Falling into Fall Routines

Michael:
Totally slammed on trauma call and oral surgery call this week. He's ready to scale back some call time next year. This week felt so similar to residency and both of us don't really comprehend how we lived that life for so long. I guess we just had no choice, and we were younger :) One night he worked all day, got home around 11pm, got a call at 12:30, had to leave at 4am, and our only "communication" was patting each other in the night when he was in and out of bed and when I helped a confused Camden or took Bennett to the bathroom, plus texting each other when one of us was awake and the other wasn't. Ships in the night and it honestly gave me a little anxiety thinking back to some long days, weeks, months in Fresno. Those four years hold a simplicity and a difficulty that I just can't really convey. Life feels so different now in so many ways.

Maddie:
I feel like I'm shifting stages. More sleep, less time at home, busier schedules, less physical needs from my children, more emotional parenting, more soaking up the littlest brothers, total gratitude for date nights becoming easier to make happen, feeling more like a director of a busy family rather than a busy caretaker of a bunch of tiny people. Still overwhelmed by all the cooking :) Some things never change! I went on my first youth temple trip this week, which I really loved. We went to dinner with the Dimonds the next night which I also really loved. It's also so fun to watch my kids play sports on the weekend even though we've yet to have a win in any sport this season... Westin feels that, but Bennett might not even know. Bless them both.

Westin:
Football obsessed. Happy in third grade. Loves his teacher. Still hasn't complained about piano ever since I showed him the Ted Talk video about how piano helps your brain. Makes Asher laugh like nobody else. Reads constantly (mostly football books). Wants to make eggs all the time.

Bennett:
has been asking for a digital camera for months and is excited for his birthday to be coming closer. Happy in first grade, and such a chill kid compared to his crazy classroom when I volunteer in there. He is just so dang content. Content is the best word to describe Bennett.

Camden:
Loves, loves loves school. Still trying to figure out the Monday Wednesday Friday school routine. always a little confused about when school is and isn't happening. Loves little Asher so much. He can say the brattiest things and yet you just laugh because he's being so funny about it. Example this week -- 
"Camden, put your plate in the sink."
*Walking away towards the bathroom*
"CAMden, put your plate in the sink."
*Keeps walking*
"Cam Cam! Fine, I'm just putting this plate in the sink for you!"
Camden -- "Ooooobviously" with a little hip shake.

Ok, you had to be there to both understand how funny it was and to understand that I'm not always as terrible a parent as that. He is so good at putting his plate in the sink that it was kind of a, "Dude, what are you doing?" moment. He just makes us laugh so much.

Asher:
Oh sweet baby Asher. Our last month of one-year-old Asher. I love him I love him I love him. He's a daddy's boy when Michael is around but he sure does love me when he's not. He has started saying his brother's names, and my favorite is when we eat dinner on Mondays while Westin is still away at practice and he says, "Where Wessy? Where Wessy?" I love how early they get a sense of their family and that they belong. He loves to be in charge of Luna, loves his little routines (help us put our weights away, eat breakfast on daddy's lap like a spoiled fourth child, take a shower, push daddy's car out of the garage, play with Camden, climb in the stroller for a walk, hold onto the leash while we walk and tell Luna to be a good girl, hug Westin and Bennett when we drop them off, say "Oooooh!" at all the garbage trucks and school buses we pass on our walk, then come home and play with Camden). He still lives in our closet and I just want to keep him being a baby.

This will be their album cover someday, or a really great picture to recreate when they're bigger.
I just love Asher's tough applesaue look.
The hour of them running around the school grounds while Bennett is at soccer practice and I'm half reading a book and half tending to these two cuties is one of my favorite hours of the week right now.

"Luna, stay... stay... stay..."
Haha they love being in charge of her.
And she did stay while I put my shoes on. She's getting better all the time.

Could it be the last peach parfait of the season?
I decided my favorite season isn't fall, or spring, and it's definitely not summer, or winter.
It's peach season.

Bats are back.

I had fun making this poster with Camden,
He scrolled through some photos, chose some favorite things he wanted added, helped me cut and color, and practiced telling all about himself to Michael and his brothers.

We took Luna to Camden's soccer practice.
I wouldn't do it if Michael wasn't with us, I can't take her with Asher by myself yet.
But she was a good girl!

Ready for his big presentation.
This kid.

Michael was slow picking up Camden from school and I texted him.
He said, "I asked Camden if he wanted to go home and do chores or go get a milkshake."
So.... this is where they ended up :)

Sometimes Kitty joins reading time and Bennett loves it.

See the leaves on this apple?
I love that the coloring turned out like this.
Also a picture of the blog on the blog. Inception.

Seriously though, I loved this apple.

Apple crisp from our tree.
Also did apple cider, applesauce, lots of snacking apples,
and I threw some under our bushes out of sheer overwhelm.
Don't tell Michael.

My goofy guy. He's loving swimming lessons.

Sometimes I just take Camden and Bennett to their lesson and sometimes it's a whole crew outing, depending on Michael's schedule. Asher is so cute while we're there.

Halloween bean activity.

I loved this slow Saturday morning.
Michael has been getting some people together to play tennis on Saturdays, and it give us a slower start -- the boys typically demand breakfast from Michael the minute they wake up, but they seem to know I'm not so easily swayed out of my bed haha.

Flag football Saturdays for Westin.

Michael and I have meetings before church at different times some Sundays, so we take turns with these boys. A walk around the building before Sacrament meeting is actually a nice way to spend the minutes before church. The alternative for us is usually racing to the building to get there during the opening song.

Halloween Monster Suckers

We've been trying to be better at Family Night and the first order of business was to move it to Sundays because Mondays are full of practices. The boys loved making these.