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Landry's Loot...

we had a ton of fun tonight...

great friends and family (Mamo & Papojoined us for a super special treat)...

lots of trick-or-treating with the most well behaved kiddos....

lots of candy (way more than necessary)...

fantastic costumes...

glow sticks...

tons of pictures from the "mommarazzi"...

Happy Halloween!

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Uncle Julio's...

Bobby's parents flew in last night to surprise the girls for a weekend visit. It was the.greatest. surprise and I will have tons of details and pictures from our busy weekend soon!

We went to one of our very favorite restaurants for dinner today and it was totally yummy! Landry was getting a little restless so we headed outside to let her walk around a bit while the boys finished things up. I snapped this cute pic while they were warming their hands by the fire. Landry wasn't quite sure why Ashton and Mamo were getting so close to the fire if it was hot. She kept saying "hot, hot, hot" over and over with a confused look on her face.

But as you can see, she quickly figured out it was okay since her sissy and her Mamo were doing it!

After dinner we headed home for "movie night" which was extra special with Mamo and Papo joining us!

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Ashton's first official report card with GRADES is in this envelope....

...and we are super proud of our Biggest Little Girl!

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ahhhh...


...freshly cleaned carpets...

...by a professional....

ONE OF MY FAVORITE THINGS!
(I could seriously have this done weekly and I would be tha-rilled)

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Daddy's Carving Skills...

Tonight we finished carving our pumpkins. We carved Ashton's at the Leonards last night, but ran out of time since it was a school night so Daddy did Landry's tonight.

Many more details and pics to come soon on our blog!

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rain boots and pumpkins....

We have been trying to get out to our "usual pumpkin patch" for literally the entire month of October. It is pretty difficult to find a time when 5 adults and 6 kids are able to go especially with work, soccer, softball, and other activities and events. We actually had a date set on the calendar, but that was when Ashton was sick so we couldn't go. Our sweet friends waited to go so we could all go together.

Well....the weather hasn't cooperated at all! Today we had planned on going, but it rained all day long! So for plan B we put on our rain boots and rain coats and headed to a pumpkin tent here in town instead. I have a bunch of pictures and details to post on our regular blog.

For the record....and I know everyone will be shocked, but this was the best picture I could get of the two girls before we left. Landry didn't really want to cooperate. She was more interested in actually taking the picture and looking at it on the camera.

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a note for Daddy....

While the Leonard girls were here today, they watched a movie in our bedroom while Landry and Carly were taking their naps. When Bobby got home from the Cowboy game he went in to change his clothes and found this note from Ashton and Macy. They had found this penny on his bedside table and wanted to make sure he didn't lose it again.

We thought this was too cute! I will say it again...I love these girls so much!!

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Today we went to a Halloween Party thrown by the Deckers. It was a ton of fun as usual when you get {most} of our Crew together. Miss Beth let each of the big kids decorate their very own pumpkin....this is one side of Ashton's two-sided pumpkin.

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Landry's Perfect Lil Pumpkin....

Today Landry and I went to the pumpkin patch with two of her little friends. She was so excited and had an absolute ball...details and more pics on the family blog soon!

She got to pick out her very own little pumpkin. She picked up a few before she found "the one".

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just another reason why I LOVE fall...

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"pockles"

Ashton LOVES to have sparkles on her toes and has since she was about two years old. I bought some new sparkles for her the other day and since today was a special "flip flop" day at school we put on the new sparkles last night.

Well....this evening Landry noticed the sparkles on Ashton's toes. She kept asking over and over and over "dat?" "dat?" so we told her they were sparkles. Ashton said, "Aren't they pretty on sis' toes?" Landry replied with a very excited "yesssssssth".

It didn't take LP long to start pointing to her toes and saying, " I pockles. I pockles....peeese". She went on and on so I decided why not. I was going to wait until she was two, but since we were having a girls night watching DWTS, we did it.

She was THA-RILLED! I mean you have no idea how excited she was. She sat still and watched so intently with a big smile on her face. As soon I as finished, she said "I walk, I walk". Ashton blew on them to get them to dry quicker and poor Landry only knows that you blow on things when they are hot. She was so confused.

