All the Boys

Corey's sister, Shawntel came up for a visit with her boys during the Open House that Adam and Kayla had in November. It was an extra special treat. Since they live in Iowa and have 3 boys, they aren't able to come all the way out to NM often. We hadn't even met her youngest yet...Riley was sure a cutie! My boys had a fantastic time playing with their cousins, and I was amazed at how little fighting there was. These boys were such buddies, and it was fun to watch. It was fun catching up with Shawntel too. We hit the zoo, played outside(the weather was great that week), and enjoyed all the family time. Thanks for hanging with us! Maybe someday soon we won't all live so far apart...I think my boys are crossing their fingers:)

Shawntel and lil' Riley.

My boys, eating at the zoo in our special little spot. What a fun day. This snake friend was the highlight. Honestly, Asher is still talking about him.

Silly boys.

The Last One

We, as a family, have reached the end of an era.There was a family wedding recently! And this one is the last. Every one of our siblings is now happy and hitched. I actually really like going to family weddings, and I'm a little sad that there will be no more. My Asher, on the other hand has more than once, proven that he is every wedding's worst nightmare. I doubt Beck would prove to be any better, so on that note, I guess it's somewhat of a relief.

Adam, who is Corey's youngest brother, and was something like 14 when we were married, just tied the knot in November! We are all so happy for the both of them. Corey attended the actual main event in the Twin Falls Temple in Idaho, and the rest of us celebrated with them in Albuquerque a week or so later. We could not be more excited for them to start their new life together! He married a super fun, energetic and cute lil' blondie named Kayla (already partial to the name, since my own youngest sis also has the name!). We all love her, and Ash and Beck are crazy about her, showing their genuine fondness by hanging on her and climbing all over her when she visits. Congratulations you guys! We love you (but wish you loved closer)!

Work it! Check out her sass-i-fras red shoes! Love them!

P.S. My poor little Beckett had a mishap the day Corey left for Adam's wedding. His head slammed right into a counter top (the ONLY one I don't have a cushy corner protector on...UGH!). He sliced it open, blood running down into his eye. It was all very dramatic in the moment, but we all recovered, and Beck recovered especially fast...this was taken later that day...steristrips and glue in place. He's still got a nasty little scar, but I guess that's cooler for guys than girls, right? Just another one of those mommy initiation moments.

Halloween

We had a fun, candy filled Halloween week this year. The original plan was to simply hit up the ward Trunk-or-Treat and be done with the candy extravaganza for our kids. Honestly, how much candy do they really need(even with me and Corey eating half of it for them)? In the end, though, we went to not only the Trunk-or-Treat, but the Mall near our house, and the kids went Trick-or-Treating up our street. Too. Much. Candy. We had such a ridiculous stash by Halloween Night that we wound up giving handfuls away, and started digging into the kids to get rid of some of the extreme excess. The kids had a blast though. Asher was a serious trick-or-treater this year, rushing from house to house. He totally gets it...the faster you go, the more you get. Beckett was catching on quick too, watching his big bro in action. I wish I'd had a video camera with me to catch the cute-as-can-be toddler walk in his adorable lion costume. It was one of those pictures in your mind you never want to forget. This year I actually got to go and see it all. I decided I was tired of missing all the cute things they do at the door and hearing about it when they come home. So, we closed up shop at the house until we came back. Too bad, trick-or-treaters, I want to see my boys in action! It was totally worth it, and I'm not missing another year!

A couple of days before Halloween, we carved up our pumpkins. This year I tackled a wolf(lobo!), Asher carved his first jack-o-lantern(I have always been too scared to let him use anything remotely sharp), and Corey started on an Owl, but he didn't realize there was an order to it all until it was too late:) We let Beck play with some pumpkin goop instead of doing a pumpkin, which he did find amusing(but you'd never know it by this picture).

Me and Cor were lame, lame, lame and didn't dress up. But the boys were so adorable, I think they made up for our Halloween neglect. Ash was a tiger, and Beck was a lion. We even painted up Asher's face for the Trunk-or-Treat, and it turned out great! He sat very still so I could do it and was really proud of his official lion look. The boys were too cute, and had a great time throughout the week(Asher had even hit a Halloween party!). Grandma and Grandpa Reitz came Trick-or-Treating with us at home and at the mall too! Asher has discovered what Halloween is all about, and has fully embraced it(I think he was already asking when we get to go again). And Beck has discovered his love for suckers, which he has also embraced.

Fun, fun times.

Awesome October

Fall is my fave. I've said it before, and I'll say it again. And again. The part of the country we live in is blessed with heavenly weather this time of year. The kids play outside without coats, and the skies are bright blue, cool and calm. Lovely. October always has so many fun things to do, and the kids had a great time doing them.

At preschool, Asher had a Harvest Festival, and that particular day happened to be his 'Special Person' day, so we made sure he was good and ready. I made the vest and chaps(first time ever costume experimentation), added a few things and he was yee-hawing all over the porch while I tried to snap a few pictures (no, really, he was jumping all over the place). He was a pretty darn cute cowboy, I must say! On his 'Special Day' he is supposed to bring an item from home to put in the 'guess what bag'. His item du jour was his prized White Pillow. I tried to suggest some other super cool toys to bring and show off, to which he said, "OR, mom, I could bring my white pillow." He had me there. And who am I to say what's cool for a 4 year old to show with pride? I had to smile as I watched him proudly show all of his classmates his pillow...he took it all very seriously. So funny.



Balloon Fiesta this year was beautiful, as usual. I always LOVE the weeks before and after too, since more balloons than usual are dotting the sky every morning. The kids never get tired of seeing them. Never. I don't either. What a unique thing to see balloons out our window almost every morning, all year long. I hope I don't ever take that for granted. Jen and Josh were in town visiting his us and his fam, so they spent a morning at Balloon Fiesta Park with us! We hit a Mass Ascension on a weekday, which I highly recommend. We are used to gargantuan crowds down at the park, but the day we went we ended up scoring rides on golfcarts down to the park, no lines at the gate, and the kids had enough space to run around without us panicking and worrying about where they were every second. It was great! Weekends are overrated.

We did get to see Corey's parents for a surprise last minute visit. One Saturday afternoon in early October, Corey was called to be in the Bishopric, so he called and asked them if they could possibly, hopefully, maybe come down for the ordination. They came, and we were thankful they could work it out to be a part of his day. (As for the pics below, Corey had already changed his clothes after church and his mom wanted some photos to remember the day. He agreed, but didn't bother putting on any pants, so here is what we have...a cropped picture, and the reality...nice, right?:))

Every Saturday this fall has involved a soccer game, and every one of them has been thoroughly entertaining. Love those U5 players! We've watched little boys chase butterflies, fall all over each other, run in circles, stare at a ball sitting 2 inches outside the goal wondering what to do...you name it. It's been great, and Asher has actually improved a lot! It's been so fun to cheer him on. Beck's a pretty smart dribbler too, whether because he's watching Ash, or because the ball is just the right size for him to effortlessly walk and have the ball move along in front of him. We had to buy another ball to avoid contention...and to entertain Beck during practice and game time.

We headed down to Wagner Farms for Asher's field trip. We've gone there before for our pumpkins, maze, etc. We maneuvered the maze easily after the hot tip from the preschool teachers..."no matter what you do, stay to the right." It worked like a charm. The kids picked out some pumpkins, played in the corn, ate apples, and fed the animals.

And now for some fall chillin' out...no matter how much these two bug each other, they always come back for lots more. Love these cuties.