Carnival

Each year we venture to my mom's neighborhood Halloween carnival. It is always a hit!

More Halloween festivities to come. Can you tell it has finally cooled off in this land we live in so we can go outside and I have stuff to blog again?!

1st Trip to the Dentist

Today was Kenyon's first trip to the dentist. He was not afraid at all. It helps that the dentist goes to our church and Kenyon is friends with his son.

He would keep his mouth open whether they were checking him out or not.

Then Maya joined him in the chair to watch some Disney channel.

Neither of them had cavities so it was a successful trip!

Sidenote: Some of you may remember several months back when I had a ruptured ear drum and was in bed for days literally crying big tears due to the pain. We discovered today after a trip to the dr that Kenyon has a ruptured ear drum. The only reason I suspected something is he would cry if I touched his ear and he didn't sleep well last night... Seriously, that kid is tough! His tubes are out after 2 years and if he starts getting infections again, we need them back in!!!

Kenyon

He is naughty... really naughty! He doesn't listen and obey, he knocks over his baby brother, he calls his big sister names like "evil villain" just because he knows she will get mad, he makes mess after mess after mess, he has potty accidents, he won't eat any food that I make, and the list could go on and on. But oh how I love those dark brown eyes and when he gets creative and sits in a baby wipes box for hours, I remember how much I couldn't live without him. And then when he says "I love you Mama" and puckers those big lips for a kiss, my heart melts.

Cutest Kids in the World...

In my humble opinion :).

Thanks Niki!

Cali

Last week we headed to California for Fall Break. Jer, Maya and Kenyon drove out on Friday and Devin and I flew there on Sunday after I took care of my church obligations. Before Devin and I arrived, they spent some time at the beach and hanging out with Uncle Justin, Aunt Midori and cousins Kai and Shea.

Howdy Partner!

Loving the new play structure in their backyard!

Then on Monday we headed to Disneyland with half the state of Arizona. Although it was crowded and Kenyon had the stomach flu, we made the most of it.


Maya SOAKING wet after Splash Mountain. It took her hours to dry off, but she didn't seem to mind.

I was feeling bad that our friend Kim got stuck in a tea cup with all of the kids, but she was loving every minute of spinning it as fast as she could.

Maya was chosen for the Jedi training, which she loved.

This picture cracks me up! Notice Kenyon eyeing Kenzie's headband in her hair...

And then he snatches it off! Such a little tease!

That was when he had a small burst of energy. The rest of the day he spent sleeping in the stroller. Since this preggo mama couldn't ride rides, I didn't mind sitting in some shade and people watching while he slept... while eating a Disneyland corn dog, of course.

Tuesday we just hung out at Great Nana's house all day and the kids played in the backyard. I think they were exhausted from Disney and just happy to be able to play outside in cooler weather.

On Wednesday we headed back to the beach. I had decided that I was just going to let Devin eat as much sand as he wanted, so...

He ate

And ate

He looks like he is getting full...

So he crawled on the boogie boards for a break...

And then he went back to eating some more.

Let's just say his diapers looked like sand castles for a couple of days.

After we had been at the beach for several hours, the lifeguards started gathering just down from us. When we sent one of the teenagers down to investigate, he found out a swimmer had gone under and never came back up. Eventually they brought in more and more lifeguards, divers, boats and a helicopter. It turned scary and intense, especially when we saw his upset girlfriend. After an hour, they found his body and pulled it from the water. It was all very surreal. We later read on the internet that he was a 22 year old man. Sad, sad.

All in all, it was a successful and much needed vacation!

Change

A big change happened around here last week... Baby J went to live with another family. It was not just any other foster family, but the family that has been doing respite for us on and off for the last couple of months. They have no other children and have longed for a baby. It has been a tough road for them and we are hoping and praying that they are given the opportunity to adopt J. It is the situation I have always felt would be best for J - only child with lots and lots of attention. She loves them very much so that makes it so much easier for us to let go.

We are all handling it very well. Having a vacation in California last week and coming home to our friends Adam and Katie and their kids here visiting was a good distraction. Now that life was back to normal today, Maya asked when she could see Jasmine. The best part - she still lives in our neighborhood so we can see her anytime!

Forgot

I forgot one big update...

I can now feel the baby move! I love it! I am 19 weeks and still feeling great. A name has not been decided on. We are taking a break and hoping the perfect name falls in our laps... kind of like this baby falling in mine.

And if you need proof that I am gaining weight and especially in my face... the pics Niki took:

http://nikinoelphotography.blogspot.com/2010/10/g-family.html

Update Without Pictures

For some strange reason, the pictures of the following events that are on my phone will not transfer to my computer. I have tried and tried and now I am just going to post without pictures because it has been far too long since I posted.

1. Maya did loose both of her 2 front teeth. She looks different, but very cute.


2. Maya did switch to a new school. I had a hard time way back when registering her for kindergarten deciding which school to send her to. I had taught at a charter school in Utah that I LOVED and knew there was one here with similar curriculum, but decided to go with the neighborhood school. When a good friend recently switched her daughter to the school with curriculum I am used to and started talking about the school, I was sold. It was a tough decision because Maya loved her teacher and friends at her first school, but she has adjusted just fine and we are happy with our decision.

3. Kenyon went on a field trip to the fire station last week. He loved it and I loved the one on one time with just him.

4. Kenyon's hand is almost completely healed. Yay!

5. Baby J has had an ear infection every other weekend for the past 3 months. Remember... she has tubes. So frustrating!

6. Baby J is still going to be with us for a while. Her grandpa who lives in Washington wants to adopt her, but nothing is moving quickly. Next court date is January.

7. Devin is talking so much lately! He even copies things I say such as "bummer" ("ummma") or "I love you" ("uh nuh uh"). Such a genius! :)

8. Devin is pulling up and balancing and I am really hoping he walks soon so that he has it mastered before February when little brother comes along.

9. We have a 6 year old boy staying with us this week since his foster family is out of town. He is sweet and the kids are having fun with him.

10. We went to D's (previous foster son) birthday party this weekend. It was fun to see him again and see how well he is doing with his grandma.

11. Niki came in town last weekend and took family pics for us. I think they turned out good and can't wait to post them soon.

12. Next week is Fall Break and we are headed to California to go to Disneyland and the beach and we can't wait!

Happy Tuesday!