Anyway, she was beyond tickled that she had "pockles" just like her Big Sis. The funniest and most difficult part was me trying to get a picture of their feet together. This was the best I could get. Landry wanted to walk her sparkles around and look at them on the camera before I could even get a picture!

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Landry has a new trick...

I think she may have turned into a monkey or is turning into a big girl. She climbs up on everything.

She can climb up onto our bed which is pretty high for a 21 month old, she tries to climb up into her booster seat at the table, and she has decided she can climb up into a chair at the table by herself. The only problem is that she hasn't figured out how to get down from the chair yet so we usually hear a "hep peese, hep peese".



She climbed up in my chair while we were getting dinner on the table and was ready to eat! I love how nothing but her head sticks up from the table!

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"A Shape Poem"

Ashton has been learning about poems in school and recently they learned to write shape poems. You basically turn your paper and follow the shape of whatever your topic is. For example, a poem about a snail is coiled around to look like the shell. {I hope this makes sense or jogs your memory of when you learned about these.}

Today she really, really wanted to make a Halloween Shape Poem for her teacher and poor Landry just wanted to "color" with her sissy. So in the midst of trying satisfy Little Miss Landry, Ashton did manage to finish her shape poem.

Here is the poem...The Wich

"My skin is green. I fly thorw the night on a broom with my pet spider on my back hunting for lizerds for my feast, taking fly hairs for my meat, flying to my hunted house, to cook my feast".

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the costume is finished!

Today we put the finishing touches on Ashton's Halloween costume. She LOVES it and is so happy with the way it turned out! She even insisted on trying the entire thing on and modeling for Daddy. She twirled in the full length mirror for a long time checking out every little detail. She also wanted me to take some pictures of her in it even though I will be taking a gazillion on Halloween, but I was happy to oblige.

I am just glad it is finished. I am glad she loves it even if it looks like her Mommy made it...it was what she really wanted to be so we made it work. It isn't perfect and I had to get over that, but as long as she likes it...that is what matters to me!

She is dying to wear it and wishes she could wear it tomorrow, but it will have to sit in the guest room for a little while longer!

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this shirt is "tolerated"{not liked or accepted} in our house....

for this day only...

because you if you go to the UT/OU game you have to wear orange or red....

and we live in Texas and we are NOT Oklahoma fans...

and the friends he went with are UT fans....

so we {Ashton and I } tolerate Daddy being a Horns fan....

for a few hours on this day ONLY!

*thank goodness he isn't one all the time....not sure how I would handle it! We are glad Daddy had a good time at the game today even if the game wasn't all that exciting.

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a new joint in town...

We FINALLY tried out a new-ish burger place in town. We had heard great things about Moo-yah Burger and wanted to try it for ourselves. This evening we had a few errands to run and we thought we could be in and out of this place pretty quickly and we were right.

Everyone liked it...not loved it, but liked it enough to go back again...and the next time we will have to try one of their milkshakes!

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"I just wants to play some softball!"

With all the rain we have had the last several weeks, we havemany canceled games, which means we will have to make them up on weekdays in the coming weeks.

Ashton was supposed to have a "make up" game tonight, and even though the sun came out this afternoon, the fields were way too muddy. She started crying today when I told her her game was canceled. In the middle of her tears she said, "I just really wanna play some softball! They really shouldn't have a softball team if all it is going to do is rain all the time!"

Poor girl! Her uniform has been hanging in the closet for over a week just waiting for a game. The good news is, we get to play on Saturday! No rain in the forecast! Yipppppeeeeee!

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Ahhhh....FINALLY....

This is a picture of a shadow which only happens when there good ole Texas Sunshine! We have had rainy, dreary days for weeks now with very little sunshine.

The day started out rainy, misty, foggy, and just plain yucky...so yucky that Landry's playgroup didn't get to make it out to the pumpkin patch this morning. After lunch the sun started to shine and the wet mess is trying to dry out!

Sunshine makes me happy! Maybe now it will hold off for a bit and Ashton get some more of her softball games played. We have had to reschedule more than we have played!

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This kid is a HOOT!

