Happy Halloween from the Red Super Samurai Ranger, Sweet Princess Cinderella and the LaRue's.

The kids LOVE Halloween. So do I. They have had their costumes picked for months and have had several "dress rehearsals". My power ranger ninja'd until he had a hole in his costume which had to be stitched last minute of course! He found some awesome gloves, a sword and some little daggers but each time we went to a festival or party he came with one less accessory until we were down to the suit and the mask. Surprisingly they weren't lost, he just didn't feel like keeping up with them. Besides, real ninjas can take you down with nothing but a pinkie right?

Dillyn Rose went as Cinderella this year. She felt (and was) absolutely beautiful. She helped me fix her hair and pinned her tiara on just right and topped it off with the perfect amount of sparkle spray! She got to wear glitter eyeshadow and real lip gloss for the very first time. She loved it. She was constantly pursing her lips and batting her beautiful eyes. She didn't walk she hopped or danced along. She insisted on wearing her high heel slippers mammaw and pappaw got her and painted her fingernails and toenails Cinderella silver sparkles. She may not be a fairy tale character but she most certainly is  our precious princess.

 We went trick or treating around our awesome neighborhood again this year. I love how safe and fun it is. The kids got to play with their friends and we all had a great time. I didn't get any pictures of the whole group together, but they were all just darling!

 This was these two cute little guy's 2nd Halloween but first one that they got to really play! They were really good sports giggling at all the crazy costumes and people oohing and awing over their pure adorableness. Their costumes were so cute! It was all I could do not to give those cute little tummies raspberries all day! check out their little twin fire hydrant bottoms :)

 This sweet baby was the youngest in the bunch and he managed to sleep through the entire evening. Luckily I got his pic in his costume the day before. Cutest baby pumpkin ever! I adore this little man! Happy first Halloween sweet guy!

Our sweet beautiful Dillyn was so excited to go Trick-or-Treating. She couldn't sleep all week. She talked about it all the time. She practiced at Fright Fest, at church, the pumpkin patch, fall festival and her pumpkin painting party (ill post pics of those soon!) Then when it came time to go door to door she just wasn't into it. She wanted to so badly and each of the big kids tried so sweetly to coax her along. Jaxon held her hand and told her she was brave, Landry called her from the porch, Kiera and Sawyer begged her to run along with them, Camden explained how princesses are brave and she was a beautiful Cinderella and should show off her dress... but the most she could muster was a timid little tiptoe up to the door only to hide behind her bag or whoever had the nearest legs. She had a few brave moments at the most unlikely houses. The sillier more over the top the house and costume the more likely she would love it! She even went and stomped on the button to make a scary monster jump from a coffin. It was hilarious. She held sweet Zoey's hand and danced with her friend and she went in to our sweet neighbor's house who always has a sweet bag stuffed to the brim of goodies for all the kids in our little block. It has everything from candy to nightlights and puzzles and socks. Every year they are specifically geared for the age of  the kids and their interests. Its so sweet. I cry every year.

The pic of Jax with these girls was by far the favorite house of all the boys. They went all out! I guess that's why they have yard of the month! Super cute. Dillyn Loved it too. Zoey not so much. Both girls loved the house that handed out sweet Ty beanie babies. Dillyn got an elephant and I think Zoey's was a hippo. So cute. Zoey was the cutest ballerina kitty I have ever seen.

 She was more excited than the rest of the kids combined! She ran from house to house and had a blast!! It was so much fun watching them! I wish I had gotten a pic of the boys together. Landry and Camden wore morph suits which just crack me up. So awesome.

Halloween 2012 was a total success! I took tons of pictures and the kids had tons of fun! I hope yours was just as sweet!

Jaxon is 7!!!

I think that time flies a little bit faster every day. I cannot believe that my sweet baby Jaxon is already 7!!!!!!!!!!! It feels like it was only yesterday our lives were forever blessed when our sweet little guy made his way (two weeks late) into the world. He has taught us more about life and love in the past seven years than all of our other years combined. He challenges us, delights us, makes us laugh, fills us with love, lights up our days and make our hearts burst with pride and joy every single day. We thank God each and every day for trusting us and blessing us with such an amazing young man.

His "real" birthday fell on a Thursday so it was a pretty busy one. We started out the morning with batman pancakes and he got to open a couple of presents before school.

