October

Just a few pictures that were on the phones from October. 

Like the not that Milayla wrote for me and left in our bed when we were out for a date night. I am actually writing this just over a month later, and she is sounding out and writing words now. And reading!!!!! (but I will need to write much more about that in a later entry :) ). 

I was at rehearsals for the Montreal Temple Cultural celebration on Saturdays in October (which was a wonderful presentation!) so Jason took the kids to the Science Centre on one of those Saturdays. Such a fantastic place!

Not sure that I will ever get enough of seeing these kids interact and play together.

We commemorated 3 Oktober, a historical day in Leiden, by making some stamppot. No white bread and herring much to Jason's dismay. It's a favourite dish around here.

We soaked up the fall weather at some of our favourite parks. The kids are sure that climbing trees is the greatest thing in the world right now. It's fun to hear their imaginations at work as the tree becomes a myriad of different props in their imaginative world.

Loving runs through the fall leaves.

I need to learn some more hairstyles for Milayla's hair. She loves having it longer and went through a phase where she wanted it half back in different ways. So one night we sat together and played around with different things and I took pictures so that she could see what the hairstyles looked like. The hairstyles aren't anything fancy but it was about the time together anyhow. And I love time with these fantastic kids!

Phineas is mastering so many things. Like the master of cute faces and baby sweetness. He is growing up so fast. So so fast. I still can't bring myself to cut his curls. I did trim the front though! He is starting to really get into books and has a few favourites - Hand Hand Fingers Thumb being probably the most requested.

Milayla is really starting to come into her own as she learns to maneuver the world. She is so smart, helpful, happy, beautiful, and hard working. Jason and I can't help but smile about how much she loves to wear bright colors because she views it as a big expression of her personality.

And Atticus is the big brother - through and through. He's been a great encourager as Milayla has been learning to read. He shows a great example of looking out for others, especially his siblings. And he is a hard worker. These kids really enjoy learning. I hope I can foster that continually.

We've had plenty of pancake/waffle mornings. They are a favourite around here. Especially with berry sauce. Phineas' face tells the story of how much the kids love those mornings. So ridiculously cute.

And we made sure to put up halloween decorations. That's always a favourite thing around here. Decorations - for all seasons. Halloween decorations are probably some of the easiest to put up, especially since it is typically the mildest weather of the different holidays. The kids love the fake spider web. It's a classic.

It was actually really warm when we put the halloween decorations up and we were able to ditch the jackets and draw with chalk when we were all done. Phineas opted to take care of some of the leaves with the broom. That little boy is always concerned with tidying up. So fun. He walks with his chin pushed forward and it is so cute to watch.

I love all the outside days we had. The warmth has held on a little longer than normal this year. It made for a great Halloween. October also had wonderfully simple, low key days of biking, chalk and playgrounds. Not to mention the loveliness of Thanksgiving. It was a great month.