Halloween Parade & Program

Friday at school the day was started with a costume parade. Kylie joined Kim for a couple minutes.

Bradley the ninja.
After the parade the 2nd graders put on a short program of Halloween songs. Bradley was fun to watch!
After the parade it was time for class parties. I helped put on Kim's class party.

Happy Halloween

Wow what a Halloween. The kids got so much candy it was crazy. They didn't even eat it all and have put it up and away and haven't even asked to get it down. Brett had 7.5 lbs of candy. That is a lot of candy!

Our ward puts on a Trunk or Treat around the park from 5-6. Lots of cars to get candy from and games going on in the park.

After Trunk or Treating it was time to go Trick or Treating. I love when Halloween falls on a weekend. It's so much better than having to worry about bedtime and school in the morning.

Halloween Party

Kylie had her first ever Halloween Party at Preschool today. Boy was she excited. She couldn't wait to go to school. School doesn't start until 11:15 and she asked me every 10 minutes all morning if it was time to go yet. "Why is it taking so long!?!"
Despite the fact that she insisted on me buying her a fairy costume this morning she said she was going to be a princess. She picked out a princess dress and I had to repair the holes this morning so she could wear it.

She got a bag full for treats!

Just look at all this loot!

At Walmart today she insisted she needed a sleeper. Since it has turn so cold here (I finally turned the heat on this morning because it was only 60 degrees inside and was only supposed to be a high of 55) I figured a sleeper might be a good idea to keep her warm at night. Plus she looks so darn cute it in!

Tis the Season

Can you believe the stores are already full of Christmas stuff? There have been at least
4 years in my married life that I have been completely ready for Christmas by Halloween. (The years I was about to give birth and had to be organized because of fear of pre-term labor). Obviously that isn't an issue this year but I did at least get started today. We rotate our gift giving in my family so this year we have Shaun & Callie. Today I got gifts for their family and got them wrapped and ready to send north with Mike & Wendy in a couple weeks. Oh how I wish I was done with my shopping and wrapping already.

Mission Accomplished....Mostly

The cupboards are cleaned and organized and the table is cleaned off. I now have a pile of stuff that doesn't belong in either cupboard to put away, but I'm done for the day so that pile will remain in the box I put it in until tomorrow (or whenever I get around to finding a home for the items).

Pumpkin Carving

It's great to all be healthy again! Family Home Evening was spent carving pumpkins. It's so nice that the kids are almost all old enough to do their own pumpkin. Kylie is the only one who still needs help. Brian is King of scooping out all the insides, it's a job I hate and he always does it!

Winter is definitely on it's way as we are nearing freezing here at night. Hopefully it will warm up by Saturday or it's going to be one cold night of trick or treating.

Tackle It Tuesday... Yes I'm a day late.

The way our schedule is this year I'm often not home much on Tuesdays. Wednesday seems to be the day I am home all day with time to clean. So I guess this is really a Work It Wednesday but I like the name Tackle It Tuesday better. Mentally I just like the idea of "tackling" a project.

It past time to organize a couple cupboards. The chaos just keeps multiplying. The first picture is my hall cupboard and the second one is my bathroom cupboard. The lovely mess on the table is a combination of office clutter mixed in with a bunch of freebies I need to find a home for. The goal is to bring some sort of order to this chaos.

100 Book Challenge

I DID IT!
I just finished my 100th book for the year 2009. At one point I was aiming for 150 books but once I started couponing I had to give something up and I decided 100 books was good enough.
So here they are in the order read:

1. Blue Noon (Midnighter's Book 3) by Scott Westerfeld
2. Counting Blessing - Wit & Wisdom for Women by Kerry Blair
3. Tales of Beedle the Bard by JK Rowling
4. Snow: A Retelling of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs by Tracy Lynn
5. Dragonflight by Anne McCaffrey
6. Diamond of Darkhold by Jeanne Duprau
7. Pollyanna by Eleanor H. Porter
8. If Life Were Easy It Wouldn't Be Hard by Sheri Dew
9. House of Glory: Finding Personal Meaning In The Temple by S. Michael Wilcox
10. Strangling Your Husband Is NOT An Option by Merrilee Boyack
11. How to Be An Extra-Ordinary Teenager by John Bytheway
12. Golden: A Retelling of "Rapunzel" by Cameron Dokey
13. Believing Christ: The Parable of the Bicycle and Other Good News by Stephen E. Robinson
14. The Parenting Breakthrough by Merrilee Boyack
15. Deceptively Delicious: Simple Secrets to Get Your Kids Eating Good Food by Jessica Seinfeld
16. Briar Rose by Jane Yolen
17. The Five Love Languages of Children by Gary Chapman
18. The Proper Care and Feeding of Marriage by Laura Schlessinger
19. Mothering With Spiritual Power: Book of Mormon Inspirations for Raising a Righteous Family by Debra Sansing Woods
20. Dragonquest by Anne McCaffrey
21. The Four Laws of Debt Free Prosperity by Blaine Harris
22. Holy Places: True Stories of Faith and Miracles from Latter-Day Temples by Chad S. Hawkins
23. The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks
24. City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare
25. Dragonsong (Harper Hall Trilogy, Book 1)by Anne McCaffrey
26. The Stripling Warrior and Warriorette Workout by Shane Barker
27. Don't Cry Wolf by Clair Poulson
28. We Are Sisters by Marilynne Todd Linford
29. Dragonsinger (Harper Hall Trilogy, Book 2) by Anne McCaffrey
30. The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 1)by Rick Riordan
31. Overheard at the Dance by Carol Lynn Pearson
32. Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer
33. The China Study by T. Colin Campbell
34. Dragondrums (Harper Hall Trilogy, Book 3) by Anne McCaffrey
35. Artemis Fowl: The Arctic Incident (Book 2) by Eoin Colfer
36. Artemis Fowl: The Eternity Code (Book 3) by Eoin Colfer
37. Artemis Fowl: The Opal Deception (Book 4) by Eoin Colfer
38. City of Glass (The Mortal Instruments, Book 3) by Cassandra Clare
39. How to Talk to Your Child About Sex by Richard & Linda Eyre
40. Artemis Fowl: The Lost Colony (Book 5) by Eoin Colfer
41. Artemis Fowl: The Time Paradox (Book 6) by Eoin Colfer
42. Eragon by Christopher Paolini
43. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
44. Food Matters by Mark Bittman
45. The Girl Who Could Fly by Victoria Forester
46. I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
47. Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale
48. The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles by Julie Andrews Edwards
49. The Book of Mormon
50. Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder
51. Eldest by Christopher Paolini
52. Magic Study by Maria V. Snyder
53. Fire Study by Maria V. Snyder
54. The Peacegiver: How Christ Offers to Heal Our Hearts and Homes by James L. Ferrell
55. Chalice by Robin McKinley
56. Clementine by Sara Pennypacker
57. A Wolf at the Door edited by Ellen Datlow
58. Princess Academy by Shannon Hale
59. Eyes of a Stranger by Carol Warburton
60. Keeping It Together in a Pull-Apart World by Mary Ellen Edmunds
61. The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo
62. The Time-Starved Family by DeAnne Flynn
63. Austenland by Shannon Hale
64. Finding the Angel Within by Pamela H. Hansen
65. Wings by Aprilynne Pike
66. The Best Halloween Ever by Barbara Robinson
67. Walking into a Hug: 52 Weeks to a Home That's More Embracing by Janene Ustach
68. A Certain Slant of Light by Laura Whitcomb
69. Brisingr by Christopher Paolini
70. Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown
71. Too Much to Carry Alone by Camille Fronk Olson
72. Skinned by Robin Wasserman
73. Inkheart by Cornelia Funke
74. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
75. Mary, Martha, And Me by Camille Fronk Olson
76. The Best School Year Ever by Barbara Robinson
77. If I Stay by Gayle Forman
78. Speaker for the Dead by Orson Scott Card
79. Crashed by Robin Wasserman
80. Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray
81. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle
82. Rebel Angels by Libba Bray
83. Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel García Marquez
84. Love That Lasts by Gary Lundberg
85. The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery
86. Behind Every Good Man by John Bytheway
87. I Just Got a Letter From Allyson Pringle by Anya Bateman
88. The Sweet Far Thing by Libba Bray
89. Graceling by Kristin Cashore
90. Xenocide by Orson Scott Card
91. 1984 by George Orwell
92. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
93. Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine
94. Animal Farm by George Orwell
95. Dreamhunter by Elizabeth Knox
96. The Solace of Leaving Early by Haven Kimmel
97. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
98. Don't You Marry the Mormon Boys by Janet Kay Jensen
99. Children of the Mind by Orson Scott Card
100. First Meetings by Orson Scott Card

I'll probably get in another half dozen books before the year is over. I'm almost done with Follow the River & Ender's Shadow and I have 2 more book group books I'll need to read as well as a couple others I'm hoping to finish before the end of the year.

I use goodreads to track what I read and to keep track of books I want to read. I've rated and reviewd every book I read this year. Try it out and become my friend on that site so I can see what you are reading.

Primary Program Practice

This afternoon is the practice for the Primary Program which is on Sunday. I'm in the process of getting the kids to get their Sunday clothes on and they are practicing their parts. They each have a little paper they were given that has their part on it. I left the room for a few minutes and came back and asked Kylie if she still knew her part. She didn't know it and handed me her "paper" which read:
"Fast relief of gas, pressure and bloating".
I busted up laughing as I imagined her reading that part at practice. Somewhere along the way she had put her part down and picked up a scrap piece of paper from a coupon.

Healthy Again

Hooray for returning health. Bryce made it though school with no migraine and Brett went back to seminary & school today too. I did keep Kim & Brad home from school today just to be safe. The last thing I wanted to hear in a couple days is:
"We got the Swine Flu from the Habels"
I wanted to be sure no one was still contagious so there was no chance of passing our germs on to the neighbors & friends. Kim & Brad have felt fine today and have enjoyed having a day of too much TV & computer instead of school.

