"All Hallows Eve" a.k.a. Candy Feast 2009

So... the kids are finally asleep after their sugar rush hit rock bottom. It was a great day and we are definitely about 3,000 calories heavier, but we have smiles all around.

We had a bit of an eventful Halloween this year because we also had our first professional family pictures ever! 12 years, isn't that crazy!!! Yes, I know... we procrastinate a bit! A professional photographer came to Bagdad and we signed up for a appointment and warned her that we have four kids and they have never really done this before. As it turned out, the kids were great and I am really excited to see the proofs. The hard part will be not spending a million dollars on them. We will post all the pictures once we get our proofs back.

We also did something really neat this year... Becky Brimhall texted a bunch of people in the ward and we all met at her house at 5:30pm and set up camp next to each other. A whole bunch of chairs and trick-or-treating was speedy and a whole lot of fun. Great idea Becky!!!!

I did have to take two naps today because my body is recovering from surgery still, but we all made it through and had a lot of good times. Here are some pictures for your enjoyment!!! We love you all and hope you are safe!!!!

Isn't my costume scary?!

making a Halloween cake... they each got to decorate 1/4 of it

Trick-or-treating with friends...

This is a dog that had fun following the "dragon"... he liked to follow his tail...

This is how Will likes to Trick-orTreat... with his favorite Tonka truck!

This is a little friend in the ward that is four days younger than Will. Will must be going as a "Gigantosaurus" this year!!!

Waiting in the parking lot....

I am sitting here in the car waiting outside the Bagdad Clinic as Morgan took Sarah in to get examined inside. I went inside, but they kicked me out because I just had surgery on Wednesday and there are so many germs in there it is like Germ-a-pollosa!! I guess that strep throat is making such a rampant appearance here in Bagdad that they have renamed it "The Bagdad Strep"! (Not very clever if you ask me... how about "Halloween horror" or maybe "the Bagdad Bully" or something a little more creative....)
I just got a text message from Morgan that they are preparing Sarah for a shot of antibiotics. Fun times! I think I will stay right here in the safety of the car. They told me that they don't want me to get sick from Sarah...... hum!!! how is that going to work???!!! Since she and I have both been under the weather since we got back from the hospital on Wednesday night, we have been sharing the same "sick bed" and have even been watching the same corny Disney Halloween specials together. Is there really anyway for a mom to avoid their child's germs????? I don't think so!!!
In other news, my surgery went o.k. For those of you who don't know, the surgeon removoed a golf ball sized lump from my left breast and they are currently in the process of dissecting it in a lab somewhere. I will hopefully get the results when I go to my follow-up appointment on Monday at 9:15am. I did learn that I am allergic to Morphine and I definitely don't want to ever have that stuff in my system EVER again, it wasn't very pleasant. Today I am really sore all over and I am hoping to get back to normal sometime soon. At least the surgery is over!!!
Sarah also had her teeth worked on in the morning of that lovely surgery day at Kidzaam. She had to be sedated because she has had a lot of anxiety about anybody touching her teeth and freaks out if the dentist gets close. The "special juice" did the trick though, and she was a champ. She also said some really cute, funny things when she was sedated like.... "Oh, I forgot to sing the ABC's while I was washing my hands, so I guess we had better start all over".... and other such nonsense. Gotta love it!!!

To Each Their Own!!!

Here is what Lund and Cassidy look like right before school.... you can see how different their styles are.... I guess that is what being 10 and 9 is all about!!

Warning: Don't use a Magic Eraser to remove your child's tattoos even if you are mad they put them on in the first place!

We learned an interesting lesson this past week...... If you are trying to remove temporary tattoos from your 6-year-olds arms and the Magic Eraser is right next to you on the counter....DO NOT USE IT!!! Even if you have to walk a few feet to get a rag!! Poor Sarah didn't notice any pain while I was rubbing off the tattoos (and her skin), so we threw her in the tub right after the removal to clean off any messy tattoo goo. That is when we discovered the truth.... I had rubbed off her skin on her arms as well as the tattoo's!!! I was MORTIFIED!!! And Sarah was a bit sad too!!! he!He!

