I am changing my background again as a tribute to my favorite halloween candy....

oh how a girl with a sweet tooth like mine loves this holiday.....I think I get just as excited as the kids do....ok not really but close. ;) And if you have never tried candy corn, it's gotta be Brachs!

Our little man is getting so big! He can roll over now, on his 5th month birthday (the 16th) as a matter of fact he went all the way over for the first time and got his arm out. :) He is busy, busy and wants to grab everything!!! All the memories are coming back to me now about life at this stage......yikes! He is still my little snuggler though and really wants to start playing with his big sisters, he just watches them and squeals. :)

Haylee is another story.........I am hoping it's just a phase. She has been so on again off again that we never know from one minute to the next whether she is going to be happy or melting down. I know the adjustment of having Gavin here has been tough and I keep reminding myself that this too shall pass but it's making for very long days. She wants to be the baby when her and Gracie play together, she melts into a pool of whiny tears when something doesn't go her way, and she will not do anything we ask unless we are pretty much forcing her hand. Then the next thing we know she is sweet as can be, listening, having fun with everybody and it's great. I guess the Lord gives us the breaks we need at the right times.....Mommas needs that! ;) The other day she was being sweet so I wanted to capture the moment.

You look at her and would never guess she is a little spit fire. Some day we'll laugh right????

We took the girls to a Halloween party this weekend and Grace won best costume, she makes a pretty cute cowgirl.

Then there is our little Dorothy girl, she is really going to be a unicorn this year but wanted to wear this for fun...she fits the part well....

that is until she turns into this...............

Oh Canada.......

Yes, we ventured another trip North and had a day of Canadian fun. We went back to a place called Granville Island which is like a city within a city that has markets and shops, restaurants and a building just for the kids too....fun for the whole family! We have had just beautiful weather and want to make the most of our outdoor adventures while we can. :) We sat and watched a couple of crazy street performers and had some yummy doughnuts and just browsed the shops and of course....PEOPLE WATCHING.....Canada is a great place for that! I was amazed at all the different languages we heard, my girls are fascinated with the Chinese language......they just stand there like "huh?".......

This is after she came running up from the dock yelling "the American geese are gonna get my pants ahhhhh".....no Grace they are "Canadian geese" and it's funny you would say "American" considering we are actually IN CANADA!!!! Funny girl!


A goose lesson. :)

All the girls for the mermaid shot....sorry buddy, just gotta suck it up sometimes.

Grace is turning into my little adventurer, she is climbing everything and I must say is getting very good. We're going to have to watch this one. ;)

A weekend with Grandpa Forrey

My Dad came into town this weekend and we had a very nice time with him. The girls always love having the company and the attention of course and I think my Dad likes to just come and relax and visit. He brought us his tent trailer which we are SO happy about, yesterday we spent the day getting it cleaned and everything washed so it will be ready to use when the weather starts to warm up. It is an older model so it's a sight to be seen but Justin said he may work on the paint job and I am going to try and fix up the inside as best as I can. It will be so great to have with three kids, all being able to sleep off of the floor and out of the rain. Thanks Dad, we will be making good use of it for sure. :)

We also went out to a Pumpkin patch/farm where there is all sorts of stuff to do that deals with Fall. We took a hay ride, went through a big corn maze and got gourds and pumpkins. Had hot apple cider and apple cider doughnuts which were so good and I am going to try and find a recipe. yum! I even managed to get some tomatoes to can and dehydrated some apples.....I don't know how long this bug will last but for right now I am really enjoying myself and it keeps my mind off the weather. Bonnie was wonderful and let me borrow her canner and dehydrator so I just have to decide wether I will invest in one after this is all said and done. Apples were easy, tomatoes might not be. ;)






I know, it's hard to see this pretty thing and not be jelous......now picture it all set up with the pretty yellow canvas on either side.....nice! ;^)

So my video camera does not transfer over to my computer with the best quality ever but I really wanted to share something "live" from this little guy. He is just so much fun and you would think that he would ham it up for the camera but he seems to do just the opposite most of the time, as soon as I grab it he stops whatever he was doing. He was just jabbering away in the bath this morning so I tried to get a little of it. Enjoy! :)

PS....I was going to tell any of you who have not done yoga and you want a great workout....HOLY COW!! I was SO sore for days, and in all of those areas that you don't even know you have. So I am definitely adding it to my weekly routines just to help keep me flexible and in shape and if you haven't tried it let me know what you think afterwards. ;) I did a home video of it so they may be different at the gym, but I didn't want to embarrass myself at a class until I know what I'm doing. :)

Why not????

