All Hallowes Eve; From Morn 'till Midnight

8:00 am

I don't usually have entries this long but this was a pretty big day and I think the length of this entry only emphasizes the true size of this special day.

It all began not so bright but very early. It was my turn to drive for carpool and I needed to get Cameron's makeup done, finally (she's been waiting weeks for this). I thought I might have Ryan's help until I woke up at 3:30 am and realized he was just barely getting home from his trip. Ugh.

We finally managed to get Cameron back from the dead, Dallin the "Hot Dog", Austin the frog, and Eden partially ready as Sleeping Beauty. And then we were off for school.

10:00 -12:00 pm

Eden's Birthday Party

First, the kids decorated crowns but this was really a Baking Birthday party so we set the crowns aside to dry, put on our aprons and got busy making cookies...

and mini pizzas. I couldn't have done it without Grandma's help.

The girls ate their pizzas and decorated their cookies.

And just before we ran out of time we blew out the candles and opened presents.

What a bunch of cuties! Eden had so much fun.

1:00 pm

East Meadows Elementary Halloween Costume Parade

My sister in law Joy. Her daughter Katy says, "My mom rocks!"

Cameron back from the dead.

My son, the "Hot Dog".

3:30 - 4:30 pm

Trick or Treating at Novell

5:00 pm

Eden finally gets to open her presents from the family.

It was worth the wait.

6:00 pm
Trick or Treating in the old neighborhood with the Mickelsens.

Ryan took the bigger kids so they wouldn't be slowed down by the little ones. It was a good thing too because Eden had to tell every neighbor who they were dressed up as and that it was her birthday.

After about five houses I asked Austin if he wanted to get out. He said "no" and spent the next forty five minutes eating candy out of his bucket while I pushed him and Aleeya in the stroller.

It was a long day but so much fun.

Just The Beginning

The Halloween/Birthday festivities officially began on Thursday with Eden's preschool class party. She got to dress up and bring birthday treats for everyone in her class.

Austin was proud to show off his trick or treating bucket that we finally bought for him. I guess that means he gets candy this year too. Where will it all go?

Eden's Little Wizards preschool class.

Pumpkin Carving

Well, we finally got around to carving our pumpkins. It's a lot harder without Dad's help but everyone pitched in, literally, and we got the job done.

Although I was up a little longer than the kids putting on the finishing touches, like carving out the designs they picked, so we didn't get the pictures taken until tonight.

My Speed Racers

The kids had the day off so Erika and I met at Classic Skate in Sandy. What a fun place. When it came time to skate she let Austin and Eden borrow her scooters. They had never ridden before so I took some video. Austin got really good after just a few minutes but he has some practice to do if he wants to keep up with Dallin.

Putting this video together was a lot of fun. I'll have to experiment some more in the future.

JOY!

Another beautiful moment captured by Breanne during our family picture day. I came across it the other day and put it on my desktop. I love it so much I had to share.

Making New Friends

When we went to church on Sunday Ryan just walked up to people and said, "Hi, I'm Ryan Smith I just moved in to the ward." I was conciously trying to keep my mouth closed because I was so impressed he could do that. I felt so overwhelmed by all the new people I didn't know what to say to anyone. In addition I can never remember anyone's name, especially when I meet a million people all at once. It's always been difficult for me. I prefer to meet people one at a time so I can have a conversation with them and actually remember their face and their name.

So, my strategy this week has been to use the excuse that Eden needs a playdate. I have met two very nice neighbors and their very sweet four year old daughters. And, I can actually say that I remember their names.

We have had a few families stop by and introduce themselves, and (to Cameron's delight) brought treats. I think I remember their names. Cameron also had an achievement days activity last night where I re-met some people from Sunday and hopefully will remember their names when I see them again. There are a lot of familiar people from the elementary school, soccer teams, and previous wards we've been a part of. I just wish I had Ryan's talent for remembering people the first time I meet them.

I'm sure it will just take time but it makes me appreciate all the great friends we have made over the past eight years in our last neighborhood. I miss them already, even though I still see them. I think it's just knowing I need to be more outgoing than I've had to be in a long time. The challenge is daunting but I'm trying.

Dallin is a ...

Dallin wins the Superstar award this week. The kids had UEA/Fall break this weekend. I didn't have any great plans except Cameron was going to spend the night with her cousins on Thursday and then we were going to meet up on Friday to go rollerskating and do some other fun stuff. Well I woke up Friday morning with the stomach flu. Ryan told Dallin he was in charge and before he even left for work Dallin was unloading the dishwasher.

For the next few hours I stayed in bed and listened as Dallin patiently took care of Eden and Austin. He put on their shoes and jackets and took them outside to play. He even made lunch for them and then put them both down for naps.

I was especially impressed when he tried to calm Austin down as he threw a major tantrum for forty minutes after his nap. We eventually had to call Dad home because Austin had seriously lost it. But the whole time I kept thinking, "Dallin is amazing. He has more patience than I do."

Unfortunately we weren't able to make it roller skating on Friday. I wanted to make it up to Dallin by taking him to the movies Saturday but, of course, he woke up with the flu and was so sick all day he never left the bathroom. He slept on our tile floor for about four hours.

So this is my tribute to my Superstar son who came to my rescue when I was sick and then suffered the same fate. I am so proud of his ability to love and sacrifice for his family.

