Christmas Programs

We had a lot of fun at the Christmas Programs this year. Keira and I went Austin's because his was during the middle of the day. He did a great job singing all his songs and doing all the actions. I love watching all the kids get up because for at least the first song they are trying to find their parents.

Alex did his Christmas program on a Friday night. I am helping Krissi with Preschool this year so it was a family affair. We had made reindeer headbands and each of the kids had a red clown nose. I don't know if they'll do that again, it looked cute but the noses kept falling off or the kids would play with them. I guess that's to be expected with 3 and 4 year olds. All of the preschoolers looked so cute and festive. The last song they sang was Santa Claus is Coming to Town. Near the end of the song Santa Claus came out. After the program ended we had treats and the kids got to sit on Santa's lap. Austin already knew what he was going to ask for, he had it planned for weeks. Alex had to think for a minute, and Keira wanted nothing to do with it.

Every time I see this picture I laugh out loud. It's priceless!

Vegas Baby

The first part of December we went to Vegas for the NFR (National Finals Rodeo). My in-laws rented a vacation home so that everyone could stay together. We had a lot of fun shopping, shopping, oh and more shopping. Travis was such a good sport! He can't complain though, he came home with a whole new wardrobe. We went to two different outlet malls and I got my newI guess that's what happens when you start loosing weigh. We went to Fremont St. while we were there as well as Gold and Silver Pawn. If you've ever seen Pawn Starts that's the pawn shop they film in. It was really fun to walk around, but it was so crowded. We had a lot of fun at the rodeo and ate yummy nachos. That is one of my favorite parts of rodeos; burger and nachos. Travis knew a lot of people who were competing but I can't remember their names. . . . so I have no idea who this picture is of but he got trampled. Don't worry, he's ok :).

Halloween

I think the boys changed their minds about 5 times each before they decided what they wanted to be this year. First they wanted to do peter pan then wizard of oz. I told them they didn't have to match so that helped make their minds up.

Austin went as Harry Potter, he was so excited! We bought him a Gryffindor robe, a wand, and Harry Potter glasses. His favorite part though was dying his hair black, or spraying it rather. He told me we HAD to change his hair color because everyone would think he was Ron, not Harry.

Alex went as Superman and this came as a total surprise to me. I didn't even know he liked Superman that much. If any of you have listened to Jerry Seinfeld he does a bit on Halloween. He talks about how his costumes looked more like his superheros pajamas rather than the real costume. This is what I thought of Alex's costume, but he absolutely loved it.
Keira went as a flapper!! I wanted to find something that you wouldn't see on every other girl. I searched the internet for weeks before I decided her costume. She looked so cute. She had sequins on the top with a printed necklace that was knotted and of course the fringe on the bottom. It also came with the cute headband and we added the cute little boa.
We had Grandma Gray's Halloween party a couple days before Halloween . Her theme was Redneck and it was so much fun. We had to throw ping pong balls through a toilet seat and then play beer pong (sans beer). The kids got to eat doughnuts hanging from a stick and this year we had a huge marshmallow fight. My mother-in-law made marshmallow guns and the fight was all over the house and outside. The adults may have had more fun than the kids. We also did Trunk-or-Treat Halloween night before Travis took the boys out around other parts of the neighborhood. Keira and I stayed home and answered the door. The boys were already planning what they were going to be next year. I have a feeling that we will be matching, Austin is so set on it.

Fishing in September

Travis loves to go fishing and in the last year or so he's gotten into it a lot more. We go with friends and family a lot. This was one of our last fishing trips of the year, well for me and the kids anyway. Travis likes to go to new places to fish but one of our favorites is American Fork Canyon. We went up in the afternoon and Travis got the boys' poles set up and in the water. He is great at making sure they are ready first. After the boys are set he gets his own stuff ready. On this particular fishing trip Austin wasn't too into fishing. He found a little peninsula full of mud and decided he need to go there. He didn't think the water was too deep but I made him roll his pants up to his thighs anyway. He made it over there fine. He had fun making mud pies and squishing his toes around. When it was time to leave he started coming back over. He was cold and wanted to get out of the water so he tried to run the rest of the way.
He didn't make it. He was a little more than half way across when he fell and got soaked. I took him to the car and made him take off all his wet muddy clothes and he had to wear Trav's sweatshirt on the way home. I guess that's what you get when you have little boys. I usually have clothes in the back of my car. I've found you never know when someone will need something, and they've come in handy several times.

Labor Day Weekend

This year was a little different for us. Usually over Labor Day we are in Wyoming having a grand ol' time at the Carpenter Family Reunion. This year we had too much going on to go up. Krissi and Brady were blessing their little girl and Travis couldn't get enough time off of work. We started a new tradition last year, with the Gray's, to spend Labor Day at Lagoon. This has been a hit both years so I think we'll be doing this for a long time. My kids love it even when we are coming straight down from the mountain. This year, we were well rested and ready to have some fun. The kids ran from one ride to another as fast as we would let them. The first thing they wanted to do though was the bumper cars.
Why is that so fun for kids? We had lunch in the park and then went on some more rides. We took Keira on her first roller coaster ride. It was the little dragon one. She was not very fond of it. The picture isn't the greatest but she was shaking, crying, and well not very happy. Before we left we had to go on the tubes and the boys wanted to ride the log ride. It was not very warm this year so we skipped Lagoona Beach all together. These, of course, the kids couldn't miss. After a long but fun day at the park we went to Firehouse Pizza. I think this has become a tradition as well. We got there and had to wait forever to be seated and then our food took forever. They didn't have enough people their to help everyone. Last year they were a little slow too. I know people love this place, but so far I haven't been impressed. Maybe I should try it some time other than Labor day. The kids were so exhausted they fell asleep on the way home. Mom and Dad enjoyed some much needed quiet after a long day.

Austin's First Day of 2nd Grade

Austin was so excited for 2nd grade. He couldn't wait to find out who his teacher was. I had to work on Back to School night so Travis took the kids over to the school so Austin could meet his teacher. I can't believe next year we have Austin and Alex in school! He came home and told me all about it. He already loved his teacher. We did some school shopping and he got to choose the first day of school clothes. No surprise he went with his bikes and motorcycle shirt. It's still one of his favorites. His classroom is right down the hall from his 1st grade teacher and he can't pass her without giving her a hug. Austin is excited to learn more about science and math. He wants to be a scientist when he grows up.

Tim McGraw

I think of myself as pretty lucky. Not just because of my amazing hubby and kids but really lucky. Somehow I've won a trip to Hawaii, a car, camera, several concert tickets, movie tickets, ect. Well, this time Travis was the lucky one. He won tickets to Tim McGraw! We got a sitter for the night and went on a date. We were rushing to get their but when we did we found a pretty good spot on the grass and settled in. We thought we were in a pretty good spot when he finally came out we couldn't even see him. Travis decided he was going to see if he could get any closer. He came back a little while later and said we could stand right behind the chairs and take pictures as long as we didn't stay too long. So, we left our blanket and went down a little farther. They wouldn't let us bring in our large lens so this was the best we could get. We had such a great night out and Travis definitely enjoyed dressing up all cowboy.