Trick or Treat 2015

We Trick or Treated with the same group of friends that we have for 8 years. Rowan and Brayden have spent every Halloween of their lives together so it was especially sad to see tonight be the final one. We enjoyed pizza, playing and lots of treats though. It was the perfect final desert celebration.

Usually the kids just choose costumes from what we have or from what they can borrow from a friend. This year, however, we let the boys choose a brand new costume from the store. I think that decision stemmed from a little bit of moving guilt... that's a real thing. ;)

Our Beautiful Belle with her Beast.

Coco was on cloud nine with her hair in a big girl bun! I'm so excited that she finally has enough hair. She was very excited about her hair glitter, blush and eye shadow too. She declared it the "best night ever!"

Rowan has wanted to be the character Toad from Nintendo for well over a year so it was so exciting for him to get to pick out this costume. Cruz really wanted to be a police officer like Uncle Nate. He was the most excited about his handcuffs.

Hope everyone had a fun and safe night! Tonight is our last time to not have to worry about daylight saving time. Once we get to FL, we'll have to mess with all the lose an hour/gain an hour stuff the rest of the U.S. deals with. :)

Pumpkin Patch: 2015

We ended up visiting a new pumpkin patch this year called Mortimer Farms. Our usual patch wasn't open to the public this season. I think it was good that we had to break that tradition since it is once less "last" for us. Anyway, we loved this new pumpkin patch. There was so much to do! 

The pony rides were a huge hit with Coco!! She pretended she was a princess.

There were so many fun bouncy houses. The boys loved this one where they got to hit each other with big blow up sticks. 

We tackled two out of the three corn mazes!! 

The petting zoo was unique in that the kids were able to feed the sheep actual ears of corn. 

Rowan was the only one brave enough to go on this crazy, spinning, swing ride.

At the end we visited the pumpkin fields. Each child's ticket included a free small pumpkin. They had a blast getting to choose their own special pumpkin.

Last week we made a quick stop at the movies to see Hotel Transylvania 2. It was super adorable. 

We have a busy week again! Tomorrow Rowan and my class are going on field trip to ride horses. We are both really excited about that! 

Cora: 3 Year Photos

I had scheduled a mini session for Cora to get her three year photos taken but after we found out about the move, I ended up bringing the boys for a few shots too. I wanted to get one more set of pictures in our beautiful desert landscape. I couldn't be happier with how they turned out- they really captured Cora's personality.

Roger has been in Florida all week visiting his new office, house hunting, etc. We are so excited to have him back home tonight!

Cora's 3 Year Stats: 39.25 inches (92nd percentile) and 34 pounds (80th percentile)

Phoenix Art Museum

As we prepare to leave this city that we love, we can up with a "bucket list" of things we want to do before we leave. One of those was to visit the Phoenix Art Museum. Grandma gave us passes for Christmas last year and a rainy Saturday was the perfect time to visit. 

The kids were unsure of what to expect from an art museum but were instantly intrigued by this giant red dinosaur near the entrance.

The boys enjoyed quite a few of the paintings. They loved the ones that depicted Bible stories and were interested in retelling the stories. They also liked the various sculptures.

There was a little kids area with some interesting art work and a stack of blank paper and colored pencils for the kids to create their own art. We visited that area for quite a while.

Cora got a kick out of a random painting of some dogs. She also enjoyed coloring.

The outdoor courtyard was beautiful with a lot of fun sculptures to look at. How big are these children?? Yikes.

Thank you Grandma for providing us with a fun filled day as we cram in as many Phoenix area memories as possible! 

Here We Go Again...

After only a little over a year in our gorgeous dream house here in Arizona, God has called us to pick up our family and move across the country to Sarasota, Florida. Wow. We are so excited for a new adventure, a new place to explore and new people to meet. On the other hand, we are absolutely devastated to be leaving Arizona. 

When Roger and I moved out here almost 10 years ago, we didn't know anyone. We left our family and friends and came to a state where we relied on each other for company. Honestly, that was great for our marriage in the beginning and I would do it again in a heartbeat. The longer we were here though, the more friends we made and the deeper and more meaningful those relationships became. My group of girl friends are my sisters. I can call them for anything and count on them when I need a hand. They love my children as their own and I love theirs. We celebrate holiday's, birthdays, anniversaries, sadness and triumphs together. When people ask us how we can live away from our family, my answer is because of them. God gave us family here. I am going to miss them more terribly than I could ever tell them. 

When we told the kids about the move their reactions were mixed. We told Rowan first in private because we figured he was going to have the hardest time and we wanted his reaction in front of Cruz and Cora to be positive because they feed off of him. Rowan was upset as we figured. He was worried about the typical things.. missing his friends, making new friends, where will he go to school, will we like our new house, what if no one likes us, etc. After a rough evening and some prayer, he definitely has a more positive outlook now. When we told the C's, they were like, "Cool! Disney World and the beach? That sounds fun!" Ha. Rowan was able to join in their excitement too.

Our current school is amazing. They totally understand God's call on our lives and gave me their blessing to leave when I need to. I'm working hard to get my things wrapped up and organized at school so that whoever takes over my half of the day will be prepared and ready to go.

