Halloween is supposed to be fun. What kid doesn't love getting dressed up? Mine.

A friend let us borrow 3 adorable costumes for Caden to choose from: Robot, Dinosaur, and Hot Dog. We brought them over to the Grandparents house to try on. Caden Faaareaked out. He refused to put any of them on. And me being me, well...that wasn't going to fly. So you can picture me chasing him around the family room trying to pin one on him while he's throwing a major tantrum. Eventually I threw in the towel. Then Caden sees Makayla's old Cinderella shoes. Heaven help us. He puts them on and asks for a purse. Fantastic.

A few days later I coerced him into the dinosaur costume, with the promise of cookies and no wearing the head piece. Once we got it on he still threw a tantrum in the yard.
He got over it and wanted to show the goats his sweet costume. I take him down there and he starts roaring at them. I'm pretty sure, seeing as though I can now read goat's minds, they thought he was a little scary. This morning when I checked on the goats, I found them down at the very edge of our property next to the fence mmmahhhhhing at the neighbors newest additions. Apparently you can rent goats here in the country {love to know what that business is called}. I'm talking 100's of goats people. There are more goats on my neighbors land than there is grass. ANYWAY, I'm pretty sure my goats are planning a get away with my neighbors rent-a-goats because Caden scared them yesterday. They've been mmmahhhing with the enemy's all day. I'm worried.

"Do Project!"

I found this cute free fall/halloween clipart from FinchFamilyGames and decided to make it a morning project for the boys. Caden picked which pictures he wanted {bat, scarecrow, and owl}, we printed them, spent the morning coloring, and then taped them in the window.

Apparently he had a good time yesterday because this morning he woke up and asked to do another project! I used the leaf from the same clipart to make a chain for around the window. As you can see, it's nothing special {at all} as far as decorations go. But it was fun to get the boys involved. They felt special, and admired their work for the rest of the morning.

Straight from the Mouth of Caden

I have been waiting impatiently for the day that Caden would start saying funny things. I've looked forward to the this day since he was born really. Boy, let me tell you it was worth the wait...

We are leaving the house and I see that Caden brought one of my old cell phones.

Me: Oh, good. You grabbed your phone. You'll definitely need that.

Caden: Yeah, I got my phone. My cell phone. Examines me. Oh! I forgot my purse.

Runs back to the house. Bryan is left behind in disgust.

****

Caden's in my bathroom trying on my headbands while I do my hair.

Me: Headbands are for girls, not boys.

Caden: Headbands are for Caden, not boys.

****

We are driving home from Target, and a car goes by us.

Caden: Honk horn mommy.

Driving around too much with dad huh?

****

Caden's favorite place to play is in his closet and its best if Parker is with him whether Parker wants to be or not.

Caden: Come on, come on. Hurry. {waits} Follow me broder Parker. I help him.

Shoves him face first into the closet, and slams the door behind him.

Me: Hey! Is Parker okay?

Caden: Yeah. We playin'.

Parker: Bawling.

I open the closet door.

Caden: Hey, you go away. We playin'.

****

Caden: Water peeze. I do it. Take lid off.

I take the lid off and let him fill it at the fridge.

Caden: Ice too.

I put the lid back on.

Caden: That disgusting.

Spits it out.

Caden: I gotta clean this mess.

Comes out of the laundry room with the swiffer and some vacuum attachments.

****

I'm eating a peice of cake and Caden see's it. He crawls under the blanket with me.

Caden: Um, one bite, peeze.

Me: Okay, you can have one bite.

I give him a bite.

Caden: One bite. One more peeze.

Me: One more.

Caden: Okay, just one more. Um, I just do it.

Takes the fork out of my hands and eats my cake.

Me: Do you plan on sharing that?

Caden: Sure mom!!

Little Buddies.

