October

We started the month of October thinking it would be a mild month (as far as schedules go), but it ended up being FILLED to the brim with blessings, opportunities, lots of fun, and MUCH to do! 

As I was behind in my blogging, I decided just to capture the month all at once.

Jackson right now is just obsessed with clothes/attire. Every time we get dressed, change or go somewhere he is so intrigued by all the items of clothing everyone is wearing. Along with his piqued interest he is also fascinated with trying on everyones shoes. The shoe "situation/organization" by our back door has always been a bit of a hot button with me as the mess or lack of organization drives me crazy. This has simply been escalated with Jackson's newfound interest in shoes - as he loves to go through each pair (destroying what little organization there was) and try them on.

A little pre-Halloween dress up.

We had some GORGEOUS days in October - which were such a blessing. One day Liam came over to play with us and enjoyed the weather with us. 

West Lafayette/Purdue hosted their first half marathon this fall. It was AWESOME! It was well run and lots of fun. It was HARD - the last two miles were essentially uphill, but I had a great time and had a PR. John - the awesome husband that he is - hooked up the bike cart behind his bike and biked the kids throughout the course, cheering me on at several different spots. In fact, he rode with me for several miles. It was so much fun!

There was also a kids run after the race, so this was a treat for Abigail as well. She just loves it when there are kids races.

Two of the CUTEST fans.

The kids both got medals as well - they were from the kids' run, but they graciously gave Jackson a medal too.

We had such a fun Halloween! Abigail especially loved getting dressed up and racing from neighbor to neighbor for candy. We met up with our neighbors and trick-o-treated with them, which made for a VERY fun evening. 

Crazy Cheerleader

Jackson had a real love-hate relationship with this dog costume (well - it was mostly hate for him and love for me). I just thought it was the cutest thing. I kept trying to get him to wiggle his bottom (to wag his tail). He, however, wanted nothing to do with the like.

All in a day...

Gum + hair = peanut butter! We got gum in the hair...again. For some reason I don't remember this being such a big deal. I feel like peanut butter worked great. However, it must have been more intense this time because it took much more work to get all the stickiness free from Abigail's locks. She however kept herself entertained by taking advantage of the open jar of peanut butter...snacking away while I worked.

Jackson on the other hand is (for whatever reason!) in love with these Mr. Potato Head glasses. He loves to wear them - and upside down no less. The other day he was so frustrated that they would not stay on his head. I was then quite frustrated and put them on Mr. Potato Head (where they belong!) and tried to explain they were Mr. Potato Head's! He however wanted nothing to do with this truth and continues to wear them though no longer complains because he knows I will return them to their rightful owner if he does! :)

First Day of School!

Today was Abigail's first day of Pre K (big distinction - not preschool - Pre K)! She was quite excited, and I do not believe she was disappointed. As I'm sure it is with most kids, the details of the day come sporadically throughout the afternoon/evening. Nevertheless she came home in very good spirits, excited to play with Jackson. 

I don't think Jackson quite knew what to do with himself without his main form of entertainment around. However, I really enjoyed the time with just him. :)

Ready to go!

Outside of the school.

By this point, I think Abigail was ready to be done with the pictures, but I didn't care. :)

The Box

The hours of entertainment a simple box can provide...

More Trains and Celebration...

So one day before Jackson's birthday is John's dad's birthday, and two days after Jacksons, is my Grandma Gudeman's. So we went up to the Whistle Stop restaurant (in my parents hometown) for lunch to celebrate her birthday - which was awesome because the kids not only loved going out to eat with Grandma, but also loved the trains! 

Jackson ready to go in his conductor's hat.

Great Grandma with the kids that were able to come...

Crashing later that night...

Well, kind of crashing...

Birthday Continues...

So for Jackson's actual birthday weekend we wanted to do something fun as a family that Jackson would really enjoy. The next thing after automobiles that he loves is animals. So we decided to go to the Indpls Zoo for the day. It was so much fun! It was a beautiful day!

Right off the bat Jackson loved it - he was so excited to pet the sharks!

Note Abigail hanging back...we were concerned with how she would be, as she does NOT share Jackson's interest in animals. However, she loved it! Of course - she loved the fact all the animals were securely caged and she was not expected to touch. :)

For at least the first part of the day, this was Jackson's face - eyes wide, mouth hanging open. :) He was completely in awe the entire time!

Abigail thought this was funny - a Zebra named after Uncle Grant. 

The poor lion sleeping - just wanted to be left alone. 

Abigail's one animal that she really wanted to see was the Zebra.

The elephants put on a great show for us. 

The morning of his actual birthday...

Exciting Stuff!

It's so odd to me, but my kids absolutely love the process of the lawn being mowed. When our lawn is mowed, it's like a half hour-hour of free child care because they are completely entertained for the entire event - all the way to trimming and blowing/cleanup. They sit and watch and watch. It's so funny to me. :)

Here they are enjoying the show. :)

Olympic Spirit

I really enjoyed the Olympics this year. It was really fun to partake in the spirit of it with my kids. I enjoyed talking to Abigail about all the different countries and parts of the world. She has many friends and some family that either have lived/are living abroad, so she has some decent perspective for a 4 year old. 

I attempted some red, white and blue cupcakes to celebrate for both birthdays and the Olympics. 

I don't know how cute they actually looked, but they still tasted good. :)

Happy Birthday!!!!

Last weekend we had a plethora of birthday celebrations, kicking off with a party for my Mom on Friday night. We went to Darin and Arial's and celebrated her there.

Happy Birthday, Mom and Grandma!

There was an awesome rainbow!

The morning after...kids crashing on the couch :)

Then, Sunday we had a party for Jackson (a week early to try accommodate other family plans).

Jackson is obsessed with planes, trains and automobiles right now. :) We thought it was highly appropriate to have a Thomas theme. 

Three Musketeers

The cake turned out so cute! (I of course did not make it, but Marsh bakery did a great job! LOL)

"Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you!"

Jackson actually did pretty well attempting to blow out the candles himself!

Yummy!

We love birthday cake!

And the sugar is kicking in...

Present time!

He is still quite slow opening presents - much to the dismay of the older kiddos. :) They just can hardly stand it!

Because of his age and love of trains, we started a train set with him. We were blessed to have found an entire Thomas train set, complete with table, trunk, tons of tracks, buildings, etc. on Craigslist! 

As you can see and can probably imagine, there is A LOT of noise at our family gatherings. :)

Needless to say, that Monday morning after we were all moving pretty slowly. :)