Spoiled! ... in pictures

This little beauty here was a pre-Christmas present. Somehow the boys got it in their head that they NEEDED a robot cake. I was dying to try this new peanut butter cake recipe (dense, but fabulous) and this was our end result. Thankfully, the boys aren't too judgemental about their mother's limited robot drawing ability = )

Here's a link to the cake recipe if you're interested:

http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,176,130179-249198,00.html

We started our present opening festivites on Wednesday evening at our house since we would be out of town for the rest of the week through the weekend. It was all the boys could do to wait until after their dinner and bath, but I think the wait was well worth it. They loved everything that Santa brought for them = )
Thursday we headed out to Pratt to celebrate with Corey's family. After a shaky start due to the weather - driving 4 hours in 45mph winds, sleet and snow is not my idea of a good time - we finally arrived safe and sound and had a great time with all of the Hubers. Below is a pic of the boys with their fave cousins Paige and Hunter = )

We continued our tour of Kansas with a trip to my grandma's in Russell. The boys were spoiled even more and as always loved getting to hang with gwamma, papa, aunt Tracy and gweat-gwamma! The matching shotguns were the hit of the day to say the least! They love them!!!

While we were heading down south and west a blizzard struck Lawrence. The last weather report we had watched said we shouldn't get more than an inch, so we decided against kenneling our dog Katie so she could enjoy the comforts of her own backyard. Well, thank goodness we have wonderful neighbors that called us to see to see if we stayed home or not! Poor Katie's house was snowed over in the storm!!! Here's a pic of the aftermath. We cannot thank the Scott's enough for digging her out and making sure she could get to her food and water. It is a blessing to have such thoughtful people in our lives = ) Below is a pic of Riley sitting on top of the snow covered dog house!

Once we finally got all unpacked, the boys could not be stopped from getting on their snow gear and having a ball. Here's Riley making his first snow angel of the season.

Gage washing down a candy cane with a snow ball -- "It tastes good!"

After all that fun in the cold, the boys couldn't wait to jump into their nice new flannel jammies after a warm bath. Gage is enjoying his homemade snow ice cream while Riley, ever the ham, strikes a pose even Madonna would be proud of = )

Lastly, here's Katie with her own Christmas present. Typically, she is all about ripping up and destroying any toy that she is given. However, this little guy she has adopted as her baby. She had started to chew on it pretty roughly, then set off a sensor inside that makes a tiny "rawr" sound. She immediately backed off, came back for a few sniffs, then ever-so-gently picked it up by the scruff and has done so ever since. It is the first thing she searches for when she comes in. It is sooo cute!

I hope each of you had wonderful holiday celebrations as well and safe travels to your destinations. I am home this week with the kiddos and am so looking forward to it! We've already had a couple of fun-filled and I can't hardly wait to see what else my little rugrats will do = )

Weekend Fun plus More Yuck! ....

We started off the weekend to Shear Madness in Olathe. This place is amazing, although, you do pay a little for this amazingness -- but all in all, it's worth it. You see, since the boys have been born, I have always cut their hair myself. I do a fair job, but I'm definitely no professional. Part of the reason we have never ventured out to have their hair trimmed is the thought of trying to get these 2 rambunctious balls of energy to sit still long enough for the event to actually occur and potentially be worth the stress and money was unfathomable. But, as Riley and Gage are maturing, our trips out into public are slowly but surely becoming not only more tolerable, but actually enjoyable. Finally! Anyhow, I had heard of this place from another mom and thought it was time we gave it a try. It was really cool. They have various cars that the kiddos can sit it in while getting their hair cut and also a great play area with toys that they can enjoy while waiting. Of course, the entry is also the equivalent of a mini-toy store with everything eye level and overpriced, but I gotta say, it's effective! Anyhow, the boys did really well. They have never remained that still for that long for my barber adventures that's for sure! The results were pretty good and I'd have to say that even though I ended up paying more than I would have liked, it was worth it = )

Gager in his race car. He had a great time making race car sounds and "driving" all during the appointment. We'll forgive him for choosing a Tony Stewart car. This time...

