Fashion Fabulous Friday

Dear Kyle,

Just because it snowed does not mean we can go skiing.

Message received that you're ready to go.

Love,

Mom

Really???

I got a text from Cassidy this morning that just said:

"Really???"

I couldn't figure out what she was 'really-ing' about.

Until I went outside.

It was snowing.

Snow.

(Not "Snow! Woohoo!" but "snow...meh."

Snow on October 6th.

Really???

I'm not ready.

Mainly cause I don't want to give up my flip-flops.

I mean, I just gave up Cokes yesterday, and then today my flip-flops!

Wow. It's been a rough two days.

I'm Back on the Wagon Again

Remember how I gave up Cokes for my New Year's Resolution?

I had a good run.

I really did.

I was Coke free until the beginning of June.

June 4th to be exact.

(Not that I was counting or anything.)

And then I fell off the wagon.

And I fell hard.

Because honestly, I wanted a Coke every. single. day.

It never got easier, and I never felt any different.

I didn't feel healthier, have more energy, or even sleep better. 

All it made me feel was that I wanted a Coke.

I've had a good 4 months of Coke-full bliss.

Lots of visits to Sonic, plenty of refills...

so I figure it's time to (grudgingly) climb back on that wagon.

My goal is to make it to around Christmas...and then totally OD until New Year's!

Leafy Hike

Cassidy, Kylie, and I had been talking about loading up the families and driving over to Silverton this past weekend to see the leaves changing color.

But then Kylie had the much better idea of going up to Spud Lake for a hike and picnic. 

This turned out to be a perfect plan since there were plenty:

dogs to hug,

limbs to be used as walking sticks,

and Doritos to eat.

The hike was even family friendly enough for our smallest and laziest family member to tag along.

(Can you spot Hunter between Reed and Koen?)

We were even able to get a picture with the entire family looking at the camera.

Now that's a successful day!

A Night at the Races

Kyle and Reed are still begging me every breath to take them to the "dirt bike track".

Coupled with Jason taking them a few Friday nights ago to see JR's friend, Steven, race his BMX bike, they haven't stopped asking to go.

We had a free Friday night this weekend and decided to take them to the races.

We weren't sure they'd let them race (being that Strider bikes don't even have pedals) but the BMX folks were very welcoming and Kyle and Reed couldn't have been more excited. 

Race #1 (Kyle's the green bike, Reed's is the yellow)

Serious faces at the start

Reed started out with the lead (these races showed us just how competitive Reed is)

But after wiping out 3 times, Kyle got the lead on him.

And finished in 1st!

(The nice thing about only having 2 racers in your division is you know you're gonna win 1st or 2nd!)

After his big 1st place win, he thought he was one of the big guys.

Race #2

Reed was not going to let Kyle beat him this time.  Just look at Reed's face compared to Kyle's!

And this time, Reed was way out in front

And was able to hold on to his lead for the win!

JR congratulating his brothers.

And then, just when they thought the night couldn't get any better, they were presented with trophies for their big wins.

Which means they're now totally hooked and in love with with the BMX track.

The Decor is Up

I think the kids were as excited as I was to get the Halloween decorations out.

JR's still the best decorator in the house (I've taught him well).

And Kyle and Reed thought they could actually go trick-or-treating as soon as the decorations went up.

The black cat and pumpkin motif is back in full effect this year in all its 360 degree glory.

That's why you get two pictures.

I had a moment of sadness this year when I realized I didn't have any new pieces I'd picked up at 75% off last year. (I've given this some great deal of thought and decided that I must have gone shopping, but the selection of black cats must have been nonexistent.)

Thankfully I did have these two new additions I bought a few weeks ago (and had forgotten about) to cheer me up.

JR decided to strip (most of) his shelves and go for full Halloween.

His favorite?

The giant spider, of course.

And the outside is almost ready too.

Just need some real pumpkins!

Today's The Day

Are you ready?

You can see we are!

Halloween decorations go up today!

Which means my house will be fully decorated until December 26th.

(Except for the crazy Halloween to Christmas transition period that will probably begin happening before Halloween. I love having at least one Christmas tree up for Trick-or Treaters to enjoy!)