Some prayers:

-that our house would sell

-that NVCA would find the perfect teacher to replace me

-for our kids as they make this transition and also for their friends

Thanks family and friends! :)

Misc. September/October

I'm all caught up on going through my photos finally. Here are a few misc. photos and videos that didn't quite fit anywhere else. :)

Grandpa, Deona and Linda came out to Arizona a few weeks ago to celebrate Coco's birthday! We had such a fun visit with them. We were so thrilled that Linda came out too. 

Love these babies! 

This little beauty is growing up before our eyes. She is definitely not a toddler anymore and oh my goodness, she is hysterical. She also has a sweet, special place in her daddy's heart. She absolutely adores him and he adores her right back.

These darling brothers have been wanting this Mario Maker video game for well over a month. They couldn't decide (especially Rowan) if they wanted to spend their money on it though. Today at Costco, they saw it on display and just couldn't contain themselves any longer. Thank goodness for a brother to split the cost with. We gave them a little extra screen time than normal today and by evening, they both deemed it a good use of their money. 

Cruz is the kid in the blue tank top throwing himself backwards over that rolling thing.

Cruz: 5.5 yrs

Cruz Emerson turned five and a half last week. Of all the three kids, Cruzy is the one who I spend the least amount of time with. I spend my mornings with Cora and my afternoons with Rowan. I miss this little nugget so much during the day so I've been deliberate in carving out special time with him.

Cruz Emerson: 5.5

Mental:

This kiddo is so smart! His teachers comment to me that he's a mini Rowan academically. He's creative, loves to read and loves to build. He was so excited to learn how to tally and how to put his classmates names in alphabetical order. He also loves to do addition problems.

Physical:

Cruz loves to run and play. He asked me tonight if I'll watch every game on T.V. when he plays professional baseball some day. He also loves gymnastics and tumbling. Cruz is still tiny. He weighs only 34 pounds and is about 41 inches tall. What he lacks in size, he makes up in personality. His smile, giggle and boundless energy pack quite a punch. 

Spiritual: 

Cruz has a super kind and giving heart. Our school was collecting money for a nearby rescue mission and both boys wanted to bring some of their own. They asked me how much they should bring and I told them to pray about it and listen to what God was telling them. Sweet little Cruz quietly gave about 90 percent of his entire wallet. I was so proud of him. Giving freely is definitely one of his gifts.

Rowan: Football & Misc.

This big guy started his first season of flag football this year. It may also be his last. ;)

With this being his first time playing, Rowan wasn't sure of all the rules/etc. that came along with football. I assumed they would teach the kiddos but apparently I was incorrect. His team is very competitive. If you're not the best (or the coach's kid) you don't play. Rowan is a naturally athletic kid who is decent at most sports he tries so this has been frustrating for him. 

He has learned some valuable lessons though about trying your best, taking each opportunity the coach gives you, no matter how small, and turning that into something good, and being a team player. 

His lemon lime flavored mouth guard has also helped to ease some of the "unfairness" he's feeling. ;)

Taking a turn as Center.

Rowan is at the bottom left of the photo reaching for a flag.

This was in the 3rd quarter, the first play he'd been put in on, and he got a flag. I was super proud of him for showing his coach what he can do.

I have been enjoying most of the parts about being Rowan's teacher. I love that I get to see him learn, its neat to watch him have fun with his friends and I especially love hearing the way his mind works when he answers questions. It hasn't all been easy though. Rowan is an extreme perfectionist and will sometimes get frustrated if he feels he can't do his work well enough. He also despises anything artistic and is often easily frustrated during those times as well. Being his teacher has taught me more about him as a person, how he ticks, how he learns and what he loves. He's always more than willing to help me, or his classmates. His heart is good, sweet and sensitive. I'm so proud of him.

Rowan and his best little buddy Christian. 

Cora Turns 3: 9/25/15

Cora's actual birthday was a low key but super special day. Cora woke up and wanted to open her presents before school. The kids were all ready early so that worked out well. 

After school we did cupcakes and sang to Coco. They were all super excited to have dessert before dinner.

We went to Buffalo Wild Wings for a fun birthday dinner. We sat on the patio by ourselves so the kids danced and spun around in circles and had a great time. The staff brought Cora a special dessert. I just love her face in the following photos. They are all so Coco and perfectly capture her at age 3. 

Coco Grace:

You are everything we would have picked for our daughter and then some. You are delightfully girl, yet can wrestle with the toughest boys. You love to sing and dance, but you also love to roar and ride your bike. You are smart, you are a leader, you like to be in charge. You love pink, princesses and anything glittery! God has given you such a sparkly, fun personality Miss Coco. I know you will do great things in your life. His plan for you is big. You are so adored baby girl. Not only by your mommy and daddy but by your sweet big brothers. Here are some things they had to say about you: 

Rowan: Well, Cora is sweet and she's kind. I love to play castle with her because she lets me be a princess and that makes her happy. My favorite thing about Cora is when Cora wears her Ariel dress. She looks so pretty.

Cruz: Cora? Sometimes she's mean to me but she sometimes is nice too. Cora is my favorite girl. I love her. She's the best girl ever. I love her the most. I like to play pillow fight with her because Cora pushes me and its funny and then she tackles me with a pillow. 

Happy Happy 3rd Birthday to our beautiful little girl.