October at Our House

 October blew in and out so fast, I can't even wrap my head around it. November is almost over as I type this so I know it is time to get this done before I am 2 months behind. It is actually Thanksgiving day as I type this up and behind me we have the Macy's Day Thanksgiving parade on and my children are all joyously watching and cheering on the parade. October seems so far behind me now though that October seems like a blur. That's how it goes sometimes.

We kick off the month with my birthday. And, yes, I am feeling old. The years are flying by. I was celebrated well by my family and friends though. In fact, I got the sweetest card from a friend that I felt needed to be remembered:

A few days after that, I landed myself in the hospital. I had my appendix removed and then spend the rest of the month recovering.  My mother came and helped out during this time and that was so appreciated. The view from the ambulance:

                                      
And from my hospital bed:

My kids came and visited me and Payton laid with me for a bit:

I had surgery and was out by the end of that day. This was a huge relief as my family was ready for me to be home. During this recovery time, I taught my mom the art of sourdough bread making:

                                                         

At the time of writing this post, she continues making bread now and all the various sourdough foods to her hearts content. It has been so fun to watch others grow in this hobby. We also loved having her around for all that goes on in our day to day life.

                                        

The rest of our lives didn't really slow down though. Football kept going and then came to an end part way through the month. 

Both boys enjoyed this season and we loved cheering them on, despite only having the one picture.

Payton took on her first real babysitting job. And she LOVED it:

Payton also had some volleyball tournaments this month. The first tournament they were on the bottom and learned how to lose with grace. The second tournament they fought hard and got first in their bracket, a win they really needed. It has been so fun to watch their personal growth and makes me so excited to see where Payton goes with this sport.

We headed to a pumpkin patch, one of my favorite October activities. Our local one we used to go to closed unfortunately and we will forever miss that location. However, we went to the next closest patch and still had a great time.

Then, we came home and promptly carved those pumpkins.

                                      

I am so much better over the years at letting things go and just letting the kids have fun and get messy. We clean the mess up later. So, lucky for Avery with this, she had a total ball and made a major mess! But she loved every minute of pumpkin carving.

Speaking of Avery, here are just some random baby love moments with her this month. If I haven't said this before, it is worth noting now, that I love having a baby/toddler around. They keep life so fun and I have a million pictures of each of my children at this stage. They make my world go 'round:

In her Halloween outfit:

Miss Avery, life is so much better with you in it. It's true, our whole house agrees. Thanks for being you.

I painted Jayden's bedroom that he would share with Avery. But, while we let the paint dry he slept downstairs and is currently debating staying down there. So, time will tell how this story plays out. We did move Avery out of our room though and into this room:

We continue to make good food. This month I tried a cheddar jalapeño sourdough bread requested by Riley and it was AMAZING!

I also made a cinnamon roll coffee cake that was then made again to go to some friend's houses with a meal we took them:

All the kids did a few library events this month, including one where they made (and ate) a spooky Halloween house:

I found a few afternoons that I could get into the hot tub alone. Avery takes very few naps in the crib currently and I take full advantage and am the most thankful for these few small windows of time:

It is time spent well! 😜

I made some treats to send to school with Jayden for his Halloween party:

The kids participated in a pumpkin painting project our local (and new) art district group set up and it was amazing:

                                                   

And then, it snuck up on me, we ended the month and it was Halloween! Each year, I get at least one event where the kids dress up in a themed photo. This year it was little red riding hood:

Meet the wolf disguised as grandma, the hunter, little red riding hood, and grandma herself!

Avery loved this dress and she even begged to wear each day after Halloween, to which I obliged. It is now snuck back into the dress up bin but will be pulled out again next year I think! 

Halloween night we went all over and even saw some friends:

                                      

The kids made out well:

We actually sent a bunch of our stash to Monte's work and let his coworkers enjoy extra treats!

And that was our October! Or at least what came up in my stash of pictures this month. It's been real. It's been busy. It's been real busy!