Thanksgiving

We spent Thanksgiving in Utah with the Sanderson's.

We made an assortment of yummy chocolates!

The kids loved getting their hands on Kolby anytime he would let them.

And we even made it to see Santa!

Corn Maze for FHE

Happy Birthday Carter

Carter is in his last year of single digits. He turned 9 today! We had a Pingel Family birthday party on Monday celebrating all the October birthdays. I was in charge of making the cake and instead of making 4 cakes in 6 days, I just did Carter's birthday cake that night. He was happy to share it with everyone.

A BYU pillowcase!Making a wish on the morning of his birthday.He chose to have orange sugar cookies on his birthday. (We are done with cake for a long time!)Carter is full of energy and life. He is a wonderful big brother and loves to teach his sisters the proper way to play sports. He loves Legos! I'm not sure if he will ever out-grow Legos. He is becoming a better reader and is a good friend. Carter is a well-rounded kid! We love you, Carter.

Happy Birthday Paige

Today was Paige's 4th birthday! We drove to Boise early this morning for a baby blessing and Paige was all smiles when I told her happy birthday at 4:00 AM. She was so excited! Aunt Janet had a cupcake for each of the kids with a candle to blow out. Paige opened a few presents while we were traveling and then we had more presents and cake & ice cream when we got home.

Paige has such a funny personality and keeps us laughing. The only thing she wanted for her birthday was slippers. How easy is that?! She loves to color, play with dolls and little matchbox cars, do puzzles, sing and dance, and loves to play with Carter and Hali after school. She is honest and isn't afraid to say what is on her mind. Her newest found love is doing subtraction flashcards with Todd. She wants to be as big as her brother and sister. We love you, Paige!

Happy Birthday Hali

We celebrated Hali's 7th birthday today! She chose french toast for breakfast. We had a birthday party with the Sanderson side of the family at Kent & Jaci's house, celebrating all 3 kids birthday's.Hali wanted a sunflower cake this year and I remembered this cute cake that I saw on Hannah's blog over a year ago. It was easy and yummy!

Hali is such a sweetheart, always concerned about others. She is easy-going and selfless. She loves to play games, read, play school with Paige, and anything art & music related. We are so glad you are in our family, Hali! We love you!

Pine Wood Derby

Carter participated in his first Pine Wood Derby tonight. He drew up the design for his car and enjoyed working on it with Todd. He didn't win but was a great sport and just enjoyed the race. When it was over, Carter was sending his car down the track backwards and it was going a lot faster. He said he should have been sending it down that way during the race! He got a certificate for the "Most Aerodynamic Car." He had a fun time!

Goodbye August

We're half way into September and I'm not sure what happened to August. So here's a quick recap before I get even more behind. The kids started school on August 24. Carter is in 3rd Grade and Hali is in 1st this year. They have great teachers and are loving school. Paige sure misses them though!

About a week before school started, I looked at the school district job postings and saw 2 part-time Kindergarten teacher openings. Thinking that might be fun, I spent a few hours filling out an application, later to find out they had already been filled. Thursday (20th) night, I looked at the job postings again before I went to bed and saw a new posting for the same position at a different school. The next morning (21st), I got a phone call at 9:00 am asking me if I could come in for an interview as soon as possible. I had an interview at 12:00 pm and got a call offering me the job around 2:00pm. Talk about a crazy day! I walked into my empty classroom and knew I had a long weekend ahead of me. We were able to find enough tables and chairs to get started and Todd helped me put things up and get as organized as I could. Hali asked me the cutest question after I worked in my room on Friday. She looked at me and said, "Do you have a nice teacher's chair?" I told her I didn't even have one in my room. Her mouth dropped open in shock and she said, "You don't even have a teacher's chair?" Afterall, what teacher doesn't have a teacher's chair! It's funny to hear what kids think about. I went in again Saturday and by Monday morning, I had 18 Kindergarteners lined up at my door. And I was relieved to be able to tell Hali that I finally got my chair!
I am enjoying my job. It's really nice to only work in the morning and then have the rest of the day at home. I love the people I work with and it's really nice to be able to stay in the same building, too! When I taught in Utah, I split my day between 2 schools in South Jordan. This is so much more relaxing. I'm in a great place and look forward to a great year!