Double Ear Infection

Okay...I have to document the pain I have been in so that I can not forget down the road and I can be more empathetic with my kids.  I have been diagnosed with a double ear infection and OUCH!!!  IT HURTS!  I can't function that well and my whole head feels like it's going to explode with pressure.  Sometimes, I haven't understood my poor kiddos and their fussiness from their ears; now I understand.



Not a picture of one of my babies, but a note to myself that when they feel crummy like this, I need to cuddle them up, drug them up, and have pity on them 

Clowning Around

We've managed to have a little bit of a break and some fun here this fall.  I just wanted to post some cute pics of the girls since it's been awhile.

Allie just makes me smile....she is just such a happy easy going girl and I relate to this girl so much!

This girl on the other hand cracks me up because she is so serious.  She is opening up though as her little personality develops. We love her so much!!!  She keeps me on my toes because I never know what the heck she is going to be getting into and where she is going to be if I take my eyes off of her.



I do know, Sophie loves to go anywhere where her big sis Allie is even if it's climbing up a flight of stairs.  She now knows how to get herself back down those stairs too, which is great. 

Consignment and Canning

Seriously, where did the month of September go to?  I can't believe it's the end of the month and what in the world have we been up to?  Well, me and Katie (my sister-in-law) had our semi annual children's consignment sale- Boise Kidsignments- and that always takes up a good two weeks of my life.  The sale is so worth my time and so much fun.  Don't talk to the boys, they are set-up and take-down committee, and I think they have different feelings about the sale.  I sure do appreciate them though!  I end up walking out with a lot of good finds from the weekend as well as purging myself from things at my house.  I love seeing all of our consignors and the familiar shoppers that return ever time

We hold the venue inside of a church in downtown Boise; it's such a great set-up but we seem to be busting at the seems for more room.  Since we have taken over the sale from our friends we have implemented Credit Card Machines and this sale was our first at trying out a bar code system for the tagging process.  I think we are done with the improvements for awhile.  I feel up to par now:)

Once the sale stuff was wrapped up it was due time for canning;  cucumbers, tomatoes and peaches were all ready.  Here was my process:  jars washed, sugar water made, food prepped and canned, jars sealed, jars washed off, put away under the stairs, kitchen cleaned, floors mopped and re-mopped, check, check, check

I bottled up Cucumbers for the first time this year with my friend Kelly.  Katie and I bottled peaches once again, we are hoping we get a break next year:)  I've been canning tomatoes from the garden every time I get a batch to build my stock for the winter.  Blake is promising me he'll Salsa it up with me:)  After we finish up all this Salsa I think I'm calling it good and settling in for winter.   

Sophie 10 months

I can't believe that you are almost 1; I hate that my baby is getting bigger. I am loosing my baby and I need another one around for me to love on!  

You still LOVE food and you eat like a horse; no joke.  You usually consume about what I eat whether it be a sandwich, 1/2 of a chicken breast, anything.  One thing that drives me NUTS is you scream when your tray is empty.  You shovel food in so fast that I really don't have time to eat until you are done.  I'll put food on your tray, walk away to get something prepared for Allie or myself and then your food is gone in seconds and you are screaming at me.  We are working on learning the sign for PLEASE

Some of your favorite things to do this month are open cupboards and UNLOAD.  Oh the dreaded "unload phase" whether it be cupboards, trashcans, you name it

You are also climbing up on everything...we've got another climber around here

You also LOVE toilet paper.  I don't recall Allie doing this, but you will crawl over to the roll on the wall and unroll the whole thing and just pick apart the paper into tiny pieces.  Oh what a mess!

As you can tell you love a lot of things in the bathroom.  One other thing you are infatuated with is the toilet.  You love to splash in the water and one new thing that you started this month is loading things into the toilet.  I have found stuffed animals, hair accessories, and paper products.  One of these days we are going to try and flush without looking and you are going to clog thing up.  

Can't believe I got this expression on camera.  You absolutely HATE your bath.  I guess I've traumatized you when you get the water poured on you to rinse out your hair.  You freak out when you are put into the tub.  I've tried to lately just let you play and have fun before dousing you with water, but you are still not to fond

Lately you've just been trying to escape on me.  One of these days you are going to do it

Trying to lay back in the tub with sissy.  I am trying to teach you signs, but you have been unsuccessful with learning them; you are one funny kid.  I will sign the word "thank you" and say the word with the sign. You look at me and just say "dank do."  Seriously me and daddy were laughing about it.  You are to little to be talking back to us.  Words that you have copied so far are kitty, daddy, boo, thank you and of course piggy.  You are so fun and I love how we get to watch you learn so many fun things!