Here's Riley cruisin' old style in a 50's Chevy. It even had little foot pedals inside to keep him busy and burn some excess energy. Bonus!

After that adventure, we headed back to Bass Pro Shop again as it was just down the road from the hair place. Since the boys have been relatively good, I caved to standing in line again to visit Santa. It was worth it. The boys really enjoyed their second time around with the jolly old fellow much more than the first. I even got the photo for the Christmas card I was hoping for = )

With each visit to Santa, the store offers a ticket for a free kids meal. The boys were ravenous after our long morning of errands so we decided to give it a shot. The food was pretty darn good and with the kids eating free it was actually quite affordable. Another bonus!

Riley thoroughly enjoying his meal -- and being quite dramatic in the process!

(yes, I know what you're thinking - - and yes, I do take my camera everywhere and photograph everything! you just never know what you might catch and in the ever immortal words of Aerosmith ... "I don't wanna miss a thing!")

All of the excitement proved too much for the boys on the car ride home and I got the pleasure of snapping another peaceful shot. Love these!The next couple of shots are pretty random, but I thought they were cute and wanted to share ...


After Riley and I's bike ride, we stopped to play outside a little while. Here he is making making "snowball soup" in the ditch in front of our house. Love the imagination!

One of Riley's close-up pictures of the Christmas tree. He loves it almost as much as I do!

Another of Riley's shots. I am so glad he took this one, though, as I have a story I've been meanting to tell about this particular Santa. We have several strewn thoughout the house and little Gage likes to go around and talk to each of them. However, according to him, this particular Santa is not a Santa at all ... to him, this particular figurine is God. That works for me. It gives us just one more reminder of the real reason for the season and a great chance to talk more about all of our blessings = )

Well, this week was already looking pretty busy and hectic with the last of the holiday prep needing to be attended to, Christmas parties, work, jewelry orders, and just life in general. Then, Tuesday morning we get the dreaded call from pre-school: Gage is sick. Great! It's the flu. Again. Yuck!!! Let's pray it leaves us as quickly as the last round and that the rest of us manage to stay healthy! Good tidings and good health to all!

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas ...

Just gotta start off with I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE THIS TIME OF YEAR! Ok, now that we have that proclamation out of the way, here a few snapshots from the season that make me smile:

Gage helping me decorate the tree. I LOVE our Christmas tree. Many of the ornaments were handed down to me from my grandmother. It helps me feel closer to her to see them and reminisce about all the wonderful times I've enjoyed with her and my grandpa over the years. It's also, if I do say so myself, just about the prettiest darn tree in town = )

On Saturday we ventured to Bass Pro Shop to visit Santa, do a little shopping, and get some more ideas for the kiddos wish list. During the trip, Corey was the boys hero when he wrestled this large brown bear and walked away the victor = )

Top item on Gage's wish list is a quad. We had to practially pry him off of this one. Well, we'll find out for sure if there's really a Santa, 'cuz it would definitely be a Christmas miracle if this showed up under the tree! Maybe next year, kiddo ... keep on dreamin' big, though!

Oh the boys were so excited to meet Santa. They did so well and even told Santa what they wanted for Christmas. However, I think seeing about 500 people staring at them kind of freaked them out a little and this is the best picture we could get. Riley kept being shy and looking away, while Gage forced a "cheese" but not much smile to match it. So much for my dreams of the perfect Christmas card! Oh well, I love it anyway = )

Here's another one of my favorite things about this time of year, getting to display this beautiful piece that my grandpa handcrafted (and Corey puts much TLC into each year.) The first night it was out was kind of tough, though. Riley was extra excited about it and asked several questions. When I explained that my grandpa made it, he wanted to know where my grandpa was. I explained that he is in heaven and went there when he was just a baby. He immediately broke into tears and sobbed he didn't want my grandpa to be in heaven, he wanted him here. I agreed with him, but tried to console him by explaining that he needed to be up there to help take care of Gracie. That, coupled with an extra long hug, seemed to help ease his sorrows a little.

