Confession Sunday

One of my good friends does a "Confession Sunday" on her blog. (Thanks Shalene!!) I thought it was a cute idea. Her confessions have been so funny. So I thought I'd do one of my own "confessions" for today's post. I've been trying to think of a confession that was Sunday appropriate, and wasn't too terrible that I could share with all of you. I also wanted it to be something most of you don't know about me.

So here is MY confession. I dream of being a publishing author. I have written 7 children's books. And now, I am in the middle of an LDS romance novel that I've been working on for the past year or so. With the children's books I have printed them out, laminated them and bound them together for my boys to read. "I love it when..." is the start of each title. I've written about using sign language, swimming lessons, botanical garden, going to the beach and others. It's been a lot of fun and the boys love it too.

My romance novel is AWESOME!! (Stephenie Meyer, you are my hero!) The story has been in my head for years. It's a lot harder to get it down on paper though. I dream about it all the time and wake up to write things down before I forget them. As you probably have already guessed I'm not great in the English department. With Scott's help, I have finally gotten the overall story down, and I am now breaking it up into sections and augmenting each chapter with the little details I still have in my head and just have not jotted down yet.

With the right amount of persuasion, I just might highlight certain parts on my blog for my readers to chime in with their thoughts and comments. We will see....

What's going to make me millions?

What is going to make me millions? My children will! Each of them, like each of yours, has their own special talents that will last their entire lives.

Will, my 9 year old, is a brainiac and probably going to become some kind of scientist and invent something outrageous or be a super specialized doctor who cures a crazy disease and make me millions. $

Jack is 7 years old and has always been a little talker, a comical character and a charismatic actor. He will probably be the next Jim Carey and make me millions. $$

My little Ty guy (5 years) is very tall (99th percentile) and very athletic. We took his height at age three and doubled that he is predicted to be around 6'10". Scott thinks he'll be a basketball player or volleyball. I think he will be a swimming star like Michael Phelps and make me millions. $$$

Gav-o is very physical with having 3 older brothers to beat up on him. He will probably be a football player or a wrestler, but he also has a great vocabulary for his age, and is very articulate. Perhaps a sports broadcaster on ESPN. We will see... $$$$

And then there is the littlest one, Brigs. Even though he is so young still at 8 months old, you can already tell that his mind is at work. He studies every little detail and seems to be taking in everything he can. He is already standing and walking around the furniture, and we expect him to take those first steps on his own any day now (he is taking after Scott who walked when he was 7 months old).

So you can see, my retirement plan is completely taking care of, and all I have to do now is figure out where and when to start spending it all. That's why I have so many kids. :)

Decoration time!

Another family ritual we have is the day after Thanksgiving, after doing all the shopping, we put all the fall decorations away and then decorate with the BEST holiday of the year. I LOVE CHRISTMAS TIME!! I love the smells, the lights, the music, the decor, the desserts, the weather, the gifts (both giving and receiving).....Everything!

Here we are getting everything out and starting the slow process. We play Christmas music and light yummy smelling candles to help with the mood...

The family tree is DONE! We change the theme of the tree every year. I've done Americana, Red and Green, but this year it's silver, white, and red. It turned out pretty good.

We collect snowmen and nativities. Here are a few of them...

The boys have their own tree. Most of the ornaments are from my Gram's Christmas store on Santa Clause Lane. They are VERY old, but I love them. The kids have added some of the ornaments they have made. It's cute.

Scott put up all the lights outside. Both front and back! It looks great.

Good luck to you with your decorating and shopping during this holiday season.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

We ARE crazy!

