Halloween

We had a whirlwind evening this Halloween. Once Parker woke up from his nap, we got the kids decked out in their Thing 1 and Thing 2 costumes (from Dr. Seuss books) and loaded up in the car to visit Jen as our first trick-or-treat stop. Jen indulged the kids with lots of goodies and her neighbor let them practice knocking and saying "trick-or-treat." We ran back home, slurped some smoothies, grabbed the jogger and ran around the neighborhood looking for friends who had already started ringing doorbells. We caught up to them easily and the candy fest began! Madeleine caught on very quickly to the amazing deal this is for kids and we had to keep calling her back because the 2-year olds couldn't keep up! After scarfing down some cheese, we let the kids have a bit of candy while they played with the play doh that I bought to hand out this year. It turned out to be a pretty popular trick, at least from the parents' reactions. Then Beth, Cody, and Greta stopped by for some last minute fun before bedtime. It was an evening full of friends and fun and I'm guessing we'll be hearing about it until next October.

DQ

These pictures are a bit dated (Parker still had his shaggy surfer hair) but they show some of the fun dynamic between these two. And to give credit to Dairy Queen, the new mini blizzard is perfect: big enough for sharing between two kids and small enough to not cause stomach aches or guilt for mom!

Six

With everything else going on I almost forgot to announce that Justin and I have been married for six years as of today. While our bodies show the wear and tear of the last six years, I can still think back to what it felt like waiting to walk down the stairs to see Justin waiting for me. Our love has changed with each adventure but our commitment to experiencing them together only grows stronger. Thanks J for sticking with me through it all. I love you!

Happy birthday little P

At 11:00pm on October 13th, 2008 I began timing contractions. Two and a half hours later, Joshua Parker Cline was in our arms, turning our family of three into a family of four. We love you Parker and can't believe how quickly you're growing up!

Family photos

I snagged a "seize the deal" offer back in August ($80 photo shoot for $20) and coerced Justin and the kids into participating for some fall family photos. And by coerced I mean I pleaded with Justin and he bribed the kids with ice cream. Whatever works, right? We met Jessica, the photographer, on Saturday afternoon up the Rattlesnake and had some fun running around in the woods. She's posted the best shots on her website. We get to pick 10 to have as prints. Which ones do you think we should choose?

She likes it

Turns out Madeleine really likes the dress I made for her. She wore it to school this week with some jeans underneath since it's a little chilly and outside play at preschool dictates the need for modesty :)