Happy Halloween!

Our Halloween was a fun filled day! Grammie, Papa, Auntie Meghan, nephews, Auntie Jenny, Uncle Jay, Auntie Jamie, and Uncle Chris all came over for some yummy chili that my mom made. We ate together and then got all the kiddos dressed up and went out trick a treating. It was a cold day that was pretty windy, but the sun helped warm everything up! Cousins: Caleb, Anderson, Timmy, and Austin

Avielle giving loves to Grammie

My insects

Avielle as a ladybug! Isn't she adorable?

Ellie as a bumble bee! I can't believe she kept her antennas on!
Cutie, already has chocolate on her face and we didn't go Trick or Treating yet!

Ryan taking the SWAT team around the neighborhood.

Ellie checking out her candy! It is funny that a 16 month old totally caught on to the concept of Trick or Treating in about 5 minutes. As I was thinking about the concept I thought it was kind of funny that you go to people's houses dressed up and they give you candy!

It was cold outside the kids had to wear their winter coats!After trick or treating we went over to GG and Papa John's house to show the kids off with their costumes. We hurried back and joined the McMahon's and Domier's for some dinner and pictures. Ryan, the kids, and I are all exhausted with our long fun filled day! We need to hide this candy before the kids wake. I don't think I can do another day with another sugar high!!!!! YIKES!

Sister's

The kids and I were going to their Tuesday class called Wiggles and Giggles that is taught at the park district and Ellie and Avielle were holding hands. Then I got thinking about sisters. I have three sisters and my sister Jamie who is 15 months younger than me, we had a close bond. We did everything together and I think we gave each other confidence and felt lost without each other.

Then I thought of my two girls! They are 19 months apart and will be a school year apart. They both love helping each other and Ellie just adores Avi and Avi adores Ellie. They are both the motherly type. Then I got thinking of how great their sisterhood could be and just prayed.

Avielle and Ellison I pray for you as sisters. My prayer is that you will care for each other and love each other. That you will be happy for one another and be the biggest encourager to each other. I pray you will be honest, faithful, and genuine with each other. That you two will be best friends throughout life.

AMEN!

Wordless Wednesday!

How my three kids eat apples!

Avielle truly took a mammoth bite and has the cutest face to go with it!

Anderson used the two handed bite getting his mouth around one whole side!

Ellie takes the sweet little bite. Did I tell you that she ate two entire apples all by herself? The next two pictures are just too adorable! Sorry, I know that this is Wordless Wednesday!

Applesauce!

The other day I had a huge bag of apples and thought it would be fun to make applesauce. Anderson, Ellie and I really like applesauce. Here is Avi washing the apples for me. She is definitely my little helper. Whenever I'm in the kitchen she wants to be helping me.

I put all the apples in a pot. I put water from the tap up to the tops of the apples and then let it boil.
When they were nice and tender I used the grinder to smash them and the applesauce dripped out. Anderson enjoyed the applesauce. I think Avielle enjoyed helping make it more than eating it! It really wasn't hard to make, but I was surprised that it didn't make much!

I Actually Won an Award!

I have a friend from high school, Tamara that has given me a blog award! Please check out her blog http://theunexperiencedmom.blogspot.com/ I love to read her thoughts on big and on little things in life. Tamara takes great polls and has a great perspective on being a mom.

I must say that I'm completely honored that she chose me!!!!! I have been enjoying blogging. It has become an outlet for me to be able to communicate with others in my daily routine. I do feel like blogging gives me an opportunity to tell about the little things of my day. It gives me a sense of accomplishment as my day with 3 children under 3 can be very hectic and sometimes it can be frustrating thinking I didn't get much accomplished. Do you have days like that?

