Day 304/365

My favorite images from Halloween.
Memories:
Andrew counting down the hours & loving being a storm trooper.
Katie in a full on excited sprint as she ran from door to door and declaring,
"I love Trick Or Treating!!!"
Andrew's bravery as he'd lead the other kids up to the doors of the "scary' houses.
Matthew's nice manners.
Andrew telling someone he didn't like their candy.  (Oh no!)
Sweet alone time for Daddy with Matthew walking back from trick or treating with the other 2nd grade boys.
Daddy & Matthew tricking us at the front door "I lost Daddy."
PILES of candy and happy cheeks full of sweets.
Matthew sorting his by type.  (of course).
Katie getting a crazy wild woman sugar high.
Kids asleep within minutes after their heads hitting the pillow.

Day 303/365

Pumpkin carving!
The kids drew their faces and Dan carved what they drew.
Except Katie who preferred to dictate to me.
"Circle Eyes, Circle nose, Happy mouth."

Day 302/365

Love this photo of the Bug at Andrew's soccer game.



Grammie and Grandpa were able to come and watch.
Grandpa's hand is bandaged because he had to have surgery after an infection set in to a stabbing wound he got while dressing a deer when hunting.
They were treated to Andrew's best game of the season!

Day 301/365

Winnie and Carl arrived today for a weekend visit.
We were happy to celebrate their birthdays tonight over Pumpkin/Chocolate Gooey Butter cakes and Friday night football.

Day 300/365

I usually wait until November 1st to break out the Christmas music.
But I texted Dan this photo with the message..."Desperate times call for desperate measures."
It was just what I needed.

Day 299/365

Matthew lost another tooth at school!
He left this note for the tooth fairy.
"Dear Tooth Fairy, I lost my tooth at school today.  I hope you lik it.  From Matthew"
She replied that it was her favorite tooth yet!
It's his upper second on the right, next to his front tooth.

day 298/365

Andrew had an "M" worksheet at school.
He had to draw 4 pictures of things that started with "m."
I could not stop smiling over this.
The "MAFU" is his writing.
The little smiley face and "Matthew" is from his teacher, who had Matthew as a student as well.
Oh, how I love Kindergarten.  :)

Day 297/365

Sadly, Shannon's grandfather passed away today.
And while our hearts are so very sorry for their loss, we were happy to keep Gracie today so Shannon could leave town.
The girls were thrilled to have their first sleep over (Grace in Katie's bed and Katie on our floor).
Shannon was such a rock to me when my Dad passed away...I'm very grateful to have the opportunity to do anything at all to help.

Day 296/365

Happy Hour (or five hours) at Lapellah with our small group ladies (with the happy new addition of Katie!).
I love the diversity of personalities and yet the common ground of our faith that we stand on.
Conversation always ranges from funny to thought provoking with a lot of commiseration on parenting and managing family life.
I always leave feeling grateful for these friends and wishing we had even more time to talk.

Day 295/365

Go Portland Timbers!!
Isaiah turned 9 today!
Party at his house.
Green Hair & Face coloring.
Timbers game (VS Salt Lake City ~ tied 1 to 1)
Delicious Brats & other yummy soccer game fare.
Oreo Cupcakes and chocolate chip pound cake soccer ball cake.
A relaxing, REALLY fun party!
And one fantastic 9 year old.

Day 294/365

Isaiah and I spent the evening baking oreo cupcakes and decorating his soccer ball cake (in his favorite colors).  He did all the purple!  Matthew and I did the gold (Isaiah did some of that as well).  This photo was actually taken at his party on the 22nd.  I loved the opportunity to spend some time with Isaiah.  He is such a great kid.

On a side note.  Isaiah loves "Cake Boss" on TLC.  So Dan, Matthew, Isaiah and I spent part of the evening yelling dramatically at one another as we decorated the cake so that he'd feel like he was on the show.  :)  We had a fun evening together.

