I never came back to share a Halloween photo!  The kids had so much fun.  This was the first year that I had absolutely no influence in Reese's costume.  She was dead set on being Buzz Lightyear, and there was no way she was being persuaded.  She specifically wanted to be Buzz Lightyear with wings (which were an extra $10, of course).   I thought it was so cute that she so clearly knew what she wanted to be.  Buzz Lightyear obviously needs his sidekick, Woody, and we had a very willing volunteer to fill the role. :)

You know that saying about the shoemaker's kids never having shoes?  (or whatever that saying is?)  Well, we haven't updated our family photos since Charlie was a newborn.  So, the weekend before Halloween, my friend Morgan and I did a family photo session swap.  Unfortunately, the weather was dreary and cold and Charlie wasn't really in the mood for photos.  Sigh.  We managed to sneak in a few good shots before the sun went down, and the next day, I dragged my mom out to a park with us to try again.  Which was equally disastrous.  But between the two attempts, I think I have enough photos to replace the newborn pictures on the walls. :)

The very first photo of the night is pretty much the money shot.  :)

 A little game of Ring Around The Rosie to try to make Charlie happy. :)

 And take two….

Really Charlie.  Mommy just wants one %&$#(*&(*#$% nice family photo for the walls!

I finally gave up on a nice posed photo.  All Charlie wanted was the toys and a book that my mom had brought along.  So we sat and read a book.  I was totally content with getting a great photo of us interacting as a family.  And we did get one.  Unfortunately, Reese, who was otherwise extremely cooperative for pictures, decided that this would be the perfect moment to fetch a booger.

Oh well.  If you need a smile, tickle them like crazy. :)

We brought Bailey along for photos because I really wanted to get a nice picture of her with the kids.

Before we left, Matt took the camera and asked if I wanted some pictures of Bailey and I together.  I'm so glad he did.  These pictures mean SO much to me. :)

Our sweet first baby is getting old.  She's 11, which is like, really old in Golden Retriever years.  Overall, she is in great health, and we are so grateful for that.  She gave us quite the scare last week though.  On Thursday night, she started limping really badly all of a sudden. She was hardly able to walk, and Matt had to carry her up the stairs to bed that night.  The next morning, it took everything she had to be bribed down the stairs.  Once I got her down there, I couldn't get her to move.  She was so lethargic, and obviously in pain.  After a call to Matt to come home, he carried her to the car and we headed to the vet.  We got to the vet….and Bailey RAN inside.  ??????  We were puzzled.  The vet couldn't pinpoint an injury, and said that she could have sprained something, or that it's possible that she could have had a stroke.  She was super lethargic and didn't move much for the next 24 hours, but now she seems pretty much back to normal, thank goodness.  I don't know what that little episode was for sure, but it definitely hit home that we are very blessed to have Bailey here as part of our family. 

But on a happier note….Reese is doing really, really well in school.  She loves it so much, and we are seeing some really awesome changes in her.  She has become SO much more comfortable in social situations, especially with kids her age, and it is awesome to see her interact with kids on her level.  We had parent teacher conferences a couple weeks ago, and her teacher had wonderful things to say about her progress and her role in the classroom.  This gal makes my heart burst. :)

She has become even more independent than she already was since starting school, and we are really trying to encourage her independence and giving her more ways to help around the house.  She really thrives when she is given tasks and ways to help.  At school, the kids prepare their own snacks, including peeling and cutting their fruits and vegetables, so that's one of the things we have started incorporating at home.  We got her a vinyl knife so she can do her own cutting.

She has been helping me wash vegetables.

She even peels them. :)

We recently streamlined the toy room, and Charlie has been really interested in puzzles.  Reese is an awesome helper. 

She has been really into art lately.  She loves to draw and color.  

She wasn't feeling so good on this day.  She had croup, and I thought some hot tea might help her cough.  She thoroughly enjoyed our tea party. :)

And, of course, our sweet, sweet Charlie.  This boy is the most cuddly, loving little buddy.  He's also hit a really intense tantrum phase.   Yesterday, he literally threw a 90 minute temper tantrum.  There was nothing I could do to calm him down or stop his fit.  Crazy tantrums are definitely becoming a norm around here.  But when he isn't trowing insane fits, he's pretty adorable.  He loves my rocking horse that I had as a kid.  He gets so crazy on it, I'm always afraid he's going to get hurt, but it's pretty cute.  And he's pretty tough. :)