Here's how the award works:

1. Thank the person who gave you the award and link to their blog.

2. Share 10 honest things about yourself.

3. Present this award to 7 other whose blogs you find brilliant in design or content.

4. Tell those 7 people they have been awarded.

10 Honest Things About Myself:

1. I enjoy running and playing sports. I especially love playing flag football or shooting some hoops. I never said that I was really good at these sports, but I enjoy a little competition. When I was in high school I ran cross-country and track. As a freshmen I went to state as an alternate for a 400 relay. That was a big deal now looking back! When I turned 30 I ran a half marathon. I have found that running can be a fun thing to do for myself and be able to get all my built up anger out from the day. I also must say that I enjoy playing sports, but I don't enjoy watching them. As I type this Ryan is watching football and that I find boring!

2. I now drive a minivan. I thought I would never own a minivan, but after needing to fit three children with car seats in the backseat I needed to get something bigger. It is a really nice Honda Odyssey ride. It does have the built in TV and I must confess my kids watch too much TV while we are cruising the town. I'm becoming the soccer mom. Actually now that I'm thinking about it, Anderson starts soccer on Tuesday. Oh no I am turning into the soccer mom!!!! YIKES!

3. I used to love to dress well. I would shop at the Loft a lot and had a really nice teacher wardrobe. After the kids arrived, my closet didn't grow with clothes but their closet grew with clothes. I really enjoy dressing the kids in matching clothes and putting bows in the girls hair. It does bring me a lot of joy to see them so cute! Thank goodness Ryan and I have really generous grandparents.

4. I absolutely love chocolate. Almost everyday I need to have just a little piece of chocolate. I especially love chocolate chip cookie dough or just chocolate chips plain.

5. My favorite season is summer. I really enjoy summer nights where the sun is still out and the day isn't as hot as it was in the middle of the day. Wow, you are saying to yourself, your name is Somer and your favorite season is summer. I know, amazing!!!! HA!

6. I hate, that is a strong word, sand and glitter! I love going to the beach, but sand just makes a mess. Sand really makes a mess when you get it wet and then step in the sand again. Glitter is also a problem. I don't mind glitter when it sticks to something, but to get rid of glitter it is almost impossible. A friend once told me that in the craft world glitter is like herpes. Once you have glitter it is almost impossible to get rid of! Thanks Vince!

7. My coffee is my shower!!!!!

8. When I was pregnant with Ellie, Ryan and I would watch the Apprentice every Thursday night together. Each week Ryan would go get us a Blizzard from Dairy Queen. I had a rule to only eat ice cream once a week. Lets just say the ice cream was for the baby! HA!

9. I love Taco El Norte. That is probably one of my favorite restaurants. I know I'm so expensive! You might be asking what do I order? Well, I like the 4 taco dinner with beans and rice. I don't eat all 4 tacos, but give each of the three to the children and then I eat the chicken taco with their yummy beans and rice. Of coarse I need a Coke with my salty meal!

10. All three of my children are miracles! Soon I will share the amazing stories that they each have.

And now, I would like to present this award to 7 other ladies whose writing I have really enjoyed and has inspired me in my mothering!

1. Barclay http://trustunfailinglove.blogspot.com/

2. Pamela http://pamelaburns.blogspot.com/

3. Stephanie http://ourgirls21.blogspot.com/

4. Roberta http://thesmithsaz.blogspot.com/

5. Maryann http://lortsfamily.blogspot.com/

6. Shari http://katherinegracelyman.com/blog/

7. Zack's Gang http://zachsgang.blogspot.com/

A Day at the Apple Orchard!

On Sunday my parent's rented out Royal Oaks, which my brother-in-laws grandparent's own. My parent's invited family and we had a lot of fun! Especially since I don't see the Anderson side of the family very much! We all had fun connecting and having the kids play together.

A side note, when you read "Anderson" you might have thought my son. Yes, but "Anderson" is also my maiden name. Though most of my readers already know that. My son always gets a little confused when his cousins call their Grammie, Grammie Anderson. He doesn't understand why they pair Grammie and Anderson together. He always gives a little chuckle about the silliness! Never thought about how complicated it could be for him when I named him Anderson. Though I really love his name! :)

The day was nice and sunny, but a little chilly. So we got all bundled up for picking apples and picking pumpkins! We had a great pulled pork dinner and some yummy fresh baked apple doughnuts! Thanks Mom and Dad for all your hard work and making the day so much fun!