What is up with these black Friday sales stating earlier and earlier each year? 4am Khol's? Midnight KB Toys? Scott and I have enjoyed in past years waking up early and buying a bunch of crap (most of it FREE after rebates), but each year there are fewer and fewer "good deals" available. We looked through the adds and found some things we all needed and wanted so we typed up our list and decided to head out to do a little shopping.
A couple stores were open on Thanksgiving. One store our bill came to $75.00, but we ended up paying almost $20! SWEET! The next store wasn't open until midnight so we decided to go to TWILIGHT!!
Oh my gosh! I LOVED the movie!! I loved, loved, LOVED the movie! Scott and I held hands tightly and kept clapping randomly during the movie. It was BETTER than I thought or hoped it would be. (yeah, yeah they left out some good stuff, but come on, it was a movie.) I can't wait to see the next movie. Last night I kept dreaming of the unique relationship sweet Bella and handsome Edward have. It was awesome, a definite buy!
Anyways, back to my shopping story. After the 9pm movie it was almost midnight for KB to open. We were in there front of the line and were in and out quick. Scott decided to stay awake and stand in line (while reading Eclipse!) and I headed home to SLEEP.
Scott returned at 7am after going to 4 stores and finishing up his list. I got up and headed out to go to some of the other stores.
I headed to Joann's and realized my # was 97 to have my fabric cut and they were on #37! So I left, with my # in hand, and headed to Khol's. I came back about 30 min.'s later and they were on #75. I went through the flannel and got some CUTE prints.
It was busy, and hectic out there this morning, but I made it through and have most of my shopping DONE! (Scott said he was pushed to the floor at one of the stores this morning! And he's a BIG guy!)
Now, it's time to wrap everything! YEAH! I LOVE Christmas time!

Turkey Day!!

This year we decided to stay in Mesa for the holiday. (Scott had to work and needed to study!)We have a little family ritual we do on Thanksgiving morning. We do family pictures. It takes a long time to get 5 kids sitting ready for posing. I bought black Polo's for everyone, but of course couldn't them all this morning. So, I decided to have some of the kids to wear white instead. But still. It takes a long time to get everyone dressed, hair combed and happy. It was raining this morning, so we had to take them inside. Bummer. I took individuals first, then TRIED to take all the boys. It was HARD. None came out that I LOVE. We didn't even take any family pic's! Another day I guess. Here are a few of the cute shots I got.

Jackson was first, and oh, so easy. He is a very photogenic kid.




Of course he couldn't sit and stay in the pose I wanted. And of course he had to have some random item in his hands during the photo shoot.

Will too, is really easy. The older they get, the easier it is to have them sit the way you want and just smile.

Brigs was way to giggly and moving all over the place. This was on the only half decent one I could get. I'll try another day!

Tyler was excited to make up poses as I acted like a professional photographer, but unfortunately there was a bad shadow in most of them. Bummer!

Scott is grabbing my butt and making me laugh. I am trying to push him away, but he's not letting go!

We had a very YUMMY dinner and went for a walk around before and after the big meal. We watched some football, a few people took a nap, we played the Wii, did some cute Thanksgiving crafts, and had a fun day OFF!

One of my favorite parts of Thanksgiving is looking through the paper and finding the sales for tomorrow! This year some of the sales start tonight at midnight! Then the others are at 4am! What's up with that?! We are taking off tonight (Kmart and CVS have a few things we want), then we're off to a movie. Just Scott and I! YEAH!

I hope everyone had a WONDERFUL day!!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

Homemade Stuffing

I really enjoy Thanksgiving time. I love to eat turkey with a ton of cranberry sauce on it. YUMMY! Several years ago I celebrated Thanksgiving with all my Walker cousins at my aunt's house in SLC. My sweet aunt Margene made the MOST delicious homemade stuffing I have ever had. I LOVE stuffing! I got her recipe and have made it a couple of times. I started the LONG process 2 days ago, and I can't wait till tomorrow to eat it up! I wanted to share this TRULY YUMMY (and incredibly fattening) homemade stuffing with you.
Enjoy!!

1 C. butter
1lg onion finely chopped
3/4 t. salt
1/8 t. pepper
1t. Sage
1 lg loaf bread
2t. poultry seasoning
1C. chicken stock base
3 lg eggs


Two to three days before the feast cut the bread into cubes. Lay them out on a cookie sheet or cookie rack. Flip every 4 hours or so.




