A Poem from Lainey

I have the most wonderful husband and child. I know several of my friends will say that about their own husbands... Stephen, Jesse, Brady, Kevin, Jeff etc...and they too are wonderful. I don't doubt that for a minute. But isn't is amazing how God has matched us up with men who compliment us? He has crafted two people that aren't perfect... but are perfect for each other?

Derek was home last week with sick Lainey (and did a great job being Mr.Mom, might I add)... and during their time at home he helped her write a poem for her mom.

Here goes:

Here's a gift with a little thrift,

for always being there for your bear.

For always working hard,

even when you're tard (tired).

For never taking a break,

and baking so much cake.

For looking at the best electricity rate,

getting up early and staying up late.

For putting up with Dad and Baby,

and never saying maybe.

Here's a gift to help you relax,

or as the kids say... chillax.

Merry Christmas, Happy New Year... Love Lainey & Dad.

and in it was a giftcard for a massage. : )

It just choked me up a little bit to know that all those little things don't go unnoticed, and are sincerely appreciated.

I sure do love those two "bears" of mine.

But I Don't Want to be a PRESENT for CHRISTMAS!!!

Pumpkin Carving

I love carving pumpkins. It's so easy to make really cool ones, and it's always fun to introduce kids to carving a cool pumpkin. I love to see their face at the end when they see what they made by themselves. This was our third annual Pumpkin Carving Party, and I hope to continue the tradition as our kids grow up.

Thankfully the weather was nice and chilly, which really sets the mood for doing fall season things. We had tortilla soup soup for dinner, and Julie brought pumpkin pie & brownies for desert. After we ate entirely too much, we went out to the garage to start working on our pumpkin masterpieces. Here is Haylee and I gutting our pumpkins.

After you gut the pumpkin, you will tape your template on the face of the pumpkin and trace it out using a nail to poke little holes into the pumpkin. Once you get the whole picture poked out, you take a pumpkin knife and cut the lines of holes. When we finished, Lainey had to try out all the pumpkins for size. She thought that Haylee's pumpkin fit the best.

So here is the end result, from left to right.
Julie's Haunted House.

Haylee's Witch flying on a broom.

Tristan's Black Widow

Lainey's Blues Clues Dog

We also baked our pumpkin seeds, which we are still snacking on at our house. As always, we had a great time hanging out with Julie and the kids and look forward to doing it next year... hopefully we can get some of Lainey's cousins to come next time!!