Pre-Halloween

Friday was a busy day. Dylan and Lauren were on Fall Break from school and we had planned a moms and tots trip to the pumpkin patch. They had a 580lb pumpkin that the lady's son grew. He is trying to get a 1000lb pumpkin! Wow! 

 They had a little smaller one that was around 400 lbs. Ethan was just the right height to see over it!

 

 They had some cool pumpkin people, too.

And they also had some fun faces in the trees. The kids played around for a long time in all the cool pumpkins. 

I like this picture spot where we got all of us! Yeah!

They also had a 3 acre corn maze that we explored. It had rained a lot during the week, so it was very muddy with puddles. Ethan didn't seem to mind (luckily he was wearing boots and I had a change of clothes for him)! We made it through the maze the first time with no falling, but Ethan had a tumble on the second trip. He fell right on his face. His hat was covering his head, so he didn't get too much mud on his face. It was very cold outside, too!

  I LOVE THIS PICTURE! All the kids are looking at the camera and smiling! That doesn't happen very often at all!

 Friday evening, we went trick-or-treating downtown Lafayette. I had never been before, so I thought it would be something fun for the kids. They loved it and we will definitely be going again next year!

After trick-or-treating we headed over to our friend's annual Donut Halloween party. Yum! I took my camera, but I was too busy eating to take any pictures! Fun, fun!

Then on Saturday morning, we were planning on going to Chicago, but had a change of plans. Our water heater went off again (it seems to happen every year about this time). Ricky was able to get it working again. Then one of the Radio Shack managers called and asked him to bring some candy to the mall for the trick-or-treating. I thought that since he had to drive over there we might as well go check it out. It was a major bummer.We waited in line for about 30 minutes just to start (there were that many people there!) and the kids were already bored. I think Ethan ate about all of his candy as soon as he got it (they didn't get much either). Needless to say, we will not be going there again. I'd rather just buy my kids some candy and enjoy my day. We just hung out the rest of the day, and it was very enjoyable.

Monday night, we went to another party...a pool party! It's called a Polar Bear Plunge and we did it for the charity of Autism Speaks. There were 15 people that were crazy enough to jump in! It was soo cold outside! I'm not that crazy! It was a lot of fun!

October fun

October 6th, we went to Home Depot for the kids workshop. The kids got to make firetrucks and then they had real ones outside! How fun! They had a great time! 

  October 9th, we went to the Clegg Botanical Gardens for moms and tots. It was really cold, and only Debbie and I showed up, but we still had fun.  We got some really good pictures!

 

 Ethan got his hair cut and really looks like a big boy now. He has been loving this truck lately. He loads it up with everything, including books, and then dumps it in the middle of the floor. 

 Lauren has been playing too hard lately. I guess she just needed a nap this day!

 October 20th, our family went to the free fall movie Ice Age 4. The kids loved it and it's always fun to see movies in the theater! After the movie, the kids and I met my parents at the Covered Bridge Festival in Mansfield, IN. It was pretty chilly (About 50 degrees) but we still managed to have fun! We got some great food and deals and enjoyed the beautiful scenery all around.

What a fun-filled month!

Volleyball

Ricky and I have been in a volleyball kick lately.  Our church has games for women on Tuesday nights and couples on Friday nights. We have been trying to go together the past couple of times. Some of my friends invited me to the Purdue Women's Volleyball game last Friday. I had never been to a game, so I thought it would be fun. It was really fun and great to get out with some friends for dinner and the game. I think we should do it again sometime soon! 

 

 Thanks for a great girls night out!

Back Track a little (or a lot!)

September 15th, my cousin was having an estate sale from my grandma's house in Illinois, so I thought I should go for moral support and to see if there is anything that I would like to have. Lauren ended up going with me because Ricky got free tickets to the Purdue Football game. Dylan had a soccer game with team pictures that day, so the boys got to spend the day together. This was Dylan and Ethan's first Purdue Football game and Ricky said they loved it! It was really nice to have a girls day and a boys day!

September 21, Dylan had a soccer game on Friday night. I dropped the other kids off at date night so that Ricky and I could enjoy the game, but rain postponed the game. I told Dylan that he could pick anywhere for dinner, so we went to Chick-fil-A. It was really nice to spend the evening with just Dylan. After dinner, we came home and played a couple of games of Yahtzee. I think Dylan won all of them, but it was still fun. Saturday was Ricky's favorite day of the fall, The Feast of the Hunter's Moon. It was a little different this year, because we just went as a family (no grandparents went with us). It was a nice day and we all enjoyed the delicious food and we couldn't have asked for better weather. 

 

We spent the evening relaxing and enjoying some down time. The evening proved to be a little more eventful than planned.I turned on the oven to make a pizza and when I went over to put the pizza in, there were sparks in the oven and tons of smoke. The coil on the bottom of the oven broke into pieces! I didn't even know that was possible! We ordered the part online and got it fixed the next Saturday. (I have to say that my visiting teachers are amazing and brought our family dinner 2 nights this week! It was so nice!) Sunday evening, we went to Ricky's parents house for dinner with all of the close family. It was nice to see Ricky's brothers from Indy and their families. The kids enjoyed a tractor ride around the neighborhood.

The next week was a busy one. Dylan had his make-up soccer game on Monday, practice on Wednesday, a game on Friday night, and then another game on Saturday. Wow, that's a lot of soccer! 

 

My mom and 2 nephews joined us for the Friday and Saturday games, which was really nice. After the Friday night game, we thought it would be fun to go to Wolf Park. They had Howl at the Moon night. I have heard a lot about it, but haven't ever been there. It was really interesting and educational. I enjoyed it, but the kids only liked it for about 10 minutes. The wolves are very big and it was cool to see them in their own environment. 

 

After the game on Saturday, my mom took the oldest 3 boys (Dylan and my nephews) back to Indy to go camping with my dad. Brayden had a cub scout camp-out and invited Dylan along. They all had a blast and were very tired on Sunday. Saturday night, I got to enjoy the womens' conference at church. It was much needed and very uplifting. Soon after I got home, Ethan woke up crying. I went into his room to find out that he had thrown up in his bed. Gross. Ethan and I got to spend the day cuddling on the couch and I think we watched every episode of Bubble Guppies. I had to go to Indy to pick up Dylan, so the kids and I headed down there at 5 and were home by 9. It was a nice, short trip with nice company and good food. Luckily Ethan didn't get sick in the car. It ended up being a very long weekend! 

On the 21st, I got the new IPhone 5! I was so excited to get a new phone and it has been amazing! The picture is so clear, and it is amazingly fast! I  love my new phone!

This week has had it's ups and downs. It has been rainy and Ethan has been congested, so we have had some long days. Tuesday(October 2), we went to Throckmorton Farms, a Purdue lab, to get free pumpkins. They let you come and get a free pumpkin and then some free gourds. The kids didn't do the best, it was muddy and a little chilly, but it was still fun. 

 

 Ethan loved riding on the tractor. He just melted down when his boots were 5 pounds each because the mud was stuck to them.

 Lauren and her friends, Kiah and Brielle. They had a blast on the tractor.

Today was one of my friend's birthdays, so a few of us got together for lunch. It was very nice and much needed.

Here are a couple of fun pictures that show the fun we have around our house!

Lauren enjoying a big box that we got diapers in.

The boys on a good day, and cutie Lauren! (They have their ups and downs!) I thought i was so cute that Ethan had his arm around Jack. My kids love to read books!