We're on a date

Caden and Avery, on many occasions, can be found sitting in the pantry stuffing their faces with cereal. This night, they had the boxes all lined up, chair set up inside, and basically pigging out. Caden informed us they were "on a date".

Grandma and Halloween

Grandma Grace came and visited from Utah for the week. We had a great time. Here are a few pics from the week.
The kids loved trick-or-treating. Caden definitely had things figured out this year. Every house he'd run back saying "I'm getting more candy than I ever thought I would!" He loved the night, except for the houses with dogs. Even the smallest puppies made him jump out of his skin.
Avery wasn't sure why she was dressed up, although I think she was the cutest lady bug I've ever seen. We had to get a sack from one of our friends houses to dump the candy in because her pumpkin just got too heavy. She didn't quite understand, so when we gave her the empty pumpkin back she had a meltdown. By the end of the night, she learned to say "trick-or-treat" and how to chew through wrappers to get a taste of what she wanted.

Rock, Paper, Scissors

Has anyone ever thought of teaching their 4 year old Rock, Paper, Scissors? I hadn't, not sure why, but it is a great tool at restaurants and anywhere you're trying to keep kids entertained. Ryan taught it to Caden sometime ago, and now Caden wants to play it anytime we are out. Even Avery gets in the action. Here he is with his cousin McKenzie in Utah, both apparently thinking scissors. I think Caden's competitive nature wants him to keep winning, and we're trying to teach him it's okay to not win every time. How do you encourage good sportsmanship without stifling the competitive nature?

Pumpkin Patch

Caden had his pre-school pumpkin patch field trip today. It was so much fun. Ryan was going to come with us, but he ended up getting sick so he stayed home with Avery. I loved the one on one time with Caden. When we first got there we went on the hay ride with his buddies Noah and Easton.
After the hay ride they took us to the patch where the kids were all able to pick one pumpkin. The only rule is they had to be able to carry it out on their own. Caden was so indecisive, trying to figure out which was the best. We must have picked up 10 before he decided on the one.

After all was said and done, we pushed our luck a little far with the good weather. We decided to go on one more hay ride with Noah, and part way through it the rain started coming down!!! We raced to our car and after all that fussing about the perfect pumpkin, I dropped it when we got to the car because we were so wet. Caden was a good sport about it and said we could just put the big crack at the back when we set it on the porch. Such a fun day and can't wait till next year!

Cadenism

I'm terrible at journaling, so this is my way of writing down things I don't ever want to forget. Caden has such an imagination, and some of the things he says surprise me. The other day he asked who the person is that lost their voice. I was a little confused but thought he must be talking about Little Mermaid. I'm not sure why I thought that b/c he's only seen it a couple of times, but it's the first thing that popped in my mind. I told him Ariel from Little Mermaid, and he told me, "No mom, it's the Holy Ghost". A little confused I asked what he meant and he started singing "Listen to the STEAL small voice, listen listen" I'm not sure how he put it all together, but he figured the Holy Ghost had his voice stolen.

Everyone needs a Caden

I know, I know - it's been a long time. There is a reason behind that, which I won't go into, but there is a reason. Nonetheless, I want to brag on my little Caden this go around. Everyone needs a Caden in their home. He is the wittiest, spunkies, sweetest, smartest little guy. Here are just a few examples:

Today we were headed out run some errands. Caden said from the back of the car "Mom, will you show dad where my pre-school is?" To which Ryan replied "Caden have you forgotten that I have picked you up before?" Caden just disregarded what his dad had said, and continued to tell us it is where the red finger is.?.?.? I wondered myself what that could mean, thinking of possible Halloween decorations at nearby houses, that's about all the further I could get in trying to figure out what the red finger meant. As he's telling us about the red finger, I look at him and he is pointing to the left with his index finger extending out and back. As we get to the street where we would normally turn, sure enough, a sign right on the corner for a property for sale. A big red hand with a red finger pointing that direction. Oh, the things he notices.

Speaking of pre-school, while we were on our way home from it the other day, Caden pointed out a big American flag next to our church. He said "Hey that's our flag". I thought I would teach him a little something and tell him it is for the United States of America. He then proceeded to recite the entire pledge of allegiance, start to finish, without missing a beat. Who knew he knew that? I sure didn't. I laughed so hard listening to his little voice say big words like allegiance, republic, indivisible. I ask him every day what he learns about pre-school and we only get as far as snack time, washing our hands and playing outside. Glad to know he is actually learning.

Finally, we have a little tradition around here that I hope never goes. Each night at bed time, he asks if I will lay down with him so he can brush my hair! I love that!!! Not only is it a little bit of heaven to have my hair played with so long, but he asks so many questions and it is fun to watch his mind think and absorb so much.