November 8

It's Election Day! 

However, Election Day is also CC day, and Special Time with Grandmother day, so finding time to go vote was a challenge. Eventually, Chris and I decided to all go vote together first thing in the morning, then go out to breakfast before he went to work and we went to CC.

Shew - can you tell by the circles under my eyes and the coffee in my hand that I'm not used to being up and out of the house this early? I was glad Chris was there with me. We waited in line about 20 minutes, and right when it was our turn to vote, Eli lost it. The kid screamed the whole time I filled in my ballot. I was very thankful I had filled in a sample ballot at home, so at least I didn't have to think about my choices!

Post-voting family selfie. Lily is there, she just chose to hide behind me instead of being in the picture.

And Eli and I are still enjoying this traveling wrap!

See? He loves being wrapped. He just doesn't think he does until he's up there. 

November 6

Another day, another photo session!

Again, it was shockingly sunny and warm during my session. Is this really November? Today was a senior session, which was so much fun. I snapped this selfie while my senior changed into a second outfit.

Also, I made this stuff, which rocks my world. It's pretty amazing!

November 5

Today I had three photo sessions, and Caleb and Daisy each had a soccer game. Luckily, it was lovely out. We managed to balance all of the business and enjoy ourselves in the process! 

While I had my first two photo sessions, Chris took all four kids to Caleb's last soccer game. I was disappointed that I couldn't be there with my big camera, but one of the coaches emailed out this team picture.

I left my sessions and headed straight to the game, where I picked up Daisy and took her to her practice while Chris took the other three home for lunch. This was one of my first times watching Daisy play, and it was so much fun!

Kindergarten girls learning to play soccer is adorable. All of their Youth Small t-shirts hang down over their shorts, and they are just too cute.

Daisy was really focused on her practicing, and I can tell she has learned so much this season!

Also, she was having so much fun.

Look at her go!

And then she was done!

November 4

Friday - yay!

Even better? Chris took the day off work! A week or so ago he was sick on a Saturday, and I had to pull double-duty to get all of my stuff done, as well as the stuff he usually does. I half-jokingly told him that I was happy to handle everything while he vomited and moaned in bed all day, but that when he was better I needed a day off in compensation.

He actually remembered, and surprised me by taking the day off. What a good man!

I slept in this morning, worked on some pictures, took a few selfies in the traveling wrap,

and was finally able to tackle a sewing project:

(I chopped a woven wrap and sewed it into a pouch sling for Eli, because apparently he loves those.)

After the little ones were down for naps, Chris took the older two to the Magic House. I got to putter around and work on more photos. 

When the little ones woke up, we played outside. You know, because it was nearly 70 degrees - IN NOVEMBER.

Eli ran up and down the sidewalk.

Why Lily had a Star Wars lunchbox and a book is beyond me, but isn't she cute?

She was so happy to be outside in the sunshine!

This face. I almost didn't share this picture because it's not a "pretty" face, but that is the face of my child's pure joy and delight. Goodness, I love her.

More pictures of Lily because she is just so darn sweet. She's growing into a big girl, and less of a baby!

See what I mean?

And this boy, too. He was content to run and play with his sister, which made this mama so happy.

I can't remember why I took this picture, but I promise you that these two were scheming and plotting something.

Lily showed off her balancing skills by standing on this sloped piece of wood.

As soon as she moved on to something else, guess who was doing his best to do exactly what Lily had done? This little guy is doing everything he can to keep up with the big kids!

Chris, Caleb, and Daisy got home in time for pizza and movie night, but Chris ran back out to the store to get one more thing: 

Half a birthday cake. 

Because today was Daisy's half birthday.

We don't usually make a big deal about half-birthdays around here, but Daisy has been especially excited about hers, counting down the days for a week now. So to make it special, we got her half a cake.

Eli was fascinated.

And Daisy (who I just realized wore her "5" shirt, probably in honor of the big day!) was surprised and tickled. Sweet girl.

Happy half birthday, Daisy! Five and a half looks good on you!

November 3

Today was a MOPS day, so not a lot of pictures. I did manage to get my Thankful Tree up last night, though. It's one of my favorite traditions!

This year, Eli is the only family member not participating. Maybe next year he'll be ready!

