Arizona Rain

Rain around here is a pretty big deal. Just watch any of the weather reports when we get a little bit of "weather."

Yesterday afternoon, Andrew came racing into the kitchen yelling, "MOM! MOM! IT'S RAINING OUTSIDE!!!' Then he and his friend, Eric, grabbed the umbrella on hand (which is falling apart) and raced outside into the sprinkles.

After a few moments, they raced back inside.

Love this girl

Today Natalie refused to wear what I had picked out for her. Instead, she silently walked up the stairs, entered her room and shut the door.

Moments later, the door opened and out came Natalie, in clothes of her choice. A purple Tinker Bell shirt (short sleeves and it was in the 40s today) paired with a pink plaid skirt.

What is a mom to do? I made her put on a long sleeved sweater and some leggings under the skirt (did I mention it was cold today?) and called it good. This morning she got away with wearing her sparkly red flip flops with the outfit, but this afternoon when she wanted to go outside I suggested she put on another sweatshirt and choose some warmer footwear.

This is what she came up with.

And yes, that is an ice cream cone.

If you have never met Natalie, these pictures sum her up pretty well. I love this girl.

Kids in the dirt--starring James

This is what my kids love to do almost every day.

And I love that they are outside playing.

I do not love that James always, and Natalie sometimes, end up with dirt dumped on their heads (by Natalie) and down their clothes (if they are wearing clothes). Sometimes if Natalie doesn't get James, he dumps it on his own head.

I also do not love, but sometimes tolerate, the water on. Andrew tells me every day that the plants are thirsty. And when I allow it, we end up with a big mud pit back there.


James is just so excited that he is big enough to be out there playing with the big kids. He was particularly pleased this November afternoon.

Too much fun. And on some days, too much mess!

A great man

My Grandpa Allen passed away on November 5. I am left missing him, but I think the sign that he really was a great man is that I am left inspired to let his life be an example and to work to be more like him.

What an inspiring person my grandpa is. He never said anything unkind about anyone. Really. He believed the best about everybody.


Regardless of how difficult circumstances were, he always saw the best of the situation. Always. He was optimistic, faithful and enthusiastic. And his enthusiasm was contagious. He was especially enthusiastic about the gospel, the scriptures or his family.

He focused on all the good in his life. He was grateful for everything. He never felt like things were unfair to him. He just chose to celebrate all the beautiful things in his life and because of that, his life was beautiful.


I am so grateful that I took a little drive to Idaho this summer so my kids and I could see him one last time.

Halloween

Four things to note for next year:

1. Make sure your husband does not have 2 finals and a paper due the next day, thereby remaining absent the entire evening.

2. Carve pumpkins before October 31st at 5:00pm. Especially if your husband is studying on October 31st. You will definitely not get pictures of the 4-eyed, 2-nosed pumpkin.

3. If you are on your own for Halloween, make sure you leave to trick-or-treat right at 6:00. Otherwise, you may find yourself unable to leave...as you try to put the finishing touches on costumes while answering the door bell every 5 seconds.

4. Don't let your preschooler wear the lego hat to school--he may leave it there.

These things being said, it was actually a wonderful night. The kids were so excited and I had just as much fun watching and listening. Andrew was always about a house ahead...he was so anxious to get to the next one, plus Natalie was so slow. She finally decided she didn't have to ride in the wagon and that sped things up a bit.

Natalie insisted on bringing her two dogs with her (their names are Frenchy and Biting dog (??)) and there were many patient homeowners who had to move Frenchy aside in the pumpkin to make room for candy.

We made a respectable loop and then made it home, where Andrew then had just as much fun handing candy out to trick or treaters and James got to stretch his legs.

Natalie and her cousin Reagan in the library parade

Ward Halloween Party

Oh, we have such a fun ward Halloween Party every year. Carnival booths, food, horse rides...

Always the highlight...the horses. Natalie was thrilled she got a white horse and then managed to almost fall off because she wasn't really holding on.

In fact, it is so fun that I got up early Saturday morning, drove all day from Utah, and got us all ready for the party...by myself...because I didn't want the kids to miss it.

Andrew was so excited to wear his lego costume and he was followed by murmurs of "it's a lego!" all night. Although, he didn't love that his hat fell off all night or that he couldn't really bend over to pick anything up.

Natalie was floating on air as Belle.

James hated his costume. He hated the ears, he hated the round body. So, I have no pictures of James really in his costume and none with him smiling. Oh well.

John was off with some college friends for the weekend, and his great parents met up with us at the party...I'm sure to lend me a hand. It was great to have them there.

Utah here we come

New car on Friday, drive to Utah Monday.

It was nice to see the "under 100" on the odometer for a few days, something I never thought I WOULD see...but you have to put the new car to work sometime, and the Monday after our purchase looked like a good time to do it.

John was crazy busy with work and school and I was needing a little break from the Arizona "fall" i.e. high 90s. So it was a great time for me and the three kids to pack up our new car and go visit Grandma Larraine and Grandpa Jon.

And it was the BEST week.

I cannot say how much I LOVE the freedom to be able to do that.

Some of the highlights:

I made it in town for the farewell party of a great friend, Karen Whitt, before she left for Germany for a few years.

We got to see my brother Jeff and to hang out with Sarah, Jim and their girls. My kids LOVE their cousins. It is especially cute to see the twin cousins (born on the same day) Andrew and Grace.




We did some fun activity every day with my mom (Gardner Village, Children's Museum, Dinosaur Museum, Zoo...). The kids (and I) had a great time.

This was magical. Natalie couldn't take her eyes off the polish. And I love my mom's expression just as much!

And Andrew did not want to miss out. I was a little relieved when he chose green instead of pink.

We played outside!!! The weather was beautiful.

I think her face says it all.

My kids got some great time with Grandpa Jon. He read them stories, helped bathe them and put them to bed.