'Houston'

Tonight at dinner Brynn was recapping her day when she informed us there would now only be six girls in her class instead of seven and that she would no longer be able to play with her friend Layla. Of course this prompted both Danny and I to ask why?

She looked at us with a serious face said, "because Layla is moving to another country."

When we asked her if she knew which country she was moving to she thought for a moment and responded, "I believe it's called Houston."

Pumpkin Painting

I don't have a very long post today, mainly just a few photos to share with you of the kids painting pumpkins this past Friday night.

They were working so hard they wouldn't even look up at the camera....

Braden was really into it, he actually set still more than five minutes!

Oops, I spoke to soon. He's on the loose with a paint brush in hand....

He's back, but only to torment his sister.....

Brynn finally decides to look up at the camera....Can you tell her favorite color is purple?

They had lots of fun and we all had a much needed laugh. Brynn is our serious child (who gets deeply involved in what she is doing and trying to accomplish) while Braden is our little prankster as I am sure you can tell from the photos. They make a great pair.

Playing in the Mud

It's no secret most little boys like to play in the mud and Braden is no exception. In fact, I believe it is safe to say my son LOVES to play in the mud and lately with all the much needed rain we have been receiving there’s no mud shortage.

This past weekend the weather was absolutely beautiful and both Brynn and Braden were fever ridden (you would have never known it), so we pretty much stayed around the house. We ended up spending lots of time in the backyard; the kids playing while Danny and I worked in the yard. We spent hour working in our flower beds and trimming the bushes and Braden spent hours in the mud. He managed to dig several holes, cover the slide on the playscape in mud, loose ‘Bill the train’ in the mud, torment his sister by trying to feed her a mud pie, giving up and deciding to eat the mud pie himself (literally). He was absolutely filthy, we had to strip him down and rinse him off outside before bringing him inside for a bath. After his bath we had to scrub the tub!

Bout' Time

UPDATE ALERT: I know it has been awhile; okay it has been a LONG time, but I do promise we are still here, alive and kickin'.

We had a great summer and are glad to be back in a routine. The kids are doing great. Both Brynn and Braden started a Mother's Day Out program in September where Brynn attended school last year. Brynn is happy to be back in school and was really excited to see her friend Callie from last year in her class again this year. She walked in like a pro and I must admit it was a tiny bit sad when I only received was a quick kiss and 'see ya later'. Just one more reminder my baby girl is growing up. As for Braden this is his first year at the MDO and he did exactly what we expected; walked into class bursting with confidence, said hi to everyone, started playing and never once looked-back. Talk about a lump in the throat tear-jerker!

And me, I am still working full-time and trying to find a good balance with all the changes. It has longer than we expected, but we are hanging in there and taking it one day at a time. In August I signed up to take a photography class at our local community college I have wanted to take for years. It feels good to be doing something I love, but it has turned out to be a lot more work and time than anticipated. I have to remember to keep things in perspective. I am really enjoying it and have met some talented individuals. I'll start sharing some photos from my assignments here soon.

Danny is doing well. I know he is ready to get back to work, but he has done a pretty amazing job at home with the kids. Of course, Brynn and Braden love to throw in a challenge every now and then to keep him on his toes. Both kids were sick a few weeks ago (antibiotics, breathing treatments and the whole nine yards) and I know first hand it is not fun when you are dealing with a sick child, let a lone two. Braden's hit the terrible twos and developed a ‘deaf ear, while Brynn has moved into the 'I-will-do-it-my-way-and-only-my-way' fours (is there such a thing?). So he has definitely had his moments and I think it is safe to say, he will be accepting the first decent offer he receives ;o)