Co-Op Crazy!

My wonderful friend Tracy and I have been trading off watching the kids since the middle of September so that we could both work a bit without sacrificing time with our families in the evening. And more important, we are not sacrificing by having the heartache or financial strain of daycare. She comes out to watch the boys while I go see some home health patients and then I watch her daughter while she meets with her families. It is such a great situation and the kids love playing together. And now, I can sound oh-so-Orange County by saying..."the nanny is with the kids!"

Not only are we helping each other out by watching the kids, but we are also cooking for eachother. Did I mention that I love Tracy? Once a week we are trying to provide dinner for eachother's family. So not only do I have a nanny...I have a cook as well. L-I-V-I-N!!!

This has taken so much stress off of my shoulders. In a situation where I just wasn't sure how to make it possible for me to add a little income, God really pulled through by placing me in Tracy's kitchen one evening and getting the ball rolling on this whole deal. I am so blessed to have Tracy in my life. The kids love her, love eachother, and I don't miss out on but a few hours a couple times a week.

This is Sulli at Tracy's where he told me that he had a baby in his belly. This is an action shot of the baby "coming out". There had been lots of talk of babies in bellies because of my friend Kate who was very pregnant at the time. This is Sulli and his co-op buddy Ainsley (previously blogged as the "betrothed"). They really enjoy playing with eachother but also have their moments. The other week, Ainsley headed for the stairs (Sulli on her heels) and she turned and told him, "I need my space." That is now a favorite phrase of Sulli's. There are lots of issues with sharing, stealing, and space invasion. But they really love eachother. Sulli had come down with a bit of a cold the other week and I was asking him how he felt. I told him that if he was feeling too yucky, we needed to tell Tracy and Ainsley not to come over. He said, "She has to come over. She will touch my heart and I will be ok." Oh my, that melted my heart.

We took a quick trip up to the cabin at the beginning of October and played in the snow. We were driving up there in a blizzard...still can't believe that it snowed in the beginning of October. We got to participate in the Trailing of the Sheep which we had never seen before. They have a fun parade in Ketchum and then run the sheep through town. Sulli and Ainsley loved seeing all of the sheep, dancers, bagpipers, etc. They also had fun making snow balls. Cute kiddos. Fun times!

Boo!

PTA...here I come! This is me getting creative. I made skeleton cupcakes for Sulli's preschool Harvest Party. I think that I had more fun making them than they were appreciated by the kids but that's ok. Sullivan is pictured here with some preschool friends at his party. From the first time that I asked Sulli what he wanted to be, he never strayed from "Cookie Monster". He in fact had an idea for what every member of our family should be. He was to be Cookie and Ben was to be Elmo. He told me that I should be a "bike". What??? Evan was to be Mickey Mouse but this changed to Popeye. The only ones that I followed through with were Elmo and Cookie. He asked what I was on our way to his school and I told him that I was going as a "mom". That's the best costume I wear every day.

Benny's outfit fit perfect on his body but the head was huge. It hung down over his eyes totally hiding his face so it was off of his head most of the time. Little cutie wasn't sure what to think of all of this.Here we are at our church's Trunk or Treat. Sulli is here with his buddy Gus and his little brother Elmo...here you can see what I mean about the huge hood. Sulli was still a bit weary of the whole situation. He wanted to participate in everything but wanted to be right next to/carried by a parent at all times. He loved the cotton candy (thanks Nana) and thought getting candy was pretty cool.

We were excited that Nana and Papa could come over for a quick visit and go Trunk or Treating with us. Sulli took a little rest from pounding the pavement to watch Veggie Tales with Nana.

Benny didn't last long and finally gave in to sleep while watching Mom sing with the praise band. He was Papa's buddy that night.

One of the games was Oscar the Grouch. How this kids parents convinced him to do this I don't know. "So Billy, you are going to sit in a garbage can all night while kids throw bean bags at you...ok? Sounds like fun doesn't it?" Sulli was infatuated with this game and "Oscar". I had to get a picture with him. We picked out some great pumpkins at the pumpkin patch and carved them the other night. Evan's was a really neat owl. Sulli's was so small that 2 eyes and a nose were all that fit. He had a great time scooping out the guts and roasting the seeds. Fun family project.

I love this time of year. So many fun things happening and family events. And they are just beginning! Hope that you all had a fun Halloween. We sure did!