After we read The Pumpkin Patch Parable, Phil carved a pumpkin and we took the kids trick-or-treating on our street. They had a great time. Lily lagged behind the others, because she was digging around in her purse to eat her candy. She had a constant stream of chocolate drool coming out of her mouth most of the evening. Look who followed us around the neighborhood and settled on our front porch for awhile. It's a good thing we're not superstitious!
Here are Caleb and Lily, the doctor and the cowgirl. Caleb said, "I'm a cute doctor!" Yes, as a matter of fact, you are! Lily still has her snack all over her face. I suppose a cowgirl should look a little rustic, anyway. The kids chose their costumes from their dress-up clothes. Jared said he "just wants to watch" this year, and I guess Gracie will have me help her into her pretty princess costume when she feels like it. The answer was "no" five minutes ago...isn't that just like a princess?
Could it be? Another picture with all 4 of my children smiling? Presently, the girls are busy feeding their babies their bottles and plastic food, and Caleb and Jared are running around the house playing super heroes. Caleb is using my empty Starbucks Frappuccino carton to lug around his super hero snacks.
Our Surprise Visitor who brought yummy cookies (mentioned in a post 2 weeks ago) returned this morning--this time by invitation--and she brought her two sweet daughters and homemade canned apple pie filling along with her. The kids played, we drank lattes and then had lunch. I'm so thankful for the wonderful fellowship we can enjoy with other believers. There's a bond that cannot be explained, so I won't even try. I'll just be content to enjoy each special lady the Lord allows me to meet.
Nap time is over at our house, so the house is bustling with noise and activity once more. The boys are playing school in their tunnel.
The girls are enjoying a spot of tea in the living room.
Now, I have a question: whenever I make cornbread muffins in my cast iron pan, they crumble when I remove them from the pan. Am I doing something wrong?
Phil and I spent the evening organizing the basement. We put up shelves and sorted the boxes that we've randomly placed downstairs since our move. I laughed at a few of the things I found tucked away in boxes. Here are just a few:
*The laminated (by hand) alphabet cards that I made for Jared when he was a baby
*Dozens of organic baby food labels that I meant to send in for a free organic baby food cookbook
*Bulletin board figures and border for the bulletin board that hung next to Jared's highchair (which was changed seasonally)
*Pictures that I placed on his highchair and covered with contact paper (also changed seasonally)
*Rows of plastic baby food containers reserved for craft time with Jared
*The green fine-point Sharpie used for handmade Christmas cards many, many years ago
It's all a blur to me now...really, it is! I can't believe that I did ANY of these things.
Before I had children I made my own tortillas and thought that making macaroni and cheese or spaghetti for dinner wasn't really cooking. Wow! What was I thinking?
My little brother Tyler is 12 today! I was in college when he was born. The first time I saw him was when I went home for Christmas break. He was wearing little yellow jammies. I love you, Tyler! Have a great birthday!
Christmas is 2 months away! When do you start listening to Christmas music? I'd like to start now. I'm also anxiously awaiting Starbucks' red cups, peppermint mochas, gingerbread and eggnog lattes!
Jared has been waiting to help me bake these maple cookies. He watched me make the dough and stick it in the freezer last week. Oh how I wish I could post the smell of these cookies along with Jared's sweet smile. He thinks our house smells like waffles now.
Gracie and I worked in the kitchen on Sunday afternoon. 
Doesn't she look adorable wearing her little apron?
The girls enjoyed their popsicles today in the sunshine. They like to "read" the jokes on their popsicle sticks. 
Caleb used his bunk bed rails to make a bunk bed for the Care Bears.
We've had a few rough days. I suppose it's to be expected with rain and 4 little munchkins; however, today was beautiful--warm and sunny! The kids played at Addie's house this morning and Brooke fed me chocolate cake and coffee (a true friend). We left around noon, so we were able to stop by Phil's school on the way home and surprise him during his lunch hour. The kids had fun rolling around on the grass in the parking lot.
I'm convinced that the cloudy days make the sunny days even brighter! In Nicole Norderman's song "Sunrise" she sings, "How would I know the morning if I knew not midnight?...Every shadow is evidence of light." I'm so thankful for the hope that I have in Jesus. Even when my days are dreary, and I get very frustrated, He assures me that He is still in charge, arranging the events of my life for His glory. Good friends and chocolate cake help, too!
Jared received Flat Stanley in the mail yesterday from his cousin Morgan. You can read about him by clicking on the pictures of Morgan's letter to Jared. Jared is very excited about showing Flat Stanley around Spokane.
Lily has discovered a new task that delights us both! She helps me by unloading the dishwasher. She grabs whatever she can in her pudgy little hands and places all of the items in the utensil drawer behind her. How can I refuse such help?
I took the boys to Cubbies last night. It's hard for me to drop them off, so I've become one of those mothers who stands around for the first 5 minutes and stares at her children. Jared is so sweet to stand with his arm around his little brother's shoulders. As I drove off, I peeked through the window, of course, and there stood my little men--Jared, with his arm still around Caleb.
I dawdled this morning, made pumpkin bread for 2 of our neighbors, played with the kids and tried to get caught up on the laundry since we've been under the weather. About 2 minutes after I got dressed (at 11:00 a.m.), the doorbell rang! Phew! It was a sweet lady from the church we've been attending. She brought a visitor's packet and homemade cookies. She stayed and visited for awhile, and shared that she has 4 children of her own and just recently adopted 2 children from Ethiopia. Nothing like hearing about somebody else's life to put your own into perspective! The kids devoured most of the cookies, but I managed to save a couple for Phil.
