{iPhone Rewind} :: October

Making monster cookies with my little helper :)

Concentrating hard on that spelling test!

Watercolor painting during Bible time

Audio book. Drawing. Front porch rocking. Not a bad afternoon :)

We have been LOVING the amazing fall weather!

We have been spending lots of time at the playground

Saturday morning donuts!

I wonder how long they will fight over who gets to take out the recycling/trash

His most favorite snack is what we affectionately call "Grandma sandwiches" - peanut butter on a graham cracker. It's because Grandma introduced us to it. He would eat them every day if I let him haha.

Sometimes we have to finish up schoolwork at the library {an appropriate setting}

Mike has had some time off, so he has been able to come with us on our day-to-day activities, including library trips!

Miss Lilly came home to visit from college, and we were VERY excited to see her! :)

A little Snoopy reading

We hosted the first {of hopefully many} outdoor movie night with our neighbors!

Maddie Girl is a Pathfinder this year in Pioneer Girls! :)

I got to join our women again for our annual women's retreat. I'm so thankful for these ladies and their desire to dive into God's Word and build relationships for God's kingdom. 

While I was away, the kids were busy playing and having lots of fun with Daddy! 

They are such GREAT helpers! They wanted to help clean up the yard and make it look nice before I got home, and I just love their sweet hearts :)

Creating clues and feeding imaginations :)

It will never get old...

One of our church's community groups hosted a fall festival with fun games for kids, and our kids had a blast! We came home with a year's supply of candy haha.

Cutie :)

We celebrated Pastor Milt and Val on their faithful service to CBC. Milt will be transitioning into the role of Shepherding Pastor, and we are so thankful for how they both have loved and cared for our church body over several years.

Sweet girl...she just loves ALL animals and wants a puppy so much haha.

Pumpkin Carving!

It was the kids' first time to carve a pumpkin! Up until now, they have only ever picked or painted one. I have avoided the whole ritual, mostly because of the mess and how some of my children would feel about the pumpkin guts. But they have been asking to carve a pumpkin, so I couldn't avoid it any longer :)

Eli got in there, and got it done. He didn't need much help and mostly handled the project himself.

Maddie....handled it like I expected. She struggled with the pumpkin guts, thinking they were "so gross." haha. She also struggled with "how hard it was to carve a pumpkin." She required A LOT of assistance.

Aiden barely touched his pumpkin. He sat back and let Daddy do all the work. And that actually worked out well, since Mike was lamenting why I didn't buy him a pumpkin to carve :)

It was a fun afternoon overall, and we made some great memories!

The Great Pooh Bear Exchange

When Aiden was 4 months old, he received a stuffed Pooh Bear from Grandma and Papa. It was basically love at first sight, and he has carried that Pooh Bear with him ever since. Pooh Bear goes everywhere with him. You basically see Pooh Bear in most pictures from then on.

He had a Pooh Bear birthday when he turned two, and Grandma and Papa gifted him a new Pooh Bear, in an attempt to replace the already stinky well-loved original haha. At the time, we were able to convince him that Pooh Bear needed to be washed and were able to switch the two. But even then, he seemed to side-eye the new Pooh for a bit before finally accepting him. But it was really hard to get him to let go of Pooh again. Washing him was always fairly traumatic. The washer/dryer was never fast enough.

About a year after this first exchange, we had a scare where we thought we had lost Pooh. Thankfully, we found him, but it made me realize that we should have a backup on hand, just in case. At the time, it would have been devastating if we lost Pooh, so even if we had only an imposter to offer {because I wholly believe that's how it would have been rejected}, it would have been better than nothing. So I kept a backup in the back of our closet...

Fast forward 4 years, several washes, and lots of life later... and that poor Pooh is beyond loved. Aiden has grown and matured, so Pooh wash days have become far less traumatic. He willingly hands it over, even volunteering Pooh on his own, saying it's time that Pooh take a bath. But he is always looking for him as soon as the laundry is done ;)  

For awhile, washes have worked fairly well. But in the past year, that poor Pooh has started looking fairly sad. I have thought about exchanging him, even thinking of saying that the washing machine got him really clean haha! But I just haven't had the heart to do it. And Aiden is just too smart for that now. But recently, I have been thinking he might agree to an exchange much easier. More matter-of-factly.

No judgment, please. I swear that thing has been scrubbed multiple times haha

We watch a lot of family home videos, and one of them actually captures the 2nd birthday when he had 2 Pooh bears. We had watched it recently, and the kids were talking about how bright and clean the "new" Pooh Bear had looked in the video. So I asked Aiden what he would think about getting a new Pooh Bear, and if he would be willing to pass on his old Pooh Bear. When he agreed, I knew this was our chance! :)

This sweet boy spent A LOT of time with BOTH Pooh Bears. So much time that I wasn't quite sure if he was going to let the old one go. But I didn't rush it, and I let him have his time. Toward the end of the morning, I gently asked him if he loved his new Pooh Bear. He emphatically said "Yes!" And then I gently asked him if he was ready to pass on his old Pooh Bear. He took another look at his old Pooh Bear, gave him one last hug, and then handed it over. 

And then my Mama heart broke just a tiny bit. 

And now that old ratty Pooh Bear is at the back of my closet because I just can't let it go HAHA. 

Have I now prolonged this love affair with Pooh? Maybe. But this sweet boy is happy as a clam with his new Pooh Bear, and yes, he absolutely can go to college with it, so just mind your business. {just kidding}

:)

Silly, willy, nilly ol' bear...