Then, Gage beaned him with a snowball and it was on! Here they are running in the first snow.

Gage hanging on the tree trying to shake the snow off ... silly boy!

Riley getting ready to peg me with a snowball. So ornery!

Gage - busted trying to sneak up on me. Check out that look of determination!

Catching snowflakes = )

After exerting all that energy playing in the snow, the boys needed to refuel. Here Gage is working on his 3rd bowl of homemade chicken noodle soup! (which he followed with 2 bowls of cereal and an apple ... talk about a hungry boy!!!)

Well, that's it for now, just wanted to share a few of my faves. Let the festivities begin. Fun, fun, fun!

Deep Thoughts by Riley and Gage ...

Riley - Mom, I need a new helicopter.
Me - You already have two.
Riley - Mooooom, those don't have two spinners! I neeeeeed one that has 2 props that go round and round and round ... and maybe even shoots bombs. Yep, that would be cool. That's what I need.
** and then he was off on another mission. he definitely is getting better at articulating what he wants!

Riley - No! I am NOT mature! That is for babies!
** his response after I complimented him for getting a super report from his pre-school that mentioned how mature he has been in class all week. how's that for irony = )~

Riley - I can't talk about this anymore. My words keep getting all tangled. I am done.
** said in exasperation after trying to teach Gage our street address on the way home one evening. Gager was in a super-silly mood and I'm pretty sure was intentionally messing up. gotta love the brotherly love!

Gage - It's good! It tastes like chicken!

** his response to his pre-school teacher's plea for him to put the boogie he just picked into a tissue instead of his mouth. yuck!

Gage - Thank you for .... Ben10 Alien Force, Ben10 Alien Swarm, Little Ben10, Big Ben10, Movie Ben10, Cartoon Ben10, Real Ben10 and Kevin (Ben10's friend)

** heartfelt thank you to God during his bedtime prayers = )

Me - You are such a crazy little Spider Monkey! (said after watching him climb up, jump off, and bounce off of almost every piece of furniture in the house)

Gage - [stopping still in his tracks] No, I'm not Momma. I'm not a Spider Monkey. I'm a widdle boy!

Ahhhh! Gotta love what comes from the minds and mouths of 2 & 3 year old boys!

Seriously?!

So, Staci, one of my best friends from forever, calls me out of the blue on Saturday. "What are you up to?" she asks. I reply, "Oh, I'm just driving down K-10 in my camisole and underwear, how about you?" I'm sure you can imagine her response! Well, it's just been one of those kind of weeks.

It started out strange last Saturday. During dinner we were all conversing as we usually do, when Riley turned his head to the right and Corey and I immediately looked at each other and said, "Did you see that?" Riley had two large bumps protuding from the left side of his neck that seemed to appear out of nowhere. They were not there when he laid down for his nap a couple hours earlier, now they are there looking like a couple of rubber bouncy balls laying beneath his skin. I feel them, ask him a million questions, then run to my trusty computer. Of course, all of the most terrifying possibilities jump out at me: blood clot, aneurysm, non-Hodgkins lymphoma -- aaaahhhhh! So, by now it is 7:00 and Corey and I have been going back and forth about what to do. We finally decide that I will take him to the ER just to be safe. Just where I wanted to be on a Saturday night after a home KU Football game! On the way there I called my mom, who is always so calm and the voice of reason. Thank you for that mom as I am the complete opposite! Anyhow, fortunately, the drunks had not started to filter into the emergency room just yet, so it wasn't quite the crazy scene I was anxiously anticipating = ) After completing some paperwork and getting shuffled from room to room, we got settled into "the coolest room ever!" -- Riley's words. A bed with rails that can move up and down, his own remote, cartoons on TV, a chair that spins = good times for a 3 yr old! On top of that he got to pee in a cup -- fun! -- and since they ended up not needing the sample, he got to bring it home to show Gage and Daddy -- bonus! It ended up that he actually had a pretty severe double ear infection and the bumps were his lymph nodes that had swollen up in response to the infection. They prescribed some anti-biotics and he has been getting much better. Thank goodness that is all that it was. Also, thank goodness that Riley has dubbed the ER "AWESOME!" as I am sure we will make many more trips there in the future!

