Pumpkin Fun!

Brynn and I went to a nursing home today to go trick or treating. She was shy at first but then she got down and felt comfortable saying "Treat" and "Thank you". We did this with our MOPS group. It was a fun way to serve and make the older people so happy to see the children. She was a snow princess last weekend but today she wanted to be Ashleigh's old costume and be a ladybug. She was nice and warm!



She's my kind of girl and holds up the chocolate candy.


Kamren had so much fun carving out his own pumpkin this year. He even loved digging his hands into the mushy insides of the pumpkin. Ashleigh told dad what to make and he helped her carve it.



Here's their pumpkins all lit up.

Halloween Dinner Tradition

We went to our ward Trunk or Treat Party. Kamren is a dressed up like a doctor (like his Uncle Kurt), Kevin is his nurse, Ashleigh is the fairy princess, Brynn is the snow princess, and I'm the Hawaiian princess.





I loved Ashleigh's costume this year! The only thing we bought were the wings last year on clearance. I love a cute costume for a bargain!




We started a tradition a few years ago when one of my friends had us over for a Halloween Dinner. I took the idea because it's fun and it's kid friendly food. The kids love all the fun names we give the food. We never eat this meal on Halloween night because it gets too busy so we usually do it the week of Halloween. We have another food tradition for Halloween night that my mom started. It's fast and easy.





We decorate the table with the fun spider web stuff and put spiders and snakes on them. We also use pumpkin paper goods.

Here is our Halloween Menu

Spagetti Noodles - Brain or Worms
Spagetti Sauce - Vampire or Dracula's Favorite Sauce
Garlic Bread - Tombstones (I cut them in the shape of the tombstone)
Rootbeer - Witch's Brew
Corn - Goblin's teeth
Olives - eyeballs
Salad - Lily pads
Orange Jello Jigglers - cut out like a pumpkin (cookie cutter)
Brownies - Batwing Brownies or cut shaped like a cat

Farm and Kam's Lunch

Brynn and I went on a special date to the farm. We even had a fun hayride with some of our friends. It seemed a little long because I didn't bring a blanket to bundle up in. It was a perfect Fall Day!



She continues to smile even though it's cold.



I don't mind the cold if there's beautiful sunshine. She had a blast playing on the hay.




Her favorite part was eating the cinnamon donut and drinking apple cider.





A few weeks ago Kamren has been bringing home all his lunches without eating them. I told him if he didn't like them to let me know. Well, it seemed like he didn't like anything so the solution was that he would make his own lunch every night and then eat in the cafeteria once a week. He thought that would be a great solution. I couldn't believe the results. He eats everything he makes and he never forgets to make his lunch. He truly is a hard worker. Kevin and I love to watch him make his sandwiches and put in a fruit and a vegetable. He is such a responsible seven year old!

The Girls

Brynn reminds us so much of Kamren. She loves to be outside and loves to have adventure. She always wants to be like her older siblings so she got out the scooter. I tried to help her but she said, "me do it" and she took off. It was so cute to see her learn how to use a scooter by watching her siblings.



Brynn continues to make us laugh and smile. She always brings a sweet spirit to our home. She always reminds us to say her private prayers at night before she goes to bed. They are simple and sweet and she actually loves to fold her arms now. After she says her prayer she says "Ashleigh pray"!



Ashleigh just joined the Daisies (like Brownies but for the younger girls). She is so excited to go to the meetings and learn new things twice a month. She loved going with me to the Girl Scout office and picking out her patches and tunic. She just lights up when she can do crafts. She is so good with her creativity!



She starts her first official meeting tomorrow. She is excited to make new friends too.



I've been having so much fun with my card exchange. I'm really excited for the holidays. The kids have watched me make my cards this month so for family night we made cards together. Kamren suggested to make Christmas cards to give away to the less fortunate. He is always so sweet to think of others. The cards were so creative that the children made. Ashleigh and I went on a date on Saturday to the Library and made some fun cards together. Ashleigh is amazing at how well she can use stamps.



My neighbor was so nice to let me borrow her stamps! I really love to try and be creative. My favorite is to give them away and make someone else happy.

Pinto Bean Fudge!

I know it sounds different but I was trying to use some of my dried beans in my food storage so a friend gave me this yummy recipe. I've had several people try it and they loved it so it's worth it. The kids already want more.

1 cup pinto bean puree (I just used a hand mixer)
3/4 cup melted butter
1 cup cocoa powder
1 T. vanilla
2 lbs. powdered sugar (1 bag)

Mix the first four ingredients in a bowl. Then slowly add the powdered sugar in a
9x13 pan and put it in the fridge.

The next time I made it I'm going to use half the butter and the other half peanut butter. Yum.

I've cooked my dried beans and put them in a quart size bag in the freezer which is about 2 cups. I have 10 bags in my freezer which makes it much easier to use in my cooking.

If you know of any good bean recipes let me know.

New Fun Game!

