The end of soccer

The soccer season has come to an end. Rachel and Eliza both had a great season. Eliza particularly enjoyed playing soccer this year and also became quite good friends with several of the girls on her team. I must admit I am somewhat relieved that it is over because it will free up our Saturdays, but I'm glad that the girls enjoyed themselves. The girls were thrilled to get these neat trophies which will proudly be displayed in their new bedroom.

Halloween!

Halloween was a crazy time for us this year because we were right in the middle of moving all of our things into our new home, but we managed to celebrate by attending a trunk-or-treat at our church which included all the wards which attend our building. The girls met up with some of their friends from school and Rachel was thrilled to see her Kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Taylor, there. They had games, food and a spook alley which none of children chose to go through. They didn't get all that much candy because they insisted on standing in line for cotton candy, but I personally feel that a little candy goes a long way (plus less temptation for me while they're at school). We even invited some non-member friends from soccer and were very pleased when they came and we got a chance to visit for awhile. Since we gave away all of our candy at the trunk-or-treat we decided to go up to David and Ruth's on the real Halloween (the trunk-or-treat was Saturday) and hang out up there were they don't get trick-or-treaters. I am looking forward to going trick-or-treating in our new neighborhood next year when Halloween isn't on a Sunday.

(Please excuse these poor pictures which were hastily taken in the church kitchen with a borrowed camera in the midst of our ward's trunk-or-treat. I am posting them simply for memory's sake.)

Because I Hub You

I have to share a really funny story about Brigham. The other day around bedtime Brigham went into the bathroom. A few minutes later he yelled out a famous phrase at our house: "I NEED HELP WIPING!!!". Ben and I looked at each other, silently debating who the lucky parent would be. Ben says "I'll do it" and heads for the bathroom. Brigham, hearing our exchange in the other room, yells out, matter of factly, "I want mommy!". Ben gladly stops and motions for me to go ahead. As I walk into the bathroom to see my sweet little boy sitting on the toilet smiling up at me he says, "Because I hub you". Priceless! Being a parent may not be the most glamorous job, but moments like that make it all worth it! Love that boy!

We,ve moved...again!

We've moved to a new location just a few blocks away from our last house. We are happy to be out of the rental and into our very own home. It's smaller than we are used to, but I'm amazed that from the very first day we were there it just felt like "home". We are in a great neighborhood that we absolutely love and are surrounded by lots of wonderful people.
I promised the girls when we moved that we would create a super cool space for them so that has been one of my biggest projects in this new house. We painted their room a very bright green which they all think is super fun and cute. I worked very hard to make a cushion for the window seat in their room and then covered their lamp to match. My next project is going to be an awning window treatment above the window seat.

Soccer!

Rachel and Eliza had their first soccer games yesterday. They both did great and had fun. It was a little hard for me because Ben had church obligations yesterday so I had all five kids there by myself. I felt really bad because they all got sunburned being out on a very warm day for three hours. Next time we'll be more thorough with the sunscreen and Ben should be there to help me cheer them on. Way to go girls!The kids had fun feeding leftover soccer snacks to the ducks between games with the Konopnicki kids.

Joy School

Brigham started Joy School a couple of weeks ago and he absolutely loves it! Joy school is like a pre-school where moms take turns teaching only it focuses less on learning letters and numbers and more on learning to be happy and stable kids. I wasn't sure we should commit to one more thing, but I thought it would be fun for Brigham to have something to do while the girls were busy with school and I also couldn't pass up the opportunity to socialize with an awesome group of moms. It has turned out to be a really great thing because he's very much in the "I'm Big" stage and he has really enjoyed going to school and doing something that's all his own.

Excuses, excuses....

So I have been totally neglecting my blog lately which makes me really sad, but I have two pretty valid reasons. Number one, I lost my camera over a month ago and I have not been able to find it anywhere. I'm pretty much sick over it since I really don't want to have to buy a new one when we need money for so many other things right now. We may have no choice if we don't find it soon though, cuz I need pictures of my kiddos! The second reason is that I started schooling my children at home about a month ago and it has totally consumed my life ever since. I don't think I ever realized how much work homeschool would really be, but I have also realized that there are many more benefits than I ever imagined. To tell the truth, I'm still not totally convinced I can do it, but for now that's what we're doing and I'm just trying to enjoy this time with my children and not think about all of the things I could be getting done. Consequently, blog posts may be a little less frequent for awhile, but I am using Matt and Nikki's camera when I can and trying to feel organized enough that I actually can blog. So, don't give up on me!