Parker and Caden have started playing together. I'd be lying if I said I didn't hope that having my kids this close in age would make them best friends. My brother and I were 2 years apart and we did EVERYTHING together when we were little. To see my boys playing together brings me joy. It makes those hard days {when you feel like all you did was change diapers, and feed mouths, clean up messes, and carry little people on your hip} completely worth it. They started their own rock band. Parker totally has the rocker look down.Things aren't always perfect. {Like when Toy Story toys come out. Caden makes his best effort to share, but ultimately decides that they are his special toys, thus piling them away from Parker's reach.} But most days they do really well!
And I swear Parker is always fully dressed at the beginning of the day but no matter what, he gets a mess on some article of clothing leaving him looking unloved. Oh well, he's a boy. It's what they do. :)

Eddie, Frannie, & Frank

We got pygmy goats. A family in our area was selling them, and they picked us out of 30 other families {apparently Pygmy's are a HOT commodity} to be their new owners. I kid you not, they raised the goats in their kitchen. These little guys even come when you call their name. It was quite a big deal for the family to let go of them. They made Bryan call them as soon as we got home to let them know they were safe. This is Eddie. He is the dominate one of the gang. Caden thinks he's hilarious. He'll ram the fence and Caden will laugh and laugh, and then Eddie will do it again, and Caden will pretend to fall over, and then Eddie will do it again...This is sweet little Frannie. She is the smallest, and by far the most mild-mannered. Caden wouldn't pet her because she was "too dirty." {She's all black and so the burs show up on her fur the most}. This is Frank. He is Frannie's twin. Caden just likes to say his name. "Hi Frank."

Caden climbed over the gate to get in with the goats, and then says, "Hey look, I in a cage!" This kid was seriously in Heaven. I thought he was going to explode with excitement. Parker thought they were pretty fun to watch too, until I started feeding them food instead of him. Then he was just ticked.And me, how do I feel about the pygmy goats? Well, today being my third whole day of ownership, I can still say that I like them. A lot actually. {This was not the case with the chickens. Those things are gross. And they don't do anything, except make a huge mess. No entertainment; Not fun.}

We started our first day off with a little battle. But I won {kind of}, so they are still okay on my list. My genius husband decided not to take his dad's advice and check the fence before putting the goats in. Well, apparently all three of our pastures are connected and the orchard's gate was left wide open. Bryan leaves for work that morning as usual. I leave to go jogging with the kids, and my three goats come trotting up behind me following my stroller. WHAT IN THE WORLD?!? Now I panic. I didn't grow up on a farm. What the heck am I supposed to do? At this point I had not touched these mini goats, so I was still a bit timid around them. Nothing like being pushed into the pool.

I can't leave my kids by the side of the road. I can't leave my goats or they will take off. Oh my gosh, what will that family think of me if they see the goats they bottle fed in their kitchen in the middle of the road?!? I start yelling their names and trying to get them to follow me back to the pasture gate which I am barely strong enough to even open, by the way. I do this like 30 times. They follow me half way and lose interest. I look like a complete fool. I tried pulling on their horns, but that was a joke. Pretty sure even the goats laughed at me.

Parker's bawling. Caden's trying to kick the goats. I'm losing it.

Then I call my mother-in-law freaking out, trying to herd my goats back to our property as they've wondered to the neighbors. {What did ranchers do without cell phones when their animals got loose?} She laughs and says she'll try to swing by on her way to her work out class. UHM, apparently my panicked yelling didn't get across the fact that this was an E.MER.GEN.CY. {You know I'm only kidding Jolene.}

So I call my husband and in the most loving tone I can muster say, "Bryan you idiot, get home and fix this."

I try calling and running and jangling my keys. Well behaved Frannie and Frank ran after me into the pasture. Stubborn old Eddie parks it and wont move. Little devil. Seeing as he's the leader of the pack Frannie and Frank take off again. I remembered the old owners saying that Eddie especially likes people food. I run to the house to get some. I reopen my front door up to see Frannie sitting on my front porch waiting to come in. Eh, not happening lady. I have a two leg maximum in my house.