Homework

No Dessert

Believe it or not Cameron said she didn't want any dessert last night. What?! It was such a shocker Ryan said I had to post it because it may never happen again. I assume it's because she had the flu on Sunday, but still! Cameron is our treat Queen. Her life literally revolves around treats and how soon she can have another one. So what do I say when I slap cookies and cupcakes down on the table after dinner last night (to get rid of them asap) only to hear Cameron say, "no thank you. I don't want any dessert tonight." My jaw hit the floor and I think the Earth stood still for a moment.

However, she did pick out every last piece of sausage from the leftover Jumbalaya (thanks Cameron) so maybe that was dessert to her.

Cameron's Baptism

Cameron was baptized and confirmed by Ryan on Saturday. She was baptized along with three other boys from our ward. The four of them sang the opening song and it was so sweet I tried not to cry. But then I had to give the talk on Baptism and I cried through the whole thing. It's wonderful to see my children making right choices and trying so hard to be good. On our way to lunch afterward Eden asked if she could get baptized when she turns eight. I'm so proud of the example my children set for one another.

I was so caught up in the moment that I forgot to get a picture of Cameron in her new white dress. She looked so pretty. I planned to take one Sunday before church but she woke up with a terrible stomach flu, poor thing, and had to stay home. Hopefully I can get one this coming Sunday and post it because she looked so beautiful.

Thank You!

Yeah! We got our office put together today, so I'm ready to blog again. And the first thing I want to say is Thank You, Thank You, Thank You, to all of you who helped us move this week. Thank you for helping clean, pack, haul, lift, babysit, drive, and endure physical exhaustion for our sake. We really appreciate it. And we couldn't have done it without you.

Moving Forward

We're Moving! I'm just not sure when yet. We signed papers last night on the sale of our home and the purchase of the new one and the title company took papers to the hospital for the new people to sign. So, it looks like the worst is over.

The tricky part now is figuring out the best time to move. See, tonight would have been ideal but the loans won't fund till tomorrow. Tomorrow Ryan has school which would mean we would have to wait until Friday, which is cutting it a little to close for my stress levels but I think I'm going to have to take what I can get. Although I may start on my own on Thursday as soon as we're in the clear, just because I'm not a procrastinator and I hate leaving things until the last minute.

I think I'm excited, but I'm so overwhelmed by how up and down everything has been that I can't tell yet. I'm sure it will sink in soon.

Not Today

Nope, it's not today. We're not signing papers on the sell of our home and once again I find myself doubting if it will ever happen.

At first we were told this morning we would be signing around 4:30, with a question mark. Then we found out that the lady buying our home went into labor and is having her baby. A minor setback. But then we were told that the problem they were having on Friday still hasn't been completely resolved. Now they say we'll sign tomorrow. Sure.

I honestly feel that we have found ourselves victims of the Economic Crisis the newscasters are portraying like it's the end of the world. Well, as now it affects me directly, I can say, "I feel the pain." I'm pretty sure it's why these people are having such a hard time getting their loan and therefore I wouldn't be surprised if they called tomorrow and said the whole thing has fallen through. Should I unpack? Or keep waiting? With hope and faith I'm going to keep waiting.

Groundhog Day

For those of you who are wondering why we haven't moved yet I would like to explain what's been going on. I actually started an entry a few days ago but it was so negative I deleted it all. It's been a rough couple of weeks.

To say the least, I feel like I'm stuck in that movie, Groundhog Day. Every day I wake up to see boxes all over my room and think, this will be the day my Realtor will call and tell me, "come sign the papers to close on your home." But instead if I get a phone call, (usually I break down and call him first) he says "they need more documents, it will be a few more days." I think they've been to underwriting five times now.

As of Friday though, everything had come back from underwriting and they thought we could sign papers that afternoon, but of course, there was a new problem, and now they think it will be Monday.

So I sit, and wait, and wait, and wait. I think if a person could spontaneously self combust from frustration I would have exploded, last Wednesday to be exact. But I decided instead to change my attitude and try to exercise a little more patience. The lady moving into our home is nine months pregnant and I'm sure this has all been just as difficult for her as it has been for me. There are so many lives in fact that are affected by this sell that I really can't complain that I'm the only one suffering. Plus I read the Ensign for this month and was reminded that God doesn't want us to complain anyway, but to exercise Hope and Faith.

So after all the despair I felt on Wednesday I woke up Thursday and decided to start excercising some of that Hope and Faith. Friday's news was the best so far and everyone is really positive that we can be done with all of this on Monday and I can move on Wednesday. There is still a small part of me that thinks, yeah right. But I'm trying to smother that thought with a more positive attitude.

For those of you wondering what happened Wednesday, it actually all started Tuesday evening when I got the call from my Realtor that they were missing more documents and it would be a few more days. Which I quickly interpreted to mean we wouldn't be able to move this weekend which in turn meant that we might move next week. Cameron's getting baptized next Saturday and it felt too overwhelming to think of trying to do both things in the same week. Then after that upsetting phone call I discovered that Austin had made a mess all over the carpet in the basement (which took two days to get really clean). I woke up Wednesday morning angry and depressed that things weren't working out and I knew I needed to pull it together because I had to be at the school that morning for the Reflections Assembly. I was trying to get Cameron's hair done so we could all get out the door, when she said she didn't feel very well. All of the sudden her head fell on the counter and then she collapsed to the floor. I screamed for Ryan and it took almost a minute to wake her up. We're pretty sure she just locked her knees which caused her to faint but it was so scary and made me even more emotional. Hence the feeling of wanting to self-combust. Cameron was fine, and by the end of the day I had the carpets clean and life was back to normal but that's when I realized I needed to change my attitude or I wouldn't survive this change.

So, that's where we're at. I've been dying to put up a post that says, "We're Moving," but I'm just going to have to keep waiting.