a sweet prayer to the veterans...

When I finished praying with Ivy tonight, she said, "Oh yeah, I have 2 more things to pray about..." Her sweet prayer went like this "...and thank you for the freedom we have on this land and help it to keep going. Amen."

Thank you to all those men and women who gave up their lives for our country and to those men and women who have served and are now serving our country both here at home and abroad. Without you, we would not have and continue to have the freedom we enjoy today. May we always remember the sacrifices you have made.

Happy (belated) Veteran's Day!

shop owner

Today, Ivy started up a new shop in our bedroom while I finished a few things upstairs. At her store, you could buy either coats or jewelry or some of each. What did the coats look like, you ask? Mommy's bras! :o) You just have to love this girl and her creative imagination! (Sorry, no pictures with this lovely post...can you guess why????) ;)

I've created...

a MONSTER!

I will not lie. I love my home to be clean, neat, and organized. I strive to have that (but most times am not always successful to the degree I would want it to be). I believe that everything has a place and everything should be put back in its place. And, now that we have kids and I am finding that my mind is not as sharp as it used to be, I am finding a new found love for labeling! Am I sick? I try not to communicate my almost obsessive philosophy too much to the kids...I just do it.

Ivy is quite the little observant (she always has been) and has (unfortunately for her) picked up on my organization philosophy. She came home from school today and had to let us know that Owen's backpack was not where it should have been. Owen's backpack was on the left knob instead of the right knob! Can you believe that?!? Apparently, when I first started hanging them up on the knobs, I put Owen's backpack on the right and Ivy's backpack on the left. SO, in her mind, those are the exact spots they need to be every.single.time. (I am just happy that the backpacks get hung up where they belong!)

So that we don't make the same mistake again though, Ivy had to make labels and taped them above the knobs! Now we know where each backpack belongs without question. Thank you, Ivy, for keeping us organized!

batteries not included

As Daddy carried one of his "toys" through the door this evening, Ivy saw it and remarked, "Whoa! How many batteries does that thing take?" :o)

trick or treat

TRICK OR TREAT...

SMELL OUR FEET...

LOOK WHO GOT ENOUGH TO EAT!!!!

In case you were wondering what exactly Letty was...
a cute little ladybug!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN
from a pirate, a ballerina, and a ladybug!

words that make us smile

May I present Owen...with some words that really make us smile!
(Don't forget to pause the music on the right before listening!)

storyland

Today, we went to Storyland!!!

The weather couldn't have been better! The sun was shining, but it was nice and cool with a breeze here and there throughout the day! It was, however, a little too cool for the couple of water rides they have there.

Take a look at our action-packed and fun-filled day!

This little girl was in no way going to take her eyes off of the road. She took her driving responsibility very seriously!

Milking the cow (several times throughout the day)!

This was one of Owen's favorite things to do here. Every time we passed by the cow, we had to milk it! (I think we have a future farmer here!)

We discovered the whale ride went a little too fast for Letty! Too bad we found out after she was already on the ride!

Ivy said her favorite ride was the Polar Coaster (sorry, didn't get a picture) even though she only wanted to ride it once. This was what Letty and Owen rode while we waited for Daddy and Ivy to go on the big roller coaster! We had a little boy there that was a very good spinner...I was even wobbly and a little sick after riding on this animal merry-go-round thing!

Our attempt at a self-taken family portrait...

Another of Owen's favorite rides - the choo choo...

A visit to Storyland's jail...

The pirate ship...(I missed Owen's pirate face. It was so cute!)

A must-ride many, many times - the merry-go-round!

One of our favorite things to do at Storyland is to visit the Let's Pretend Dress-up souvenir Shop. We don't go in to buy anything...just play with their toys...

and their hats. (We LOVE the hats!)

This was a new ride at Storyland this year...Splash Battle. This was definitely Daddy's favorite ride! I must say, my cheeks hurt from laughing so hard after watching everyone during this ride.

Like father...

like daughter!

Letty's favorite thing to do here was going down this little slide all on her own over and over and over again. I think she liked it because she could do it herself and she had it all to herself (for a little bit anyhow).

Owen wasn't about to let anyone take his Storyland sticker. He made sure one of his hands was always guarding it. So silly!

It was a fun family day!

A big THANKS to the local police department for giving us the tickets!