At school they celebrated him in chapel with a birthday song and birthday blessing. We joined him for lunch and with his favorite pizza and came back at the end of the school day to sing happy birthday with his class and hand out batman cupcakes. Yum! I'm sure all of the parents appreciated the blue icing. (sorry y'all! lol) He had his first ever baseball practice that afternoon and then got to go out to a dinner of his choice. His first choice was the peanut place (TexasRoad House) and then he decided he was too tired and starving to wait so he picked his second favorite... Golden Corral. He cracks me up. Not exactly where I was hoping he would pick, but he had a blast and loved it and that is what is important.

In true LaRue fashion we celebrated big with our sweet friends and family. Jaxon is loved by many and we are all so blessed to have you all in our lives. Thank you for helping to make his big day special and memorable.

I tried my hand at cake baking and decorating for the first time. Ive always done cupcakes/cake balls etc.. but this was my first experience without any help at a layered birthday cake. I think it turned out pretty good and he loved it!

We had batman building stations, a create your own mask/cape station,a face painting station,  a little corner to read a batman book, and all of his figurines and action figures out for the little super heroes to play with. I think the favorite activity were the ping pong poppers and bad guy shooting gallery. It was crazy but they had fun!

He has such an amazing group of friends. I adore each and every one of them and feel so lucky to  have them in our lives.

Happy New Year!

Make it Rain!

Hi there! Sorry its been awhile since I posted! Daddy was off work for two weeks so we kept busy getting projects done and getting some quality time with the papa bear, but now on this gloriously rainy evening we are cuddled up in our pj's to a good Disney flick (Disney post coming soon... promise ;)and  I found a few minutes to tell ya what we did today.

I have become obsessed with pinterest as of late and I found this cute little project that was just perfect for today! Make it rain in a jar! Simple, easy, educational and fun!

You need: a glass jar, a plate, hot water, ice cubes and a couple of cute and curious kiddos :)

Put the hot water in the jar. We experimented a bit with temperature, and you want it really hot and steamy but not quite boiling. Put the plate on top and then fill with ice cubes. Wait for a few minutes, and you will be able to see moisture forming in the jar, and dripping down like rain. It was really fun to watch it drip down in the middle of the jar and not just on the sides of the jar. It really looked like rain! (I think next time we will just turn the lid upside down and skip the plate. I was pretty sure that someone was going to knock over my plates, but they made it out in one piece)

 

It took just a few minutes and the rain started to pour. Jaxon thought it was pretty amazing. He loves to learn about how stuff works and has a particular fascination with weather. Weather Wiz Kids has a lot of fun weather info and experiments for kids. We did some online research and he read to me from his favorite weather book, and I think we both learned a thing or two. 

Dillyn was mostly concerned with eating the ice and whether or not I was going to let her wear her "rain jack" and boots. I did of course. But I didn't get a picture. Pretty soon it was raining pretty good in our little jars. It was hard to get a picture.

Then the skies opened up and the rain came down outside. Keep it coming Lord.

 

 

Next time we are going to try the cloud in the jar. Just fascinating I tell ya.

First Day of First Grade

Jaxon Cole LaRue

first grade

Let love and faithfulness never leave you;

Bind them around your neck,

write them on the tablet of your heart.

Then you will win favor and

a good name in the sight of God and man.

Proverbs 3:3-4

This is the scripture that Jaxon's school has built its theme around for this year. The their theme is word power. They will correlate their daily and weekly lessons with this theme. I have no doubt that this will be an exciting year full of so many lessons, memories and blessings. I am so grateful that Jaxon is able to attend Holy Cross and that the staff and students feel like a giant extended family. We were all so excited to go back this morning and see everyone and give everyone great big hugs!

Its a family tradition to decorate the breakfast table for all of our special days and of course the first day of school is no exception! I love watching the kids discover the themed tables in the morning. Its almost like they are witnessing magic :) They go to bed to an empty boring table and wake up to a mini celebration just for them. Of course I never plan  what I will be putting on the table until its 11:00pm and I need to get it done  before I fall asleep standing up... Luckily all of our fresh homework supplies made the perfect decor for the first day of school.

He couldn't decide what he wanted for Breakfast so he chose a little bit of all of his "easy" favorites. Just FYI that is a pancake and sausage on a stick not a corn dog for breakfast ;)

He is so excited to be a first grader!

He was very excited to sport his new backpack and lunch box. Since this is his first year going full day it is the first time we got to pack a lunch (of course I couldn't wait to tuck in a little love note <3) and his first year with a real backpack. He feels very grown up!!