Saute chopped onion in melted butter. Add salt, sage, pepper, and seasoning. Pour butter mixture over bread and mix. Add turkey/chicken stock and eggs. Mix thoroughly and place into turkeys cavity. (Under skin, breast, legs and thighs). The rest can be placed in a separate pan. Enjoy!!
(She would always triple the recipe. I double it)

Thanks Margene for this FABULOUS recipe. I will be thinking of you with every bite! :)

The Thankful Turkey

Last night for FHE we made a thankful turkey. I cut out (jacked up) feathers and had the kids write different things on them that they are thankful for. Then they could color them and make them look fancy. We also talked to the kids about saying prayers about what we're thankful for. Not to ask for anything, just say things we're thankful for. Each child gave it a try and surprisingly they did really well. I guess it's easier for kids.
Will was thankful for specific family members, and friends in general. Jackson was all about different animals. Tyler remembered Jesus, temples, and prophets. Gavin did a good job too with a little help from mom. :)
Try it! Tonight when you say your prayers, just express your gratitude for things you are thankful for. Don't ask for anything. Try to go beyond the obvious things too. It's really neat experience. Makes you think a little differently.
Good luck!!

STUPID people

When I started this blog, I wanted to share my journal entries with close friends and family.

Recently, however, a couple of people tried to use my blog to dig up some "dirt" on my husband for the purpose of making the claim that he does not have integrity. I WAS SHOCKED to learn that these grown men would read my blog and then attempt to try to make some crazy claims that he is a liar.

Initially, I was SO upset about this that I wanted to put a block on my blog so that only certain people could read my posts. My husband was not worried though, and basically said "Whatever". After giving it some thought, I had to agree with Scott. They can search all they want, and TRY to find something on my hubby, because I know they will come up empty handed each and every time. He is the MOST hardworking, honest, outgoing, friendly and trustworthy person that I know. They should be so lucky to possess even one of his qualities. (You know how you are!)

With that being said, the posts will continue on, the blogging will not stop, and let those STUPID people waste their precious time and energy continuing to search, because I know they will not find anything.

Scott, I love you babe. You're the best!

Lazy Leg

This post was from several weeks ago.....I kept trying to add a clip of it to show you all with no luck! But, I wanted to add the story about the lazy leg anyway.

A few weeks ago, my sweet Brigham, started crawling. His crawl is a little different than a normal crawl, or how the other brothers have crawled. His left leg stays tucked underneath him, as his right leg does all of the work. It is really cute! The only down side is that one foot becomes so dang dirty from being dragged all over the place. It helps him to sit up faster and to turn faster with it tucked underneath him. Here is a little clip that I took last night of his crawling efforts. It is very unique and special crawl. I hope you enjoy it.

Aww, Sunday mornings...

I love Sunday's, especially the mornings. Our church is at noon to 3, which kinda stinks, but it makes my morning even more fabulous than usual. I get to sleep in a little bit, you gotta love that start. I take baby Brig's to the play room with the other brothers and head on back to my room. (Which is my FAVORITE room in the house! I love to snuggle up with my big 'ol goose down quilt and my many pillows and just get comfy!) Anyways, I bring in my breakfast and the paper and watch a show I've been saving on my Tivo for a special morning all to myself. This morning my breakfast was a grapefruit. YUMMY. I don't really READ the paper, I just check out the weather predictions and collect all my coupons. (Is that what YOU do? Or do you actually READ the paper?) I slowly get the boys ready and slowly get myself ready. I love Sunday mornings. That will change when our ward changes time to 8am. Then, I'll love my Sunday afternoons!

Crazy Busy!!

I would much rather be crazy busy than have only few things to do. Life is boring when I'm not busy. Time goes by too slowly when I'm not over booked. It is nice to take a few moments of nothingness and just rest, but on the whole I love doing things. I'm a planner and make sure we have family plans as often as possible. I also have a ton of energy. I'm always on the go. Things to do, places to go, people to meet.
I am the PTO president at my kids school and tonight we had the annual Fall Festival. It was SO fun but truly has taken up so much of my time. Planning, ordering, calling, buying, printing, organizing, decorating...Blah, blah, blah. It's crazy busy. My back is killing, my feet hurt and I'm glad it's over.
I run my own custom vinyl lettering business that does pretty well but during the holidays it's crazy busy with many orders for gifts.
I teach children in my ward primary songs, which I LOVE! It too takes up a lot of my time planning and organizing songs for the children to sing for the program and other special days during the year.
Then, I have 5 boys who play soccer, have piano, art classes, and much more on a daily basis. There is also sweet little G-man and baby Brigs. Taking care of those two is a full-time job on it's own. Changing diapers, nursing, napping, potty training, talking baby talk....It makes me tired just thinking of it all.
But, I love it. I love being involved in my boys school, I love my business (www.creationsbybelle.com), I love my church calling, and most importantly I love each and everyone of my kids.
I am so blessed. I am so lucky.

