Halloween and Fall Photo Dump

Kendra is old enough now that she gets to pick her own Halloween costume (until I start doing family themed costumes--then she just gets to pick what color light saber she wants when she wears Jedi robes or what color her Star Fleet uniform is, etc).  She likes what she likes what she likes, and last fall we were very much in a Wreck-It Ralph phase.  So when I asked her what she wanted to be for Halloween, she immediately answered "a girl Fix-It Felix".

So this was my first foray into actually crafting a costume.

And who would Fix-It Felix Jr. be without Wreck-It Ralph?

Paxton had a cute little monster costume but stayed home with me to pass out treats because it was a cold and wet night and he had a cold.  And I did not get a picture of his adorableness.  I also made myself a maternity skeleton shirt as I was 4 months pregnant with Bridget at this point, but something about starting a pregnancy 40 pounds overweight did not make me inclined to pose for pictures throughout.  Call me crazy.  But there is this shot with the shirt visible in the background...

Though after Halloween, Elliot was plenty interested in the Fix-It Felix Jr. getup.

 
Many Saturdays, Grant takes Kendra out on little outings just to have some one-on-one time with her.  There is usually ice cream involved.  I couldn't decide which photo from this series best represented the experience, so I included them all.  Hey, it says "Photo Dump" right there in the title of this post.

There is something about watching a kid sink their face into food that really makes it look delicious...

On a trip to the craft store for supplies for the Halloween costumes, Elliot passed out in the cart.  It was somehow sad and adorable at the same time.

And while he has always been more of a climber than his big sister, during the Fall Elliot really started taking on new heights by making a habit out of climbing into Daddy's loft bed.

Isn't he helpful?  He noticed the fan was off, so he was spinning the blades himself.  That didn't make Mommy's heart stop or even skip a beat at all when she walked in and saw this.  Though there is a queen-sized bed right under him, so even if he would have fallen, he would have been just fine.  Daddy might even have been trying to teach him and his sister to jump down onto the bed from the loft.


And then there's Paxton.  Dear, sweet Paxton.  We joked around a lot when he was a baby that he was not impressed.  But we noticed that once he gained mobility, the whole world got much more interesting for him and he toddled into becoming an extremely fun little boy.

He is the last of our children to turn in for the night (actually sleep has always been an issue for this poor little guy--I'm a little worried that he will have sleeping issues for his whole life like his father) and one evening we turned around from watching a show to find him like this:

Just happily dangling his legs from his perch on top of the piano.  Not that Mommy's heart stopped a little at all that time, either.

He does something hilarious whenever I start the dishwasher.  He gets down on his belly right in front of it and carefully examines the source of the noise.  He's very curious about it.

He's just a pretty sweet little guy in general...

I already mentioned that I was well into my fourth pregnancy this past Fall.  I am very blessed in that my pregnancies are very easy...but that's "easy" in a relative way.  On the easy end of the spectrum is a more accurate way to describe it because even my "easy" pregnancies are consuming.  And this was my fourth pregnancy in five years, which meant I was growing a person while caring for three other small people.  Not to mention this pregnancy started nine months after the last one ended.  I was also over 30 when this one began and man did that make a difference...

The point is, I was just wiped out.  Like, all of the time.

Which means Grant couldn't resist taking this picture because it sums it up so well...

That's me.  Passed out cold, with a piece of bread I was offering to Paxton in small bits in my hand.

I was really, really tired this Fall.

But I have all these really amazing kids to show for it, so it was totally worth it.

If the mountain can't come to Mohammad...

We currently live in a place that's fairly difficult to access.  There is a small airport in town, but it can be difficult to find a decently-priced flight and they always involve layovers.  Many people who visit this town end up flying out of Pittsburgh or Baltimore or one of the other major airports 3-4 hours away.  It super bums me out sometimes because I now have 4 children and I've never taken them home...there are dozens of people who have never met any of them and I miss them terribly.

And if the mountain can't come to Mohammad, then Mohammad has to come to the mountain.

Unfortunately, not all of my loved ones are able to come and visit, but back in October, my Mom made it out. Grant was out away for a conference and we didn't do much besides just hang out at home, but we had some fun.

Mom has been writing letters to Kendra since last summer, and it is a highlight of her week to get mail from Grandma O'Brien, but it is super duper extra special when she comes to visit.  :)