One of Lan-Lan P's newest obsessions these days is to put on socks. She doesn't care who the socks belong too, she doesn't even care if the socks are clean!

This morning Daddy was getting ready for his meeting and our littlest girl came in the bathroom wearing Daddy's socks. She walked around like it was no big deal. The funniest part was looking at her from the back...the heels of the socks were sticking out like knobs. {I tried to get a picture but she wouldn't stay turned around long enough}

Yesterday she wore a pair of Ashyon's socks all day! I can't wait to see what her next new "thing" is!

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another goody from Mamo & Papo...

This fun and giant spider web was another fun find in the goody box that Mamo & Papo sent the girls. Ashton has been begging me to put it up, but we just couldn't decide on the best place since it was so big.

Well....today we found the perfect spot....in the playroom! This doorway goes from the playroom to the kitchen. The girls love it and it is out of Landry's reach which means I won't have to re-hang it a million times and it won't get ruined!

Thanks for the fun Halloween decor Mamo & Papo!

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testing my novice sewing skills once again....

You see....in my head, things seem so easy to sew that I often think I can do it. This year I am making....yes I said making part of Ashton's Halloween costume. The reason for this is simple....the original costume costs over $100 with all the pieces if we were to order it from the catalog she discovered it in. I am NOT ever going to spend $100 on a costume that will get worn twice for a total of a few hours.

Since Ashton really wanted this costume, I told her I could make it if she wanted me to or she could pick something else. She opted for me making it.

Today I worked on part of it....I will reveal the finished product when it gets closer to Halloween and I have it finished. Wish me luck that I can pull this off!

You'd think I am sewer or something, but really I am soooo not. The only classes I have were many moons ago in my middle school Home Ec class. All I can say is thank goodness for the internet tutorials, you tube and pictures!

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Homemade Applesauce...

I have wanted to make applesauce in the crock pot since fall started, but I was waiting for the weather to get a bit cooler. I thought it would be fun for Ashton and Landry to help with and I couldn't wait for the way it would make our house smell as it was slow cooking.

I decided that since we are stuck in the house with a sick girl, this would be a fun thing to do. Since today's weather was nice and cool it was just perfect. The only thing is, the girls weren't able to help since one has a cold and the other has the flu. They did serve as excellent tasters though!

When the girls got up this morning, I told Ashton we were going to make our own applesauce. She said, "I already know how to do it...you just cut the apples and smash 'em and then you have applesauce." I explained she was on the right track, but that there was little more to it.

So I made the applesauce in the crock pot....our house smelled delicious! The girls were so excited and they loved it! Ashton had hers with dinner and the rest of us had it over ice cream for dessert.....yummmmmmooooo!

I just want my poor girl to feel better....this made her smile so it was a success! And Landry, well this girl loves her some "applesot" any way you give it to her. Her preferred way is to drink it with a straw like she does her yogurt...the ice cream was a hit too and might be how she requests it at breakfast in the morning!

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Ashton's Crafty Creation....

The other day the girls got a "Halloween Treat Box" in the mail from Mamo & Papo. Inside this box was a fun Candy Corn Craft. Ashton couldn't wait to make these cute lil' candy corns. So since she stayed home sick, she made the time at home a little more fun by working on these.

She put a set in a baggy for her friends to make one of their own and then she made a bunch of the ones that were left. After she finished, she asked me what we were going to do with them. After a little brainstorming, we decided to make "Candy Corn Garland" to hang on the mantle.

We think these little guys are cute and the best part about this decoration....our Bee-Gee made it!

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ewwww....the flu???

I am pretty sure Little Miss Ashton Raley has the flu. She all of a sudden yesterday evening got tired and said she was hot ...she looked a little on the pale side and felt warm. We took her temperature and sure enough, she had a low grade fever.

Once we gave her some Tylenol, she felt a ton better...imagine that! She was so disappointed that she was missing school today and will miss school again tomorrow. I called the doctor and if she has a fever tomorrow...which they said she probably will....then we need to bring her in for a flu test. The flu is going around her school...nice! I was so hoping it would bypass us...she is usually never sick...I can count the number of times on my hands and most of that has been in the past year.

