Halloween 2010

Happy Halloween 2010! It wasn't any surprise when I asked Abby what she wanted to be for Halloween and she quickly said: "A 'Pricess' Momma!" She was in sheer heaven prancing around in her princess costume and loved the attention she was getting. Our October was filled with lots of fun activities and parties, definitely a year to remember. I think Abby is going to be disappointed to realize that she has to wait an entire year until Halloween returns. She likes the idea of getting candy, dressing up in sparkles and playing with friends. This was the first year that she really understood what was going on, it was fun to watch.

Something we have heard frequently around our house this year is the 'Halloween Song'. I sing it with the preschool class I teach on Mondays. Since Abby is at preschool with me, she has learned the song very well and it has become her favorite. We will hear her playing around the house, singing the song and saying a loud "BOO" at the end with all the enthusiasm she can muster.

Halloween, Halloween

Lots of Fun on Halloween

Black Cats and Ghosts

Skeletons too,

Clowns and Witches

All Say...

'BOO!'

A princess dress is not complete without sparkle shoes from Nani and Sippy. (She went to bed with these on.)

Here is Abby at the Trunk or Treat held by our church on Friday. These two have quite the 'crush' going on...it's pretty cute. Abby looks forward to nursery with Jonah every Sunday.

Trunk or Treat

Abby wanted to dig in her dress-ups and be 'Snow White' for her Preschool Party. (This kid is nuts about princesses and glitter.) She loved playing with her friends.

Steph made an AMAZING dinner for the kids earlier in the week. She is so talented! Thanks guys!! Abby keeps talking about the fun time.

Dave and Alissa came up from Richmond this weekend. It was so fun to have them for Halloween. We love you guys! Here are the pumpkins we carved together. 'Dude' and 'Lissa' have some serious carving talent with their cyclopse pumpkin. Check out the back....

Sweet pumpkins and mad carving skills. Thanks for such a good time guys.

Uncle 'Dude' found a fuzzy caterpillar for Abby on our porch. They put it in a jar to look at for a day and then let it go. Abby has been talking about her 'Patta-Pillar' ever since. Abby keeps telling me the "Patta-pillar' go home Mommy."

Monday Night after fhe, Abby wanted to sing the Halloween Song...

Happy Birthday Daddy!

We celebrated Brett's birthday this past week, October 26th. He has only one year more to be 'young' since the next birthday is the big 3-0! We love Daddy! We couldn't ask for a better man to have in our lives. Abby always loves it when he comes home from work. She will make a dash down the hall to give him a big hug and kiss. Happy Birthday Brett! We love you so much! xoxo

Apple Picking

A few weeks ago we went apple picking with some good friends. I love this time of year with all the changing leaves, apples, pumpkins, the nice temperatures...'ahh'...blissful. Abby enjoyed munching on apples. Such a good time. Oh Fall, how I love you.

Such a Good Day!

Yesterday Brett found out that he passed the Virginia Bar! Yay! Such a blessing and such a relief. Way to go Babe! We are headed to Richmond in 2 weeks for him to get sworn in as an official lawyer...he did it! Time to celebrate.

'Funny Belly'

The other day we were getting Abby ready for bed and she looked at me and said this:

"Mommy, your belly funny, you need fix it." -Abby

...At least she tells the truth, holding nothing back. Apparently she has noticed some changes in my abdomen.

If you ask Abby where the baby is, she will point to HER belly, push it way out, point to herself and say: "Baby here."

Do you think she gets it? I think this little girl is in for a big surprise and life change in December. Little does she know what Santa is going to bring her. We're excited. I will admit I'm getting nervous about how Abby is going to deal with the permanent newcomer. Any tips on how to help a two year old cope with a new sibling? I was horrible to my brother when he was born. There are legends about me torturing him, though I claim to have been 'helping' him. I'm a bit scared for the livelihood of Abby's little sister.

100 Mile Tradition

Brett did his 100 mile bike ride with a group of friends from the area. Way to go Babe! They did this same ride last year and it has now become a tradition. It is a beautiful ride through the forests and along the coastline in Maryland.

Congrats on another good race guys!

On a side note...Brett's bike is pretty old and survived yet another race. The guys have now named his bike 'Lucile' in honor of being old but pulling through. One of these years I need to get him a new one.

Here is a video clip Lisa and Dave made from the ride:

Changes

It is so great to have Spein back, he looks great! We have had a lot of fun on the web cam with him. He and Abby are getting to know each other better since she was only 2 months old when he left. Spence is adjusting back to the American way of life and sadly had to part with wearing his Fiji skirt. :) It's back to jeans, jackets and English for him. I do think he is enjoying a soft bed after two years.

We wish we could be there today for when he speaks. We are thinking about you.

Love you!

Here is a picture of Abby and Spencer just before he left.

Here is Abby now, when he returned. (I can't wait to get a picture of them together.)

A lot changes in two years.

He's Coming Home!

My little brother comes home from his 2 year mission in Fiji this Thursday! We can't wait to talk to him and hear about all his experiences. We wish we could be there to see him when he gets off the plane. Thank goodness for webcams and technology so we can chat with and 'see' him via computers until December. It's a countdown to Christmas!

We can tell Spencer was an amazing missionary and left a lasting impact on the Fijian people. They will never forget you Spein! You gave your whole heart to serving the people there and that says a lot.

"And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God."

-Book of Mormon (Mosiah 2:17)

Welcome Back! We love you!

P.S. We hope you have a good coat because you will need it now that you are use to island temperatures.

The wonderful people

Mission Friends

His first day in the mission field

MTC...the first week of his mission.

Service day... the last week of his mission. Have a little mud on ya there? :)

Many encounters with dogs and goats...some not so pleasant. (Can't wait to hear more stories about these.)

Rain...and more RAIN...ahh, island life.

Beautiful views

Perfect Weekend

It has been the perfect weekend. We always love to listen to General Conference and feel renewed. It's also fun to continue some of our traditions...walks and cinnamon rolls.

When I was a kid, we would often drive in the mountains to see the Fall leaves in between Conference sessions. Since we don't have mountains, we decided go early that morning to Roosevelt Island and walk through the forest. Abby was in heaven! She could roam free and there were rocks, sticks and squirrels galore.

While we were out, I decided to play around with Brett's camera. He has had this camera since before we got married, when he was taking photography classes. I have really wanted to learn how to take good pictures so I have been trying to learn. I obviously have a long way to go, but it's fun to use. I was hoping to take some shots of Abby and practice using some aperture, but she was not going to hold still ... I can't blame her. It is so hard to get pictures of this kid holding still AND smiling at the same time. She's always on the go.

It was a beautiful walk. The leaves haven't changed yet because September was still pretty hot, but you just wait... Fall on the East is breathtaking, I love it!

In our backyard after the rainstorm, wearing her hat.

I told Abby to smile for the camera and this is what she did...

I'm so glad she wants to cooperate.

It was a perfect weekend.

Football Friday Victories!

VICTORY would be the best word that would describe Friday. We went to the Mclean High School Football Game to support a friend and loved it. They beat a really good team and had a great game. Abby was a bit scared of all the noise at first, but LOVED it in the end. She and her friends cheered with their pom poms and danced on the bleachers. It was a good time for all. We forgot the camera, so thank goodness for phones that can take pictures because the girls were hilarious.

Another VICTORY of the night was the UTAH STATE AGGIES! We beat BYU in an awesome game. At the end of the game, the students stormed the field, swinging a stuffed cougar by the neck. Ahh...a sweet moment for Aggies! Such a fun night.

The girls cheering on the bleachers.

Utah State on their big night.