We heart Disneyland!!

Our family LOVES Disneyland. We get those annual passes and try to go as often as possible. When we lived in SB it was a lot easier to get there, but we still make an effort and drive 5 1/2 hours to visit Mickey and his posse.

Our passes were just about to expire so I planned a quick little get away between holidays with just the 5 boys and myself. (Scott had to work. We missed him!) We left after church and drove to our hotel and spent the night. On Monday morning we walked over to the park and met Nana and Papa there. We spent the morning and afternoon in California Adventure where we went on ALL the rides. (walked on practically!) We really enjoyed the NEW Woody ride. (7 min. wait, we clocked it!) It was real cute. The boys enjoyed it too.

Tyler went on the upside down ride for the first time, and LOVED it. Jackson and I went on the boomerang ride for the first time together. It was fun, but scary. Not sure if I'll try that one again...We'll see.

We watched the NEW HSM3 show, traded pins, ate a huge corn dog, participated in the Jedi show, lost Gavin for about 10 min., bought one of those huge Buzz balloons, and had a fun time hanging out with the family.

On Tuesday I took the boys all by myself. As I'm walking there I keep thinking in my head, "What in the heck and I doing? I can still turn back, Can I do this? Do I want to do this? I can still go back to the hotel and hang out and swim......" But, I knew the kids would have a better time at Disneyland. So I went there with 5 boys in tow. Several people stopped me throughout the day and asked if all of the boys were mine, if and why I would take them to D-land all by myself. Funny. They were ALL really good, surprisingly! :) We stayed until about 4:30pm and then I drove us all home. It was nice to finally sit and take a break for a minute. Well, 6 hours. It's good to be home again, but we already miss it!

Do you LOVE D-land as much as all of us??

Coupon Sense

I have always been a saver. I love clipping coupons, finding rebates, and random things on sale. I love to save money. When I do I think I can spend more, right? :) I found this company called "Coupon Sense", so I'm trying it out. So far, I LOVE IT!! (go to couponsense.com for more info!!) The tell you which store to go to and which coupon to use for maximum savings. On the website there is an area where you type in your savings. Here is my last few shopping savings: 45% savings, 86% savings, 52% savings, and 55% savings!!! SWEET!! That's including milk, meat, toothpaste, laundry soap, diapers, formula....EVERYTHING you need. Not just random stuff. There is a small fee for a coupon sense membership but I saved that in my first trip to the store. I also get 3 Sunday papers so I can have even more coupons. (I need more of everything with 5 growing boys!!) I am excited to do my Thanksgiving shopping and see how much I can save!
Do you clip coupon's?
Are you a member of some coupon club?
HAPPY SHOPPING!!

MADONNA, MADONNA!!

4 minutes with Justin Timberlake!

On Friday we drove to Vegas, baby! Why? You may ask. Well, it was a 4 day weekend and the most important thing is the MADONNA CONCERT! Woo Hoo baby! If you didn't know or couldn't guess it by now, I LOVE MADONNA!! I've loved Madonna since I was in Jr. High. Now, now, you may be surprised or even a little appalled by my feelings for her. Let me explain a little more to you. I love her music. I think she is a very talented artist. But, I don't always agree with what she does or may say in the media. But, how can anyone not get a little bounce on their step when a Madonna song is on the radio.

My first Madonna concert my sweet hubby slept outside to get us tickets. It was SOOO worth it. We were on the floor right next to the sound station. We went super early because on that day I was due with Jackson. I needed to scope out the area and find a quick exit if I went into labor. The sound station we were right next to is on risers, and the man in charge of that area let me sit up there half way through the concert. We already had great seats, but now I was lifted a little in the air I could see EVERYTHING!! It was awesome. I also sat next to Guy Ricci. It was a great night.

