Trick or Treat

Halloween has got to be one of my LEAST favorite holidays, but you can't help but love watching your own kids dress up in cute and rediculous costumes for an evening. Tonight, cousins Brenna & Andrew came over to trick-or-treat with Jacob & Sophia. They had a ton of fun going around the neighborhood collecting candy. Now the trick is to keep their hands out of the stash! Kitty Cat Brenna, Pirate Andrew, Adrian Peterson Jacob, & Ducky Sophia Aren't they the cutest!?!

Introducing...

Jack Calen was born on Tuesday, Oct. 26th at 10:01pm. He weighed in at 7lb. 11oz. and was 20" long. We're already finding that he is laid back, but certainly knows when he wants something. From the time I felt my contractions to the time he was born was literally less than an hour and 15 minutes. We BARELY made it to the hospital in time.

But he's doing well. Eating, pooping & sleeping...everything a newborn should do. And, he's a spitting image of his big brother...other than the fact that he has dimples and Jacob doesn't. Not the greatest shot...but more will follow.
Big Sister, Sophia!

He's one proud big brother!

I loved this one too much not to share

Pumpkin Patch

With unseasonably warm weather, sunshine & a long MEA weekend, my mom decided to come up for the whole day yesterday to play with the kids. Because it's been so nice, we opted to go to a local apple orchard and pick our own pumpkins. It was so much fun to spend the day outside...and Craig's schedule opened up last-minute, so even he was able to join us.

What a great day! Sophia & Nana in the pumpkin patch
Picking out his IDEAL pumpkin
(unfortunately, they charged $0.40/lb, so we opted for a smaller one)

A Family Shot

Scooping out the Daddy Pumpkin

Sophia was more interested in coloring

A Little Secret

Jacob has been into telling secrets lately. And Sophia's been into copying Jacob lately. Today, while Jacob was at school, Sophia came up to me and said, "Mommy, I have a secret to tell."

"What is your secret, Sophia?" I asked.

As she leaned in, she said with a quiet, little whisper, "Jesus loves me."

Play Date

On Thursday, while Jacob was at school, Sophia & I met my friend Julie, and her super cute kids at a park to enjoy the unseasonably warm October weather. It was fun to catch up and watch her daughter, Danica, and Sophia interact with each other. After an hour of walking around the lake and pushing the kids in the swings, we stopped for a special treat at McDonalds. Thanks for a fun playdate. Danica & Sophia
Little Soren

Sorry

This evening, Sophia received her first real spanking. After sassing back a couple times, I realized that she wasn't getting the severity of her disobedience. I sat her down, spanked her bottom and put her in time-out.

2 minutes later, I went to get her. I explained why she got a spanking and asked her for a hug and kiss. "What do you need to say to Mommy?", I asked.

With her head bowed low, she slowly looked up at me and said in a tiny, remorseful voice, "Thank you".

LOOK OUT!

We've been having beautiful weather lately. And this afternoon, while Craig was running the sprinklers to flag them so our yard could be aerated, Sophia was playing in the dirt along the path of our sidewalk. She claimed she was making apple pie. To her total surprise, Craig turned on the front sprinklers and this is what she got...right in the face!

But she didn't mind. It just meant she got to take ANOTHER bath!