A couple days later, Riley started to complain that his tummy hurt. Well, lo and behold, the vomiting was not far behind. Ugh! But honestly, if all flu episodes were like this one, I wouldn't freak so badly about the dreaded virus. Don't get me wrong, he was pretty darn sick for about 6-7 hours, but after that, it was like the illness was gone as quickly as it had arrived. After testing the waters and allowing him some small portions of crackers and pedialyte for a couple hours, I finally caved to his requests for pancakes and he was scarfing them down like he hadn't eaten in days! So glad he wasn't down and out for too long!

So, that was Wednesday. We were a little too hopeful that Gage had survived this spout without catching the bug. Well, we found out that we weren't that lucky at almost the worst possible time and place. This Saturday morning we headed over to Monkey Bizness in Olathe to celebrate our friend Taryn's 3rd birthday. We had been there just under an hour when Gage said he didn't want to go down the slide again with Riley and me, so he just sat at the bottom and waited. I didn't think much of it as he had woken up bright and early at 5:15 that morning and just figured he was extra tired as it was getting close to lunch and nap time. Oh, if only that were so! When we got to the bottom, Gage asked, "Momma, hold me." Well, you just can't deny a request so sweet, so I scooped him up and sat down on a bench with him. He snuggled his head tightly into my chest and then ....... yep, you guessed it! -- he blew chunks all over me. Yuck!!! Thankfully, I guess, the vomit was mostly on me and Gage and less than a silver dollar size actually fell to the floor. After what seemed like an eternity of parents and children staring at us while slowly backing away, one gentleman was kind enough to bring a trash can over to us and beckon some workers to bring us some paper towels and trash bags.

So, from here, I stripped down poor little Gage and tried to wipe myself as clean as I could. I hurried the boys out to the van for our 40 minute drive home. Now, I am still covered in puke at this point and totally wreak. Thankfully, while dressing in the morning, I had put on a camisole under the shirt I was wearing. So, I peeled off the saturated top shirt and put it in the trash bag. Next, I scanned the parking lot and everything looked clear, so I took off my jeans and put them in the trash bag as well. Ok, so far so good. I now strap in the boys and get Gage set up with the trash bag and a towel in case he needs to let loose again. We are now on our way home.

I call Corey and explain the fun to him, and being the great hubby that he is tells me he'll get everything ready at home for our little sicko. Next I call my mom, who once again calms me down and helps me laugh at my unfortunate situation. After I hang up with her is when I get the call from Staci. After talking to her for a while, Gage has another episode, so I need to pull over and attend to him. Thankfully we were close to home and were now on a back county road so we didn't have to deal with traffic. We take care of business and are on our way again.

Unfortunately, we were on our way a little too fast. The next thing you know I am getting pulled over by a Sheriff's deputy. Are you kidding me?! Luckily, the boys had brought their blankies with them for the car ride that morning, so I covered up my bottom half with Riley's and proceeded to plead my case. The fellow did not seem very sympathetic to say the least. After questioning me if we were in a life-threatening situation, or en route to the hospital, then checking my license and insurance (which seemed to take forever) the not overly kind deputy finally came back to my window. I wanted to say but didn't, "Seriously, you know I have a vomiting sick kid in here, aaaannnnd my entire van, as well as my child and I smell like a puke bucket, did you really need to take that long?!" However, in the end, he did let me off with a warning and a stearn, "Slow it down ma'am, slow it down." Good grief!

Anyhow, after a couple of hours, Gage's flu disappeared just like Riley's did and he was out running around in the yard by the end of the day. Good times, good times. Let's hope this next week is much less eventful on the health front!

Definitely NOT as "funny" as YouTube ...

