A long run!

Two weekends ago a friend of mine, Crystal, and I did a half marathon which I really didn't train for. With having a 19 month old and a 10 week old I don't have tons of time to run. The night before the race I was awake until 10:30 nursing and then up nursing at 1:15 and 4:00. Then up at 5:00 to head to the race. The race was just another day for the kids and I am so happy that Matt was able to handle the kids and get them to the course by mile 9. I had a wonderful time and accomplished my goals. I hope to do another soon but I am ready to train for the next one. Which brings me to the good news of Mason is on some acid reflux medicine and is in general a happier baby. He is also starting to sleep at night for stretches of 6 and 7 hours. It is wonderful! You don't realize how not getting sleep affects you until you actually realize how good you feel after a decent night sleep.

We are looking forward to traveling to Flagstaff, AZ for Thanksgiving. They are predicting snow for Thanksgiving day and we are very excited. We hope that everyone has a blessed week and remembers all that they are thankful for.

Cousin Baxter!

We had such a wonderful visit with Warren, Abbey and Baxter. The week FLEW by and the kids had so much fun. Every morning when I would go into Emma Kate's room to get her our of bed she would look past me and say "Where's Abbey?, Where's Baxter?" She is absolutely in love with Abbey and Baxter. She also warmed up to Warren throughout the week. Enough good words could not be said about how well behaved Baxter is. He is adorable and so happy all the time. We went to the San Diego Zoo one day and had a blast with all the walking. Abbey and I also worked on sewing projects and just keeping up with kids. We miss them so much and wish we lived closer together. Maybe someday. We are thinking and praying for Sarah as she will be competing in the Miss Samford pageant tomorrow. We are so proud of her and know she will do well. Enjoy all the pictures!

Mason is chillin' at the zoo

We were all little tired but had so much fun

We had a close encounter with a very curious giraffe.

Emma Kate did not like the idea of staying behind with the bears (hahaha)

Baxter enjoyed his first time swimming!

We know they will hate this picture when they are older!

Playgroup, Trick or Treating and Fall Festival

We have had a fun filled few days of dressing up and eating candy. Emma Kate was a ladybug this year and actually liked dressing up (I didn't think that she would enjoy the costume because I had tried it on her before and she started to cry every time I took it out of the closet). Mason went as a bumble bee and he was perfect. He buzzed (snoozed) the entire time he was in his costume. On Wednesday we carved our pumpkin and Matt did a wonderful job. We didn't get a picture of the finished pumpkin but it looked great! On Thursday we went to playgroup and all the kids wore their costumes and had a candy/cookie exchange. There were lots of cute costumes and all the kids behaved very well. Friday was a lot of fun and we started the night by going to a few friends houses on the street to see them and their costumes. Then we went to church for a fall festival. They had the inflatable jumpers, cotton candy, snow cones and a christian atmosphere. We went with our friends Kris, Ali and Michael. Michael was the cutest and most believable cowboy (he had a cowboy swagger). I also wanted to state that Mason keeps rolling over. I know that it sounds too early but he has done it 4 times now. He is 8 weeks old and I am sure that each time it is a fluke but he keeps doing it. Hopefully we will get it on video soon!
She wasn't so sure about the inside of the pumpkinHere are all the kids lined up.
Yoda (Matt),Bunny (Kylie), Chicken (Allison), Bumble Bee (Mason), Princess (Anna), Ladybug (Emma Kate), Cowboy (Michael), Dragon (Ben), Fighter Pilot (Brian)
Before candy

She spent most of the night like this. This was her first taste of sugar and she LOVES it! Needless to say she won't be having more for a long time.

Cowboy Michael!!!

Ashton is tough in his biker jacket

The bee is awake!

Pumpkins!