I was able to use the wrapping from our cookies to wrap the pumpkin bread for our neighbors.
My friend Sandi thinks I live a fairy tale life because I'm always baking and going places with the kids. If that thought has crossed your mind as well, please read on. I've compiled a list to convince you otherwise:
*There's at least one child crying and/or pulling on my clothes at all times.
*When I'm in the bathroom, there's always someone watching me (no matter what I'm doing), and if I did shut the door, there would be little fingers under the door trying to reach me!
*As of Nov. 18, I will have TWO children that are 2-years old. Enough said.
*Sleeping in for me is 7:00 a.m.
*People give me strange looks and say strange things to me when I go out in public. In fact, just today, someone drove by my house, unrolled his window and yelled out something about my needing to live in a shoe. I couldn't hear him very well--one of the kids was screaming.
But...
*I have a collection of yellow flowers (dandelions) sitting on my kitchen counter.
*I wake up in the morning to 4 cuties in "feetie" jammies--even if it's a bit earlier than I'd like it to be.
*I hear little girls jabber and sing the sweetest songs throughout my day.
*I have a precious boy who loves to paint pictures for me.
*I get to watch another sweet boy tuck his sisters in and sing to them at nap time.
A picture of all four of them smiling at the same time!
And here are Jared and Lily waiting for their siblings to come join them for the photo shoot.
We love to take walks around our neighborhood. The boys ride their bikes and take turns being the leader when we cross the street and come to a new sidewalk. We already have favorite houses, cars and gardens. The girls squeal when they see flowers. Today was especially fun for the kids, because there are LOTS of dried leaves all over the sidewalks. Jared and Caleb enjoy riding their bikes quickly through the leaves (they tell me it "makes the leaves louder"), and I have to run through the leaves while pushing both girls in the stroller for this same effect. 
Back at the house, we played in the front yard for awhile. Gracie wanted to sit on a pumpkin for her picture.
Lily grabbed one of her brothers' helmets and walked around the front yard plopping herself down wherever she saw fit, and would call out, "Cheese!" I suppose that meant, "Mom, I'm being cute; come take a picture of me over here now." How could I resist?
As you can see, I fell for it again and again!
What does that mean? Phil just bought a few iron-free dress shirts for school, but I still need to iron them after I wash them. Am I doing something wrong?
I found this great deal on another blog this morning:
If you take at least $30 in coins to a Coinstar machine, you can trade them in for an Amazon gift certificate and use the machine for free (no fees).
You can also receive a bonus $10 Amazon gift certificate by mail-in-rebate for FREE.
All you have to do is find a Coinstar machine near you that offers e-certificates. A machine that offers cash only will not work in this promotion. You can find a machine in your area by visiting the Coinstar website and entering your zip code. This offer ends November 4, 2007.
Also, Amazon.com offers free shipping on most orders over $25. This really is a great deal!
Before dinner...
Jared: "Mom, what's for dinner?"
Jenny: "Pumpkin soup and rolls."
Jared: "And what are you making for your children?"
And before bedtime...
Jared: "Mom, I love you. You tell me only true things."
Phil has gone to a study group tonight, and the kids are doing a great job of entertaining themselves!
Caleb loves to do his foam ABC puzzle up on his bed.
Jared likes to build an ark and put all of our little Care Bears in it. So much for two by two!
The girls played a rousing game of Throw All the Balls Downstairs into the Basement. Lily was supposed to catch them in her broken stroller, but I have a feeling I'm going to have to retrieve them after the kids go to bed.
How did this happen? My children are already complaining, "Not this Bible story again!" I despise this...especially while I'm trying to teach a Sunday School lesson! How can I teach my young children not to be bored while hearing God's Word? It happens so often when children grow up hearing these wonderful stories over and over again! I want to draw out the truths in these stories and make them practical to my own children. I want them to see how God reveals His character to us through His Word.
We read from a Bible story book for our after-dinner family devotional time, but I've decided to try something new. I found the book Comfort for a Child's Heart at the thrift store 2 weeks ago. This book contains a lesson for each phrase in Psalm 23. Every lesson contains a short devotional with beautiful pictures, thoughtful questions, family activities, Bible promises (4-6 Bible verses that reinforce the truths in that lesson), and a memory verse. We'll also work on memorizing Psalm 23. 
We also like to read to the kids before bedtime. Recently, we've read to them from this book. My Big Book of 5-Minute Devotions is a skimmed-down version of Bill Gothard's Character Sketches, but definitely suited more for their short attention spans. Each story presents an animal, along with a few of its traits, and then a spiritual application is drawn. There are questions and a Bible verse to go along with each story. My boys enjoyed reading about a different animal every night, and I enjoyed the practical application of Scripture used in this book. It's very basic, but my boys have learned to be busy like beavers, friendly like dolphins, and helpful like geese.
We had a great afternoon. It's so nice to have Phil home on Saturday! Lily helped him attach the railing to Gracie's bed while Gracie and I played princess dress-up. I was impressed when Phil said to Lily, "Get me the allen wrench," and she handed him the correct tool! Lily joined us when she was through helping Daddy fix the bed.
Lily was sleepy this morning, so she snuggled in with Daddy on the couch. While Lily slept, Gracie and I stole away for about an hour to have special time at the mall. We were looking for shiny ruby red slippers. We weren't able to find any, so she played on the squishy playground instead.
