Our cute girls just can't wait to be big enough to help daddy in the yard! We had one last mow/yard clean-up before the snow and cold arrived. I just love the fall...It never seems to last long enough, though we really were blessed this year to have such beautiful weather past Halloween. On to Thanksgiving!

At Daddy's Work...

Halloween finally came yesterday, and not soon enough for Abby and Brynn! They dress up pretty much every day anyway, so that wasn't the clincher as much as the promise of lots and lots of candy. Boy, did we ever get a lot of candy! First we went to the yearly party and James's work, where the girls were most excited to dance with bubbles. Very cute. (His work goes all out on decorations: the kids trick or treat throughout the building, complete with spook alley. The girls made it through part of the scariness, but we finally had to take a "safe" detour to the end in order to avoid possible crying breakdowns. That's fine by me, since I'm not a big haunted house fan, either!)

Our girls were the first to start boogy-ing!


We came home, relaxed for a bit, then headed back out for our ward's "trunk or treat". It was a big success, though I underplanned on the amount of candy, as usual. We had to close up shop before everyone had gone through...we couldn't regift ALL of the girls' candy! =)
At the "trunk-or-treat"

Then, we parked back at home and headed out for a bit more trick or treating, this time to actual doors. (We couldn't convince Abby that trick or treating to cars was as good as the real thing, so we tried to find neighbors that we didn't already hit up at the trunk or treat.) It was a beautiful, warm night, and the girls didn't even have to wear jackets to cover up their cute fairy costumes. We all went to bed with sugar overload (and Lisa and Brynn with upset stomachs), but I think it was worth it!

Abby finally got her cast off on Monday...just in time for cooler weather so that she can now wear all of her pants again! =) She was a bit scared of the saw (though our doctor tried to convince her that it is called a "tickler".) Abby nervously laughed the whole time he was cutting it off...much better than the alternative! Poor little Brynn, on the other hand, was so worried about her sister. She did okay for the first minute or two, but then big tears started rolling down her cheeks and she kept saying, "It's not gonna hurt? It's not gonna hurt?" Abby kept reassuring her that it was the "tickler" and it didn't hurt. It's so sweet to see my girls looking out for each other.

She's hobbling aroung again now and saying her leg feels "wobbly". Hopefully that will wear off soon...I'm just relieved that I don't have to carry her around anymore! =) Cute girl.

A couple of weeks ago we finally made one of Brynn's big moves: from baby to little girl. She said good-bye to her crib and is now sleeping in a "big girl" bed (well, a "big girl" mattress...the bed will be coming soon!). She was super excited about the event and has slept almost perfectly since. We have definitely been blessed that she has always been a great sleeper. I'm more worried about the next big move...sharing a room! (We've considered just buying a bigger house so that our kids can always have their own rooms and always sleep well, but that just didn't seem super-practical at the moment.)

Good-bye crib...

Hello bed!

Abby and Brynn were delighted to wake up to snow last Sunday and just had to go out and feel it for themselves. (We, the parents, weren't quite so delighted...I'm just not ready for winter yet! But, the girls were so excited and fun to watch.) Even Abby was completely willing to crawl around on her hands and knees (still in a cast!) to be part of the fun. Winter, here we come!

Making a snow angel...

Making snow balls...

(Last year, Brynn was afraid to even stand in the snow, so playing outside this winter is going to be a lot more fun for everyone!)

So, I'm finally getting around to writing about Abby's broken leg. She was trying to climb up to Grandma and Grandpa Anderson's treehouse and just didn't quite make it! It wasn't a huge fall, but the landing was just right to fracture both bones in her lower leg. She's already had her purple cast for almost 2 weeks and will be in it for another 3 or so. It's been a bit of a challenge, since she needs to be carried everywhere. But, she has recently re-discovered the joys of crawling and can maneuver her way around the house pretty quickly by herself now! (I'm going to have to get her a set of kneepads!)

Abby has just been amazing to watch throughout this experience. She hasn't once complained about her broken leg and is very patient as she watches Brynn run and dance around her. I am so proud of her and have learned a lot from her attitude. Believe me: if I had been the one to break my leg, I definitely wouldn't have her attitude. Although, it might be nice having James carry me around! =)

(Notice the nice remains of Brynn's peanut butter and jelly sandwich on her clothes. We didn't have bread for 2 or 3 days, and the girls were suffering withdrawls from their normal lunch routine. Luckily, we ventured out to the grocery store yesterday...They couldn't have been happier!)