Few Tricks and Many Treats

There are some aspects of Halloween that I love. For example, I love seeing Tyler get all excited to wear his costume. He would correct people who called him Bob the Builder. He'd say, "No, I'm Handy Tyler!" I love being able to see Hannah's face light up when she gets a sucker. Who knew all it takes to make her happy is a Dum Dum? I love the feeling of friendliness as complete strangers come to your door and you compliment them on their costume because you know it will make them happy. I love people who go all out in their costumes to make the most of the holiday.

There are some aspects of Halloween I don't like. I know many people live for scary movies. I do not. I wish I could turn on the TV and find something uplifting to watch instead of some new way to watch someone get killed. Not my favorite. Also, Steve doesn't let me watch them because if I don't sleep, he doesn't sleep. I also do not like the 15 pounds of candy that I somehow have to get rid of. Just a few treats is all we need.

This year we went "trick-or-treating" three times. The first was at the Law School. Every year the school has a kid's parade and then they go trick or treating to the student's study carrels. By the end, Tyler couldn't hold his treat bag because it weighed so much!

Next we went to our ward's Trunk or Treat. Props to Steve for making the best chili there! I am usually somewhat opposed to Trunk or Treats. It usually is a mass of kids grabbing candy as fast as they can. This year was great. The cars were spread out, the kids said "trunk or treat", and visiting with friends was relaxing. Good times!

After we got home from the ward party, Steve took Tyler out to go around our neighborhood. He sure loved it. I remember loving it as a kid. I'd come home and sort out my candy to see what goods I got. This year Tyler got some cool things. Among his loot is a skeleton straw, pencil, hot chocolate, chips, spider ring, play dough and bat necklace. It was a nice break from the sugar. Happy Halloween!

Party Time!

On Saturday afternoon we had a big family party for Hannah. Thank you to all who drove down in the rain to celebrate with us! When a baby is this young, the party is mostly for the parents. We had some great food, good Lego Rock Band and swimming fun, and wonderful company. Hannah was just content to crawl around and watch all the action happen. Oh, and we found out she LOVES balloons. We could have only gotten her balloons and she would have been thrilled!

Hannah is a true girl...she loves sweets and eats them daintily! She was so excited to get her hands on the cake. Once she had it, she just ate little bites here and there, but enjoyed every second of it! It was seriously fun to be able to celebrate our sweet Hannah's birthday!

All the Pulley boys were at the party. Do you think they look related?

Hannah is one!

Happy Birthday Hannah! How does it feel to be a year old? I can't wait until she can tell me. I love this stage in a baby's life. It is full of expression, major developments, and a emergence of their personality. Most parents say that the first year flew by and they can't believe their baby is one. I'm not one of those parents. With Tyler it did go by quickly. Not so much with Hannah. We've done some amazing things and ordinary things over the past year. She has grown and changed gradually. Yet she is a natural part of our family and it feels like the last year has been just perfect with her. I can believe she's one, because in the past year I've felt her influence on me. Oh, how I love my girl. After having Tyler, I thought I would be completely happy having all boys. I said that because I didn't know how much a baby girl would add to my life.

Hannah will play peek-a-boo until the cows come home, mimmick any crazy sound Tyler makes, snuggle you like you are the only person she'll ever love and play contently in her room with Minne Mouse. Hannah loves Tyler. No one can make her laugh and smile like he can. It is really fun to watch. She stands on her own, but doesn't want to walk. We're working on it.

Thanks for joining our family Hannah Beth. We all love you!

Staycation

What do you get when you have two kids plus a husband who is always gone at work or school and who was recently released from a bishopric? The answer is not enough couple time. I don't know if any of you have ever felt like your husband (who you love dearly) is sort of just like a roommate who leaves dishes and makes an occasional appearance. Thankfully, Steve had a week off of school last week and, due to a lack of funds, we decided to ship the kids off to family and have a two-day "staycation." First off, I need to say a big thank you to Suzie and Max and my mom for helping us out with the kids.

You might be asking yourself what sort of fun Provo has to offer. It was awesome! We decided that if we were going someplace fun, we'd document it with pictures. Our staycation wasn't going to be any different. Thursday evening we had a relaxing, child-free dinner and got a $1 movie.

The next morning we slept in and then went for a beautiful 4.5 mile run along the Provo river. How did we celebrate our run? With a sinfully delicious cupcake from The Sweet Tooth Fairy, which has the best cupcakes we have ever tasted.

That afternoon we watched another movie and went out to one of our favorite restaurants for dinner. Bombay House in Provo has the best Indian food hands down! In case you are wondering, we did finish everything on the table.

So what do you do in Provo on a Friday night with no kids? You go play at the Apple store, just because you can. We were like kids in a candy store. We were laughing so hard at ourselves playing around with their computers and such. We were even able to visit the Eiffel Tower. What else do you do in Provo with no kids? You go laser tagging with some friends until midnight! We were sweating like crazy, but had the best time! Steve is pretty good, so I was glad he was on my team.


On Saturday morning, we slept in. That was the longest I've stayed in bed in years, so it was worthy of a picture. We decided to eat a yummy brunch at Ruth's Diner in Salt Lake. Their biscuits are the best! As we ate in peace, we both realized how wonderful it is to eat a meal without interruptions, coaxing or putting someone in timeout.

This staycation reminded me how much I love spending time with my honey. It doesn't need to be an amazing destination or spending a lot of money, just being together is enough. Even though it doesn't happen as much as it should, any one on one time I can get with Steve is great. I love you babe!

Am I mistaken?

It is fall right? Don't get me wrong, I have been enjoying the warm 'fall' we've been having. But it doesn't feel like autumn when it is 86 degrees outside. The heat wasn't going to stop us from doing some of our traditional fall activities. Last week we went to Hogle Zoo and had a picnic. Most of the animals were out and Tyler loved riding the train and carousel. Both kids were sound asleep the whole ride home!

We also took a drive up Ogden canyon on Sunday between conference sessions. It didn't seem like fall since we were all in shorts and sandals. The leaves were beautiful though! And on Monday we stopped by Gardner Village for a few hours. Tyler was fascinated by all their pumpkins and witches, especially the "Hula Hoop" witch. It was a wonderful way to spend the weekend.

I'm not mistaken when I say my kids are awesome. Tyler has been really interested in drawing and writing lately. He wants me to help him practice his letters. The other day he told me he wrote his name and drew a picture of our family. He wasn't kidding. He did a great job! And I think Hannah might be the cutest piano player I've ever seen.