Sick Day

All 5 kids stayed home from school today. The younger 3 still have fevers so they are staying home for sure tomorrow. Bryce got sick first and is feeling better except for migraine headaches so he might go back to school tomorrow if he wakes up headache free. Brett insists he can't miss anymore school. He is fever free so I told him I would wake him up tomorrow if he promised he would go back to bed if he didn't feel well.
Being sick makes me grateful that we are usually healthy. As for me I got it too but it's not too bad. Just a fever, cough, stuffy nose and some aches.

Home Again

5 Sick Kids
393 Miles with just 2 quick bathroom stops
5 Hour 40 Minutes
What a day. Thankfully we made it home safe. I'm not feeling fabulous but hoping I'll wake up feeling great. Sure hope we didn't infect grandpa!

California

We're in California for the long weekend. The kids had Friday & Monday off of school so we drove down to visit my dad.

We spent the afternoon at the zoo in extremely warm weather for this time of year. We got some great close up views of gorillas & chimpanzees. Unbelievably it was my dad's first trip to the zoo after living here for 30+ years. Bryce isn't feeling the greatest and was wiped out by the time we got out of the heat and back to the car. Hopefully a good night's sleep will help because tomorrow we're planning on heading to the beach. Hopefully it will be as hot as it was today.

This weeks coupon/freebie trip

This is a horribly blurry picture taken from my camera phone. I actually spent money today but I got all this:
6 pkg Nestle cookie dough
8 Skippy peanut butter
8 Ragu
3 Red Baron Pizzas
3 Redbox codes for free rentals
10 bags Halloween candy
5 boxes smart taste pasta
Danactive yogurt
6 cans progresso soup
6 boxes tree top juice (lunch box size)
Ziploc bowls
2 pkgs bday candles
2 Ban deodorant
John Frieda mousse
Garnier Fructis Gel
Hydrogen peroxide
2 Nivea for men face wash
2 tubes maybelline lip stick
Rite Aid SCR Freebies: 2 Carmex, Breathe Again, Allergen Block, Comtrex,Throat Coolers, Allergy Buster, Sucrets, Simply Saline

Grand Total = $34.76 after rebates

I didn't save a dime!

One month of couponing and I didn't save a dime! I spent just as much as I usually do on groceries....
However...
I have NEVER had as much food storage as I do. I literally have every shelf in my food storage room jam packed. I had to turn a second storage area into food storage and added a bookshelf for all the soap, shampoo, deodorant, etc. that I am now stocked up on too. Both my freezers are so full I couldn't buy and add anything else if I wanted to.
So overall I'd say couponing is a definite success. My goal now is to drastically cut my grocery costs for the rest of the year. I'm planning on spending half what I usually do. I also have lots of rebates coming my way (nearly $200) which will be nice to deposit into checking as they arrive.
My couponing system is all in place (I have 2 binders full of coupons) and it won't take nearly as long as it did this past month to find deals and do my shopping. There was a huge learning curve and a lot of wasted time but I think I finally have things under control.
When I went to Wal-mart yesterday they couldn't even get my transaction to go through because I saved too much money and exceeded their coupon limit. They called a CSM to come override it and even she had trouble. I had a coupon for everything I bought except for some apples and some clearance water balloons. The cashier laughed when I told her I had a coupon for just about everything as I showed her a pile of 40+ coupons - She said no one had ever told her that before. Many of the items I got were free including deodorant, feminine supplies, laundry soap, candles, and shampoo. I love free!

No where to go

It has been so long since I've had a day with no where I had to go, no errands that had to be done, no appointments, no trips to the grocery store, nothing required of me at all. Just a day at home with time to clean, pay bills and get a few things off my list.
I need more days like this one! I can tell by the state of my house that I have been crazy busy lately. I just spent the last 2 hours getting all the laundry folded and scouring the kitchen. Now on to the bathrooms! I am loving the smell of clean.

Sumo Wrestling

Sometimes I just don't ask where they come up with these ideas. At least they had a lot of fun!

Conference weekend

I love conference weekend. No rushing around to get everyone ready for church and out the door on time. No Sunday clothes, shoes, or scriptures to find.

The kids are out playing on the trampoline and I'm still in my jammies and don't plan on getting out of them today. We'll turn on the radios downstairs and the kids can listen while playing legos. Upstairs we'll have it playing on the internet. Wishing conference came around more often than twice a year.

Staheli Farms Family Night

Last night we had a great time at Staheli Farms. Pizza for dinner and then lots of fun on the swings, rides and in the corn maze. What a fun event our school sponsors!

Super Citizen Kim!

Once a month the school has a special assembly where they award a super scholar, super citizen and hero from each class.
Can you spot our Super Citizen?

Hooray Kim we're proud of you for being such a great student. You are a joy to have in our home too.

And hooray for her proud brother Bradley.