Dear Crayola, What did I ever do to you??

My kids love bubbles. And I love bubbles because it keeps them busy in the backyard for awhile. So I was pretty excited when I found the new "Crayola Color Bubbles".

That is until I opened them today and....well...see for yourself...










First I instructed them not to drip any on them. Then I told them not to let bubbles touch them. Then I asked them not to let anymore bubbles drift into my now colorful kitchen. Towards the end we had kids running from bubbles frantically while knocking over the "spill proof" bottles and chasing me with their orange and green colored hands. Then we closed the bottles while I cursed Crayola quietly and headed inside to finish off the fun by coloring my tub orange and green.

But I have to say. After the mess was cleaned up (well mostly...I'm waiting for rain to take care of the backyard) I realized it was kinda worth it. I mean look at this face....

Life

I've been slacking on updating our Blog. What can I say? We've been busy. So, I decided I would do one long update post. You are excited aren't you? I thought so...

First, some of you may already know Mike and I have relocated to a new church. While we love Flatirons and still pray for them, we felt like God was calling us somewhere else. We didn't have to hunt for long. We found Impact Rock Church because Haven's preschool teacher, Kara, and her husband, Mark are the Pastors! We have really been enjoying the messages and the community. While Flatirons had around 12,000 memebers, our current church has about 20-30 in attendance on Saturday night. We definately see it growing, but it is a big change for us. We're very excited to see where it goes and we are thrilled to be involved.

Haven and Avelyn LOVE church. They still call it "Ms. Kara's Church." They ask me everyday if today is "church day". They have made lots of friends and talk about them all week long.

I've gone into a cooking craze. I'm not sure what happened. I borrowed a Martha Stewart Cookbook from the library and ever since then I am eager to try more complex meals. It certainly takes more time, but here are a few of my new favorites...

Tarragon roasted Split Chicken Breast
Balsamic Sauted Mushrooms
Lemon Mousse
Oven Roasted Whole Chicken (link to this recipe I will post below)
Blackberry Shortbread Squares

Here is the recipe for the Roasted Chicken. It is so simple, but so delicious. If you have never "trussed" a chicken before, you can search it on youtube for really easy directions. http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/My-Favorite-Simple-Roast-Chicken-231348

I don't think Mike minds the new hobby. ;) I love to cook for guests, so if any of that sounds good, feel free to invite yourself over. ;)

We also started another Blog. I've actually had it for awhile, but don't talk about it much. It's about some of the things I've been learning about my walk with God this past year. Mike has decided he will start adding to that blog too! And I got to thinking how much I enjoy reading about what God is teaching people and gaining wisdom from friends. So we invite you to send us articles to share on the blog or add any thoughts you would like in the comments. Since we don't have a lot of extra time for a Bible Study this seems like the next best option.

www.Livingtruthjourney.blogspot.com

Finally, I have to add this video of my sweet Avie. Let me tell you, this girl can be a handful, so moments like this make it all worth it...

Avie's 1st Haircut!

I love Avelyn's hair, which is why it took me 3 years to finally cut it. But it was time. Her hair was all the way down her back and becoming quite the ordeal to fix each morning and fix again mid-morning when she took it down and fix again after nap and again before dinner. Don't worry, it is still long and beautiful! See for yourself...

Before

First Cut!

It was a little scary

Lovely!

Her and Haven both got haircuts today and each got a sucker. Both lost their suckers...somewhere...

But dont worry! We found one of them!

Happy Birthday!

Today I celebrated my 28th Birthday!

A good friend of mine told Mike he better spoil me today. Mike's response was "If by spoil you mean beat with a broom and lock in a closet, then yes, I plan on spoiling her good"

So Jamie...this is for you...







Just kidding....




I got to sleep in. Mike made me blueberry waffles for breakfast. He took me to Starbucks. His parents came over with cheesecake. My family called to wish me happy birthday. Christine organized a birthday present which involved coordinating lots of friends on facebook. Lots of friends wished me Happy Birthday. Jillian and Shannon bought me a ticket to Harry Potter which I got to enjoy with friends. Mike made dinner for the kids and got them ready for bed while I got to enjoy a long bath. My kids made me birthday cards.

I'm blessed with extraordinary family and friends. This was a great Birthday. Thank you!!!

Silly Avie

I walked in the door from work today to find Avie sitting on the counter with Haven. Yes...that would be a t-shirt on her head. As soon as I round the corner she says..

"I'm funny Mommy!"

Gobble Gobble!

Aunt Bree and Grandpa Royce stopped by for the day. Since we had extra hands, we took on a Thanksgiving craft. Haven and Avie each made a turkey! Thanks for helping us Aunt Bree!

http://www.dltk-kids.com/animals/mhandprintturkey.htm

Fall!

We carved pumpkins! Avie chose a cat on a moon crest and Haven chose Pablo, a character from "The Backyardigans". When I asked Avie to pull out the seeds she said, "No, Mom...that is YUCKY!" Don't worry, she got into it eventually.

A good friend told us about a great area to hike. Boy was she right! It was beautiful! It was a little chilly, but we had a great time!

We pulled the carrots from our first garden. The kids thought it was pretty cool and they were in the middle of everything "helping".




We went to the pumpkin patch! After finding the perfect pumpkins, the kids got to jump in the air castle, pet some animals and run around some stacks of hay.

Avie has been busy being...her. Yes...below is a picture of her wearing her swim suit inside out, over her clothing.

And this is Avie with a dandilion up her nose. I dont know...