Funny what a month can do...

On his birthday Ayden would take two steps then fall down. Slam! Right on the bottom. Now he just cruises. He is in a hurry everywhere he goes. Often his belly gets too far in front of him and he topples down but just keeps going in crawl mode. Nothing deters that kid!

Ayden is a baby on a mission. A mission to explore and discover Planet 1-5-2-7. It is a territory of myriad discoveries. There are drawers that open and things inside them and if he gets to them quickly enough he can pull everything out before that dreaded sound, NOOOO, he is not quite sure what it means but it gets the inhabitants of Planet 1-5-2-7 angered enough that he pays heed. Then there are the doors. So many doors it makes a little head swim, and Ayden's is smaller than most. Just recently a new passage way has been opened up for exploration and the noisy door that slams by the cool hard floor is particularly fascinating to Ayden yet frightens the other inhabitants for some silly reason. All Ayden knows is that it leads to fresh air!

Okay that just got way geeky but I am waiting for this video to download and process so I'm bored. Can you tell? Needless to say I'm terrified of Ayden getting out the front door since we are upstairs. Every time the kids go outside I lock the door behind them and they have to knock to get back in - is that horrible? I let them in, usually. He he he he JK!!! I always let them in right away, I can hear them coming up the stairs, they are not exactly silent and sneaky. I wanted a better video but this will just have to do as he always runs away from me.

Grandma's Gingerbread House

Every year Grandma Carol has sent the kids a gingerbread house kit. It has become a favored tradition with the kids and Bobby to make the house. The kids had been pestering him for quite some time to get this done and finally Sunday seemed the day to do it - with a little hint from me ;). So Bobby broke open the package and got the icing ready. He's the builder and the kids are the decorators, of course. This year Ayden tasted samples of icing. I'm sure next year he'll be into it in more ways than one! The end result is a festive, lovely, colorful creation that looks good enough to eat, well, the kids sure think so anyway!! The kids enjoyed it and Bobby, although angered with the icing, as he is every year, enjoyed it too. I took pictures while the kids were doing homework so pardon the books on the table. Now the question is - how long will it remain intact?

Elves

I think this link will work but I'm not sure. With Vista I can't pull any of these up so let me know if it doesn't work so I can just delete this entry. Bobby says it's just disturbing but there you have it... our children as elves... http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=9552165350

I am so very vanilla...

You're Vanilla.

				You're as popular and relaxing as vanilla ice cream. You go with the flow, and get along with all sorts of people. You appreciate peace and simplicity, so you sometimes find crowds and loud noises overwhelming. You are a chilled-out, calming influence on the people in your life, and your friends appreciate how supportive and flexible you are.

I don't ever eat vanilla ice cream by itself unless I'm totally hard up for something sweet but apparently I am as boring as vanilla. :( Oh well... not like I didn't already know that and completely embrace my boringness... if that is even a word.

My cousin Marcie tagged me with this one.
A. Each player has to list 6 facts/habits about themselves
B. At the end of the post, the player tags 3 people and posts their names

1. I believe that eating cookies/cakes/brownies for breakfast is just as good for you as eating donuts, so I do it whenever I have those things.
2. I have to sleep with a loud fan on or it's just too quiet.
3. I truly do love days when I can lay around in pjs and read or watch TV.
4. I have amazing patience with my husband, children, students and friends. But not so much with myself.
5. My husband and kids are my world, even if I complain too much.
6. I love to read. Please do not talk to me while I am reading. Please expect me to be short on the phone if you call me while I am reading.

Tag... Aunt Suzie doesn't get on the computer much :) so... Danielle, Bethany, Heather Y

Wow - what is an appendix for anyway...

besides causing you pain? Last Friday Bobby woke me up to tell me he had been in serious pain all night. He was motioning mostly to his lower back, right side. I did a quick search on the internet and figured it was 1. kidney stones 2. kidney infection or 3. appendicitis. Well... based on the title in the subject line you've probably guess what it was. By 3:30 pm Friday afternoon they had removed the infected organ and Bobby was feeling better if not way dopey. Everyone was so great and stepped right in to help with the kids so I could be at the hospital as much as possible. Sheryl kept Brooklyn, Caleb and Seth for two nights! She made it so fun for them even though she was sick and Dad had to work. My friend from school took on Ayden and let him have a sleep over with her baby girl who is a month older than him. He didn't even miss me - the little booger. So for anyone who is wondering - Bobby is doing much better and will be back to work on Thursday. What a weekend though!

Halloween

We went to trunk or treat this year. It is a tradition. This was held the Saturday before Halloween. It was a bit different this year in that the ward had a chili cook off. Everyone enjoyed trying out different types of chili and Holly even won 'family favorite'. I don't know if Dad won anything but his was good too. (A bit spicy for me the first time I tried it though!) Ayden really likes chili. So do Caleb and Brooklyn but Seth had a hotdog. They put dry ice in the root beer which was cool b/c it looked spooky. Then it was out to the parking lot for treats and a few tricks. Everyone gets really into decorating their trunks. Maybe next year they should offer a prize for that. Well, it was chaotic once the kids started trick or treating - they ran off in every direction so I only got a few pictures. Dad's Tahoe looked cool all decorated by Sheryl and Travis. The picture of Brooklyn is with a friend standing in front of a trunk of Jaws! Ayden was a skunk - Lil' Stinker seems to fit him well and the boys were Spiderman and Venom. We had a good time and the kids made quite the haul but I ran out of candy, Ayden was grumpy and we headed home.

Ayden's 1!

Ayden had a good time at his party. We invited his little friends Avery and James. He got presents but was more impressed with paper and boxes, of course. Bobby said I picked the wrong time because we had it at 10am and by the time we got to my dad's house Ayden was falling asleep in his car seat. It only took him about 20 minutes to perk up and play. He loved playing with his cake, he loved it even more when Bobby put some icing on his tongue and he realized that it was fun to play with but funner to eat it! Then he smeared it everywhere. He had to get dunked in the bath of course and we left my dad's soon after. The poor little guy didn't last long in the car on the way home before crashing out!

Zoo trip

I couldn't believe it when Bobby suggested going to the zoo. Anyone who knows him knows he doesn't like to leave the house much. However, he suggested it Friday afternoon and so on Saturday morning we were off! We decided that a membership was the way to go so hopefully there will be more trips in the near future. Houston's weather has been so nice lately and everyone had a very good time. Ayden was in a good mood and the kids were happy to get out and play when it wasn't too hot. Halfway through Bobby commented that he didn't know how his parents had the energy to do this kind of outing with six children and I suggested it's because they took it slow and rested on benches every now and then. Bobby was ready to zoom right through the entire thing. We didn't get to see the elephants, giraffes or big cats but there was a bald eagle that the zoo has because it's injured! The kids got to sit in the replica of a bald eagle's nest. We saw monkeys, zebras and so many other animals. We ended with the reptile house which is what Bobby was the most interested in seeing. We can't wait to go back!