We have been up to a lot since I posted last. We went to the pumpkin patch on Monday and had a blast. There was a bouncy castle and slide that Emma Kate LOVED! She really has no fear. I thought the slide was fast and she wanted to do it again and again all by herself. We have also been to the park with friends and played a lot at home. We hosted lunch/playgroup on Tuesday and had 11 kids at the house. It was so much fun having our friends over! Mason is growing up so fast. He has had his first real smiles and is holding his head up pretty well. Here are pictures and videos. I hope that I can post more frequently for you dedicated blog readers! Excited about the pumpkin patch
I am so glad that I was able to get their outfits finished in time for the trip to the pumpkin patch. It was a close call this time!
The tin man (Anna), Dorothy (Emma Kate), the Lion (Michael) Mason enjoyed his nap in the stroller

All the kids at lunch/playgroup
The pumpkin cake I made for lunch

One of Mason's priceless smiles


I found Ashton's old Halloween costume and Emma Kate loves it. In fact all the kids that come over to the house love it.

Our friend Brian at the park
Her absolute favorite thing at the park is the slide!

Growing is a lot of work!

The kids are growing up so fast! We went for check ups on Friday and Emma Kate(18 months) weighs 19 pounds. We are holding out hope that one day she will reach 20 pounds. Mason(1 month) will quickly catch her as he is already 9 pounds 6 ounces! He loves to eat! Emma Kate loves to eat so much that yesterday she fell asleep in her high chair. Matt was sitting at the table with her and he looked up to see her slumped over in her chair. She had a big morning as we talked with both sets of grandparents on the webcam, went for a run, washed cars and dog, played tea party, and ran laps around the house. She is a beautiful, happy ball of energy and I am so blessed to have her keeping me very busy. Mason does his share of making sure that I am not bored! He is doing well about getting on a schedule. He eats, plays, sleeps on a 3.5 hour schedule during the day and then eats and sleeps every 4 hours at night. He is a wonderful baby and is trying to learn that he is not the only person or animal that requires my attention.

On Saturday we went over to Bret, LeAnn, and Ela's for brunch and to watch the Texas game. We had a delicious brunch and then we walked to the playground to play. The girls loved the slide and Emma Kate learned how to go down all by herself. We hope that everyone has a great week and is enjoying this lovely fall weather!

Sip n See and Telegraph Pass

Monday was one of those days that I strangely enjoy even though it was non stop. In the morning I had a doctor's appointment and so Matt took the morning off to help me with the kids. The doctor was running late but to be honest it was wonderful to have 30 minutes of complete silence. In the afternoon I cleaned out closets because we are having a yard sale in a few weeks. I was putting away all the maternity clothes and decided that I needed to get rid of a lot of stuff. Once I finished my closet I moved on to Emma Kate's. Hers desperately needed organizing since she has had a growth spurt in her height. Fortunately, I was able to get both kids down for a short nap at the same time and do a lot of the organizing, but Emma Kate woke up before I was able to put everything away. Lets just stay the mad dash to hang everything started when she woke up. So that was our exciting Monday!


On Sunday afternoon we hiked a hill (mountain for those in Yuma) called Telegraph Pass. It is a pretty steep hike and definitely gave me a good workout since I haven't really done anything active since Mason was born. We went with our friends Kris, Ali, and Michael Harris. Matt and Kris carried Emma Kate and Michael in backpacks and I carried Mason in the Bjorn. The only scary part was when a cricket flew up in my face and then went down my shirt. I was trying to be brave since I didn't want to give my four week old shaken baby syndrome. We had a great time and I know that we will be doing it regularly. Here are some pictures of the journey!

On Saturday our friends Aimee and Kirsten threw Mason and I a sip and see. It was so much fun and the food was wonderful. We are so fortunate to have friends that feel more like family here in Yuma.

Play Where's Waldo while you look for the men!
The ladies and Mason (yes...he could breathe)


The sip and see
Aimee and Jackson (Jackson and Mason are 8 weeks apart and so we will be having lots of play time together)
Laura and Mason (The Dunn family has been so good to make us feel like apart of their family)
The food was excellent and Kirsten has a beautiful home