I said that we love to do family game night on Sundays but ever since we got Sleeping Queens game it has been every night. My neighbor told us about this other fun game. We truly have to play There's a Moose In The House and Sleeping Queens every night before the Kam and Ash go to bed. It's fun to see them bond and want to be together through playing this new game. This is also sold at Target for $5.00. It's a great bargain.

Adventure with Grapes!

Ashleigh loved cutting the grapes. She made sure there weren't any yucky ones.



Kamren loved running up and down the isles.




This was our first time picking grapes and we loved it. We picked 34 pounds of Concord Grapes in a half hour. They were only 50 cents a pound. I didn't know it was going to be so easy. The kids loved eating them more than picking but we sure felt like we were at Welch's Grape Juice Plant.

Later on that night Kevin and I washed and took off the grapes from the vine and froze them. I'm hoping to make some grape juice this week. So far I just love to eat them frozen. They are sweet and tart at the same time.

Surprise Scavenger Hunt!

We sent the children on a surprise scavenger hunt on Brynn's birthday last week. Kamren had the first clue that led him to his legos to get the first letter. It was a "B". Ashleigh then found the next clue by her favorite stuffed animal "Rabbi" and she got the letter "A". Brynn found the letter "B" at her favorite spot to eat and then they all found the last letter "Y" in the baby stroller with yummy Baby Ruth that we changed to Baby Staples. It said "Congratulations, you will have another sibling in April". They put the letters together to spell BABY, but Kamren and Ashleigh didn't get it at first. Then I said I had a baby in my tummy and they just jumped up for joy. We all did! We are grateful to announce that we are going to have another little one coming to our home in April. My due date is April 23rd and we are 12 weeks today. We just heard the heart beat for the first time today and everything seems fine. We are grateful our prayers have been answered. Kamren and Ashleigh are excited to have another sibling share a special month with them since their birthdays are also in April. April is a great month to have a baby!

Love, KSkab and ???

Got Booed?

We've had this tradition since we've been married. I forgot to do it this year and the kids reminded me the other day to do it so here is the poem we use.

You have just been visited by a friendly Halloween Ghost. He just dropped by to bring a treat that you will like the most. The friendly ghost has just one job he asks for you to do, just make two plates of goodies and deliver them to someone new. Be sure to place a copy of the ghost upon your snack, Drop them on a neighbor's doorstep, KNOCK, then RUN and don't look back. Then hang your ghost up on the door so he won't stop again. Have a very Happy Halloween from your neighborhood secret friend.

Ashleigh had so much fun putting the bags together. Kamren was our speedy delivery boy. He was very careful how he went up to the doorstep and ran as fast as he could. It was so fun to see the kids get so excited to do this for someone else.

Family Game Night

We have carried the tradition on by having family game night every Sunday night. I used to do this as a little girl and I loved it. Kevin also has memories of playing games with his family on Sunday night. Kamren and Ashleigh remind us when we get home from church to have our family game night. It's a fun tradition that unifies our family. We just learned of a new game from our cousins that we love to play together. It's called "Sleeping Queens". You can now buy it at Target for five dollars. The game is for both boys and girls. I love playing this game too.

October Traditions and Brynn's Birthday

One of our traditions for the Fall time is having caramel apples. We didn't roll them in caramel yet. We made it a little easier and just dipped it in the caramel sauce from the store. The kids were just as happy.



Brynn just wanted to show everyone how good the apples and caramel really are.



Every October 1st we make my mom's famous pumpkin cookies. We just love them.



Ashleigh loved decorating her pumpkin. That night we had a pest control guy come over and Ashleigh gave him one for his daughter and him. It really made his day. She is so thoughtful of others.



Brynn loved making a fun mess. I love to eat them.



Brynn just turned 2. Here are a few pictures of what she looked like. Here is Brynn at 6 months.



Here she is at a year.



Here she is at 18 months.



Here she is at age 2. We had so much fun celebrating Brynn's second birthday. We made her yummy french toast and orange juice for breakfast. Kamren and Ashleigh were so excited to let her use the birthday plate!



Kamren and Ashleigh couldn't wait for her to open her presents in the evening so she opened them in the morning. She loved opening them and playing with her new game Elefun.



Dad was able to sneak away from work and come to lunch with us to Red Robin. Brynn loved sitting by her daddy and getting a balloon at the end.



Brynn is all about babies so we decided to make her a cake that looked like a baby. She loved it. We couldn't believe how well she blew out the candles.



I think she is partied out and ready to go to bed! Brynn is truly a joy in our lives. We love how happy she truly is. She continues to bring sunshine in our family.

Birthday Bargains

Since we just celebrated three birthdays I decided to ask people where to get some free treats on your birthday. Here is the list:

I signed up for these online and they send you a coupon. Usually you have 10 days to redeem the coupon.

Culvers - free sundae
Coldstones - free love it ice cream
Mongolian Barbecue Grill - free meal
IHOP - free ice cream sundae
Spicy Pickle - free sandwich
Red Robin - free hamburger and fries
Dairy Queen - Free Blizzard up to a medium size

If you know anymore just let me know and I'll add it to the list.