So, our little sugarbaby Gage had a couple of cavities that were found at his dentist visit last month. One was on his canine and appeared to just be a soft sport that formed during the tooth's development. Nothing we could've done to prevent that one. However, there were two more on his back teeth, most likely the result of his love for all things sugary and sticky. So, there will be no more of those! Not that we will cut out all candy for the poor little guy, that would be just cruel. However, the worst offenders from the dentist's list will be eliminated as they are the ones that stick around for a long time and do the most damage. Of course, these worst offenders are most of his favorites -- tootsie rolls, laffy taffy, suckers, etc. It'll be rough on the little fella, but I'm sure he'll survive = )

Anyhow, back to the appointment. The dentist and her staff had previously discussed using a sedative with Gage since he is only 2 1/2. The sedative doesn't put the child to sleep, but is designed to help him calm down and relax so the dentist can complete the necessary dental work (fillings, x-rays, and flouride treatment.) The sedation also works to block the short-term memory of the child so they do not remember the "scary" part of the visit, thus hopefully curtailing fear of the dentist at future visits.

When we were advised of this option at the original check-up, I was very curious about it and a little hesitant. I am not a big fan of taking/giving medicine in general, unless it is an absolute necessity. So, I did tons of research on the drug they said they would give Gage and even watched the "funny" video on YouTube of the little boy who had been given this same sedation and seemed to act intoxicated. After all of this, even though I still had a few reservations, we decided it would probably be the best thing to do so Gage's little cavities didn't turn into big problems.

Oh boy. At the actual visit, the dentist decided a stronger sedative needed to be used as Gage is such an "active and strong" boy (her nice way of saying he was being a scared, stubborn pill!) Of course, this other sedative has not only stronger sedation qualities, but more extreme and longer lasting side effects. Great! Well, I made the executive decision to go ahead with it and paid for it dearly. Gage basically turned into a viral "mean drunk" for about 30 minutes before he chilled a little. He became very aggressive, hitting, biting, kicking, crying ... just being very mean ... all the while slowly losing control of motor functions. I'm not quite sure how he couldn't stand or sit on his own, but he could still flail and fight like a rabid dog, but he did. Once he finally calmed down enough that they could take him back to do the procedures, I was an emotional mess. It didn't help that I could hear him crying and hollering out in the waiting room. Needless to say, I shed some tears, too.

After all of that, he thankfully wore himself out and all of the cavities were filled, x-rays were taken, and flouride was applied. He then just wanted to cuddle and snuggle. I had hoped to take him back to his pre-school that afternoon, but the sedative was still way too present in his system. So, I attempted to take him to the office with me. It did not work out. It kind of reminded me of my bartending days and dealing with the drunks. At the bar, no matter how nicely, or how many times you would try to tell the customer to sit down and hush up before they hurt themselves or got into trouble, they would just keep on keepin' on with a fierce determination and a blankness in their eyes. This was my dear, sweet, little redhead. He wouldn't lay down and watch his movies for the life of him. He would stumble throughout the office, run into a wall here, fall down there, try to climb on chairs and visit with my boss. It would've been funny, if it wasn't so not funny. Thankfully, Corey was able to take the afternoon off and take care of him at home. The effects of the sedative bascially continued all through the evening, eventually taking on what I'm sure were almost "hangover-like" qualities, which the doctor had also warned us about. He was grumpy and irritable. He was demanding and ornery. He was docile one minute, then beligerant and bawling the next. He was also ravenous -- eating even more than usual -- a whole 6oz steak, a cup of noodles and green beans for supper. A little later a whole apple and an individual size bag of Doritos. A little while after that, 8oz of milk, a string cheese, some pepporoni slices and 1/2 an orange. Then still asking for more food when I put him to bed at 8:15. Ahhhhhhhhhh!

We're just praying that no more cavities show up in our kids -- ever! -- or at least until they are old enough to effectively cope with the situation without the use of sedation. I honestly never want to go through that again. I know that this isn't the way it typically turns out. I've even taked with a couple of friends and clients whose children went through it just fine and just acted silly through the ordeal. Oh, if only we had been that lucky! Oh well, I guess you live and you learn. I'm just so thankful that today my sweet-natured little goofball buddy is back instead of his Dr. Gagerstein alter ego. That guy was scary!!!!

