Halloween 2008

We picked Ben up from school, where he was already in his costume (Ninja) and ready to go! We got Abigail dressed in her Tootsie Roll costume and we walked to Treats on East Street, an event that Hutto puts on to provide a safe "trick-or-treating" environment for the kids. Local businesses line East Street and hand out candy and other goodies. Ben always sees friends from school, which is fun. We saw his teacher, who informed us that he did not take a nap today...YIKES! Ben and Karl (our neighbor, also 3 yrs old) had a lot of fun together. We headed home, picking up McDonald's on the way. We hung out at our neighbors while the boys played. When it got dark, we took them down the street in the wagon and went trick-or-treating at...wait for it...FOUR houses!!! That's all the boys could handle. They really wanted to head back to Karl's house and play. So they did. And I took Abigail home to feed her and get her ready for bed. It was a great night.

Abigail gets her bottle on the go.

This is Cash...a classmate of Ben's before Ben moved to the older class.

Posing for a picture with Mama. Benjamin and Karl race cars.

Lollipops, whoohoo!!!

DANCING!

Posing with Karl on Henrietta the HippoAbigail took a nap in Daddy's arms.

5 MONTHS OLD!!!

We celebrated Abigail's 5 month birthday by going to Aunt Callie's for dinner. Abigail was in a great mood the whole time, despite the fact that she woke up from her last nap at 1:45!!! We got to visit with Callie's friends, Mark and Monica. They are expecting their first baby (GIRL) later this month, so it was fun visiting with them. Thanks for having us over, Callie. Dinner was yummy, as usual!

Random Pictures

Storytime with Daddy...although Abigail appears to be much more interested in Benjamin.

Benjamin is so proud of this cool structure he built with his Mega Blocks. Thanks for the Halloween Mr. Potato Head, Granny! Ben showing off the letter E that he wrote ALL BY HIMSELF...such a big boy!

Trip to Lytle-Lots of Pictures

We were so fortunate to be able to make a trip to Lytle and see LOTS of family. My cousin, Aaron, was in town and it has been soooo long since we've seen him...that was nice. We also got to see Papo's war medals and hear some amazing stories of his war experiences. Abigail was suffering from allergies AGAIN! She tried to hang in there.

Here is Abigail with Mamo.

Cousins-Ricky, Larry, and AaronLena and Avery
Papo looking at his newest granddaughter. Dan may be watching football :). Benjamin and Tyler were so excited to see each other. They got into ALL kinds of mischief together! Don't they just look like they are up to something???
Here is a nice windmill in Aunt Olga's backyard-I just had to take a picture.

Papo with his grandsons.

We dressed all of the cousins in their costumes and attempted pictures...here are a few of the best ones...sorry about the camera in the pic, there were so many people snapping shots!

Abigail is a tootsie roll, in case you can't tell. Mama and Abigail
Papo shares war medals and memories with his great-grandchildren. Two of his many medals are the Purple Heart and the Bronze Star.
Now he shares his stories with the family...he remembers it all so well. Mamo and Papo with their children...all but Uncle Robert who lives in Corpus Christi. Aunt Olga and Uncle Richard have this ridiculously big Texas foam hand. Cayden put it on right away, but Ben was reluctant (good boy!). He did end of putting it on, but not until right before we left. I captured the moment, just for Uncle Richard. Callie, Abigail, and SaraAunt Shirl and Abigail
Aaron and Benjamin Family Visiting

Natalya and Abigail The boys are playing soccer (Zeus, too...he did such a good job).
Clarissa and Abigail

Benjamin finally slows down and just sits and watches the boys play soccer.

Ninja!!!

Thought we'd try on Ben's costume and snap a picture...I imagine we will be so busy on Halloween, I wanted to make sure we have a good pic. This is the first year that I don't get to pick out a super-cute costume for Benjamin...he chose to be a Ninja. Oh well, I had fun for the three years when he was too young to be offended by his costumes...a skunk, chicken, and a kangaroo. I'll try to find pics of him in those costumes and add them to this post later.

It is so funny how good Ben's 'ninja moves' are!

Jumperoo!!!

Abigail had her first ride in the Jumperoo. She didn't know what to think at first, but she quickly realized she really liked this jumpy thing!

Hutto Old Tyme Days 2008

Every year, Hutto hosts the "Hutto Old Tyme Days" festival. They have games for the kids, lots of booth, and yummy food. Ben always enjoys seeing his friends from school at this festival.

All Ready for the Hutto Old Tyme Days Festival

Pretty Girl

Aren't these little boots adorable? They used to be Avery's.

Aaarghhh, Matey!

Benjamin did a great job of throwing the ball through the holes!

And of course, Benjamin loved getting a lollipop for a prize...here he is with Daddy-and his lollipop.

Home Depot offered a great activity for the kids. They were able to build tool boxes. Daddy helped Benjamin with this task. They had a wonderful time.

Daddy reviews the instructions as Benjamin tests out his hammer.

Benjamin had a special hammering technique...he held onto both the handle and the head.
Finishing up the tool box.