So I am sitting here listening to Gavin cry himself to sleep for the first time and I am trying to tell myself that it gets better and that this is normal........yeah well that's CRAP!!! I am miserable and that is so pathetic, I think I am just as upset as him. I just want to pick him up and snuggle him SO bad and rock him back to sleep but I know if I do it starts this vicious cycle over again and if this is one night closer to a good nights sleep than it's totally worth it for every one's sake. So I am blogging because......why not???


I will start with my husband and how proud of him I am, he has been busting his butt at the gym not once but TWICE a day for the past month or so and being really good about his diet too. I am just in awe first of the fact that he is still getting up at 5 am to work out, and that he is really having a whole new outlook on this whole "diet and exercise" thing and treating it as a lifestyle change rather than just a fad diet which I LOVE! He seems much happier and more energetic which has been great too. ;) I just want him to know that I am obviously going to love him no matter what he does but to know that he is happy with himself makes our relationship a whole lot better......because who can be happy with you when you're not happy with yourself???? So here we are about to be holiday season and we are dieting.......maybe turkey salad and pumpkin flavored Yoplait this year????? mmmmm that sounds delicious! ;) I love you Justin and I won't make some embarrassing list about why I do because you know why I do but I do want those who read my blog to know that I am incredibly lucky to have married such a great man. :)

So here is a one month picture.


On a different note, Gavin is an arm away from rolling himself over. Today he got there but needed a little help getting the arm unstuck from all that chub that had rolled over top if it. ;) He is holding his head up really well now too, and for much longer periods. He gets so excited when anyone pays attention to him and just charms all the strangers we see out and about. Haylee has really liked singing to him lately and he really likes that. :) I need to start recording this stuff before it stops, pretty soon he will be the annoying little brother and I want proof that long ago they did co exist happily.


We attempted a mo hawk but we think his face may be too round for this look, or maybe he just needs HAIR!
He loves to play and be tickled.

We took the kids to pick apples today and an orchard and got only about 20 lbs but had so much fun. The weather was perfect for being outside and it was such a great fall day that we just had to get out and enjoy it. Justin of course had to be throwing crab apples at us the whole time from about three rows down, (poor Grace got most of it) but he did not walk away unscathed......I popped a few right off the top of his head.(quite by accident but none the less I was very proud) As soon as I hear the girls say "where's Daddy?" than I know to be watching for flying objects.

Happy camper as usual.

my little gnome. ;)
What a view....yes that is a mountain not a cloud.

A little swinging by the ankles for Gracie.


Look at her face in this one. :)

So I think my baby is sleeping for now and I am going to bed too....goodnight all. :)

Last weekend was the annual farm tour that the local farms here do every year. It is where they open up for the public to come and see how different farms operate and get a look at what we have here locally. We went to a cattle ranch and a dairy farm, there were about 10 on the list to see but we made the mistake of going to the furthest one first and there was not much time left to see the rest. We had a nice time driving around though, sometimes that is the best part....no interruptions and we can all talk and laugh together. :)


Hay rides


Tiny little calf's that were licking their hands.

So our little boy LOVES the bath and I have started letting him just sit in there for a while and splash around, he thinks that's pretty fun. :) He is already such a little charmer.

This is another reason that Grace's reading is so great.

She read him about 10 stories before I finally had to make her stop so I could put him to bed. It's pretty neat to see your older kids step up to help without even being asked. He just loves his sisters and I thought for sure by now he would be screaming at their arrival. ;)
He probably knows that in about a week he will be bigger than this one.......
So my girls were so funny to watch on Saturday that I just have to share. If anyone has seen the movie Bridge to Terabithia that you will know what this is all about. They were out in this huge windstorm we were having yelling at the top of their lungs, "come on Terabithia, we can't hear you!".....and this went on and on running back and forth across the deck. The things they can come up with. :)

So I read this the other day and just wanted to share because it made me smile.....so true.

Love your little ones--even when they drive you crazy. If you could see them the way God sees them -- you would be astounded at their glory.