There's A 7 Year Old In The House!

Today Caleb turned 7! He is such a big boy now. On Saturday he had some friends and his cousins over to help him celebrate. They played in the back yard, did pin the tail on the donkey and had a pinata full of treats. They were a great group of kids and it was so amazing that as we finished singing Happy Birthday, Caleb's school friends proceeded right into singing "God's Blessings".

Today Caleb was looking forward to getting called up on stage at assembly for his birthday and also took cookies to share with his classmates. He received the crown at school and also insisted on wearing his new 3D glasses for his picture. His favorite gift was getting to go pick out a Nintendo DS in cobalt blue that he used money he had been saving his money for, for about 9 months along with birthday money he received from Nana & Papa Jack and mom & dad chipping in the rest. Then on Sunday I made him a case for it.

Caleb is really growing into a smart little boy. To hear how well he reads is something else. A few weeks ago he announced to me that he wasn't reading anymore story books and was only going to be reading "chapter" books from then on. He is currently reading his first "Hardy Boys" book. He loves math, is doing well on his spelling and memorizing a weekly bible verse for his teacher. He is eager and excited for all the new challenges of a 1st grader. He also loves entertaining Oliver and being the biggest brother in the house.

Happy Birthday Caleb!!

Fall Days

Last week was Elton's field trip to the Pumpkin Patch. He got to ride the schoolbus for his first time while Oliver and I met him there. He got to pick out a pumpkin to take back to school and decorate.

After we got home I pulled out our kiddie swimming pool and filled it with leaves for the boys to play in. As you can see, Mimi thought the leaves were pretty fun too!

Oliver at 15 months old!

Oliver was 15 months old yesterday! Over the last month he has perfected his walking skills. About a month ago he would take 3 or 4 steps on his own. Then, a couple of weeks ago we took the boys to Chuckie Cheese's the day after my iLasik and this was enough motivation for him to take 5-6 steps on his own between activities. A few days later he bacame a full time walker and hasn't looked back since! You can see how he looks at the world in a whole new way and is eager to conquer it. He has 2 older brothers and a puppy to keep up with you know! Just this morning he climbed on top of the train table. Watch out world here he comes!

Elton Then & Now!

Do you remember Elton's discovery of the dog door with the help of Bingo? Well not a lot has changed. If it gets quiet in the house and you are looking for Elton, it usually means he has gone out the dog door to play in the back yard. He also comes back in this way. Telling him he is not a dog has not improved the situation. In fact, then he just goes around the house on all fours pretending he is a dog!

10 Years!

October 8th marked our 10 year anniversary! It seems like the time has flown by. Last weekend we dropped the boys off with Grandpa and Grandma Bonnes and headed to Boise overnight. It has been over 1 1/2 years since Dan and I had a night away without kids so we were really excited. We had a wonderful dinner at the Melting Pot which is a fondue restaurant. We had a 3 course fondue dinner and it was wonderful! We had never been there before, but had heard many great things about it and were not disappointed.

We stayed at the Anniversary Inn in their Egypt room. When we got back from dinner we each enjoyed a 1hour massage. They were able to come to our room and just set up their massage tables which was really nice. In the morning they brought us our breakfast and then we picked up a coffee for the road trip home. We had a great time getting away!

I Can See Clearly Now........

....without contact lenses or glasses! Yesterday was the big day. Dan, the boys and I drove to Boise and I went to Restore Vision for my lasik. I mention their name because I would totally recommend them. This is all they do and obviously is their specialty. I had their intralase wave procedure that means it is the bladeless procedure that is done custom to your eye. There is no room for human error in cutting your flap as their machine does it. While I was told to not even begin to expect to start to see clearly until today, my vision was pretty clear by last evening. When I went in this morning for my post -op exam to get cleared for driving and to come home, my vision was better than he expected. It is so weird and yet totally amazing that I can see without putting something in or on my eyes. I have needed eye glasses since 5th grade!

Royal Rangers

Caleb started Royal Rangers a few weeks ago on Wednesday evenings. Elton started too, but he is considered a Rainbow. Caleb was very proud to receive his first 2 badges last night for on his vest!