Anderson Family Pumpkin!

This was our first year to carve a pumpkin since college, the last couple of years we have just painted them. I think it turned out pretty good! All I can take credit for are these cute pictures, Chris and Ayden did all the hard work! :)

Digging out the seeds

(He gagged several times, lol!)

My cute boys!

The finished product!

Making it's debut on the front porch

Fun in the leaves!

This morning Ayden and I headed out to one of our favorite parks in Bella Vista to enjoy the crisp fall weather and beautiful leaves! Ayden stopped briefly at the playground, but was much more interested in running around and playing in the leaves. I'm so glad I remembered my camera! :)

The gorgeous walking trail

So excited!

Throwing leaves!

Throwing leaves at me!

Nothing sweeter than this...

First Edition of Blog Book!

I am so excited to have finally gotten the first 3 months of my blog published into a memory book! Here are a few pics of the book. Many more editions to come!

Front Cover

Table of Contents

First page, first ever blog post!

A sampling of the pages

Back cover

LOVE IT!

One year in NWA!

I can't believe that this past week marked the one year anniversary since we moved to Northwest Arkansas! What a memorable year it has been...and how quickly it has passed! It's amazing how much we have all changed. Ayden has gone from a little toddling, babbling baby to our running, jumping, non-stop talking big boy! Chris has settled very well into his career with Walmart, he loves his job, which is great since that's what brought us here! He recently registered to study and take his CMA exam, to become a Certified Management Accountant, similar to a CPA (public accountant) but better for people who work in management for large companies. I am very proud of him for taking this big and very difficult step in his career, it is a 9 month process of studying and test-taking and will be very challenging, but I have no doubt he will do great :) As for me, I really enjoy my job (most of the time), I am part-time with benefits now, which will come in very handy for my next maternity leave! I am working a mix of days and nights, 2 shifts a week with one night of call every 2 weeks. It sounds a little crazy, but it's not too bad. As most of you know, my back has been giving me fits for over a week now, and I've had to miss some work. I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow so I am praying to get some help and relief for this pain! Of course my biggest and most memorable change since moving to NWA is my weight loss surgery. I really feel like everything fell into place for this surgery to happen when we moved here and I feel so blessed that I was able to have it done. A year and 94 pounds lost later, I feel like a different person! :) As much as we miss our family and friends in Mena, we really both feel like this is where God wants us to be at this point in our lives. Also, I never realized how much I would miss living in the Ft.Smith area, but I guess living there for 8 years proved to be more sentimental than I realized! Regardless of that, though, I can honestly say that Bentonville feels more like "home" than anywhere I have lived since moving away from Mena 9 years ago. And what more could I ask for than that? :)

Halloween Cookies!

I am just now getting around to posting pics, but a couple of weeks ago Ayden and I had the fun adventure of making Halloween cookies! It was a messy but memorable experience!

Ready to help mommy!

The dough was so hard to resist...

Making a pumpkin cookie!

We were both covered in flour head to toe!

The (messy!) finished products!

Ayden decorating a cookie with half a jar of sprinkles :)

Enjoying his hard work!

YUM!

Rotten, Funny, Smart Boy!

I think anyone who has talked to me in the last 2 weeks definetely knows that Ayden has been quite the little stinker lately! What really amazes me more than anything is how lovable and affectionate he remains even during his most rotten moments! The "terrible twos" are in full swing now and although I would be lying if I said I never get frustrated, I really do think I am handling it pretty well because I know (and hope and pray!) it's just a phase. Also, I find myself laughing on the inside at some of his antics because I know he is a carbon copy of myself at 2 years old and I turned out okay :) He is such an amazing little package of intelligence, strong will, and affection all in one! Besides throwing unbelievably dramatic fits in public...here are a few of the things he has said or done lately that I want to remember :)

-Today when I gave him a sippy cup of water, he handed it back to me and said "Momma, take it back, take it back! I want juice!"

-We were driving down the road the other day when it started to rain, and Ayden said from the backseat, "Momma, we need a brella" (umbrella)

-He thinks it's okay to hurl things (balls, blocks, TV remotes, etc) at your head as long as he says "CATCH!" while he's throwing it.

-He announces "Ta-Da!" with his hands thrown up in the air after doing any task, from turning off the lights to picking up his toys, or after getting dressed. Such a little ham!

-He is so outgoing--he says hi and bye to every single person we see in public

-He has hit a growth spurt in the last month and is eating us out of house and home! Our "picky" eater is branching out and eats much more variety now, though raw fruits and veggies still elicit his gag reflex! He weighs 33 pounds and his 2T clothes that I just bought for fall are already snug and short so now he's in a 3T.

-He has an amazing memory and makes very strong associations. For instance if I ask him if he wants to go to the park, he will ask if Tanner will be there, because last time we went to the park, Tanner was there.

-He still has to make sure we have our sunglasses, keys, bags, and phones before leaving the house.

-He CANNOT be trusted to walk independently anywhere that isn't indoors or fenced. Seriously, he is like a wild animal who darts off the second you release his hand. I know he needs to learn to walk and stay beside us without us holding on, but everytime we try to let go, he RUNS! He has one speed--fast!

-He loves to be carried (did I mention he is 33 pounds?) and will say "Momma, I wanna hold you" when he wants me to hold him.

-When he hears something, he holds his hand up to his ear and says "Uh, oh! I hear (airplane, truck, baby crying, etc)

-When he sneezes he says "Bless you Momma!"

-Tonight he watched The Little Mermaid for the first time, and Chris walked into his room and saw him kissing Ariel on the TV screen. How cute is that?

I wish I could remember more...everyday he does or says something new. I love this little boy so much!

New shelves!

These are the new shelves we got for Ayden's toys and books. I really like them because they are low and easy for him to use, and he loves them because he has 6 new boxes to repeatedly dump out and refill! :)

Room makeover part 2...

Today I painted letters for Ayden's name on his wall. I bought all the letters and supplies for less than $20! I was very proud of myself, since extra-large painted letters sell for $20-30 EACH online! I added a little cowboy boot and a sheriffs badge to the first and last letters and I think it turned out pretty cute. Next project is assembling his book/toy shelves that came in today and then curtains! :) I love decorating!