I have done A LOT of research about this on the internet and it turns out I am not the only bad mother out there!!! I am still not sure if it is a chemical burn or a rubbing burn or a mixture of both....either way is was bad news and Sarah is now in the scabbed arms stage.

We did take the opportunity to tell Sarah that if she ever got a real tattoo, we would grab the Magic Eraser again and if she pierces her nose, we won't hesitate to rub her nose off as well!!! All right, all right, stop calling CPS, you know I am not serious..........or am I???????????

"Come feed the 60-lb butterfly" and other such tales!

This past Saturday we had our Community Halloween Carnival for Bagdad. Morgan has become a staple at this event, making balloon animals until his fingers are sore from tying and he is hoarse. And yet, he is always faithful at doing it all over the next year!! What a man!! This year our booth was called, "Balloons for Bailey" and the money we made we are giving to a family that just lost their 5-year-old son to throat cancer. Bailey and his mom and dad live here in Bagdad and they are such a wonderful family. We wanted to do something that shows that we care. And although the 107.00 that we earned on Saturday may only pay for one dose of medicine, we hope the message of love will help them even more!

We also did something new this year. We had Dot dressed up as a "dainty butterfly" and we had a sign that said..."Feed the 60-pound butterfly---1 ticket" It was a BIG hit!!! Kids loved her and adults thought she was the coolest thing ever!

I feel really bad that I don't have many pictures...but I was trying to help Morgan blow up balloons the whole time and keep Will at bay(not easy)... so forgive my lack of digital journaling.

Lund loved to tell kids all about how awesome Dot is....

Here is my little Scooby Doo!!!

He did not want to keep the "head" on because he said it was "Too heby!"

And here he is during the carnival... half dressed, crazed, and sliding into Dot the poor tortiose! Remind me to get a sitter next year!

Guess what happens if you collect antique books???

No, this isn't a riddle...It is a true story! So, guess what happens if you collect antique books??

One day your three-year-old will decide that he needs more of a runway for his ramp, and that is why I collect antique books. To supply my son with a runway!! (Some of the titles on the ground with their bindings bent are Les Miserables, Jane Eyre, Rudyard Kipling, Japanese hymnals from Morgans mission, etc.. you get the point)...

And here they are back to normal in their usual resting place until the next time Will finds a new use for them!

You know you are a Preschool teacher when...

You know your a preschool teacher when all the other kids are painting so nicely at the table...
And your own child is in his own little world playing with toys!!!

What??!!! You want me to learn something???!!!

But then again, look how cute they all are here in their "collosal caps" for the letter C. (That is Mr. C hiding under his collosal cap on the floor in front of them). I love my kiddos!!!

"Hey Will, have you seen that glue stick I just had??? Oh wait, there it is!!"

Rhino flashlight meets gluestick...

I wonder who would do something like this.....!!!

Birthday blessings and bliss!!!

I know this is really, really belated, but I wanted to share what a wonderful birthday I had this year. It was truly awesome!!!

My top ten birthday moments this year....

10. A leaning chocolate cupcake tower

9. Hanging out with my best buds at the park (I just love my pals)

8. Getting lots of facebook birthday wishes.

7. Getting the wonderful phone call from Idaho with singing voices.

6. Going to Prescott with Morgan (and no children). Morgan and I shopped and meandered and just plain chatted. It was so great to have some time with my best friend.

5. Eating Drumsticks with my kids

4. Getting a new baby blue mountain bike from my hubby

3. Taking my new mountain bike on a ride through the desert.

2. Getting my birthday card in the mail from my parents... they rock!! (this year for my birthday they helped me get my preschool started. That was awesome!!!)

And the #1 reason my birthday was amazing..... Morgan let me sleep in!!!! On a Wednesday!!!! (that means he called in late to work, got the kids ready for school and took them all to their various drop off spots... that's big stuff in my book!!!!)

Will and I at the park for a little birthday gathering. Notice that he has his army shovel... he loves that thing!!

Here is my tower of chocolate cupcakes made for me by Ashley Anderson.

And here are my buddies! I love these ladies! The Bagdad ward rocks, I have the best friends ever here!!