This 'n That ...

Riley, Gage, and Katie hiking at the dog park. We've visited there several times over the last week since the weather has been so beautiful. It's been kind of bittersweet, however, as this is the first time we've been there without Gracie. The boys are as big of fans of autumn as their mommy ... here's Riley enjoying the falling leaves.

Gage sporting a balloon pumpkin hat that our wonderful neighbor Vicki brought over for him. (She also brought one over for Riley, but being the ornery little sort that he is, he almost immediatly started popping the balloons on the grass outside -- thus, no pictures of him!)
Li'l Transformer - Bumblebee Gage.

Big Transformer - Bumblebee Riley

The 2 Bumblebees anxiously awaiting their departure.

My weekend project consisted of starting the revamping of our bedroom. Here's the new wallcolor ... I'm diggin' it = )

That's all for now. I've got tons of stories to tell and may get to them someday soon. In the meantime, the weather is just too great to be sitting in front of a computer, so I'm heading to the backyard to enjoy the fire for a little while before I need to shuttle the kiddos to dreamland. Take care!

Tricks and Treats

Well, there have actually been more tricks than treats this past week or so. First, the hard drive goes out in our computer. Ugh! And, of course, nothing can be retrieved off of it. Luckily, I have most things backed-up and pictures uploaded to photo sharing sites. However, the last batch of pictures that I took off of my camera (close to 100) had not been loaded yet. Bummer. Oh well, I guess the treat side of this is we now have a new computer that runs Windows7 and it is awesome. Plus, it is wicked fast compared to our old machine. So, I guess, Merry Christmas to us a few months early!

The next trick is that my camera that has all of the kiddos Halloween pictures on it is ... missing in action. Of course, no one has any idea why it isn't in the spot it is supposed to be. Hmmmmm, mysterious, spooky stuff! Hopefully, we will scavenge it up somewhere soon, then I will share a couple of pictures of the two lovely bumblebee transformers. It was a long time getting to these outfits as the final costume, but I'll wait to share that story until there are photos to go along with it.

Lastly, here is a little trick Corey played on the boys. I'm sure most of you who spend any time on the web have seen this video of "the ghost of Michael Jackson." Well, Corey watched it and let out a howl, so of course, the boys wanted to see what all of the commotion was about. Riley wasn't too keen on it -- "it freaked me out" were his exact words, but little Gage is kind of strange and LOVES to be scared. He thinks it's a thrill. Thus, he requested to watch it over and over again. Each time his "surprise" becoming more and more dramatic. He is such a ham!

Well, that's all for this update. Will fill you in on more trick-or-treating fun when we find the camera = )

So much fun, so much silliness, and so much sadness ...

We headed back home last weekend to attend a friend's birthday/Halloween party. My parents were gracious enough to allow us another date night (wow - 2 dates in 30 days ... that's a record!) and watched the boys. They took the kiddos to Rolling Acres Wildlife outside of Salina. The boys are still talking about it! They loved seeing all of the animals and spending time with their Grandma and Papa = ) Riley is also still asking each night if Grandma and Papa will take him to McDonald's for a snack. Oh the things that boy loves!

Papa trying to measure his big boys ...

My awesome hubby also had a super awesome surprise for me. I had no idea he was planning this. Usually, I'm not much for surprises, I prefer to do the planning ... but, I'll take this kind of surprise any day. You see, I've been complaining a lot lately that I haven't gotten a full night's sleep for quite a while. Each night, somewhere between 2:00 & 4:00, one or both of the boys will have a bad dream or two and need some comfort from mom. This usually results with them just climbing into bed with us. Yes, I know, I've created my own turmoil by allowing this, but I digress. Anyhow, as much as I love the snuggles and that my boys feel safe, it does greatly decrease the quality of sleep I get. Anyhow, Corey decided that he was going to make sure I got a full night's sleep and got us a hotel room for our date night with the kiddos staying with my mom and dad. Did I mention how wonderful this guy is? On top of this, he did not get just any hotel room ... he got the honeymoon suite complete with heart-shaped jaccuzzi. Let me tell you -- that jaccuzzi was the perfect answer for my frozen toes after spending all evening at the outdoor party! Aaaand, a fabulous way to relax before a much needed full night of uninterrupted sleep = )

Sweet Heart

Below are a couple of pictures of us before the party and some of the best costumes of the night ...

