Fall is in the Air

Fall is my FAVORITE time of year, so here are a few highlights from our Fall festivities:

Cole's First Day of Preschool (complete with sourdough hot cakes!!)




Hoosier Outdoor Experience (it was an experience -- I took the boys alone because Russ was out of town!)





Garrett's new obsession is bells and cymbals - we have a high volume household! (not really a fall activity, but it is at our house - notice the gloves he is wearing; you can only play bells with gloves on, so he always has a pair nearby!)



Tuttle Apple Orchard -- we've been three times!





Cole's first year of soccer with the YMCA -- Go Wizards!!



Hoosier State Park - at the top of the Fire Tower


The Fire Tower -- all 110 feet and 123 steps


Family picture our hike


Cole throwing rocks into Lake Monroe


Dinner at Mother Bear's Pizza on IU campus - great pizza!

Hard WORK Paid Off

Cole worked so hard doing chores and finally earned enough money to buy his Dinoco trailer. Russ made a deal with Cole that he would pay for half of it -- the darn toy cost $22, and since he was only paid .25 cents for each chore, it took a while! But, after about a month of chores (he had to do 50 total) he reached his goal. The only problem: the stores were all out of the Dinoco trailers. Uuuggghhh!

This toy is an exclusive of Target, so you can only get it there. I wanted Cole to earn the money and then go to the store and buy it after he had enough (I'm trying to teach a principle, right?). I wanted him to feel good about all of his hard work when he got it. I called all the Target stores in the area and none of them had the trailer. So, I got online. I had seen it on target.com a few days prior, but when I looked again they were not even available online. Uuuggghhh!

So, now what do I do? Here I am trying to teach a great principle about the rewards of working and the reward is available. At this point I seriously started praying for a solution. I didn't know what to do. Russ went on a weekend trip with his brothers, brother-in-law, and father to Texas (more on that on another post...), so I begged him to try and find a Target in his travels. He sent me a text that said, "How much do you love me?" and a picture with his brother, Bryan, holding the Dinoco trailer. Yes-- success!! Even if we had to go to Texas to get it, it was worth it! After I picked Cole up from preschool I just handed him my cell phone and he took one look at the picture and squealed. To say he was thrilled is a huge understatement. Off and on for the rest of the day he check the picture on my phone, just to make sure it was really still there.

Russ got home last Sunday night, so on Monday morning Cole raced into our room and Russ gave the Dinoco trailer to him. Russ told me that he was so excited, but put the trailer down, ran over to him, and gave him a big hug and said, "Thanks, Dad!" We just can't get over how grateful he was, amid the excitement. So, I guess all in all this has been a great lesson for all of us. I am so proud to have such a darling little guy as my son... how did I ever get to lucky?

Here is the Dinoco trailer -- so glad to have it in his little hands!


Cole even had to sleep by his new trailer on Monday night.


The trucks all arranged and ready for bed

Summer Recap

This summer was kind of a blur with Russ' graduation from Orthodontic school, Grandpa and Gradma Guymon visiting us in Iowa, a trip to Utah (with Russ fishing and a quick trip to Vegas for me), moving from Iowa to Indiana, Grandma Jacobson visiting our new home, visiting cousins in Oklahoma and Texas, Russ starting his new job, local and state fairs, swimming at the neighborhood pool... it has been a busy summer! Here is a quick photo tour:

The Indiana State Fair -- are we in the mid-west or what?!


Milkin' a cow at the State Fair


Cole and his goggles -- I had to pry them off of him. He always had raccoon eyes after we went to the pool


Garrett on his new trike -- that pedaling sure is hard!



The REAL route 66 (for you Cars fans) -- Ramon's building was copied after this


The boys with their cousin, Stanely, in OK -- it was their first meeting!


Garrett riding Coney, his cousin's dog, at their home in Oklahoma


Playing with cousins, Joshua and Grace, at their home in Texas


At the Splash Pad in Amarillo, TX, with cousins (Russ had more fun than the kids, and was more wet!!)


Visiting a local fair -- we always have to stop by the pigs!


