need to learn how to speed read?)  

Claire found a cozy little spot in her room.

You can see it a little better in this picture.  She's on her upside-down cradle and she's got her pillow and blanket all set up.  How cute can you get?

Happy Reading!

The Results Are In...

...And have been for awhile now.  Most of you have probably heard, but I wanted to give an update on Austin and Dallin's Student Council elections.  They both gave their speeches in their own classrooms.  It was a Friday so Tory got to go listen to them this time.  He said they both did great!  They were both chosen to be their classroom representatives.  They are very excited and I'm happy that they get to do it together.  Did you know that this is the last year they will go to the same school until Austin is a Junior and Dallin is a Freshman?!  That is just crazy to me.  And sad.  Here we have Elementary School for K-4th, Intermediate Schools for 5th-6th, Middle Schools for 7th-8th and then High School is 9th-12th.  So unless we move somewhere where it's different...this is the last year for them to be together for a very long time.  They had their first meeting after school last week and both love it.  They were pretty cute with their little folders and all the "notes" they took during their meeting.

Go boys!

Little Man

I love these pictures of Beckham even though they're a little blurry.  He looks like such a big boy...and such a little guy at the same time.  What a fun little boy he is!

This little guy thinks he's so big!  He is getting very independent.  He climbs up to the high chair by himself and lets me know when he wants food...now!  And when he gets that food he absolutely refuses to have any help eating it.  I have to tear up bread to soak up his soup just so he can eat it by himself.  And he does NOT like it when his bowl or plate get empty.  On the rare occasions when I can sneak a spoon in and help him out he watches that bowl like a hawk.  If I make any scraping noises he freaks out.  He's done that since before he was a year old.  He does NOT like to get to the bottom of the goodness.  He gets so upset that he can hardly finish his last few bites.  So I have to scrape very quietly and tilt the bowl away from him so he can't see.  Little rascal!

He loves soft things and is particularly fond of these little fuzzy chick blankets my Mom made when Coen was a baby.  She made a big one for baby Coen and two little ones about the size of a pillow case for Austin and Dallin (because they like soft things, too.)  Well Beckham has taken over the fuzzy chick blankets and as soon as he sees any of them he puts that thumb of his right into his mouth.  It's kind of handy having the little ones for the car and while he plays.  He just swings it over his shoulder (like in the picture above) and walks around with it.  Those blankets have been everywhere.  He even found one in the stroller while we were at the splash pad and drug it around with him through all the water.  It's pretty darn cute!

He also thinks he belongs on the table.  He is always up there.  He will move chairs just to get up there.  We tuck both of our benches in and I remove the chairs when we're not at the table and he still gets up there with the computer chair...which is even worse since it spins.  I have to put him in his high chair just to go to the bathroom because I don't trust the little guy.

Today he's taken some good falls.  He just doesn't learn.  First, he was playing with Claire's stroller in the kitchen.  (He likes to push his toy cars around in it.  He can carry a lot more that way instead of just one in each hand.)  I don't know what he did but I think he was climbing up the side of the stroller and fell hard on the floor.  He was in major shock with pale, clammy skin and everything.  Poor baby.  I rocked him and watched him and soon he came back to himself and off he went.  And up he went I should say.  He climbed up the piano bench, which was pushed in, and fell off and hurt his little back.  Luckily he fell on top of Tory's portable chiropractic table which was folded up by the piano.  (Coen brought it out so that he could build towers on it with his blocks.)  At least it was a cushioned landing.  I guess his toes couldn't grip the inch of surface which was all that was available to stand on.  Determined little guy.  Maybe an hour later, at the most, he climbed up one of the kids little wooden chairs and tumbled over that.  Got a good mark on his cheek off that one.  He must be a little top heavy today.  A few minutes later I heard glass breaking and when I went into the kitchen Coen, Claire and Beckham each had a spoon and the jar of peanut butter was broken on the floor.  Not sure who dropped it but I decided it was safest to put him down for his nap.  He was more than ready for it.  He's had a tough morning.

Mellow Othello

Tory's been so funny in his sleep lately.  He must be sleeping good.  He's been doing a lot of side work at the office where he works.  He has spent every spare moment after work and on weekends building two extra rooms for them.  Coen, Claire, Beckham and I even went with him Friday (no patients on Friday) just so we could spend time with him and see the guy for once!  He was working on putting up all the trim and installed the two doors that day.  Those doors took forever.  Apparently, his subconscious wasn't happy with the work because that night after he fell asleep he was talking away about those doors.  He said, "The trim on the door is not right.  You missed the paint."  I was a little confused and asked him to repeat.  Sure enough.  It was ME that messed up those doors.  lol  Ummmm....sorry?

Then a couple days later he said the funniest thing.  He was really tired and had gone to bed before me.  Right when I turned off my lamp he said, "I think I'm pretty mellow.  You can call me Othello."  I laughed out loud!  And I turned the lamp back on so I could write it down.  I thought it was so funny that he was rhyming in his sleep.  So now I like to call him Othello or Mr. Mellow.  He said I could....

Pumpkin Patch

October is here and that means it's time to visit the Pumpkin Patch!  We hit it up early this year and got there on their opening weekend.  It was so nice to not have to fight the crowds and it was early enough that we weren't sweating to death.  The boys were a little disappointed because the hay bales were "too fresh" and there wasn't a pile of hay piled up at the bottom to jump into.  They still did some jumping...just not very soft landings.  We rode on the hay ride and played and of course...took our traditional pictures by the green wagon.  It was a fun morning.

 Our Family by the Green Wagon

Five VERY Cute Kids

Austin

Dallin

Coen

Claire

Beckham

Going to the Hay Ride

Here we are:
2010
2005-2009