I get Frannie & Frank back in the gate {one of the greatest moments of my adult life}, lock it, and go back for Eddie. I start leading him to the gate with the people food. Thankfully, Bryan shows up at this point. I guess my message was clear enough for him. His first comment, {oozing with sarcasm of course} "Really? Animal crackers?"

Attack Eddie. Attack.

At least I had on my running shoes and not my Bernardo's.

And then, somehow, they got out again later that day. What can I say? I'm a counterfeit country girl, and Eddie is smarter than my husband.

CraZy.

I was reading Parents Magazine the other day. I had to laugh when the article about 2 kids under 2 was in the Mental Health section.

Later that same day my sister in law and I were talking about spacing between kids. I said that I couldn't even think about another baby right now. She agreed saying, yeah, your going to wait awhile then huh?!? I told her for sure, I'd have to wait at least a few months before I could even think about it. She laughed at me, because she was expecting me to say a few years.

Maybe I am crazy...

As far as kids go, it is a very different world here. A friend in our church ward told me that there are only 3 families in our entire elementary/middle school system that have 3 children. Not even 3+ children, just 3 period!!! There is absolutely nothing wrong with that, to each their own, but I'm really going to look crazy if I show up to school with as many kids as I'd like to have.

And then there are the looks that come our way when we dare to venture out with the kiddos. I've had someone tell me thank you because I reminded her to take her birth control that day. Wow!

I just have to laugh. I might be crazy, but at least I'm also confident in the decisions we've made with our family. Even more confident that the Lord knows exactly what we need.

Toto, I have a feeling we're not in Utah anymore...

My baby started standing about a week after we got here.

At Apple Hill with Amy, Tami, Maryann...and 8 kids.

I love that my little boy managed to be the only kid who was covered head to toe in mud. I tell myself it's because I'm the fun mom, but really it's because my kid is crazy and I couldn't stop him fast enough from playing in the muddy pond. I swear I have witnesses. At least I can say he had a very, very good time on his first California friend outing.

While we were here another group of moms asked me how close together my boys were. I told them 19 months. One mom replies with: "And people said I was crazy having mine 23 months apart." I'm so sure her opinion of me changed as I left Parker 25 feet behind me while I chased Caden who eventually locked himself in the port-a-potty leaving me on the outside banging for him to open that filthy door. I almost had a nervous breakdown. Don't do well with germs.

Caden and P playing in the yard.

Life might be a little crazy, but truth be told, that's exactly how I like it.

Home, Home on the Range.

Here are some pictures of our HOME for the next long while. {It feels REALLY good to say that.} I can't wait to make memories here, to watch our kids grow, to see what many adventures come our way...

The Kitchen.Family Room. A second row of canvas's are going up...I know they look high...don't judge. :)

Project #800 in the last three weeks. Someday, when money grows on trees, I will own every piece of Fiestaware in this color. As for now I have really fabulous salt/pepper shakers. {And Les, I had to display the platter and love on it every time I walk through the door.} Our Bedroom. Our Sanctuary.
The Master Bath.Park's Room. {Caden's room is still very much in the works, so pictures to come, eventually...}We fixed up an old dresser for him. I'm a big fan of green!!The newest love of my life...double closets. Awh, organization, how I adore you."We shape our dwellings, and afterwards our dwellings shape us."
Winston Churchill
I love that!

My very wise, wonderful friend put this quote on her blog a while back: “My creed is that; Happiness is the only good. The place to be happy is here. The time to be happy is now. The way to be happy is to make others so.” Ingersoll {Thank you. Miss you and love you!}

Simple. True. I love our new home, but I feel very blessed to say that I am no happier now than I was in our over-crowded townhouse when life was daunting with school coming to an end, searching for a job, and praying for an outpouring of other blessings our family stood in need of. I've learned that life really is what you make of it. Happiness is the only good.