My Baby's Losing His Baby Teeth

 I'm still absolutely in shock that my baby boy is old enough to be losing his baby teeth! It so much fun, and happening too soon, and going by way too fast!

Cameron lost {asked his Dad to pull out} his first tooth on August 29th. He was such a fan of the whole experience {i.e. trading a tooth for cash!} that he's been trying to wiggle the rest free ever since. So far he's down two, but apparently getting closer on a bunch more. :)

 I sure love the boy that goes with that cute toothless grin!

Halloween 2012

We had such a fun Halloween with these four cuties! Honestly, Halloween has been a stressful holiday for me since having kids. In the past I worried over what they would wear and even felt a little guilty if I didn't hand make super creative costumes. I gave it all up this year and of course it was my favorite yet. I budgeted for overpriced/cheaply made costumes and we headed to the Halloween store to let the kids choose. In the end they looked super cute and were extremely excited about their costumes, which is what really matters. :) Our little DRAGON, STRAWBERRY, STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE, & OPTIMUS PRIME couldn't have been cuter.

Halloween day was super busy and so much fun. It fell on Adam's day off which made it even more special. We got all the kids dressed up and headed to Cameron's school for their Halloween parade in the morning, had a fun lunch, and then went TRICK-OR-TREATING in the evening. Anniston was especially cute enjoying her first real trick-or-treating experience. She was brave enough to go to the doors and hold out her bucket for candy, but usually didn't say "trick-or-treat" until they were heading back down the stairs. She learned well though, and still uses her newly found skills to get candy from the Rowley cousins. 

Big Rock Photo

 We went to the Moosman cabin this weekend for the annual pumpkin carving get together and of course took our traditional "big rock" pictures. Somehow I need to get my hands on the first big rock picture ever taken of me and Adam. I think we were 16 or maybe 17 years old. It's hard to believe how long ago that was and how far we've come. I am one very lucky girl.

Pumpkin Carving

We had so much fun carving pumpkins with the Rowley's this year. Of course, when we realized that Cameron's pumpkin was big enough to fit Declan inside, we couldn't resist getting some pictures of this cute little pumpkin baby. Poor little dude seemed a little annoyed at his mom and dad. :)

Anniston "carved" her pumpkin by adding Mr. Potato Head parts, and Adam did a great job of carving up Cameron's. The best part was definitely spending time with family. We sure are going to miss living next door to the Rowleys.

Pure Sweetness

I was running around the other day getting things ready for preschool and Declan was laying on his little play-mat. I heard him fuss a little and then stop, so I went in to check on him and this is what I found. Brooklyn laid next to him, told him stories, and sang him songs for the longest time. It was absolutely the sweetest thing. Brooklyn is a fantastic big sister and you can tell Declan just adores her. 

Brooklyn Loves...

This crazy little girlie makes my job as a mom and a preschool teacher way more fun. You can't put her in front of a camera without some seriously entertaining posing, and her constant commentary on life is absolutely entertaining! I LOVE, LOVE this sweet little girl and and yesterday while I was making dinner, she danced next to me while listing all the things she loves. The list was l-o-n-g and had me cracking up. Here are just a few highlights (I wrote them exactly as she said them :) ...

Brooklyn: I LOVE...

baby cows

mustaches - that is hair on your face! :)

keeping secrets

learning new things

dad - oh my freak! I mean MY dad! I don't love everybody's dad, that would just be weird.

my stickers

to feed my toys

Ducklin - I just really love him! (i.e Declan)

babies

Costumes

sparkle earrings

fruits and vegetables

buying things

painting caterpillars

Christmas

band-aids

Grandma Rudd

Grandpa Pace's hair and playing in his car

bananas - but only when my tummy hurts

watching movies

being sick - but just cause you get to watch lots of movies

birthdays - well, MY birthdays

mommy's food

flowers

puters & ipads (i.e. computers)

my best friend Katie

Snow White

adocado (i.e. avocado)

oranges - the fruit and the color, but I don't love orange as much as pink and purple. They aren't fruit though. Weird.

She went on for at least half an hour. 

Most fun I've ever had making dinner. :)

4 Months Old!

I can't believe my baby boy is already 4 months old!! We all just absolutely adore this little man. More than anything I wish that I could somehow find a way to pause time for a little bit. I'm not ready for my last baby to grow up. It's so fun to watch them grow and change, but I'm just loving this phase too much to want it to end. Seriously, look at those yummy, kissable cheeks. I could just munch on them all day! :)

Lego Fun!

Even when Cameron was little, he loved to build things. It's even more fun now that he's old enough for traditional legos. This weekend Adam and the kids (mostly Cameron) spent hours creating vehicles and buildings together. When legos are involved, Adam turns right back into a little kid too. They were designing their own creations and even looking up old instructions online. I absolutely love that it is something they enjoy doing together!

My Gorgeous Girls

The other day as Brooklyn, Anniston and I were heading out for a "Girls Only Lunch," we passed a tent selling dress-ups for $2 and $3 each. It was too good to pass up, so I let them each pick a dress. They've pretty much been wearing them daily since, but they are too cute in them for me to care. :)

Pretty much the most adorable thing I've ever seen. Period.

Sleepy Bouncy Swing Tradition

Declan usually jumps in what the kids call "the bouncy swing" while I am making dinner. One minute I look over to see this cute, chubby smiling face...

 ...And a minute later I find him all squished up in there...fast asleep.  

 It doesn't get much cuter. Each of our babies have done this and it never fails to make me smile. Gotta love a good family tradition. :)

Potty Time

This sweet little girl has decided she loves sitting on the potty. Not actually going potty one the potty, just sitting on there. Our potty seat has Sesame Street characters on it, so I hear "Momo Potty" {i.e. Elmo Potty} at least 10 times a day. I'm hoping these constant trips will be rewarded when she is super easy to potty train. A mom can dream. :)

Quick Trip to Vegas

 Adam, Declan & I took a quick weekend trip to Las Vegas for Vision Expo. My awesome sister and sister-in-law watched the three older kids and we had a fantastic little getaway. Adam spend the days in classes while Declan and I relaxed, read, ate and napped. Then we spent the evenings together visiting all the fun stops on the strip and enjoying delicious food. It doesn't get much better than that. Unfortunately, we literally took 5 pictures the entire trip. Oops. The other 2 were even worse than these, if you can believe that. Oh well, who has time for pictures when you are having this much fun?!

The Magic Number Four

 I am absolutely enjoying having this cute little chunk around. Baby #4 has been a very different experience for me as a mom. Of course, I've loved each one of our babies, but looking back I've realized that for me baby #1 was a little stressful as I figured out motherhood, baby #2 was a little stressful as I figured out how to juggle mothering more than one, and baby #3 was a little stressful just because we had so many other big changes happening as a family. Somehow, despite having babies just 15 months apart, baby #4 has felt almost magical. I don't stress or worry about him, the adjustment as a family as been far easier than I expected and this cute little monkey just brings us all so much JOY!  

Big Kids

Look at these two cuties! How in the world did they get so big, so fast!? Since Declan was born we have started referring to our kids in two groups - the big kids and the babies. This year our big kids are in 1st Grade and Preschool. Next year I'll be sending them both off to the Elementary School. They are both doing great so far this year. We are so very proud of the incredible kids they are.