Is it November already?

Happy post Halloween everyone!

the two oldest got to pass out treats this year.

Aang and Katara



Big big big fat pumpkin compliments of Rob and Amy's garden


Kamryn LOVES preschool this year.

Peach Paradise, Mel's B-day and first day of school

I just read an email from my sister-in-law asking for updates. Yes, I felt guilty that blogging has fallen by the wayside. But let's just throw some sympathies my way--i have a high schooler now. it's a whole new world and i am still adjusting. Jonah has his own calendar on the fridge so that we can keep track of marching band practices, performances and competitions. I like to stay on the fun side of busy--not the crazy side, thank you. So blogging has moved aside for lots of other good things: Melanie, the coolest sister in existence, got to live with me this summer. so fun. she is now teaching in Boise. We celebrated her birthday at the end of August with peach explosion: peaches on waffles for breakfast (don't forget the whip cream on top).

fresh peach pies. yummo

and of course, the always popular:

PEACH CARAMEL CRUMBLE

yes--it tastes as delicious as it sounds.

sock monkey is not doubling as a peach--he just likes it that Melanie has always wanted one and he arrived just in time for her birthday present. So things are just peachy!

First day of school.

6:40 really is just too early for an ETD. sigh

Kamster--growing up way too fast. she loves preschool.

hope that will suffice for awhile. maybe in another five months...

Easter

At the Rob and Amy Weaver house waiting for the green light to run outside and begin the hunt. no peeking. Amy, Melanie and I covered the one acre expanse to hide eight eggs per kid--all color coordinated of course.
okay--go!

Mathew found the green eggs

we take the coloring of Easter eggs very seriously here at the Lish house...

notice the spent blooms of the amaryllis flower in the background. i think i have a picture of it somewhere. next post, i guess.

double digits

Andrew turned ten. oh my. where did my little kid go?
he had friends and cousin over for pizza, root beer floats, cake and ice cream, presents, and video games. that coupled with the rush of Easter candy made for an energized weekend. Mom relented and Andrew got an air soft gun. with goggles. i hear we should also get a mouth guard. oh boy. thanks aunt melanie for the cake help. love it!

Andrew makes life fun. he is a great kid. so glad he is in our family.
glad he still likes hugs from his mom.

we love you a whole bunch!

ha ha

Aviator Hat with Buttons

love the button finish! This is one of the three hat projects that Mels and I worked on over Christmas break. Smells made the pink one for Emma. I made the brown one for me--Kam was kind enough to model for me. I just finished reading "Leviathan" and "Behemoth" by Scott Westerfeld. How fitting (no pun intended). Dirk has started calling me Dylan. Thanks, Mel for the tutorials! Love these hats!

so i think my tension is a little tighter than Mel's...maybe that's why I get migraines. anywho...it was fun.

Happy New Year Birthday

Emma turned seven yesterday.

i love it when the kids don't have school on their birthdays.

lots of time to prepare for the party.

Jen Cole gave me the idea for the cake. Thank, Jen! it was a hit!

taste the rainbow...

love our cutie Emma June

for anyone who has read this far, I can report that Christmas was so fun! We traveled to I.F. on Chritmas Eve (the roads were thankfully clear). Grandma Weaver had pajama pants and the traditional ornaments ready to unwrap before the kiddos scampered off to bed. (thanks, Smells for sewing the pj pants. so great!) Santa couldn't bring the big presents like a new desk and Moroni poster, but did manage to squeeze a pink scooter, barbie and "How to Train Your Dragon" action figures in his sleigh. we prolonged the opening of presents by going over to pick up Grandma Walker so she could watch the fun. I think it was about 11:00 by the time we got through the stack. (Smells-please send me the pictures you took so I can put memories with pictures. thank you.) Grandpa and Mel bought a 2000 piece puzzle of Neuschwanstein. i think we dedicated at least 2 hours a day to the monster. still don't know if it is completed. I hear Amy is the advocate now that we are not there.

yummy food, more yummy food and lots of yummy food. thanks, mom. grandpa made pancakes every morning with homemade plum and chokecherry syrup. clam chowder, stew and tortilla soup. and lots of great snacking in between--mostly late at night during the game playing/movie viewing/puzzle construction. orange rolls--double yum. the best day started off with haircuts for all the kids compliments of grandma's piano fund bartering system. then off to the nativity museum where we spotted several cool nativities belonging to Grandma. Next grandma took us all to Barnes and Noble where each kid got to pick out a book. She then treated us to a new Frozen Yogurt shop--brownie bite toppings. yumm. then we went to Secretariat. so fun. i think that was the night we were too tired to cook so Taco Bell and Wendys graced the table. I think that was the night I was most willing to help with the dishes. speaking of dishes, mom pulled out the Christmas china on Sunday for a great turkey/potato dinner. very festive. on Wednesday the weather was a little snowy--oh darn, we had to stay another night. more puzzling and movie viewing. Mel and I pulled out the crochet needles and whipped out some hats. thanks, Laurie, for the pattern ideas. Melanie = mentor, me = protege. now i have a cute purple hat. great for the grocery store run when you don't have time to do your hair. by this time Mike and Tami's family had arrived. their end of the party was rising while ours was fading--but not before we could play several games. victory for me in settlers, thank you. the kids had fun, sleep was optional and we all need to exercise nonstop for the next three weeks. it was great!!

Thanks again for all the fun, Grandma and Grandpa! We love you.