My house is made for Fall!

To start out with, I have been sick all last week, but it nailed me this weekend. However, I had promised my kids that I would pull out the halloween/fall decorations this weekend. So, as I lay dying on the couch, my kids did nothing short of a voodoo dance with every instrument in the house that was apparently supposed to cure me. Sure enough, I got up and put up the decorations.

I LOVE Fall, and being that my birthday is in the Fall, I seem to receive all sorts of wonderful decorations. The browns, tans, and reds I use in my house make it SO beautiful with Fall decorations (Christmas and 4th of July, too....spring, not so much). So I actually adore pulling out these decorations. If it sits still, it gets a Fall garland laid on top of it. Gourds are awesome, too, though I need to secure some more of those from my Dad's garden. My Mom has been stuffing her hutch with gourds (on advice from her decorator friend), so I think she has secretly been hoarding all of them. I managed to produce 2 measly little pumpkins in my garden this year, and no gourds, but tons and tons of awesome Zinias. They are still coming on.

And Pumpkin spice candles/scentsy's....ummmmm! My favorite. I would use it all year, but it wouldn't make it so fun in October. I'm such a Fall geek!

I actually made the "Boo" sign at church last year. It was a Halloween Miracle.

Oh, joy.....camping time!

Bill being helped by oh so many cub scouts.... (don't stress if your child's picture is on my blog....no one reads it!)

Camping time again....I would really like camping more if it didn't involve an intense amount of labor for me. Parker and Emi absolutely adore camping and hiking, so who am I to deny them the experience. Plus, my mom offered to take Quinn for the night, so I really had no excuse.

cute, sticky kids

They sleep like the dead when we camp....even through a terrential rain storm. Wish I did. Of course, I drugged them.

Me, with headlamp and hot chocolate, finishing "Breaking Dawn". I so want to be a vampire.

Hiking the "Mormon Trail"...colors were awesome. This picture doesn't do it justice. Fall is in full swing and I LOVE fall! Please ignore the bedhead. I don't fight the hair battle when camping.

Boy carpool vs. Girl carpool

On some days, I drive the morning shift of the school carpool. This consists of Parker (Emi and Quinn are usually along for the ride) and two cute boys from the ward. In the middle of the day, I often drive the midday kindergarten drop-off carpool with Emi and two of her friends in the neighborhood. There is such a difference in the conversations:



Girl carpool today: "I LOVE your shoes...they go so well with your bow"

"and then we were trampolining and we slid everywhere..heee.heee.hee!"

"why does Quinn wear those shoes EVERYDAY...isn't he sick of them?"

"does everyone have their backpacks on the hooks...oh good, we are all alike!"

"Cheetah girls were on again last night.....I love them..they are so amazing"

"why does your cat run away when I try to pet him?"

and ended with singing a rousing rendition of, "What's more American than Cornflakes.....". This all takes place in about 6 minutes time.



Boy carpool today: "Do you know the best way to stop throwing up....just swallow it. That's what I just did. That's the best way to stop throwing up....do you want to know what it tastes like?" ....end of conversation.



Such a difference.

You might be my sibling if......

O.k.....so it's the new blogging trend (thanks Kari and Amy for the idea), but it looked so fun. So Joyce, John, and Mark....this is for you.

You might be my sibling if:

1. you know of the lesser-known FHE manual that suggests watching M*A*S*H* or Newhart.
2. you still have deep fears and issues resulting from your kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Leverich.
3. you never, ever call Dad on Saturdays between 5-7 p.m.
4. the sound of a fire drill suddenly makes you want to get naked and run outside.
5. you have Co-cola running through your veins.
6. you know that cherry cokes and Disneyland have no sense going together.
7. you know what a wombel, Freddy the Wonder Guppie, a lerp, Herman/Frank, Le Mutt, the sheepskin, or James Jenny Wilson are.
8. you crave vanilla shakes with....oh, flavor.
9. the thought of a Hawaiian Dairy Queen gives you an ulcer.
10. you ka-chunka your trunk.
11. you start thinking of your Halloween costume or the order in which you will run downstairs on Christmas morning in early June.
12. you know the secret of the 2 Foo-foos.
13. you have slept on Mark's apartment floor in NYC and seen cockroaches in the middle of the night.
14. the Hallelujah chorus brings to mind exploding gingerbread lips.
15. you can get Dad on any roller coaster if you call it a train.
16. you have ever been dressed into a cupid costume, bunny costume, or even a tollbooth to ask someone to a highschool dance (oh yeah...that was just me.....never mind.)
17. you crave powdermilk biscuits once in awhile.
18. you look for a vacuum any time you pass gas.
19. breaking a tradition KILLS you.
20. you hear the "Happy Birthday" song, you must cross your arms and hold hands.
21. you hear the words, "I can't I can't I can't I can't" you must say in a low, husky voice, "yes you can yes you can yes you can yes you can".
22. you throw a little beach sand into your sub sandwiches.
23. your stuffed animals belonged to groups (ie the dog group, the snake group, the fish and owl group).
24. you have ever peed at Zzyzx exit in California.
25. you must clog your arteries with homeade eggnog, cheeseball, and southern sausage every Christmas.

Yes....there must be a million more, but I won't bore you with those. Enjoy!

Scenes from our weekend

Here is Emi facing her biggest fear in "gynashtiks" class....the swinging rings. She actually swung on them for a full 5 seconds today!

These boats are WAY harder to control than they look...Parker found that out, but I choose not to go into details.

Look at that great Tiger Woods grip on his club.....he must have learned it from his dad!

Bill (with Emi) showing his true California driving ability.