Halloween

Heading out to trick-or-treat. Note the bee's wings are upside down.

My two dangerous creatures prior to hitting up houses for treats.

For Halloween, we spent the evening with my sister and her boyfriend and our good friends. We trick-or-treated in a great neighborhood before heading back to their house for some great paella. Jack actually wore his costume this year, too, which was a nice change from years past.

Trunk or Treat

Jack was trying to look scary in each of these shots.

My little wingless bumblebee.

So, in preparation for Halloween next week we had a trial run at the local 'trunk or treat' event. It was a lot of fun but there were a ton of people out and I think Jack was a little overwhelmed. It was also kind of warm so I'm hoping on Halloween it will cool off a bit so my children don't melt in their costumes.

Circus

Whitney and Hayden

Jack and Hayden checking out the elephants.

Having fun after the show.

The circus was in town a couple weeks ago and they were nice enough to have a night honoring teachers so teachers and their family members were admitted for free. Jack and I and some friends of ours took advantage of the free tickets and had a wonderful time. The boys loved the clowns, tigers, and baby elephant. I couldn't get over the daredevil stunts. I really forgot how terrifying the circus can be.

Walking!!

Caroline started walking the last week of September so she's pretty good at it now. This video was taken two weeks after she started and she had already made significant progress. Now, she's pretty much running to try and keep up with Jack.

Just So Cute

Some pictures are just too sweet not to post... our sweet girl is growing so fast!

Pumpkin Patch

In the corn maze...

Again, I apologize for not updating the blog sooner. It has been a busy fall. We did have the opportunity the first weekend in October to go to a local pumpkin patch. We had a lot of fun and even tackled the corn maze (I was only worried for a brief moment that we wouldn't find our way out). Thanks to the cooler weather it actually kind of felt like fall and we needed jackets (it is rare here that you need anything other than short sleeves).

Loving Our Shades

My kids love their shades. Caroline will just crawl around with them on periodically throughout the day. It is so silly. I love these silly kids.

Caroline's Favorite Book

Caroline loves this book about animals. Normally she'll mimic all the noises but she wasn't up to showing her tricks off for the camera. I still think the 'baa' and 'moo' are pretty cute, though.

Kick Off of College Football

Giving some love to the SEC...

First Day of School

Jack and Caroline started school on September 1. The are going to a Mother's Day Out program on Tuesdays and Thursdays this year. It is the same program Jack attended when he was Caroline's age. Both of them were excited to be somewhere new and neither one shed any tears when I dropped them off. 

Happy Birthday Song

Caroline's First Birthday

The Birthday Girl!!

Enjoying her cupcake (she looks pretty clean here)

Caroline and Hannah

Caroline, Lily, and Jack playin' some tunes.

Opening presents...

So, Caroline turned ONE yesterday. I can't believe it's already been a year. Time has gone so fast. She is the sweetest little girl. She is always so happy and loves to dance, laugh, and smile. We are so thankful for the opportunity to be her parents. 

Things she currently loves: Mirrors, Jewelry (on other people), Dancing, Jack, Eating

Things she does not like: Naps and her carseat or any time of restraint (she's an active girl)

She's still not walking but she does cruise all over the place and crawls when she wants to get somewhere quickly. She's a climber and I am always finding her on the fireplace, train table, etc. She says 'hi' but that's really the only word I can understand at this point. We'll go to the doctor for her first year checkup next week so I'll have stats then.

My Family Loves to Dance

Caroline, along with the rest of my family, seems to enjoy dancing. 

Family Picture

Mazatlan

Jack did a great job of making friends despite the language barrier. 

Excited about the aquarium.

Being silly by the pool.

We had a great trip to Mazatlan the first part of August. My parents were originally supposed to go with us; however, because of my dad's health they weren't able to go. My mom really wanted to keep Caroline while we traveled so we sent her to Missouri before we headed to Mexico. We had a lot of fun on the beach and in the pool and we were able to spend some quality time with my sister and her boyfriend, Barrett. When we got back, Caroline was officially spoiled so we had a few days of 'Grandma Detox' to get through. :)

Spaghetti and Other Adventures

Making bug and 'Jack' cookies. Does this kid look like he could use more sugar?

Jack's really into building tall towers. But the best part is after it's done he wants to knock them down.

Caroline will not let you help her eat. She only wants grown up food and she only wants to feed herself. This was a result of her self-feeding spaghetti yesterday. It was messy but I think she liked it.

Trip to Pittsburgh

Crawling around the airport waiting for our flight.

Saying goodbye to Papa and Nana.

We visited Nathan's folks in Pittsburgh the first part of July. It was a nice break from the 100+ degree Texas temperatures. We went several places while we were in town but I think Jack's favorite spot was Idlewild. It's an amusement part designed for younger kids; however, he only wanted to ride the 'bigger' people rides. He loved the log ride and then we couldn't get him off the roller coaster. Who knew my cautious kid would have that much fun on a roller coaster?

Summer Fun

I have been so bad about updating the blog. Facebook has become so much easier I find it's difficult keeping up with both. We have had a busy summer. So far we've been to Memphis, Missouri, Pittsburgh, and Houston. We have one more trip scheduled for Mexico in two weeks. We are so excited. Caroline has done great traveling. Her plane trip to Pittsburgh was wonderful. She charmed the flight attendants and travelers sitting next to her and played with her brother and his toy cars for most of the flight. It's crazy to think in another month she will be a year old. She's standing up and cruising like crazy but not walking yet. She does love to climb up on tables, chairs and fireplaces. The girl is definately going to be active. Jack and I have had fun this summer, too. The pictures above show him practicing writing his letters in shaving cream. He does pretty well with the letters 'o', 'c', 'h' and 'j'. But the others are still pretty difficult. He's also started swimming lessons which is finally giving him some confidence in the water. His vocabulary is amazing and it has been fun to watch him test out new combinations of words (funny example: I'm going to kick you in the smell box). He has found an increased love of dance, probably due to the fact that we watch 'So You Think You Can Dance' together on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Both of them are doing great. It will be sad to see the summer come to an end.

Brothers and Sisters

Jack and Caroline have had a good time together this month. More and more I am seeing Jack making attempts to play with her. It's cute and encouraging. He's also great about sharing with her (note popsicle picture above). We currently have some friends who are expecting and when we asked Jack if he wanted them to have a boy or a girl he said "I just want them to have a baby who talks". So, I think he's ready for Caroline to be able to walk and talk. Hopefully it won't be much longer!

Memphis

We headed to Memphis this past weekend for a wedding and had a nice time catching up with Nathan's family. The kids were worn out when we came back home. Jack fell asleep on Sunday night at 5 p.m. and slept through the night. Entertaining everyone apparently wore him out. Caroline's first plane ride was a little rough, but she was also getting a top tooth while we were there (perfect timing). We survived and are now looking forward the trip #2 of the summer with my family.