My Dad's new ride! Yes it sits 9 people!

My sister Jenny and Jamie with Ellie Belly!

Getting ready to pick apples

All 5 girls: Meghan, Jamie, Mom, Somer, and Jenny

My dad with Anderson

Wordless Wednesday

Brave Child!

Our little Ellie absolutely loves slides. It doesn't matter how high they are she shows no fear! Ellie gets mad with me if I go down with her or hold her hand. In our backyard we have a swing set and she climbs the steep ladder all by herself and then wants to go down the slide by herself. I decided to let her try it herself. I thought maybe that could help her be more cautious.

Right after this picture she went right back up the ladder and went again. I guess it didn't teach her anything!

We Are Back!

Last week the kids and I went for a Visit to Michigan to see Nana, Grandpa, Auntie Renee, and Auntie Rachelle. The kids had their Birthday party the week before and Nana suggested that we come drive back with them to Michigan and spend the week with them. Unfortunately, Anderson was sick the day of his Birthday party. He wasn't acting his fun loving self that day so Ryan and I knew something was up! After his nap he woke up with a 102 temp.

Every time, it seems, Ryan's parent's come into town the kids are sick. One time they came to visit the kids they had horrible colds and Ryan's parent's were going to Las Vegas in a few days after their visit. Well, they all caught the kids colds and brought it to Las Vegas with them. Sorry guys!

Other than Anderson not feeling well, Anderson and Avielle had a lot of fun with their friends and family. We had a bouncy outside and we made crafts inside. The theme of the party was Hello Kitty and Handy Mandy. It was fun to see both pink and blue together. Praise the Lord it was sunny outside, but chilly! This is the first year it didn't rain on their Birthday party! Yeah!

Poor Anderson went to Michigan sick, but thankfully Nana is a nurse and she helped a lot! Even though Anderson was sick we still had a lot of fun. Anderson is so good when he is sick. Nana treated us to a lot of yummy lunches out. That was special since we are trying to save on money and haven't eaten out a lot. We went to the mall and played in their activity center, where Anderson scared me and Nana half to death! I was watching the kids and Anderson wondered off and went to the arcade. Thankfully a mom had spotted him wondering, because there was a lot of panic for 5 minutes that seemed to last for eternity!

On Anderson's Birthday, Nana and Grandpa took us to the Rain Forest Cafe. I think that every child in the restaurant had a Birthday that day! Ha! On Friday we went to the Children's Museum in Flint. The kids had so much fun. It is similar to the Kohl's Museum, but we had the place to our selves. If you know me, I love when that happens!

We also bundled the kids up and went to the castle park two days in a row. Those were the days Anderson was sick. We just needed some fresh air! I also took Avielle for her first haircut at the age of 3! It was a little trim, but she said she wanted a haircut like mommy. I told her that Daddy wants her hair long!

I was bummed to find that my camera battery died in Michigan so I didn't get to capture a lot of fun moments, only the park.

Anderson's Birthday

Birthday Boy! Happy Birthday Anderson Dale! Your name mean courageous one and boy does that meet your personality. You are one of our many three miracles and our little man. We love you so much! We love your fun spirit and love for life. You always love to have a good time and play so nicely with others. You continue to tell me how much you love me and that just melts my heart. You are a thankful child who usually uses his manners. I love how you love your sisters and how you have such a wonderful imagination. We love your spiky hair and that you do it to look nice for the ladies! Your love language is time. Your dad and I love spending time with you and hearing your fun laugh. You have had that laugh since you were 3 months old.
Baby boy you bring us so much joy and we absolutely love you to pieces. We pray that you continue to grow up in the ways of the Lord and that your love for God grows stronger! Happy Birthday!