Corey as Howie Mandel from "Deal or No Deal",

Me as "Kate + 8"

Zach as a super dorky nerd boy,

Dinah as the creepiest doll in town!

Dale as a convict,

my sis Tracy as hottie Police Officer

Jenny as Tina Turner,

Nick as Mr T (he was the best!)

Jen as Mary Katherine Gallagher,

Corey again

What a super fun night with great friends!!!

When we got home, Riley was feeling extra silly. He decided he needed to change his clothes and this is the outfit he ended up with ...

What a character! (just in case you couldn't tell, those are underpants on his head, socks on his hands and a shirt as pants = )

Unfortunately, after all of the fun and games of the weekend, the work week had a very sad turn. Our sweet doggie, Gracie, has been slowly getting a little worse with each passing day. The cancer was just progressing so quickly and really causing her pain to the point where even on the medication, all she really could do was lay around. Even sitting was hurting her. So, we had to make the extremely difficult decision to have her euthanized. It was one of the saddest moments of my life, but it was the most humane thing we could do for her. At least now she is no longer in pain. I am so thankful for all of the love she shared with us over the years and all the wonderful memories we have with her. She was so loved and will forever be in our hearts. We love you Gracie!

Some Chills, Some Thrills, and a Whole Lotta Sponge Bob ...

We started off the weekend with a surprise visit from my sister, Tracy. We were all so very happy to see her = ) We were also excited that she got to go to the pumpkin patch with us this year ... too bad she brought the freezing Colorado temperatures with her! Our trip to the patch was much shorter this year as the chilly temp and extra cool breeze took a little of the fun out of the adventure. But, we all trucked along on our mission and found some prized pumpkins nonetheless. A little bit of cold can't keep us down!

Here's Riley hopping along ... not too long before he slipped and slid into the slippery mud. Yuck! Thankfully, it all cleaned up fairly easily. Too bad we couldn't catch his desperate attempts to stay upright, though. It would've been an America's Funniest Home Video winner for sure = )

Gage with his "daddy pumpkin"

Riley being a strong man and one-handing a decent sized pumpkin!

After the pumpkin hunting we headed into this sheltered picnic area for some hot apple cider and vanilla popcorn ... yum! In the meantime, Gage had fun taunting this big ol' witch saying, "Nana nana, boo boo, you can't get me." Such a tough guy with the inflatables = )~

Later that evening we headed to Kokoro Japanese Steakhouse to celebrate our dear old dad's upcoming 60th birthday. That's right, 60th! This was his -- and the kiddos -- first trip to such a restaurant. Everyone loved the show at the hot grill. I wish some of the pictures would have come out better of Riley watching the chef. He was in awe to say the least. His eyes and jaw were wide open most of the evening just taking it all in! Also, thanks to my sis, my parents, Corey and I were treated to our first Sake Bombs. Interesting to say the least = )

Fire!

The other big excitement of the weekend was the much anticipated arrival of Gage's big boy bed. Grandma and Papa brought this bed to Gage courtesy of an extra that was being stored at Great Grandma Galyardt's house. He has been waiting for this for several weeks. Every day up to this point he would say, "Grandma and Papa are bringing my big boy bed today?" To which I would need to explain to him how many weeks/days it would be until this event actually happened. Well, he was not let down and is soooo in love with his bed! He is also in love with his matching Sponge Bob jammies courtesy of Grandma and Papa. Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

Could this get any cuter?

And, of course, Riley couldn't be left out of getting something new, too. Sooooo, we rearranged his bedroom -- so he, too, now has a new room = )

What a wonderful weekend. As always, it was way too short, but we're already looking forward to the next one. Can't wait to see the fun it will bring!