Trick or Treating

My pictures are a bit out of order, but I wanted to get them up before it is Valentines Day. We had a really fun Halloween (except for Cameron and Eric missing out since Cameron had a cold). We went to our friends the Kelly's for their annual Halloween party. They are so nice to feed us dinner and then we all take the kids out to Trick or Treat. It turned out to be great weather for Oregon. The girls didn't have to wear their coats over their costumes which leads to people asking (What are you?) and no one needed an umbrella!

For some reason Ella was scared to go up to the door so I had to hold her pumpkin and say Trick or Treat. I asked if she wanted to go inside, but she wanted the candy so we kept moving. There were a few houses that just put bowls on the doorstep and she wanted to get the candy from those house. I love that girl!
Natalie with some of her friends. Ella refused to be in the picture.

Most of the group.

The girls and I before heading off to the Kelly's.

A shot of the Cinderella hairdo.

A cute bee and beautiful Cinderella. They just thought it was great that they got to wear makeup.

Ella keeps me laughing

Ella is always doing or saying something funny. Don't worry there are plenty of times where her behavior is NOT funny, but lets focus on the positive shall we. One of her funny quirks is that she needs a million pillows and they have to be in a certain order. When I go into check on her I pull out all but one of two of the pillows because it usually looks like her neck is going to break.

A five pillow night. "First purple, flower, white, white, blue Mom" And don't get it wrong!
Ella thinks that she doesn't need a nap these days and usually she can go about every other day and be ok. Here is a day she refused to take one and it is about 3:30 during snack time.

This afternoon I am downstairs helping Natalie with her homework and Ella comes downstairs. She pulls up her dress and shows me her underwear, which looks weird for some reason, but I can't quite figure our why. Turns out it looked weird because she had 19 pairs on! Her bum was rock hard with all the padding and she looked extra curvy. Natalie and I were laughing so hard as we were counting how many pairs she had on. Where does she come up with this stuff.

A few days ago I was vacuuming. I had finished downstairs and said to Ella "I am going upstairs now to vacuum" She said "No Mom, I need peace and quite!" I said "Do you think we have peace and quiet when you yell and scream?" Ella-"Mom I just need peace and quiet."

Spring Dance Recital

Ages ago the girls had their spring dance recital. Natalie took the class with two of her friends and Ella took with one of hers. They had a lot of fun with the class and were really excited about the costumes. Ella's little class were bees and pretty much just ran around the stage. They looked really cute. Natalie's class were dressed up as crayons and they were pretty chaotic on stage, but I think they had fun. We didn't have a chance to take many pictures after the recital so we got together with our friends over the summer and tried to recreate the event. An added bonus, Ella will reuse her costume for Halloween. That means I get to go buy something new for my house with the money I saved, right? Natalie and Ella on after the recital.
Natalie with her beautiful flowers (thanks mom for letting me raid your yard).

Such a cute crayon.

Natalie with her friends Katie and Cienna.

My busy little bee.

Is that the cutest face or what!

Ella's worried look, apparently one of the few things I passed onto my kids.

Japanese Gardens

This summer Eric took me to the Japanese Gardens here in Portland. I hadn't been since I was in 7th grade for a school field trip but wanted to go back. It was so beautiful and it was perfect outside. Here are just a few shots I took so I can plan for my dream backyard. :)

Laundry Man

When we were living with my parents Cameron discovered the pure joy that comes from pushing buttons and turning knobs on the washer and dryer. We usually kept the door closed because he also liked the dogs water bowl that was also kept in the laundry room. If he heard the door open or someone accidentally left it open he would come running, and I mean RUNNING. The downside of this seemingly harmless activity was that his favorite buttons are the cancel and power buttons (they did make them the biggest and the ones in color). This would stop the wash in the middle of the load and required starting it from the beginning. Here are some pictures of his fun.

Immediately going for the cancel.
Turning the fun knob.
I don't know how I got in here but this is the best!
My mom took me out of the laundry room. WHHHHHHHY?
Seriously such a sad face.
I was excited to discover that our new washer and dryer have a feature where you can lock the controls. Guess what, they don't work for the power and cancel button. Seriously! No laundry when Cameron is awake.

I Scream You Scream...

Cameron Screams for Ice Cream!
Cameron has been a picky and lazy eater from the beginning. This has resulted in some stress and a lot less baby chub than his sisters. We discovered that there are a few things he really likes and gets very into. One is spaghetti (wish I had some pics of that dinner) and another is ice cream. He brings the plate and bowl up to his face and goes to town. Of course before he is done he needs to make sure to put the dish on his head and behind him just to make sure that he is equally messy. We were at my parents when these pictures were taken and I think it is safe to say we were all very entertained.

First Day of School - WAY Late

I know that it is weeks into school, but with the move, no computer and trouble logging into to my blog I am just getting around to some long over due posts. I know you will all sleep better at night now that you will be brought up to date with my life. :)

Natalie started the first grade this year. She had a rough first few weeks but is doing much better now. We really like her new school and her teacher is great. And the best part- now that we are in our house I don't have to drive and hour each way to take and pick her up!

Natalie in her first day of school outfit in our front yard.

With the new backpack. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa!

At the bus stop. Natalie has not been a fan of the bus concept but with 2 of her cousins on the same bus and a cute neighbor girl that she has gotten to know, things have been better. Ella wanted her picture taken too. Of course now if I try and take her picture, watch out! I was telling Eric how it drove me nuts that she doesn't like her picture taken. His response "Uh, where do you think she gets is?" Ok I'm guilty.