NOvember

Last week I was the coop parent at Bean's preschool. This is always a pure delight as I get to be in on the action that takes place at school. We coop once a month, and this is always a treat. During Circle Time, I learned that there are NO birthdays during the month of November. No one in the class has a birthday. This means no parties, no cupcakes, no singing of "Happy Birthday" and no shared gifts with the class. The kids remember this every time they talk about the month of NOvember.

This got me to thinking...scary, I know.

NOvember

No more leaves on the trees or a warm, dry nose.

No more hummingbird feeder or exposed, flip flop toes.

No more grassy picnics or tank tops and shorts.

No more bees in the air or playgrounds and forts. 

No Farmer's Market tomatoes or slurpees to sip.

No more bike rides and hikes, no more swimming pool trips.

NOvember

In an effort to sound a little more positive...It's not all bad. Seriously. For what it lacks, November marks the beginning of a great (did I mention long) winter here in Park City. We get to ski, sled, snowshoe, and drink hot cocoa snuggled up next to a crisp,warm fire. The snow covered ground reflects the moonlight to light up the sky at night, and this remains one of my favorite things. True, the snow blowing and shoveling gets a little old, and the monotonous routine of bundling up the kids before each outing remains a pain; however, I wouldn't trade it for a trip to the pool for a second. We'll get plenty more of that this summer! 

Fabulous Fall Fun!

Here are a few photos of our little trick or treaters! Bean refused to be ANYTHING but Ironman since dad was Ironman this summer at Young Life Camp. He doesn't have a clue who that is, but he knows dad wore the costume on stage for a month and he wanted to be like dad. So sweet. Peanut didn't care too much for the costume but did enjoy taking on the character of a lion. She had a sweet raspy roar that we couldn't get enough of.

The Fall Festival at church. Peanut is finishing up her pizza as we head down the hall to the games.

Roar!

Cheese!

A quick family photo!

A fun trip to the zoo. This gorilla amazed us as he sat at stared at us through the glass.

One of our favorite zoo moments ever!

Raking leaves before the snow falls!

It doesn't get old! (Well, maybe the raking but not the playing!)

Fall has been so fun and surprisingly warm! Not anymore! It is crisp and cold outside today, and the snow continues to make it's way down the mountain. We are excited and ready for winter, and we look forward to Thanksgiving in a few weeks.

Peanut is ready!

Maybe...

Help me out here, folks. I am a little concerned and wondering who might be visiting the blog from Moscow, Lisboa (don't even know where that is), or Ankara. I leave my blog open to make it easy for friends and family to read, but I don't want creepers checking out pictures of my kids. It would be great if some of you would leave comments so I have an idea of who you are. Dad, I know you visit often! Thanks!

Life is good...

Our Little Man Is In Preschool!

If you read my post about preschool last spring, then you know that dad camped out overnight in a parking lot in order to get Bean into preschool. True story.

Thankfully, he got a spot for our little man. We are now the proud parents of a preschooler who actually attends preschool - and we love it! I had my first co-op day last week and got to be a part of the action. It is SO fun! It seems a bit surreal that we are here already, and yet I know Bean was ready and is better because of his time at school.

Here are some action shots from his first day. I know, I know...he's cute.

Before we got moving! Look at that smile - he was so excited.

Having a little trouble with the backpack...

Could use a little help here...

Why isn't this working...

Got it...finally!

SO excited!

And SO cute!

A special breakfast at Einstein's Bagels! Maybe that's why he was so excited - cinnamon bagel bites 

and chocolate milk. Good luck with the sugar high Ms. Patti and Ms. Linda...sorry.

I love him.

"Hurry up guys! I don't want to be late!"

Getting situated at one of the stations. (That's the amazing Ms. Patti across from Bean. 

We have known Patti for a long time and LOVE that she is one of the teachers!)

My last goodbye for the day. I think he's pulling away from me - I didn't 

think that would happen until Middle School. Tear...wipe...

AND, this girl is 14 months. 

What is happening to my babies?

That look...something else I didn't think I would see until middle school.

Since June...

I haven't had a haircut (I know that isn't a big deal for most of you, but come on, I have bangs), washed my sheets (disgusting, I know, but read on before you judge me), been to Costco, ridden my mountain bike in the mountains, or blogged. It's not because I have fallen into a deep depression or am boycotting my motherly duties, it truly is because I have been busy. That, and our family was gone for the entire month of July and most of the month of August. The Andersons spent 47 days at Young Life camps this summer. We served an Assignment at Woodleaf in northern California and then we went to Family Camp at Frontier Ranch in Colorado. It was an amazing summer, and we are so blessed to see God move in the lives of so many, but we are TRULY grateful to be home!
As a girl who craves familiarity, schedules and routine, my head is still spinning from a summer of homes away from home. My kids, on the other hand, are lamenting the loss of so much attention, swimming pools, ice cream from the snack bar, and no schedule. Poor things. Bean has made it clear to us that he prefers camp life to life back at home. What 3 year old wouldn't. He'll get over it, and by then we will be back at camp. Hopefully I'll get my haircut by then.

                   Peanut turned one while we were at Woodleaf. I made a lame cake in our community kitchen. It's a far cry from the train cake I made for Bean's first birthday. Poor second child.

Bean actually got to play with girls! At home he is surrounded by boys! He LOVED the Dangler girls!

This is his buddy, Anna! They are both 3! Cute couple.

No idea what kind of animal this is, but we all had some fun with it. 

Somehow it ended up on stage quite a few times. Funny how much it looks like Bean.

Bean caught his first fish in the camp lake...and his 2nd...and 3rd...and so on. 

Fishing turned out to be his all time favorite thing. Like father, like son.

We swam - every day!

The whole family goofing off on the basketball courts.

Rob and I led music at Club each night! This is a picture I took from stage.

Thank you, Lord, for the Stryder bike! We could not have survived camp without it.

One of Rob's many characters. Look at Peanut - "Dada, is that you?"

Another one of his characters - Iron Man. His counterpart was Helium Guy. 

Together, they were HeFe ("The Boss"). That's his Iron Man smile. Nice.

And another... Dirty Tommy, a little boy who likes chocolate ice cream.

Love her!

so much!

This is Gus, one of the Capernaum campers. This was his attitude from the moment he got off the bus until the moment he left. He loves Jesus - He is a picture of Jesus!

Family Camp at Frontier Ranch! (We were home from Woodleaf for 3 days, and then we left for Frontier!

This is where Peanut spent most of her summer...seriously.

See what I mean. Why would he ever want to go home.

This girl LOVES her dada!

Although it is tough to be away for so long, I can't imagine spending our summer any other way. We are so blessed to be a part of this ministry, and I love that our kids get to see the Gospel in action. Thanks to all of you who support this mission through your gifts and prayers! We love you and are so thankful for you!

More posts to come - Bean starts preschool!