1st day of school-Tiny Hands

Allie was thrilled to be FINALLY be going to school.  All of the neighborhood kids had already started and all her playmates were gone.   I had left to get in an early workout at the gym this morning and when I got home dad had told me you woke up at 7 am.. You immediately got dressed in your back to school outfit you had picked out the night before and were ready to go. I had bought the apple outfit years ago in anticipation of you wearing it to Kindergarten so I was thrilled beyond thrilled when you wanted to wear it for your 1st day of preschool:)   

Mom and dad decided on holding you back this year; not at all for social, educational, or any of those reasons.  You would have excelled just fine in Kindergarten, but we were selfish and we figured if we could have you one more year at home, that would essentially give us one more year before you had to leave for college:)  Sophie would be thrilled to have you around for one more year to play with her too. 

We are trying out a new preschool called Tiny Hands.  We absolutely loved our preschool last year but decided to switch things up for this year.  We don't know anyone but it sounds like there is a whole lot of fun that happens.  Once a month the preschool goes on a field trip and once a month they have a day in the kitchen where they are baking.  There are 7 girls and 3 boys so I know there will be some good friendships made.  Good luck sweet girl!

You had told me you wanted your picture by the front door

By the school table

Out front....seriously did we really take this many pictures in all these places last year

One more goofy one before you have to sit down and be serious

Labor Day

What a long post for a long weekend.  For Labor Day Weekend we headed up to McCall with the Hansen Family.  The point of our trip was to drive up to Grandma Susan's plane crash site.  It had been 10 years since anyone had gone up there, so we wanted to take the long weekend to make the trip in.  We first started by going to the cabin and spending the night so we could wake up and leave to the crash site, getting a few hours head start



Getting ready for the trip in.  The boys had estimated it being a 2 hour car trip in

4 HOURS and BUMPY BUMPY roads in we finally made it.  We had to take in the SUV, Trucks, and the Jeep because the roads were so bad.  Sophie was not to thrilled to be bounced around in the jeep for that long.

The memorial rock that was brought into the crash site years ago

Grandma Susan's grand kids (minus Sophie) who was sleeping in the car

Kind of crazy that to this day there are plane pieces still strewn all over the meadow where the plane crashed.  Every time people make it in they see how many pieces they can find and place them all at the memorial

Our little family

Pieces that we had found that morning

I had to bust out some new tricks to entertain Sophie because she was not thrilled we were back in the car seat #1, and also back on the bumpy road.  The first new trick she learned was that when I asked her "how big is Sophie,' she puts her arms up in the air while I say, "SO BIG."

I also started to hide her piggy from her and I would put my hands up and say "where'd piggy go?"  Sophie thought this was hilarious and started to turn her hand up looking for piggy.   Love this little girl and the 8 hours of fun we had in the car:)

At least we made it back in time to cheer on the Broncos for their opening game that night

Sophie sporting her Bronco attire this season

The kids all slept out in the tent 2 of the nights we were up at the cabin

Allie wanted daddy to sleep outside with her, so he got to join in on the fun

On Sunday we drove up to the fire look out.  We had a great view of Valley County

Allie braved the stinky port-a-potty

Sophie is such a big girl and figured out how to drink the water out of my water bottle

Love my blue eyed baby

Sophie had a blow-out up at the fire lookout, hence the naked baby.  She was ticked to be back in the car on Sunday following our long day on Saturday

On Labor Day we were able to enjoy some nice weather and made it out to play on the lake

The kids enjoyed building sand castles

Relaxing in the hot tub.  Sophie wasn't a fan of the hot tub

Blake and I did some surfing

Allie enjoying a boat ride, not so much for Sophie; she once again didn't want to be in a life vest.  This girl beats to her own drum and likes to do what she wants to do, but we LOVE her

Princess Allie

Allie got a cute Snow White costume in the mail today from her cousin; the costume immediately came out of of the package and went onto Allie.  I can just see Allie's future of being a Disneyland princess.  She is such a gorgeous girl and Sophie isn't quite sure what has happened to Allie.

Love these girls!

Spirit of Boise

Well my family thought I was joking when I told them we were waking up at 6:30 am to head to the balloon launch, especially since we had a late night the night before. Well, I wasn't kidding and got every one up and moving.  We had previously been to the Night Glow the year before but I wanted to actually see the balloons launch this year.  It was such a fun experience and well worth the early morning.  We got to be right next to tons of balloons as they inflated and then took off to soar through the sky.

Allie bundled up for the cold morning

A few family shots

Daddy and his girls

Allie and the USA balloon

We went and stood next to a few different balloons as they loaded up the baskets with the pilots and then took off right above us.  One cute old man was blowing bubbles at us during take off 

It was so much fun to see all the balloons soaring right above us.   A majority of the balloons stayed right in the park which was so fun

Sophie absolutely loved the balloons, especially when they were up in the sky

Mommy and the girls

Lastly, there was Allie's favorite which was so fun to watch it blow up

M-I-C-K-E-Y   M-O-U-S-E!!!