Grandma Jake reading "Umpy" -- a book my Grandma Kennedy used to read me


The moving truck -- don't want to do that again in the near future


Me and my cute friend, Kelsie, that I visited in Vegas


Jumping on the tramp with Uncle Landon and dog, Gus -- a crazy combination


Doing chores with Grandpa Jake -- the boys loved it and wanted to go every day


In Nauvoo with Grandpa and Grandma Guymon

Chores for Change

Cole has recently fallen in love with the Dinoco Trailer from the Cars movie. We decided to have him do chores to make money to buy it himself. He gets 25 cents for each extra chore that he does. Dishes, dusting, moping, sweeping, etc. are types of chores that he has been doing. It has been a really good lesson for him, but I think I have learned more than he has. I've learned that I haven't taken the time to teach them HOW to do simple chores -- it was easier to do them myself. With Cole helping I have also had to learn how to let him do it HIS way, not mine, and to be happy with the results.

So, Cole is learning the value of hard work and money (not to mention the 10% tithing to be paid before he buys the Dinoco Trailer). Aren't life lessons great!!

Mopping -- isn't he the cutest worker?!


Sweeping - he asked me, "How do you get under the table?" I guess he figured it out!


Wiping off the table -- I think it might be dirtier after his feet have been on the table, but at least he was able to reach all of the spots!!

Home Sweet Home

We are finally starting to feel settled in our new home and city. We never would have imagined that after six years of dental and orthodontic school that we would still be in the mid-west. But, we are really enjoying it here and have been so surprised at how wonderful our neighbors and ward have been. I already feel at home at church and know a few girls that I feel comfortable calling. We're not sure why the Lord pointed us this direction, but we are glad to be here!!

Cole and Garrett have already become friends with all of the neighborhood kids. They are the youngest, so we have built-in baby sitters whenever they come to play. Garrett has a crush on our little neighbor Kierstie and thinks she is the best thing since sliced bread. She carries him around and dotes on him and will be the perfect baby sitter. Cole's favorite friend is Peter and I think the two of them might become a little mischievous. I'll have to keep my eyes on the two of them!

I am enjoying having a house of my own (I'm thirty and it's my first home -- FINALLY!) and have all sorts of projects planned in my head. If only the funds were unlimited, I could have some real fun! The best thing about our house is that it feels like home and has since the day we moved in. I love how it "feels" and know we are in the right place.

Here are a few pictures of our house so far. We have a living room with no furniture, the master bedroom and bathroom that needs some paint, and Russ' office is still a mess (he is in bad need of a book shelf), but the rest of the rooms are looking pretty good and are done for now. Now it's time for "real life" and we are all looking forward to getting back into a routine.

Cole's room - my mom and I had fun painting the stripes. The teepee isn't usually in there, but was the day we took pictures. I love the stripes and his name. We are planning to put up a cork board for all of his preschool pictures.


I love Cole's bedspread, but he definitely needs a bed skirt!!


The family room (sorry the sun is so bright) right off of the kitchen.


My mom and Garrett painting - I think my mom smelled enough paint fumes that week to last a life time. We painted five rooms while she was here. My mom is such a hard worker. She totally wore me out! At sixty-one she can work circles around me!!


Garrett's room. We just moved him into a "big bed" with rockets and stars. He even has glow-in-the-dark stars on his ceiling (thanks Aunt Teresa!).



The toy room - hopefully someday it will be a baby's room, but for now it is an awesome playroom. The walk-in closet also has my scrapbooking table up in it. It is a great multi-purpose room!!


The kitchen - I love how open and spacious it is. It gets the morning sun which I love!



The wall of black and white pictures - one of my favorite things in my house


Russ failed to take a picture of the basketball court and hoop in the backyard. He had to buy a new basketball as soon as we moved in. He has loved shooting hoops. We put a little hoop up for the little boys so they won't feel left out. We also have a playset for the boys in the back. They have loved playing on it. Our neighborhood also has a community pool, so we have spent a bunch of time playing in the water as well. We sure are enjoying our new home! Feel free to stop by for a visit!!