Pumpkin Carving

This is one of our favorite traditions, our annual pumpkin carving. I love the looks on the kids' faces when they dig their hands into the gooey mess, it is priceless.

This was Pierce's first year that he willingly participated. At first he just pulled faces and enjoyed putting the lid on and off, but after a few minutes he really got into it.
For Pierce's pumpkin we did a Mickey Mouse. He is SO into Mickey. He really loves it and every time he sees it he yells Mi Mo.


Allee, our sweet princess chose Princess Aurora. She is going to be Aurora for Halloween and thought her pumpkin should match what she was going to be.

Isn't it amazing what templates on the computer can to? I love it because neither Derek or I are artistic, but every year we seem to get a little better at taping the paper on the pumpkin and slowly tracing the lines with a nail. I think these are our best work yet, and the kids get excited to see their own pumpkin.

Moving

Well, here I go with my first post since the big move. It has been a crazy week full of up's and down's. I thought I'd just share a few.

Up: I finished the Halloween costumes in time. Aurora and a fireman, what could be cuter?

Down: Saying goodbye to our kids rooms. There are so many wonderful memories that were made in these rooms, and it was really difficult for me to leave them, OK let's be honest, I had a couple of major breakdowns during the packing and moving process.

Down: Obviously saying goodbye to our family. Just before we left we had a great time playing in the leaves at my parents house. We have been very blessed to have them around so much, and I don't quite know how we are going to adjust without them.

Trees. When our kids were born we planted trees for them, Allee has an Autumn Blaze Maple which turns this vibrant color in the fall, when she was born.

Pierce's tree is a Deborah Maple and gets yellow flowers in the Spring, the season he was born in. The leaves become a deep green in the summertime and in the fall they turn this beautiful golden yellow. I just hope the new homeowners love these trees as much as I have. I told Derek we will definately be planting these same trees in every home we live in.

Up: The kids are adjusting better than I thought they would. This morning Allee and Pierce played this game for 20 minutes while Derek and I were downstairs unpacking a few more boxes. I never noticed how well they play together. Pierce is copying everything Allee does and The way he has changed in a week is remarkable to me (or maybe I was just too busy with my own things to notice it).

The fun of an unfurnished house. The first morning we woke up here was quite an adventure. The kids slept on the floor and Derek and I on a blow up mattress. Breakfast was on the dining room floor with plastic bowls and spoons. The kids had fun just running all over and being crazy, I could let them and not worry because there was absolutely nothing they could hurt!

The biggest up, is that we are all together. I am very blessed to have these three and I know that through this move we will be stronger. I trust Heavenly Father that we will have all we need and there is something He wants us to learn here in Missouri, I am just not sure what it is yet.

Family Ties

Now that we are on the countdown to our move to Missouri we took some time to create memories with those we love the most, our FAMILIES.

Just the Bolduc girls.

It really has been amazing how close I have grown to my sisters. We would fight like cats and dogs growing up, and now I see them or talk to them at least a couple times a week. We do a lot together and I never thought that would happen. I am really going to miss them. We probably still drive my Mom crazy, but looking at this picture you can sure tell there is a lot of love in their home.

Well what can I say about the boys, up until I got married it would have been just Dad in the picture. Their numbers are slowly increasing and it is amazing how great brothers are.
The Carlsen girls.
It is amazing how much the family has changed since I joined it, those girls keep growing up! I remember when they were just tiny. Derek's mom is great about getting everyone together for birthdays and keeping the family connected with what everyone is doing.

The Boys. The picture describes them perfectly. They are WAAAY to good, and they know it.

Allee's 5th Birthday

I cannot believe this little one is 5. In my mind there is no way five years have passed. Allee is a gift to our family. How did this 8 lb 9 oz chubby cutie turn into this . .
As you can see she is definitely her dad's girl. She wanted a Bears jersey so she could cheer with her dad when they watch football.

It is amazing to watch Allee grow. She is all about Princesses, dancing, and sports!

We are so blessed to have her.

Allee's party with all of her friends. We have such great friends here and we Allee is really going to miss them. The kids had a great time popping balloons, hitting the pinata, and racing around the yard at the party. Although the hit was after the presents were opened all the kids got cups and plates and caught grasshoppers and a preying mantis. Why did I go to all the trouble to plan party games?! There was plenty of entertainment in the backyard!