My second concert Tyler was 3 or so months along and I was nursing. So Scott bought 1 ticket and waited outside the concert with baby Tyler as I went in and boogied with Madonna. (If you think Scott is so sweet for doing that, just wait there is more wonderful things he has done for me and my love for Madonna!!) This time I was in THE FRONT ROW CENTER!!! Holy Moly. It was so awesome!!

My 3rd concert we had moved to Phoenix and I had just had Gavin. He was a baby that only nursed and once again Scott bought me a ticket to go by myself. My ticket was on the floor once again, but this time I was next to the cat walk. When the concert started I rushed the cat walk and once again Madonna and I had a connection. I LOVE HER!!

My 4th concert, which was last weekend in Vegas, was just as spectacular. It was at the MGM Grand, I had floor seats, and it was awesome. She is so entertaining. She was a lot more talkative than usual. More playful too. Scott once again purchased this ticket for me to go. I did tell Scott that for the next concert I wanted to go Worth him. He is amazing for putting up with me and my love for Madonna. He too likes to boggy to the beat of a Madonna song.

So, there you go. My journey through life with Madonna.

VOGUE!!!

Viva Las Vegas!

During our stay in the sin city, which is fun to visit but oh so dirty. We had a good 'ol time. I always enjoy visiting the large never ending city. I love the lights and driving down the strip. Our favorite stops are Luxor (to see if we can meet Criss Angel and see his cool automobiles), water show and flower garden at the Bellagio (just breathtaking), seeing the statue of Liberty (always reminds me of how THANKFUL I am to be an AMERICAN!), Eiffel Tower (maybe I'll see the other, larger one some day), and the pirate boats at Treasure Island (the show has gotten a little naughty, but the kiddos love to see PIRATES! RRR matie!).

This visit we stopped at the M&M store, Coca Cola store, and went to the beautiful PINK dome at Circus Circus to play on the rides. We also hung out at our resort and went swimming in the HEATED pool. They have a lazy river, children's pool, and cool Jacuzzi with water falls. From our balcony we could see the pool.

I had 1 quarter that I was wanting to play but as we walked through the different hotel casino's none of them take change anymore! Only bills of cards. What's up with that? I knew I had a Lucky quarter, but I was never able to play it. Now, I'll never know how much money I could of won! :)

Saver's!!

I love holiday's because the kids don't have school and the hubby usually doesn't have to work or study. YEAH! But I really love holidays because Saver's has EVERYTHING 50%off! Sweet deals galore. I love to find little treasures everywhere. I always find name brand crap that I have to buy. Every once in a while I'll find something bigger like furniture or a huge toy for the kids.

The boys have to wear uniform at their school, so we go through A LOT of khaki and navy blue pants. We also go through A LOT of Polo's. If the boys are good I'll splurge and get them a toy of their choice. They're almost always good, so we have a ton of useless stuff animals or toys that were played with for just a couple of days. (A month or so later those toys they HAD TO GET will find a way back to Saver's!!)

I never miss the infant section and thoroughly look through the baby boys AND girls clothing. Searching the rows for almost new name, brand name items that I either keep for the future Thompson baby or sell it on eBay. :) A little extra cash never hurts.

My great find this trip were Disney shirts and sweatshirt. I had just made a trip to the Disney outlet and purchased shirts for the boys for our upcoming Disneyland trip. Then, I went to Saver's. (wrong order!!) But I found 2 adorable shirts, looks new. And 1 sweatshirt! YEAH!!

Do any of you love Saver's like me??

Say NO to drugs!

