Since November was so last year....

....and since Samantha thinks she's a Cub Scout, I thought I'd update this little neglected blog. So today, when we instructed the "Cubbies" (my affectionate nickname for the 8-year-old boys I have the pleasure of meeting with each week) to go to the front of the room and line up to practice a skit, Samantha got right in line. And when we passed out the parts, Samantha reached up for one. And when we practiced our parts, standing in that same line, she stayed focussed, more focussed than most of those 8-year-old boys.


So, all I'm saying is, just be nice to her when she comes to your door to sell Girl Scout Cookies. I mean, she's really into scouting, and I know the cookie thing is coming.

Oh... and....she can talk....a lot.... and it's cute.

Samantha reaching for her part.

(We accidentally skipped her at first, not really being prepared for her desire to participate. Luckily, she can't read yet so I was able to improvise.)

Gratitude

I probably haven't had Thanksgiving with my parents in at least 8 or 9 years, so it was very nice they could come this year, along with my Sister Annie and my Brother Jacob. The kids seem to go wild when relatives are around, they love all the extra attention. But, I don't think their aunt & uncle are used to being climbed upon, poked, tickled, and punched so frequently.

We were also very happy to spend Thanksgiving with our good friends, the Rousseaus. Christine was the first friend I made when we moved to Texas. We are often mistaken for sisters and it feels like we really are. I am very grateful for all of her goodness and her awesome coconut cream pie. I'm also grateful for their long awaited addition, Baby Pierce.

But, most of all I'm grateful for my cute, sweet, patient husband and my cute, mostly sweet, and rarely patient children, Henry, Caroline, & Samantha.

Speaking of gratitude, I can tell you what Caroline is not thankful for. (Three people came up to me today after church and told me about Caroline's loud comments during "Sharing Time.") In a room full of approximately 50 to 60 children and their teachers, Caroline noticed something she didn't agree with and spoke up. When another child was at the front of the room picking up a picture of fruits and vegetables to show what she was thankful for, Caroline exclaimed loudly: "That's weird! Who would be thankful for fruits and vegetables."

(I'm sure, because she eats at least five servings a day and they are an abundant part of her life, it is so easy for her to take them for granted.)

Oh, and I forgot to mention my mother's really nice turkey outfit.

The Squiggly Wiggly Baby

My neighbors were able to enjoy the grand entrance made by the ambulance and fire truck.
I was able to feel like the "Mother of the Year."

Spooky Darowskis

Halloween lasted over a week at our house. So many fun Halloween events to attend. So much candy to eat all week long. And Caroline became a "Power Ranger"- no more princesses for her. Henry dressed as Frankenstein for our first trunk-or- treat.
Samantha dressed as a kitty who likes to ride in strollers.
Here is Caroline with our most beloved Halloween decoration "Spooky Kitty," which was renamed "Sofa." Spooky Kitty sits on our front porch with our pumpkins, but also sleeps in Caroline's bed. Here, Caroline is celebrating Spooky Kitty's birthday with a special Kitty cake. Notice how she carefully placed a bowl of water in front of the Kitty. (and yes, the guinea pig is being neglected)
Adam and the girls.
Henry switched from being Frankenstein to Tony Romo. I'm glad I didn't have to do the green face paint again.
Caroline and her good friend "Giselle."

'Round Here

Henry was "Longhorn of the Month" for his first grade class.



He was also a first class pouter when we went to the pumpkin patch. (Sometimes kids just get tired of posing for pictures)



At the pumpkin patch Caroline had a hay day. And became friends with a donkey.


But, wouldn't let me snap a picture of her in the pumpkin patch, so I grabbed one of her friend, Audrey. We love Audrey.


Here is Henry and company in what I call the coolest pumpkin house I've ever seen.



And for Samantha, she's getting really good at swinging, laughing, and just being awesome.

My Finger

About five weeks ago I did something like this to my finger. It was painful and a little shocking. And yes, I did it playing indoor soccer. In all my years of playing soccer I have never done anything quite like this. I knew something was very wrong, and when I pulled off my goalie glove I could not believe it. So my team, the "Red Hots," has been without their keeper for some time.
Now, things are getting much better and I can actually type. So you may see a little more on the blog. Coming soon- pictures of Caroline's team, the Butterfly Dragons!

Going for Gold! Nastia Style!

So, Adam grabbed a local newspaper last night when he was picking up our Chili's to Go (It's so hard to cook on Fridays) and found out that Nastia Liukin would be signing autographs at a local mall. Well, Adam couldn't help him self, and made plans to take our family to go see her. Caroline was dressed in her gymnastics attire, Henry and Adam both sported Adidas wear, (because Adidas sponsors Nastia) and Samantha and I just dressed in our "everyday wear."

When we first got there, I found this nice cut out picture of Nastia. Caroline examined her Olympic hero very carefully. Nastia has a clothing line at JC Penny, so you might get to see this cut out too.


We heard the line to see Nastia was very long, so I stayed up front to just get a picture of Nastia. Then Nastia arrived! Here she is with her cut out, or so I thought!

I could swear this girl is Nastia, everyone there thought she was Nastia, but no, she just looks like Nastia and now her life is no longer the same.

Then I went to wait in the real line while Adam and Henry scoped the scene waiting for Nastia to finally arrive. This is who they found!

Just Nastia's awesome dad and coach, Valeri, also an olympic gold medalist! He was so gracious to Adam when he asked him to take a picture with Henry. Adam even thanked him in Russian, "spacebo." Then Adam grabbed Caroline to take a picture. At this point, we were not going to wait in line for 5 hours to get Nastia's autograph.

When Valeri saw Caroline he said, "Look at this little gymnast." We even caught a picture of Nastia's mom- remember she couldn't even be in the gym to watch Nastia compete because she was so nervous! They are definitely a very neat family.

So we didn't get to talk to Nastia, but we did meet her parents, and as we all know, parents are a big part of what their children can accomplish!

I was able to reach over the crowd to get this little picture of Nastia. It was pretty cool to see hundreds of little girls lining up in awe to meet a hero. It's nice to have heros. Mine was Mary Lou Retton- I even had to get the haircut. And, I do admit to having a crush on Greg Louganis.

Hopefully, this memory will be a bit of inspiration for this little one.


Next week, we are driving to Iowa to meet Shawn Johnson, and I still want to have her as a babysitter, because she is just so darn cute.