Photos Here and There

Now that I have three different ways to take pictures of the kids (one camera, two phones) I have a difficult time gathering all the pictures I want to post on my blog. So here are some random pictures for you to enjoy!

Levi trying on his first football jersey.

Adorable baby boy.

My little girl on her first field trip...


to the pumpkin patch!

At the pumpkin patch they had a big huge slide. Super fun!

Reading library books. I love how both girls grab a book and start to read as soon as we get home from the library!

Is there anything cuter than a baby in the tub?

Erika, Laurel and Levi with their cousin, Judah, visiting Grandma and Grandpa at church.

A Fall Classic

No, not the World Series. The annual pumpkin patch trip! The past two years, we have visited the same pumpkin patch that was the closest to our house. This year, however, we ventured a little further away and were so glad we did! It was far superior to the other one we went to. A lot more fun things for the kids to see and do. I think we found a new annual pumpkin patch to visit!

The kids were so excited for their outing!

There were a bunch of pedal tractors to ride. However, the girls weren't quite strong enough to make them go over the rough, rocky ground. Daddy got to help.

They had these pumps set up that you could pump water into a trough and race rubber ducks. That was a hit!

And a big haystack to climb with a slide.

They had very cute animals in their petting zoo. Pigs, donkeys, goats, sheep, chicks, rabbits, and a really cute baby cow.

And, the train. They loved the train! I was super nervous that Laurel would fall out of the train so she got to sit in the boxcar.

Levi waving at his sisters as they pass.

And, of course, picking out pumpkins. Laurel picked the ugliest gourd I have ever seen, but she loves it!

Gone

About a week and a half ago, I lost something that has been with me since birth. My gall bladder. I wasn't too terribly attached to it, although it was to me. It has been a nice parting so far! For about 7 or 8 months, I have had pretty bad stomach problems that was originally diagnosed as ulcers. Well, fast forward to last Thursday and the pain had been constant and severe for about a week so I took myself on a field trip to the ER in the middle of the night. After an ultrasound, the doctor told me I got to have not only my gall bladder removed, but my common bile duct cleaned out as well. Lucky me! On Friday, they cleaned out some gall stones that were stuck and then removed the gall bladder on Saturday. I went home on Saturday night, spent a night in a lot of pain, and have been slowly recovering ever since! I actually feel almost normal now....just some stomach muscle soreness.
I had never had surgery before and only been in the hospital to have babies prior to this adventure. I realized two things from this. 1. I don't ever plan on being in the hospital again. Not the most comfortable or restful place I can imagine. 2. I am so incredibly blessed to live near family members! It was 3:45 on Friday morning when I was told I was being admitted. I called Matt and asked him to call his parents to come stay with the kids so he could come be in the hospital with me. After receiving a phone call at 4am, my sweet mother-in-law was at our house at 5:45am ready to stay and take care of our kids for as long as we needed her to be there. How amazing! Then, my sister took over and had all the kids for a day. And, finally, my mom came and stayed all of last week to help me with the housework and kids so I could rest and recover. I am so thankful to everyone who took care of me, Matt, and the kids. God is very good!

Haircut

Levi had his first haircut on Saturday. It is so nice to not have to wait for two years to cut someone's hair like I did the girls! None of my kids are known for their long, flowing tresses as babies and it took forever for the girls to get any hair to speak of to distinguish them as little girls instead of little boys. However, with my little boy, I do not have to wait for his hair to get to be a decent length! He was getting a little scruffy around the ears so Matt took out his clippers and gave him a cut! It is a little deceiving that he even has hair since it is so incredibly blond, but we took off quite a bit. He does not look older or different as most boys do after their first haircut. In fact, he looks less like an old balding man and more like a baby now!

It is very difficult to cut a squirming baby's hair. Especially when he grabs everything in his reach....such as the cord to the clippers. I held him down while Matt manned the clippers. He giggled the entire time because the clippers tickled his head.

Post haircut picture. I didn't take a pre-haircut picture. But it would have looked pretty much the same. Except he had a shirt on.

The assistants. Who wouldn't want these two assisting with a haircut?

Videos and Halloween

I noticed we had a backlog of videos that I never posted. That, my friends, is a tragedy. So, here are the long-awaited videos!

One night, Erika organized a talent show. Here is Laurel's dancing talent. Erika provides the laugh track.

Levi's talent was piano playing, a little dancing, and generally being cute.

Laurel is also working on her singer/songwriter skills.

Matt led the girls in some Halloween decorating tonight. They made a ghost and bat garland for the front of our house. Erika and Laurel love being crafty so it was a big hit with them. Levi loved chewing on the paper and pens.

Can you find Levi in this picture? He's camouflaged!