Halloween party at Grandma's

Saturday night Grandma Elephant had a fabulous Halloween party at her house for the kids. It was full of surprises, crafts, candy and spooky decorations.
She and Papa Tom dressed up and went all out for the special night.
Each room had something in it... a skeleton the kids had to cuddle with, a Halloween book for Grandma to read, a flying ghost and more!
In the last "spooky" room (their bedroom) they said to open the door slowly and the scariest, biggest surprise of all would be waiting.
Well, we did, with much apprehension. There were two scary creatures under an orange gauzy material staring at us!
I think it scared all of us a little bit!!
But, the material came off and it was- Nana and Papa!!!!
We had no idea they'd be at the party!
Tim and I came dressed up to surprise everyone a bit too.
To be PC, I won't describe what we dressed as... just see the pictures below. :)
Tim's costume even came with a big fake hairy belly.
Kayla and Collin are in to Star Wars this year and decided to dress as
Princess Leigha (spelling?) and Darth Vador!
Thanks Grandma Elephant and Papa Tom for such a memorable night. Thanks to Nana and Papa for doing a great job surprising us!!!

Agritopia

I had a great morning taking pictures of my friend Susan's family.
We did the shoot in a neighborhood called Agritopia.
It is a gorgeous little neighborhood with white fences, big porches
and beautiful landscaping. Lauren and Hailey were adorable and it
went so well!
Here are a few of my favorites. The rest are in a slideshow labeled 10-26-2008 on robindphotography.com

Pumpkin Patch, Sunday Oct 20th

Our family headed to the Pumpkin Patch yesterday and it was about 95 degrees if you can believe it!
We took a great hayride, jumped in the bounce house, went through a maze and pet and fed farm animals. Our good friends, Shawn and Susan came with their kids and some old friends Christine and her daughter, Samantha joined us all as well.
We had a great time!

Pictures

Is it just me.. or did Kayla look a bit like Edward Scissorhands when she woke up this morning??



Kayla got a new webkinz, an eagle she named America. She is taking this mother eagle thing very seriously. In fact, yesterday I found her sitting on top of America in a nest she made in a tree. Collin was an aggressive daddy eagle protecting them.


Some more pictures from the O Grace shoot

Theater Kids

Well the Phoenix Valley Youth Theater is becoming a big part of our lives, particularly mine and Kayla's. Between her acting class and recent auditions, we seem to be there a few times a week.
I am so impressed with the group of people there that more than ever I hope Kayla will remain in drama for the rest of her childhood, and maybe even her whole life in some capacity.
This is the first big time city theater we've been a part of, so it is fascinating to learn about stage production, casting, directors, etc...
Treasure Island is the play that is currently going on at the theater.
The stage is really incredible to look at.

We were there twice recently for the Winnie the Pooh Christmas Musical auditions.
Most of the cast of Treasure Island showed up to audition for the musical and I can't even put in to words what a family the cast and crew really are.
I don't know about Hollywood kids or movie actors, but theater kids are the nicest, most outgoing and quirky group of people I have ever met.
These teenagers are openly geeky, sweet and dramatic.
They were oohing and ahhhing over Kayla and the other little ones, and you could just tell how nurturing and sweet they are.
Kayla felt very much at home with these kids and it was a very emotional moment for me.
I was not in to theater as a kid so this is all new to me. And I love it!!!
Tim and I are learning that theater is extraordinarily important to Kayla. She is very emotional about it and told us the other night that it is her "job to be on stage. I love being there and I believe it is for the people in the audience."
(yes, I was covering the smile on my mouth as it was a little dramatic and funny, but still so cute that she feels that way) :)
So I'm slowly adjusting to this new part of our life.
It requires a LOT... a lot of driving, a lot of patience and a lot of schedule rearranging. And throughout all of this, I have to be sure that Collin is happy and succeeding in his little life. I remember that it was the age of 4 for Kayla that she seemed to start trying sports and dance and things like that, so I'm hoping that 2009 brings new and fun opportunities for my now "preschool age" boy.
The toddler years are quickly disappearing. :(
Life is crazy busy here, and I've stopped saying, "we have a crazy week, but next week should be better." I'm giving in to the fact that this is probably what life will be like from now on.
Tim is being incredible supportive and patient, considering I usually pass out on the couch as soon as the kids are in bed.

BUT I must say I am in high heaven today. This weekend I shoot a Friday wedding, which means I have Saturday and Sunday off to just relax and play.
I LOVE when I have Friday shoots!!! So I'm off to work, but when I get home I'll have 48 beautiful unscheduled hours ahead of me!

Family pictures

I feel very fortunate to work for such a great company, O Grace Photography.
Jen is a wonderful boss and she does a family shoot for each of her employees once a year. We have picked out a few to use for our Christmas card this year, and here are some of the others that we really like.

More Freestone Park pix

Well my friend, Bev introduced me to this park just a few days ago.
All these years of living here and visiting, we've always gone to Scottsdale
to enjoy the train park.
Little did we know we have one even nicer just 2 minutes from our house.
It is right down the main road from our neighborhood and we could probably bike there. Silly us!!
Needless to say, I think it is our new favorite place.

Our morning at Freestone Park

My brother, Chris suggested we all meet at the park today to enjoy this rare cool October weather.
What a great suggestion! We had so much fun and it felt good to exercise under the blue sky in the cool crisp air.
We brought a variety of sports stuff, including a frisbee, football and soccer ball.
We forgot our bread to feed the ducks but the kids enjoyed watching them anyway.
One thing I will always miss about Colorado is the Fall season.
Today we felt fall in the air and it was SO nice!

At home with Collin

The other day I was thinking about how much longer I'll have Collin at home with me before school. I can't believe I have him for another two years!
And then I'll still have him 1/2 the day for another full year after that.
There are days when I wish he had daycare a couple of times a week, and we certainly have days where we butt heads.
But more than anything else, I just feel relieved.
I am not ready for both of my kids to be away from me all day.
It's nice to have a buddy at home, and I'll truly miss Collin when he starts
1st grade.
These days Collin has to be extra patient at home because I am working quite a bit and need a couple of hours a day, minimum, to keep up with things.
But I try to be sure that I take him somewhere, read to him and play with him every day. I feel especially challenged this week because he is on Fall Break from preschool.
He continues to swim every Wed and he still absolutely loves it.
One of his newer hobbies is bug catching. He likes to put grass and rocks in a container and catch spiders, beetles and ants.
Then he likes to bring them in to show me. :( Ugh
Collin also read his first book yesterday, "CAT". This is the first of the Hooked on Phonics series and it's so fun to see him put letters and words together for the first time.
He was so excited to surprise Kayla when she got home from school.
He wasn't disappointed with her reaction. She was so happy for him that she cried and hugged him. What a memory that will be for all of us.
So, our days are a bit challenging lately, but they are broken up by sweet moments and fun times so we are still afloat!!!
Above are pictures of Collin with his book, his bug catcher, and one of him making a silly face (which he wanted me to include) :)

Rainforest Cafe & M&M factory

Here are some pictures from the M&M factory and the Rainforest Cafe in Vegas.
The kids had a blast.