THANKSGIVING!!!

Can you sense the excitement in my title??!  We actually made it to Thanksgiving dinner this year.  There are no Thanksgiving posts the last couple of years and Cameron really doesn't even know what Thanksgiving is because it has been so long since we have been healthy on Thanksgiving Day!  This year was different....finally!  We were all healthy this year and celebrated Thanksgiving with David's side of the family that night and then with my mom and family a few days later.  It was so nice to be with our families and to taste a yummy Thanksgiving dinner again.  The kids had a great time with cousins and now Cameron has a memory of Thanksgiving and what it's all about.  :)  Looking forward to next year!

Thanksgiving with Grandma
at Mary and Alex's House

Thanksgiving at Oma's House

Cameron had a yummy Thanksgiving feast at school for Thanksgiving, but I think his favorite part of the day was making his fruit loop necklace!  He told me that they ate homemade chicken noodle soup, cornbread, popcorn, and pumpkin pie.  He was very excited about having whipped cream worms on his finger...I think that meant that the teacher would squirt a worm of whipped cream on his finger to lick off.  It's the little things in life that make him happy!

Crickets?

Grandma went on a trip back east this fall and brought back something interesting for the kids.  Dead crickets to eat!!  I was shocked when she got them out and started to share that she got them at a candy store on her vacation.  She said that lots of people eat them and that supposedly they have a nutty flavor and don't taste that bad.  I still kind of thought she was kidding about eating them, but she wasn't.  I had to get the camera out when I realized that she was actually going to eat one!!!  She ate one and then Cameron and Kylie actually picked one up and licked them.  I think Cameron is the only one that actually took a bite.  Chad and I were smart and wouldn't even pick one up.  :)  Pretty disgusting if you ask me, but I have to admit I was impressed.  If you don't believe me, just check out the pictures.  Sorry, they are a little blurry.

Halloween Night

I love our neighborhood on Halloween!  We have lived here now for almost 12 years and there are so many kids running around on Halloween night.  The kids usually meet up with friends in the neighborhood to Trick or Treat and they get way too much candy.  We usually carve our pumpkins just before and then light them up on our way out the door.  This year was even more fun because Cameron is getting older and is even more independent than last year.  David and I just follow along with the cameras (which David enjoys so much) and watch all of the fun happen.  The kids loved our star wars theme this year and were extra excited about their costumes.  Check out our pictures below and see what happened on Halloween night.

May the Force be with You!!



Vincenzo, Chad, Cameron, Travis, Delaney, Kylie

Lots of friends from Primary!

We love to decorate for Halloween!

The annual "how much candy did we get?" picture

Halloween Fun

This year to get ready for Halloween we had lots fun.  We always head over to the Pumpkin Patch for some cute pictures and activities, but this year we actually found a local corn maze to take the kids to as well.  They had pumpkins growing on the vine, which was exciting for the kids to see and experience.  I love the fall!  We ate pumpkin pancakes for breakfast (and dinner) and made lots of pumpkin chocolate chip cookies too. 

My kids know that in order to play, they have to pose for pictures first!  They always do a good job!  It's cute to see the way they choose to pose for the pictures.  You can see their personalities in each one.

The kids chose to do some slides and bounce house obstacle courses.  What was really cute is that Kylie and Chad both gave up an extra activity in order for Cameron to ride this one.  They shared their tickets with him because this ride was a little more expensive.  Needless to say, he LOVED it.  He crashed about 50 times in the process, but was an experienced driver by the end.  :)  We had a great time watching and laughing at him try and maneuver this little tractor around.



Lots of other fun things were happening in October too.  Cameron had his annual Halloween parade at preschool and did a great job of singing many spooky songs to all of the parents.  I was trying to get a video of him at his last preschool performance and he decided to turn completely the opposite direction from me the entire time.  I know it wasn't on purpose....he just gets distracted and looks in all directions.  Just not mine.  :(  He decided to be Batman at school that day.

Every year Promenade has a Fall Festival that the PTO puts on and it is always something to look forward to.  There are games, food, face painting, music, costume contests, and at the end of the night the kids trick or treat around the classrooms.  Its always a lot of fun.  I never get any pictures because I am always running around that night helping out, but the kids had a great time.

The school never lets the kids dress up on Halloween, but Red Ribbon Week usually ends up during the week before Halloween.  The Friday of Red Ribbon Week the kids are asked to wear red and come with crazy hair that day.  Kylie and Chad had fun participating and the fifth graders had the opportunity to carve pumpkins with their first grade buddies that day. 



Soccer Season

The soccer season this year was so much fun.  The older my boys get, the more I get into their games.  I am trying really hard not to be one of "those" moms on the sidelines.  :)  Kylie decided not to play this year, which was probably for the best.  It was challenging enough getting two boys where they needed to be every weekend on time.  This was Cameron's first time on a real AYSO soccer team.  He was finally old enough and he loved it.  I think he has learned a lot from watching his big brother play all these years.



Cameron was on the Blue Dino's this year.  The boys picked the name themselves.

I thought it was kind of cute.

I have lots more pics of Cameron playing this year than Chad.  That is for two reasons. 

Chad runs around much faster and on a much bigger field!  It was a lot easier

to get pictures of Cameron.  This was also Cameron's first time on a team,

so I had to document it well.  I love all of these pictures.

This was his last game and he was given a certificate and a medal from Coach Sam.

I think he would have enjoyed playing every Saturday all year if that was possible.

Chad started playing soccer when he was four years old.  David has ALWAYS been his coach.  Chad loves this.  David has always said that he will only coach the boys until they reach the competitive level.  Chad begins competitive level next year, and so this was Daddy's last year to coach Chad's team.  (Which actually works out great so that he can now take on Cameron's teams.  He has coached Kylie's teams in the past too!)  This year, the boys named themselves the Torpedos.  We have had some great teams in the past, but I have to say that this was THE BEST team we have ever had.  Such a great group of boys and parents, and the team was really good!  They were so fun to watch. 

I love these action shots of Chad.  You can just see the tension in his face. 

He gives it all he has and pushes himself so hard.

Daddy giving a pep talk to the boys half way through a difficult game. 

It worked!  They came back and won it in the end!

Random picture, but I thought this was so cute.  Cameron

stopped by to give Coach Daddy a hug during one of Chad's games.

End of the season pizza party!

Can't you just see how much Chad loves his Dad in this picture?

Not sure how he will do working with a new coach next year.

What an amazing team!!!