Seven Stitches

Weston was introduced to the ER this Thanksgiving weekend. Wednesday night he tried to get down from his barstool by walking from the barstool to a chair, lost his balance and fell on the tile and the barstool also fell, right on his head. He had a pretty deep slit right above and between his eyebrows. We were thankfully right in the middle of celebrating my brother Jesse's 24th birthday so there were plenty of babysitters around while Jared and I took Weston in, he was pretty tired so it was hard for him to be brave, but at least he stayed on the operating bed. We flet pretty bad for him.

The next day he was back to his happy self, and he took the steri-strips off first thing in the morning. I think that shocked me worse than the stitching. I bandaged him up the best I could and prayed it would be alright, I did not want to go back to the ER on Thanksgiving. He gets them out tomorrow and the wound looks really good.

Thanksgiving was nice and relaxing. We ate at my parents home and played Guitar Hero rock band most of the day. We certainly are humbly thankful for our many blessings the Lord has blessed us with this year--food in abundance, a nice home with a finished basement, healthy, happy, children, a loving family, Jared's thriving business, my very part-time job at the LDS Distribution center, and wonderful kind friends and neighbors, and and exalted daughter who we feel with us in spirit and has taught us so much.

Just like Steve

This week I had to delve into the stocking stuffers I've been collecting for one of the rare moments I bribe my kids. Weston's monthly haircut. I bought a two dollar notebook at Wal-mart and covered it in green paper and drew a red thinking chair on it and saved it to put in Weston's stocking. I told Weston I'd give him a notebook "just like Steve" if he let me cut his hair. He sat still, without complaining, and took a bath. I was hoping he'd forget the bribe so I could use it as a stocking stuffer after all, but he cashed in: "where's my notebook mommy?" I've never seen a kid more thrilled by a two-buck notebook, or any toy for that matter, than Weston was! He said, "Its Just like Steve!" over and over and ran around chanting, "we need our handy dandy... notebook! notebook, eee." (The eee is for the bell sound effect on the show.) He never put it down and even went to bed with it and woke up in the middle of the night crying, "I need my notebook!" I have to hand it to myself, even the girls were impressed with the art work. (I stopped and rewound an episode of Blues Clues at the notebook scene over and over to get it right.)

Don't be hatin'

Jared took a little excursion to Walmart with Fiora to kill some time while Savanna and Weston were at gymnastics and he taught her some backstreet talk. She learned phrases like "Break it down homey" "Bust a move fat boy" and "Don't be hatin'!" I myself have used the last one with Savanna a few times lately. When she gets home from school her "polite" and "patient" reserves are used up, maybe even into a deficit. After she yells at me for whatever I did wrong to greet her then she beats down Fiora/Weston for various misdemeanors, usually existing, and then cries when she gets a time out, and then complains about whatever snack we do or don't have, and then there's the fight to make her do homework, and the complaining that she can't play with her friends from school who I don't know, and if I'm going to my job she'll be angry about that even though I thought she hated me all this time anyway. I've learned to just let her wind down for about 30 minutes when she comes home, if she has some time in her room or watching a show for a while then she's OK. And when she's happy there's no better 6 year old to be around! She really is a delightful girl most of the time, most of the time she is at school now that's all. I'm glad she is good and delightful for her teacher Miss J.

Lillian's headstone was placed last week. It looks so nice! Jared and I took the kids up to see it Saturday and Weston jumped out of the car and said, "Where's Lillian's cave?" We corrected him but he kept saying it that way, it was pretty cute.

Baby Bailey

Little Bailey Jane Schauers, Justin and Shawna's baby girl, was Christened Sunday. Our family just loves little Bailey! Jared and I have been so excited for her arrival for years and love to celebrate her life. She was worth the wait! What a beautiful girl.

It was fun to be with Jared's family this weekend. Chad and Robin stayed in our guest room and had breakfasts with us, that was so fun! We told them we want them to stay here every time they visit, but we have to fight Wendy Aaron Justin and Heidi for that privilege. Thanks for staying with us C and R!
By the way, our fish is still alive. He must like us! How old do fish live anyway?

Fishing Mania

Jared's motto this year is WISH I WERE FISHING. He has purchased some new gear (including a fly rod and a boat, which I guess is technically Home Basic's) and read books and watched videos on fishing and he has gone out once a week at least since July. Yesterday he went fishing with his brothers and I thought their pictures were pretty so I decided to post a slide show on Jared and fishing mania.

Halloween

BOO! Savanna was in her school Halloween parade this year and she looked so cute in her back cat outfit marching with all the big kids. Jared even joined us to watch the parade. Fiora was a Barbie and Weston was a dragon and a pumpkin. They have had fun this year in their various school parties and activities. Both Fiora and Weston's preschools took a trip to the pumpkin patch and had a costume party. The girls were so excited to carve pumpkins. Weston chose not to join that activity so we made his pumpkin into a pumpkin-potato head! We were invited to join the Westovers for dinner and trick-or-treating on Halloween evening, as soon as the kids had eaten they were out the door pulling on us to go (sorry we ate and ran!) and covered the ward boundaries in an hour. Surprisingly Fiora pooped out first and Weston and I covered a large cul-de-sac after she went home. This is a very fun age for trick-or-treating and Jared and I both wanted to watch/accompany the kids. It won't be long before they are able to do it without us! :(