October was a very busy month for our family, according to the amount of pictures uploaded to this blog post!
Cute sisters playing on the playground as we watch Noah's football game.
Fun night out with cousins at Venezia's Pizza while the dads went to the Priesthood session!
We took a trip to Castles & Coasters during October Break. It was just me, Suzanne, Ellie, Noah, Sophie and Abby. We had so much fun, the weather was pretty nice, and there weren't any lines all day long!
Day 2 of October Break was spent at the Phoenix Zoo. It was awesome to take Abby for the first time and for Russ to be able to join us.
(we didn't purchase the pictures they took of us at the entrance so here are the "proofs")
Russ also took days 3, 4, and 5 of October Break off to spend time with us. It was so nice to have him home! On day 4, we rented a RZR and took it out to the desert. Sophie had gone back home and Noah had gone to a family campout with Ellie, Suzanne, and Lance - so it was just Russ, Abby and I in the desert. Miss Abberdeen loved it. She was so good the whole time, only acting nervous if she saw mom acting nervous! Also, having rained the day before made this the perfect day. It was cool enough to wear jackets as we rode and felt so nice outside.
(This helicopter was flying low and circling over us just to give us a show. The people inside waved to us before they left.)
We spent part of Russ's time off working on this secret project for Sophie's birthday (more on that later)... While he worked on cutting and building, I worked on painting and making accessories to dress up the secret project!
We've been spending a few hours every Saturday watching Noah play flag football...
Noah had a fun time at the "stake family vacation" he went to with the Cummards. Grandma, Poppy, and Riggs were also there so he was in good company.
Crazy goggle girl!
Abby started attending nursery a little pre-maturely (before she was officially 18 months old). Aunt Alisse was subbing in the nursery so we thought it would be a perfect way to get Abby used to it while someone she knew could help comfort her! It's nice that I have these pictures Alisse took to document her first nursery experience!
We took our family (including Abby) to see "Meet the Mormons" for our family home evening one night. We really liked the movie and Abby was pretty good considering her age. She only wanted to run around during the last 30 minutes or so of the movie.
We also took a tour of the new Phoenix temple!
Abby gets to go on most date nights with mom and dad (that needs to change)! Here's Russ showing her how to draw. If she has even an ounce of artistic ability in her, it didn't come from me.
Lucy and Sophie had a sleepover and Abby thought she was cool hanging out with the "big girls"!
Abby gets to go to nursery with Davis. I can't stand how cute they both are!
Family picture time... Russ and I got in a slow dance in between pictures :)
(these are the only pictures we have so far)...
Abby LOVES panda bears and was so excited about what she thought was a giant stuffed animal when her Halloween costume arrived in the mail! When she saw herself in the mirror though, she didn't know if she should laugh or cry. She was a little bit scared of it at first!
Noah turned 10 and got a dirtbike for his birthday!! He was so happy.
We made cinnamon rolls for his birthday breakfast...
... and then took him his favorite food for lunch: Panda Express!
Cutest babies in town: Davis and Abby
This year we did a combined birthday party for Noah and Sophie. They each got to invite 5 people and we left it up to them who they invited. They both chose 2 friends and the rest cousins. I love that they love their cousins so much! We went to play laser tag and then ate pizza at Freestone Park.
Noah passed off a goal in his "Faith in God" book by planning and preparing a meal. He sat down with me to plan what we would have for dinner, made a list of the groceries we would need, and then helped me prepare it. Of course he chose Chinese food! He did a good job.
The night of our neighborhood's trunk-or-treat was way too hot for the panda costume. We had bought Abby this penguin costume as a back up in case the panda didn't arrive from China in time for Halloween. She was the cutest little penguin and had a fun time at the trunk-or-treat.
Sophie turned 10 years old this month too! We presented her with the "world's cutest lemonade stand" as Russ and I have named it. We are obviously pretty proud of our work. Sophie loved it! She is excited to be able to sell all sorts of things from her stand, using all of the different accessories...
(crafts / italian sodas / other fun stuff...)
(baked good / hot chocolate / etc)
We had Sophie with us on the morning of her birthday so it was fun to serve cinnamon rolls for breakfast and have her wear the birthday crown!
Halloween night: Cleopatra, Panda Bear, and a Military Man
We spent Halloween night at Grandma & Poppy's house (as usual). Noah and Ellie didn't even care to go trick or treating but instead passed out candy all night. We took Abby, Sophie, Davis, and Lucy trick-or-treating together though.
Cutest cousins: Cinderella, Cleopatra, Prince Charming, a Military Man, a Loofah, and a Panda Bear.