Of course his back pack, lunch box, thermos and folders are all batman. We didn't agree on the back pack choice at first but came to a compromise on this one.. He got his way of course ;) but its cute.

We put together a little treat for the teacher. A teacher survival kit :) It really wasn't much, but it was fun to make. It included things like highlighters with a tag saying "because you are the highlight of their day" and paper clips with a tag that read "because you hold it all together" If any of you want the instructions let me know. It really was a cute little project.

Jaxon would take a gift to his teachers every day if I would let him. They deserve it too! :)

Off to school we go! Its always so exciting. I love that they encourage us to come in and say hello. I got so caught up in all of the emotions and trying to keep baby sister from coming unhinged that I really forgot to take any good classroom or teacher pics... shame on me! But Dillyn was having a very hard time leaving big brother in class and was nearly impossible to hold her and the camera... so here is what I got:

Greeting Mrs. Zentell. I promise he was excited... just a little overwhelmed right here I think :) She gave him a big ol hug and walked him over to hang up his back pack. We love her already.

Then his best buddy spotted him and gave him a note and shared a giggle or two. They are seriously too cute. Then Ethan showed Jaxon where they put their lunch boxes every day.

I love how much they love and take care of each other! They are just too sweet and I am so glad that they have each other!

After we got his gear all set up he made his way to his desk and got right to work.

He blew us a little kiss and sent us on our way.

Baby D and I headed to the boohoo breakfast that the school hosts every year for the moms (and sisters) like us that aren't quite ready to see them grow up... and boo-hoo I did. Not as much because I am sad, but more because I am so proud of the awesome little man that he is becoming. I literally feel like he has the whole world at his fingertips and he is just going to conquer it all. He amazes me every day. I cannot believe that he is 6 already! Or that he is in 1st grade! Time flies by a little faster every day.

I eventually made my way home and managed to get quite a bit done today even though we missed him every second. I even baked some cookies so I can surprise him with cookies and milk this afternoon when he gets home. I have always wanted to do that :)

Have a great first week of school y'all! I'm off to pick up my lil man!

xoxoxo

*Jen*

Backyard Story Time

This is it... the LAST Saturday before school starts. The last day of no deadlines or alarm clocks... the last play day before its time to get down to business. We started out our day at Jaxon's best buddy's birthday party at the jump house. Both kids had a blast and it was so much fun to see all of our school friends. It actually made me *almost* excited to get back to school... although I'd really rather keep Jaxon at home with me forever :) We spent the rest of the day doing boring prep work to get ready for the big week ahead... laundry, errands, chores etc... It was really rather boring and I couldn't let our last Saturday from the summer of '11 go out like that so we brainstormed and came up with what we thought was the perfect way to wind our summer up. So we rounded up some supplies and and set out to make one more mini adventure.

First we grabbed some glow sticks and ball jars to make firefly lanterns. The kids had a lot of fun snapping and shaking and giggling as they filled their jars.

We decided that it was too hot to start a fire in the fire pit, but no backyard story time could be complete without s'mores, so we made "S'mores on a stick."  Almost as yummy and not nearly as sticky :)

Then we picked out a few of our favorite books, grabbed pillows and blankets and headed outside.

I could listen to him read for hours. Seriously. I love listening to him. I love that he loves to read to his sister. I love that he really gets lost in a good story.  

Jaxon treated us to a couple of stories and then he was off to play in his playset.

Little sister was right behind him, giggling and making up stories about their lanterns the whole time. They pretended that they were everything from fireflies to fairies. Dillyn was pretty sure the green one was tinkerbell herself.

We read the rest of our books, gazed at the stars and thanked God for this beautiful night and our wonderful summer.



Rainy Day Play

What? Do my eyes deceive me? Could it actually be raining? What a  blessing to wake up to a beautiful rainy Saturday morning! We couldn't wait to grab our rain gear and head out to play.

She loved to feel the drops pouring off of the rooftop drizzle over her hands

She soon decided that we had to go on a walk... there was surely adventure waiting for us beneath this little raincloud!

"Come on Momma! This way! hurry hurry!"

Of course we found a puddle or two to splash in along the way!

She decided to sit and "watcha rain" for a little bit.

Anyone who says sunshine brings happiness has never danced in the rain.  ~Author Unknown

By the time we got home we were soaking wet! She thought it was hilarious to feel the rain hit her head. I thought it was hilarious when she would try to see the drops rolling down her nose.  We sat on the front porch and watched the drops fall and just soaked each other up.