Halloween 2011

Another Halloween...another 10 million calories none of us need.

Weekend Entertainment

The weather on Saturday was gorgeous so we were able to get all of the outdoor winterizing done. Ben had no intentions of putting up Christmas lights...but I bribed him with fast food. (Works like magic ;) Getting projects done early makes me so happy. The highlight of this weekend for the boys was getting to climb onto the roof while Ben put the lights up.

MEA Weekend

We decided to have a little 'staycation' over MEA this year. We got a hotel south of the cities and spent two days having fun together. Priceless.

Bribery at it's Best (or Worst!)

We have a 'somewhat' motivational system in our house called 'obedience points'. It's the only system I have found that 'somewhat works.' The boys can earn points towards cash for qualifying obedient behavior.

I just told the boys they could earn an obedience point if they go out in the 40 degree weather and jump on the trampoline for 30 minutes. Not sure if this is really legal but since I make up the rules to this system I tweaked it to work for my sanity today. Aaah...quiet.

Picture-less Recap

I'm a little annoyed with myself....we've had some fun activities lately but I keep forgetting to take pictures while we're doing them! Oh well...there's always 'next time'. We had a fun weekend; Got stranded in the van when the battery died...luckily Ben was on his way home and close by; Sam was at a birthday party for 4.5 hrs on Saturday so I took Alex to pick out our pumpkins; Spencer went with Ben to help with Allan's renovation project; We spent an evening at the Galloways for a fire...the boys had fun running around in the dark. And now I'm determined to have a fire pit. Nothing can beat an outdoor fire in the Fall...it gets dark at 7:00 p.m. so kids can enjoy night games without having to stay up until 10:00 p.m. Love it. This week is MEA so only three days of school and no spelling test!

Socially Weird

Oh dear...my children are so socially 'challenged'. Alex had a friend from preschool over yesterday and wouldn't play with him. Seriously!?! The little boy did have a strong personality...not sure if that was intimidating to Alex or if Alex just realized quickly he couldn't boss the kid around. At any rate...it's really ridiculous...Alex was sooo bored today and I didn't have much sympathy for the kid.

And this is why...

my jeans won't ever fit like I would like. I think the only 'hobby' I have is making cookies. There are always plenty of things I could be doing...but lack of motivation brings me directly to a chocolate chip cookie recipe. I don't feel so guilty about doing 'nothing' when I'm making cookies. And Alex and I have no problem eating the uncooked dough.

Hometown Homecoming

We've had a tradition for a few years now to get together with some families in the ward for the homecoming football game. We tailgate before (it was seriously good food this year!) and then head over to the game. Kind of a fun.