I was very young when my only older brother started smoking pot. I saw how my mom, Gram, and brother acted about this situation. As a young girl, I didn't realize the severity of the problem or what was going to come next. I am sad to say it's gotten worse and worse over the MANY years. I often think how could it possibly get any worse, and sure enough, it does and it has. The occasional pot smoking escalated quickly (unfortunately) and many other drugs became a part of life for my sweet brother. Then all of a sudden things changed. I could tell. My mom could tell. We were worried. More than usual, if that was possible. Heroin. What a brilliant invention from Satan. It's so addicting. (so I've heard and seen first hand). Not only have I been lied to way too many times to count or even care about anymore, but many things have been stolen from me because of drugs. If you look in the crook of my brother's arm where there are supposed to be veins, there are none. But there are dark black lines; the evidence of DAILY heroin use. He's been in and out of prison too many times to count, it doesn't even phase him anymore. Or me. Sad. I do adore him. He's funny. He loves movies, pizza, amusement parks, and playing games. My kids adore him too. They love when Uncle William is home and follow him as if he were a god. I prefer when he's in prison. I know he's safe, sheltered, and fed. When he's out ... you just never know. When he doesn't come home for a day or two I start to worry. Expecting to receive a call about his "accidental" overdose or his murder. I've prepared myself for that. Sad. I feel bad about him and the situation he's in. Could I have done something different to help him? To save him? I don't think so. If you have a child or know someone hooked on drugs I believe they don't have to hit "rock bottom" to realize what they're doing and want to change. The one and only good thing, if you want to call it that, is that it made it crystal clear to me that I never wanted to do drugs. Not even try any. Same with cigarettes, and alcohol. I am proud to say with conviction that I have NEVER tried any of those things.

A couple of weeks ago he got real sick with a blood clot in his leg. He went to the ER and stayed in the hospital for a few days. A couple days later he got a nose bleed that didn't stop after several hours of nonstop bleeding. And his leg seemed worse. I told him to get to the hospital ASAP. He went and stayed there for a week. He had surgery, and many other things that happened while staying in there. When he got released he went to my moms and stayed there with her. He could hardly walk still being in a lot of pain. The next morning he was gone. He came home several hours later... high. Unbelievable. Unbelievably sad. He had a horrific experience the last week or so in the hospital and then straight back to what he knows. What he's comfortable with. Sad.

Everyone has vices. Watching TV, drinking soda... whatever it is. Think of something you do everyday, that you LOVE to do... that you HAVE to do. (not eating or sleeping). Eating chocolate, drinking alcohol, exercising, checking your email or surfing the Internet....I could go on and on. You try NOT doing that special something for 1 day and you will get a little taste of what my brother is going through.

So all I can think of to end this LONG post is:
DON'T DO DRUGS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

To vote or not to vote...That is the question.

These last few weeks I have gotten sick and tired of all the posters and signs everywhere. The phones calls. Heading the paper everyday. Every news channel and talk show arguing about who is the better choice. Bashing. Lying. He said this, she said that. He didn't say this, she dressed like that...BLAH BLAH BLAH. I can't wait till this is over!

About 3 or 4 days ago I decided in my mind I would NOT vote this year. The guy I want to win is probably not going to win anyways, so I want no part of this.

So, last night Scott reminds me where our place is to go vote. I told him that I wasn't planning on voting this year. He was shocked and stunned and questioned me why I had chosen such a stupid choice. I tried to explain to him my guy isn't going to win, and I have just had ENOUGH of all this political CRAP.

This morning, I'm driving around town to do some errands totally forgetting what today is and I drive by a place where voters can go vote and I see all these people standing out in front. Mothers. Fathers. And children holding "YES on prop 102" signs, and "YES for marriage" signs. I immediately got a tear in my eye. I HAVE TO VOTE I thought. I don't want to be questioned why I didn't stick up for my family. For your family. For my children's families. I didn't want to let the Lord down either. I know in His plan marriage is sacred. Between a man and woman ONLY. I need to go vote. In that moment I changed my mind, I WILL GO VOTE TODAY!!

Even though getting a NEW president of the United States is VERY important, the reason I am voting today is to protect the family. While I'm there I'll vote on all the other issues.

God Bless America!

Big Boys

Gavin has been doing really well sleeping in his "big boy bed". Brigham goes in the room with us when I'm getting Gavin ready for bed by changing his clothes, singing, praying, and giving each other a little snuggle. Here is Brigham standing by the bedside when I was tucking Gavin in for the night. We thought it was so cute. Gavin every once in a while will get off his big boy bed and sneak out of the room and I have to put him in his crib. He doesn't like it and will cry for a few minutes then fall asleep. But, then he started climbing out of his crib. So, I took out the mattress. That stopped him for a few days. But then he learned how to act like monkey and climb up the corner of the crib and out he'd come. So, I did something else.