We have been keeping the girls separated as much as possible {not that it will do any good since I am sure Landry has already been infected} but we are trying. So now our bar is home to the thermometer for frequent temperature checks {Landry thinks she needs hers checked every time we check Ashton's} along with Tylenol and Motrin.

We are watching her cough, breathing, temp, and pushing her with lots of fluids. This is not fun at all! I am crossing my fingers that no one else gets it!

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A Surprise in the Mail...

Today the girls received two packages in the mail from Mamo & Papo. It was their annual Halloween treats. Since they don't get to trick-or-treat at their house, Mamo & Papo usually send them some treats...which the girls love!

These boxes had some candy, some fruit snacks, some crafts, some books, cards for each of the girls, some decorations, and some things we left at their house this summer. It was a big hit and it made their day.

Thanks Mamo & Papo!

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seriously...

Today as I was doing the girls' laundry, I put their load of darks in and felt something unusual while I was carrying it. After I stuffed it all in the washer, this is what I found....seriously?!

My darling 7 year old took off the denim skirt she wore on Friday....belt and all....and put in her clothes hamper. How did she manage to get it off? She didn't even undo the belt. Seriously....this is a first...good thing I found it before I turned the washer on.

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bye-bye bumper!

Today we took the bumper pad out of Landry's crib. It would still be there if she hadn't pulled on it so hard that she ripped one of the tied strings completely off!

This is one of those things that I am really sad for it to be gone...I will never ever have another crib with a bumper in it. Although, I do have to say that I am not going to miss the hassle that I go through every time I wash her bedding~not even a little bit. It is a MAJOR pain to tie all those ties!

She did just fine at nap so we will see how tonight goes. Her crib looks so strange to me now that her bumper is gone....she didn't notice or if she did, she didn't say anything!

*I apologize for the blurry picture...I didn't realize it was blurry until just now and she is in bed so I can bust in and take another one. You at least get the idea.

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Football Sunday...

...is SERIOUS in this house! Bobby likes to get all of our running around done on Saturdays so he can firmly plant his behind on the couch all day and watch football. We have NFL Sunday Ticket which is the greatest invention...we get every game that is played! He has his laptop set up so he can follow his fantasy leagues, keep up with the "red zones" so he knows when to to change the channel. He does a lot of channel flipping!

The girls and I love some football, but not enough to stop me from doing things I need to do. We are in some "pick 'em" leagues with our families and play fantasy football with my family all for fun and bragging rights.

Today was a perfect football weather day...too bad both of our teams lost...the Chiefs and the Cowboys. Darn {or Snap as Ashton says}!

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shopping for fall....

Today we headed to the mall to get the girls a few things for fall....not the whole wardrobe, but some things to get us started. Landry wasn't in a great mood but was super excited that she actually got to try on clothes in the dressing room~just like Ashton!

Ashton loves to shop as long as she gets something out of it and her most favorite part is walking out of the dressing room to show Daddy the clothes....you know, like a fashion model on the runway. The three way mirrors are a huge fave of hers right now!

Daddy snapped a few pics...this one was specifically for my 365! I love that his mind thinks this way especially since I was busy dressing kids!

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Random....

This is a picture of Landry's collection of things in the drawer of our end table. She loves this little drawer which is in the table by our couches. I had to clear the drawer a long time ago because she was constantly taking things out of it and wouldn't leave it alone. Once I took everything out, she lost interest....for a while.

She has discovered this drawer once again and she loves to put random things in there. Today while I was cleaning she was playing so nicely and chatting to herself. I came to see what she was doing and she was showing me all of her "stuff" in this drawer and she was telling me all about it. She was quite impressed with herself!

This is one of the things I love about having kids....and I love her little toddler mind! The funny thing is she always knows where she puts things.

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snotty/stuffy nose faves....

Landry woke up this morning with a bunch of sneezing along with a stuffy/runny nose. So I busted out our favorite products once again. The funny thing is that she loves the saline drops and will lay down and let me suck out her snot with a bulb syringe and put some saline drops in.

Our house smells like Vicks in addition to our fall scented Wallflowers! Isn't that nice? She is in a great mood and has no other symptoms, but we hanging out at home...we don't want to spread our germs!