Halloween

It's been a very busy few weeks for us, but we did manage to sneak in a bunch of Halloween activities. The kids got to wear their costumes four days in a row! Last year I swore that I wasn't ever making costumes again...well, I decided I couldn't do one for Jack and not for Cole. The turtle was a little easier than the elephant was, but still kind of a pain...we'll see if baby #3 gets one next year. (At least Jack got two years of wear out of the elephant...I don't think Cole will be able to wear his next year.)
We went on a Halloween hike with a Harry Potter theme in the local forest, the ward's trunk or treat, and the library for the costume parade and activities. I don't have pictures of everything, but I think I got some good one of the boys in their costumes.On Halloween we went trick or treating in Kalamazoo where Matt was interviewing with a sports medicine program. Jack had been insisting for several days that he wanted to go to exactly "five houses". Once we did our five though, he thought it would be okay to go to a few more.
Back at the hotel that night, Cole crib was comically small and Jack didn't have a bed at all...we improvised. Jack was very excited about going to the hotel and when we got there he said. "okay, now grandma's going to come!". Last week, we stayed at a hotel in Detroit while Matt interviewed in Montana. My mom surprised us by coming to join us at the last minute. We went to the zoo and out to eat....I even got to go to Costco! I have pictures, but of course they're on the camera that is dead with a missing charger. Sorry mom! I'll figure something out.
We got to go on a tour of Kalamazoo while Matt interviewed. The boys were really good and handled spending most of the day in the car like champs.

You may notice in some of the following posts (and there are several), that Jack has a tiny little cast on his arm. He broke his wrist last Tuesday falling off his potty step while washing his hands. He was the best little patient! He held still and said "cheese" for all his x-rays. He has to wear the cast for about 3 weeks. He's been telling me lately, "My bones are fixed, I can take my cast off." (Cell phone pic...best we've got.)

This time of year we love going to the pumpkin patch, picking out our Halloween pumpkins, going on the hayride, and seeing the animals at the petting zoo. We timed it just right and as we pulled out of the parking lot, rain started pouring. It was Matt's only free Saturday in months, so we're really glad it worked out. I'm kind of sad we won't be here for grandma's pumpkin patch next year! (Pictures are in no particular order.)
Cole didn't really know what to make of the baby chick.
Jack liked picking out the different sized pumpkins.
He actually went on the little train this year...last year he was terrified and wouldn't go.
Cole loved the hayride. He spent most of the time like this...laying on Matt's arm and grinning.
Is there anything quite as cute as a baby pig?
The turkeys were as big as Jack. And for some reason they really liked gobbling at Matt. He could get them to "talk" every time he tried.
The cow liked me and kept licking me and nibbling at my clothes and hair.
The baby cows were pretty cute too.

Cole's Birthday

Our little Cole had a birthday this week! I can't believe it's been a whole year. He's such a good natured, easy going, sweet, happy little boy (as long as you keep his belly full). He and Jack are starting to play together and it is amazing to watch. We're so glad he's part of our family! I have some video, but it's on the other camera with a dead battery and a missing charger.
He loved the balloons. I think we could have stopped there and he would have thought it was a pretty great day.

His cake didn't turn out perfectly, but he liked it and that's all that matters. He LOVES dogs (especially Sunga), so we went with a puppy cake.
He was surprisingly a little reluctant with the cake at first, but once he tasted it, he really went for it.He liked the presents, but didn't really get the whole wrapping paper thing.
The big hit was the ride on fire truck toy from grandma and popo. He seemed so grown up on it!
The next morning the two boys played for hours. They were either doing this....or Jack was running over Cole the whole morning.

Baby!!

We are excited to be expecting baby #3 on April 25! I'm about 15 weeks and feeling pretty good. We had a rough month or so with Matt working nights and out of town and me with a pretty good run of morning (?!?) sickness. Jack started taking his stuffed animals into the bathroom saying "me and ____ don't feel good, we have to throw up." Then he'd shut the door and make sound effects. We'll probably have another ultrasound in the next couple months and hopefully be able to find out the gender.

He/she seems to be a thumb sucker.

This is the first picture I've been able to get of Cole's top teeth--I love his little gap. He is never quite so happy as he is in the tub.Cole's new favorite activity: doing laps around the coffee table.
Lately Jack has been really into light, shadows, and shade. He love to play in the light coming in through the windows in the morning.
We've also been making lots of forts (thanks for starting that grandma!). The house is a constant disaster, but both boys love it!
Oh, if you notice the quality of my pictures has slightly increased, it's due to a very cool camera that was recently donated to us! I haven't worked out how to use it outside of the automatic settings yet, but I already like it 100x more than our stupid point and shoot. (I can actually take the picture when I want, instead of waiting 10 seconds until the moment has passed!)

Balloon Festival

Our little town has a balloon festival every year that is so much fun. It's the perfect size; enough balloons to impress the kids, but not so many people that you have to fight huge crowds. We go meet a bunch of families in the evening. We eat dinner, watch the balloons launch, watch for the skydivers, and then wait until it gets dark so the balloons can "glow". Jack and Cole both thought it was wonderful and I must admit I think it's pretty cool, too.
The balloons don't all launch from the same place. You just start to see them rising into the air...pretty fun.
Just chillin' out waiting for balloons.
Gotta love that wide stance! He is not going anywhere.
"Afterglow"We all look a little glassy eyed...it's really late for the kids and Matt was working nights this last rotation...but, we made it (he finished Friday) and it's the last one ever (we hope)!!