Before I tell you, I want to warn you what you're about to see is SHOCKING.

THIS IS A WARNING!! Danger, Danger.

Last chance to turn away!

Back space now if you think you can't handle it!! :)

OK, here it is......

I warned you! :) It may look drastic, but it works beautifully! At first I put a single strip of tape on the side where he climbed out. Then, Gavin started climbing out the other corner. So, I put tape on the other corner. Then he began to climb out the middle. So, more and more tape went up. This is what we have now. He doesn't mind it at all anymore. When he wakes up you can hear him playing then he'll shout, "Mommy, come get me!" or "Mommy, I want out!"

None of the other boys ever climbed out of their crib, and non of them lasted as long in a crib. I'm just lazy I guess. I am planning on moving him to the bottom of the bunk bed in the brother's room in the beginning of next year. He's still my baby boy. I love him!

The day after...

I am big on decorating for the holiday. Valentines, Easter, Halloween, LOVE IT! I especially love AFTER the holiday I go shopping and get some SWEET deals. Today, was one of those days! ALL Halloween stuff (crap really) was 50-75% off! Now, that's a deal. I bought a few decorations for next year, some napkins, plates, a fog machine, strobe lights, and costumes for all the boys for next year!
After the stake conference breakfast, soccer games, and the Home Depot craft project we went to Wal-mart, Party City, Target and Michael's. We rushed home because all the boys wanted to try their NEW costumes on. Cute Gavin didn't want to take his off. Will got Bat Man, Tyler Super Man, Jackson a cool Sheriff costume, Gavin Buzz Light Year and nada for Brig's. (I couldn't find a Woody costume his size!) Sometime the boys will change their minds by the time Halloween rolls around again. But, it's okay because we have tons of costumes to choose from. We NEVER pay full price! It's also fun because by the time the holiday rolls around again it's fun opening the "New stuff". It's like Christmas every holiday!
I hope everyone had a FUN, SAFE, and YUMMY Halloween. Now on to Thanksgiving! YEAH!

Spoo-ghetti Lunch

Happy Halloween!

My boys school had a Spoo-ghetti lunch on Halloween afternoon. They always have half day on Friday, so it worked out perfectly. The kids dressed up in their costumes, had a little parade around the school and then the parents joined them in the cafeteria where all the teachers helped to decorate the room. The children paraded on the stage, around the grave yard and through the haunted house where they could put their hands in different boxes to feel eyes balls, brains and other terrifying things. There was an area where everyone could guess how many candies or Halloween toys were in a jar and the closest one wins. There was dancing, and very yummy spaghetti generously donated form BJ's restaurant. It was crazy busy, but a lot of fun. The party went from noon to 3pm.

We went home and rested for the next part of this fun holiday. Our ward had a Trunk-or-treat with little carnival games, which is always fun. Then we headed out to the "rich" neighborhood to go trick-or-treating. They always hand out better candy and are usually home having block parties. We walked around with our friends the Udall's and the Thompson's.
About 8:50pm all our kids were pooped out and wanted to go home. I was surprised they didn't last longer. They all have their little bags to hold candy but when it gets too heavy I have larger grocery store bags in the stroller. So they dump their candy in there and they're ready for the next load.
Will and Jackson with some of their friends would go to a house on the left side of the street and run as fast as they could to the right side while were all still walking the the left. One time Gavin didn't want the candy the lady offered. "It's too big!" Another time he started crying and saying his eye "hurded". I asked him why and he replied, "my finger was in my eye!" "Well, take it out of there!" :) Kids say the cutest things! It's real cute to hear him say, "Hoppy Alloween!" and "trick o tweat".
We emptied all the candy in this huge IKEA bag and we guessed how much it weighed.
14 1/2 pounds of candy! HOLY MOLY!
It was a very eventful day!
I am so excited to go out and buy stuff tomorrow for 50-75% off! YEAH!