Trick or Treating Fun

Readers with weak stomachs beware! We followed up our morning blanket trick-or-treat (see next post) with our evening adventure when Eric got home from work. I was really excited to put the boys in their costumes and set out to get some candy. Mason had been acting a little off all day. He cried and screamed off and on and I thought it was because he didn't want to wear his costume. Boy was I wrong!

Ready for a fun night....or so we thought!

About 20 minutes into our little adventure, Mason got sick all over the wagon and Carson. So much for a night of trick-or-treating! Eric took the twins back home while I stayed behind with Ethan to get some candy. I will never forget this Halloween!

More Halloween Fun

This Halloween we carried out our pumpkin carving tradition. Eric and I decided to go with the political theme this year and carve Michelle and Barack Obama. I must say that I was so excited to see that my pumpkin actually looked kind of like her! We had a ton of fun carving them and we can't wait to hopefully celebrate Obama's victory on election day next week!

I have to confess that I accidentally cut off Barack's nose while trying to clean out Eric's pumpkin. So sorry honey! I was getting impatient with Eric's speed, so I took it upon myself to clean it out so we could display them on our doorstep. I guess I got a little too excited and...well...oops!

Introducing the cast of Shrek 3 - donkey/dragon (Mason), Shrek (Ethan), and Puss in Boots (Carson).

I can't believe I actually got them to sit together for a picture! This was taken at our annual blanket trick-or-treat. They all had a ton of fun. Ethan even wore his Shrek ears...after a tootsie roll pop bribe from me. :)

Pumpkin Patch

Every year our Mom's club goes to the pumpkin patch. Nevermind that it's in the parking lot of Sunset Station Casino. One would think it would take away from getting into the Halloween/Fall spirit. Not really. I guess we've gotten used to it by now and it's something we look forward to each year. I am learning that when I have expectations of getting some cute pictures of the boys all sitting together among the pumpkins, it turns out to be the complete opposite. Now, I just go to these kinds of things with the only goal being not to lose a child. It works to my advantage. Kids get to play and I go home with a little sanity!

The twins in the pumpkin patch for the first time. They eventually warmed up to the idea of it.

This is where I caught Carson the wanderer several times that morning. I only hope he wasn't trying to drink that water. Ick!

Not quite sure what they're looking at. Ethan felt pretty cool getting to drive his younger brothers around.

Yep. This is my only attempt to take a picture with the boys. It was getting close to naptime so they were a bit crabby. I was smiling however! I guess it had to do with that no expectation thing I mentioned earlier.

Gilcrease Orchard

Last weekend we decided to load up the boys and go check out Gilcrease Orchard. We had been hearing rumors of an orchard in North Las Vegas and wanted to see if it was actually true. Yep, it's true....but not the kind of orchard you would go to in, let's say Vermont. Luckily we had no expectations so it didn't crush us when we pulled up to an orchard that had been completely picked over. Ethan thought the whole thing was great. He got to run around and get dirty. We don't think we'll be making this a tradition, but it was an inexpensive way to kill some time on a Sunday afternoon.

Ethan and Daddy at the orchard.

Ethan got so excited when he found this enormous unidentifiable vegetable thingy. Lucky for us, it was oozing gooey stuff so we promptly tossed it when he wasn't looking.

So excited to pick some apples!

After the orchard, it was back to 21st century life: watching a dvd on the car ride home...apple in tow.

This picture was taken in a pumpkin patch...in the parking lot of a K-mart! Yep, they do it right in Vegas. Where else can you pick pumpkins AND get a blue light special?

Hmmm....could Southern Nevada really have a beautiful orchard like this one shown on the sign? I'll go ahead and answer that for any of you curious readers out there. Nope. Ethan didn't care though. He just liked the idea of running around and picking stuff, dead or alive, to put in the wagon.

This was pretty cute to watch. The twins however did not like oversized squash crushing their feet. Every time Ethan put something in the wagon, they promptly threw it out of the wagon. You can guess how Ethan reacted to that!

The little man trying to lift a pumpkin that probably weighed more than he did.

Texas in October!

Last weekend, Ethan and I popped down to Texas for a few days to spend some time with my sister and grandparents. We had a blast as always and the boys really enjoyed playing together. We took them to Zilker Park on Friday so they could play and ride the train. My sister and I even got a chance to sneak away for lunch and a movie. Good times all around! Ethan was extremely well behaved on the plane ride and even took an hour nap on the way back. This was a huge bonus for me since I was feeling under the weather. Can't wait for our Christmas trip!

The boys at Zilker Park on top of the old fire truck.

Baby Kaitlyn just turned one in September. She is such a doll!

Ethan's only request for the train ride was for it to go faster through the tunnels.

Ethan was quite the doting cousin! It was neat to watch him interact with a girl. He was very gentle...most of the time!

Walking for a Cure

This past weekend the Mom's club of Henderson-Green Valley participated in the Breast Cancer walk. We raised $500 to support breast cancer research. It was a great time and I'm so glad I was able to participate. My sorority sister from college, Whitney, was diagnosed this past May and I wanted to show my support for her. She has been such an inspiration in the way she has chosen to deal with the diagnosis. She just underwent her last round of chemo and things are looking great for her. Thanks to all of the fellow moms that came out in support for her.

It wouldn't be a breast cancer walk in Vegas without Elvis dressed in Pink.

Preschool Open House

Have I mentioned how ecstactic I am with Ethan's preschool teacher? In a nutshell, she is a godsend to the Payne family. She has a way with Ethan like I've never seen with any other teacher. He connected with her from the start. Ethan had his open house last week and although he was confused with going to school at night, he really enjoyed showing us around the classroom. It was fun to stand back and watch him venture around the room.

Ethan and daddy at Open House.

Notice how I wrote his name on his craft and attempted to make it look like an actual person by drawing eyes and attaching hair on the head, not the arm where Ethan put it at first. Eric just stood back and laughed at me...typical teacher and control freak. I'm gettingbetter at letting him do it... I swear!

Ethan and awesome Miss Teri. He really loves her, even if he is scowling in the picture.

A Boy and His Shoes

Oh how I love fall! The leaves change, we get a break from scorching temperatures, and it's a great time to bake yummy things like stews and pumpkin bread...even though I don't bake much these days.

Best of all, you get to shop for fall clothes and shoes! Ethan has been so excited to wear socks and shoes after 6 months of wearing sandals. I bought him two new pairs of shoes for the fall and winter, and the chuck taylor's are hands down his favorite pair. Every day he tells me that it's a "brown shoe day" even though I try to get him to match his shoes to his outfit. He has quickly taught me to relax a little and to be okay with going to get yogurt in his brown shoes and Spiderman costume...even if the whole time I'm thinking his blue shoes would match the blue in the Spiderman suit perfectly.

I love my little guy for countless reasons, but most of all, I love him for teaching me to look at the world differently each day. So go out and enjoy this wonderfull autumn season...and maybe get a little crazy and wear your brown shoes with your blue outfit. Happy Fall!

Walking...Finally!

On September 24th, at exactly 16 months of age, Carson decided to walk Although they have been taking small steps here and there, they were reluctant to take off. All of their shorts were getting holes in the knees from dragging along the floor. Finally, Carson tested the waters and liked his new skill so much that he never looked back. Unfortunately, I don't have Mason's first steps on video. He decided he wanted to keep up with Carson, so he began walking 4 days later. We haven't rested since! The park is a whole new challenge because of course they never want to stay in the same area. As exhausting as it is to run after them all day, we are really enjoying it. They seem so content and proud of themselves. Enjoy the video! I'll post more of them walking together later on.