Mario and Princess Peach! Or should I say "Pimpess Peach", as Kate would say. Zach spotted this costume back in August while looking through the a Costume catalog. He just had to have it. It only made sense to make Kate be his Princess Peach. I don't think she minded it much. We had a great Halloween, filled with a trunk-or-treat, scavenger hunt and loads of candy and treats! 
Well I can officially say the rainy season has begun here in Oregon. Ugh... I don't remember growing up thinking that it rained a lot here, but this week I was reminded. My brother Andy was on the phone with me the other night and I was complaining to him, and all he could say was "Ashley, this is Oregon...from the middle of October to July 4th, this is Oregon, with a few days here and there of nice weather." One would think I could remember this...afterall it has only been 15 years since I last lived here. On the brighter side at least it is mostly a light rain and not a down pour, and the amount of green I get to see all year, instead of brown, makes it all worth it, next to the no sales tax.
So every day this week has been rainy except for Wednesday and yesterday. Not too bad right? To take advantage of the dryer day on Wednesday I took the kids out to Sauvie's Island to The Pumpkin Patch. I went with some friends from church earlier this month(when the weather was 80 degrees and bright blue skies), but Zach wasn't with me, so I wanted to give him the chance to go.
I love this patch. You can see Mt. Hood, Mt. St. Helens and all the colored leaves on the trees of Forest Park, even though you are so low in the valley. The kids love it for the cow train ride, the tractor ride out to the actual pumpkin patch, and the hay pyramids they can crawl through and climb on top of.
Last night I surprised them with their glow-in-the-dark Halloween jammies. They ran around the house "Glue-ing", as Kate called it. The skeleton snow angel was by far the favorite glow-in-the-dark action. Why is Halloween so fun? It is becoming one of my favorite holidays.
A couple miles down the road from my parent's house is the Plumper Pumpkin Patch. It doesn't get more festive than this place. My sisters and I took all our kids and stayed for 3 hours. From running through the corn fields to racing rubber ducks down PBC pipe, the kids love this place! I am hoping the weather clears up again so we can hit this Patch once more. 
Up until this week, the weather here in Portland has been amazing. While it has been mostly sunny and between 65 and 80 degrees, we have tried to make the most of it. The first weekend in October we took the kids and went up to Multnomah Falls, with Aunt Marnae, Uncle Brian and the cousins. This was Zach and Kate's first real hike. I assumed that when we got to the bridge we would stop and turn around. Instead we walked all the way up to the top. Zach made it all the way to the top and back down with no problem, Kate was in and out of her stroller, but didn't cry once. What troopers! 
Kate's birthday was quiet in the sense that we just celebrated with family, but was just right for her. She felt special and considered having all her cousins, that live in Portland, up for presents and cupcakes a party.
Here is my annual birthday list about Kate...
She loves the color purple.
Is never without a purse, or two or three.
Loves "Pimpesses" and her babies Abby and Suzie.
Sings all day long, and especially loves to have music(The Doodlepops) on to accompany her playtime, or can be caught singing Follow the Prophet, I am a Child of God, or Book of Mormon Stories.
Is obsessed with Lady Gaga, and has the Glee versions played over and over and over while in the car.
Loves shoes and clothes, and asks for new ones at least bi-weekly.
Loves getting into make-up and can make quite the mess, especially in Grandma's bathroom.
Is never without a band-aid somewhere on her body.
Has a preference about her hair, and tells me how she wants it styled every day...lately in pig tails like her cousin "Brookie".
Loves "Gynastics", especially the trampoline.
Loves watching Olivia, and can't wait to start pre-school.
Happy Birthday Kate! We love you!
This Sunday is Kate's 3rd birthday. I have sort of an idea of what I want to get her, but thought I would ask, just to see what she would say. She is a girl after my own heart I tell you...when I asked her what she wanted for her birthday, she answered right away "Shoes!" I love my little bug.
Last week I met up with some of my girlfriends from high school for dinner. Most of them I have not seen since we graduated. It was so fun to see them and to catch up. I loved seeing them as moms. It made my babies not so baby. Which then made me feel old, even though we are all the same age...sheesh! Anyway, they all looked beautiful and are all loving married life, babies, and everything that comes with it...so great to see.
From Left to Right: Zach, Me, Kate, Claire, Lyla, Nicole, Colton, Shelly(two weeks until due date, Charlie, and Morgan
Justin turned 31! He had quite the birthday weekend. Saturday, I took him out to my favorite restuarant, Hall Street Grill. Sunday, we sang Happy Birthday and had cake with the entire family. Monday, his actual birthday, I made him Stroganoff, and the yummiest peach pie ever, a Marostica favorite! This past Saturday he, and our brother-in-law Patrick chartered a boat out of Depot Bay, along the Oregon Coast, to catch some fish and crab. This is some of their loot! Needless to say, we had a yummy seafood dinner tonight. Happy Birthday Justin!
After two years of pre-school, Zach finally gets his shot at Kindergarten! He is going to Skyline, which is a K-8 school. His class is atually k and first grade combined. He is one of 4 kindergarten students in his class, the rest are first graders.
The first couple of days were a little uncertain of trying to get into the whole routine of catching the bus, getting to know new kids, and getting back into the reading and writing stuff. I am not so sure it has been as hard for Zach as it has been for me. I have worried that he won't find a friend on the bus to sit by, that he hasn't bonded with any of the kids in his class, and that he goes to sleep at night not looking forward to going to school the next day...is this normal?
I met his teacher tonight at back-to-school night and he is a great teacher. You can tell he loves to teach this age group. He was already complimenting Zach as a delight to have in class.
I haven't had the chance to volunteer in the class yet, so for now what I am loving the most, is seeing Zach's little face looking out the window of the bus when Kate and I are at the stop to pick him up. He is growing up! 