We were getting ready to leave for MOPS this morning, and I told the kids to go get in the van. I grabbed my stuff, headed out there, and found this: 

Eli decided that the empty spot between Caleb and Daisy's car seats should be HIS spot. He sat right there and grinned at me and refused to get down. How sweet is he? He just wants to be a big kid like his siblings!

Unfortunately, I did have to wrangle him out of his spot and into his rear-facing car seat in the middle row. He wasn't happy then!

And then after MOPS, more playtime with the traveling wrap.

This is the most wrapping we've done lately, because Eli is seriously striking against it. He runs, screams, and fights when I try to put him up, but once he's up he is as happy as can be. This kid isn't even two yet, but he is developing some strong opinions!

November 2

I know. 

I've gotten way behind here.

Really, I'm way behind everywhere. But I'm doing my best, and I am not abandoning this little space yet, so don't give up on me!

This morning, I was working in the kitchen, Caleb was reading, and the younger three were... strangely quiet. I went searching for them, and found them like this, snuggled up in Lily's queen-sized bed:

Lily looked up from her book and chirped brightly, "We're having a sweep-ovfer!"

And then I died from the sweetness.

Seriously, how sweet are they?

Yesterday was a CC/speech/Special Time with Grandmother day, so today was our first post-Halloween school day. Today, we did math with candy.

Caleb and Daisy counted, sorted and categorized all of the candy. They weighed it with the digital scale.

Then they made a bar graph of the results.

I have rarely seen Caleb this engaged in anything. He loved having a job to do, and he did it well!

His writing assignment for the day was even about candy:

Caleb has made such great strides in his writing this year! At the beginning of the year, getting him to write two lines of copywork (not even original ideas!) was painful and drawn out. Now, he is writing five-sentence paragraphs. I love that his creative voice and sense of humor come through in his writing. Yes, his actual handwriting needs work, and yes, there are spelling errors, but I am so, so proud of my boy.

And then the mailman brought a traveling handwoven wrap, and it had all of my attention. This wrap is called Straight on Til Morning, and it was woven by Nicki at Wayward Wovens. I was thrilled to get a chance to play with it for a week before sending it on to its next host. Part of my hosting duties were to take a million pictures of it, and if there's anything I do well, it's millions of pictures.

Eli was napping when the wrap first arrived, so I put Lily up in it. She was happy to oblige.

Pretty colors!

Then Eli woke up. He didn't want to cooperate as much.

Cute baby toes!

Then Daisy fell and bonked her head, and wouldn't you know it - she wanted to go up. 

Fine by me!

(No, Mom, she wasn't really that hurt. She was making a dramatic face for the picture.)

October 31

Happy Halloween!

Facebook reminded me today of all sorts of cute pictures of the kids on Halloween in years past, so I took some time this morning to put together a collage of our little family's Halloween costumes over the years.

Isn't it fun to see how the kids - and our family! - have grown over the years? I love that Eli is wearing the same costume in 2015 that Caleb wore in 2009. It's a nice little completion of the circle.

This year's costumes were haphazard and last-minute, but the kids were all really happy.

Lily was a ballerina. Can you tell that she feels so beautiful?

This was her ballerina pose.

Daisy was initially going to be a princess, but when she saw the ghost costume I made for Caleb, she decided that she wanted to be a skeleton ghost, too. I dug her size 4T skeleton pjs out of storage, and threw a ghost costume together for her, and she was thrilled.

(I am fairly certain that she was "in character" for the photo above, hence her facial expression.)

This was her spooky pose.

Caleb was also a very creepy skeleton ghost, and he was thrilled with his costume.

And then there was Eli. We tried his beloved giraffe costume, a storm trooper helmet, and this worker man outfit. None stuck. In the end, I threw Lily's 3T skeleton shirt on him as we walked out the door so that at least he had some type of costume!

My four little ghouls on Halloween 2016, next to our pumpkins that were smooshed and wilted from the unseasonably warm weather.

And then we were off! We had hot dogs and played with friends at the neighborhood party, and then Chris took the big kids trick-or-treating while Eli and I went home to greet the handful of trick-or-treaters who visited our house. 

Lily was in her element tonight, and she led the way up to most houses, proudly saying, "Trick or Treat!" and then, when each person inevitably commented on how scary Caleb and Daisy were, declaring, "I not 'pooky. I a ballerwina."

Funny girl.

Chris says it was the best Halloween yet, and the kids had so much fun.