Day 293/365

A smile at Dad's grave as we talked about what Grandpapa might say if he were here.
Plenty, I assure you.  :)

Flowers from Dad's garden to the cemetery.
Lunch at Red Robin.
A beautiful afternoon at the park with Winnie.
Sunshine.
Chasing squirrels and Butterflies.
Catching falling seed pods.
Climbing on the play structure.
Many kind thoughts, words and deeds from friends.
Time with Mom.

God works all things for the good.

Day 292/365

Drove to Richland with the kids after school today with a heavy heart.
Tomorrow marks the 3rd anniversary of Dad's passing.
The day was too busy for a photo, so instead this is from the 20th.
One of my small gifts from the day.

Day 291/365

Andrew's OT Evaluation was today.
He had a GREAT time playing in the gym!
I'm very much looking forward to watching him bloom through this process.

Day 290/365

Matthew has been enjoying tennis Camp with his friends Stephen & Eduardo each Monday.
The weather was gorgeous so they got to play outside!

Day 289/365

The second graders at church were presented with their bibles today.
Matthew asked to wear a tie for the occasion. :)
We celebrated afterward with lunch at the Stardust Cafe (his choice).

We are so proud of you Matthew, what a joy to see the beginnings of your own faith growing in your heart.
I hope this bible is the beginning of a love of studying God's word, and realizing the wisdom & truth it holds.
I hope you tuck the words of this book into your heart so that they may be a refuge for you in times of trial, challenge you to always be growing in character, and bring you into a life changing relationship with God.
May the Lord Bless you, sweet boy.
We love you & are so proud of you!

Day 288/365

We had a fun time celebrating Michelle and Dan's birthdays tonight.
The boys were so happy to be together.
Matthew and Isaiah's night time birthday show was definitely a highlight. :)
It was nice to sit and visit and catch up!

Day 287/365

We spent a glorious day in our PJs at home during our day off of school.
Katie was playing in the laundry basket and I was snapping photos.
I love this shot...it will always remind me of exactly what she looks like at this age when I lean in to kiss her cheek.

I'm sure there will be a day when I'll look at this photo and wish I could hop in and do just that!

Day 286/365

It's not a smile, but I love this picture of the bug with her 'bouquet."
Looks like fall!

Day 285/365

This scene plays out every morning before school & every day after school.
Coloring, cutting, crafting...making Angry Birds!

Day 284/365

Andrew and Katie have dramatic good-byes on school mornings.
Andrew wants me to drop him off so he doesn't have to watch Katie cry when he gets on the bus.
This particular morning they were standing and hugging before pre-school and Andrew asked for me to take a photo.



Later that night was "Open House" at preschool!
Preschool is my favorite.
I'm so glad Katie gets to share it with Grace.
She LOVES school and loves going with Grace!

Day 283/365

My little ones cooperated for a photo this morning.
The pose and pumpkins were their choice.
This photo just makes me smile.
Think they will let me do this when they are 18, 16, and 14?

Day 282/365

Matthew came in to the bathroom and started reading while I was getting ready.
I asked him what he was doing and he said,
"I just wanted to be with you."

Please don't ever stop feeling that way.

Day 281/365

Andrew played goalie today and had the dirty knees to prove it!
He did GREAT! He made several saves ~ we were so proud of him!

Day 280/365

The zip line.
A definite favorite of the day.

Day 279/365

Katie was hiding in the garden from the big kids.
One of my favorite photos of the day.

Day 278/365

3 little loves at the pumpkin patch.

Day 277/365

Andrew's annual pumpkin patch photo.
Bauman Farm
Woodburn, OR.

Day 276/365

It's so rare that my 3 kids cooperate for a photo with me all at the same time and all smiling!
This photo just made my day.
I love my kids so much and just looking at this picture makes me happy.
Those little loves mean the world to me.
I have a photo of me with the kids every year on that little step since Matthew's first visit to the pumpkin patch when he was 5 mos old.  (Some better than others!)   I think this is my very favorite photo yet.

Day 275/365

One of my favorite days of the year ~ pumpkin patch!
Our 8th Annual trip to Bauman Farms.
We had a wonderful time with dear friends...this week will feature all pumpkin patch photos, because one picture is not enough! :)

Day 274/365

Matthew entertained himself during the soccer game by doing origami with some of his allowance.