A new part of our family

 We had a black cat named Mylo who we had for 6 years and he went outside 1 night about 2 weeks before Christmas last year and he never came back. We were all very sad. We have lived without a cat since then, and it still feels like there is a void without him here.My man and I had started talking about getting another cat a few months ago, and our mind was made up that we would be getting a cat when we came back from visiting Grammie and Gran Bob. They have two cats, Bill and Joe, and they are great cats. The kids were always playing with them. The first thing they would do when they woke up at 6 am in the morning was run to the cupboard where Grammie stores the cat food, and put food in each of the cats bowls. Joe is always acting like he has been starving forever and pretty much drowns his face in the bowl. (he does get fed twice a day) and they both enjoy killing birds and squirrels and throwing them all over the backyard..the poor dead little creatures are left as token of love in front of the sliding glass window. One night when Tante Emi was heading to bed in the huge tent in the back yard, she almost stepped on a decapitated squirrel. She wasn't impressed like the cats probably thought she would be. My man and I decided that we should get a cat from a shelter. So last week the kids and me went to the Humane Society and looked at the cats. There is no shortage to pick from. That's for sure! They had a cat room, which housed close to 50 cats who just roamed around that big room, and then they had a kitten room which housed about 40ish kittens who are all in cages. According to one of the women who work there, the kittens hardly ever get out and are in there mostly 24/7. sad. The kids were immediately attracted to a little black and white kitten who was maybe 6 weeks old. So cute. as soon as she got out of the cage and saw the other kittens she started hissing wildly. We gave her a try in the "social room" (where you can play with an animal you pick) and she ended up not being a good fit for us. We were there for a couple of hours, just looking and trying and I asked one of the girls that works there if she had any ideas about a cat that would fit for us, and I told her we wanted an active cat, that the kids could play with, and she came back with Toro. Very wild and playful. I asked her about him and she said he had a brother, and would I like to see him too, so of course being the softie that I am, I said sure. So she brought Bane in and they look identical except that toro looks like he has a black mo hawk and Bane ha striped going down his head. Well, they were a perfect match for us, and they have adjusted well to this house and the kids and are always chasing and playing with each other and when they sleep,  they always sleep close to each other. They have been in the Humane Society and they are now 4 months old. I just couldn't separate them. By the way, we are not going to be keeping their names..Micaiah wants to name Toro 'Sneeky Pants' because that's what describes him best, and Bane..well he wont be keeping that name for sure! So introducing our new nameless kittens.....

Pumpkin Carving

So, last night we finally carved pumpkins. The kids were so excited! Even Little man got in on the action with his own little pumpkin that he picked out all by himself.

Kai and Jelly Bean were SO not interested in getting the slimy insides out of the pumpkins, once they realized that this was part of the job they weren't as keen on the pumpkin carving anymore. That's what Mommy, Grammie and Tante Emi are for, and in no time all of the Pumpkins were cleaned out and the carving began. 

Here are all of our happy little pumpkins!

To top of the evening, Grammie made ebelskivers for supper with fresh blackberry jam that Tante Emi made and applesauce. It was so delicious!

The Children's Museum

Yesterday we went to the Children's museum with Grammie and Tante Emi. the kids had a blast. Here are some of the fun things that we did.

Water Table Fun

Making Music with Water

Making Music on the Xylophone 

A view from the top of the Playground

The crazy long slide

"See you!"

It was chilly but fun

Down the Slide

At the bottom of the Crazy twisty Slide

Of everything the museum had to offer, the favorite part of it for all three of them was the Playground on the roof of the museum. We all had a very fun time, we made lots of memories and everyone slept through the night! It was a good day.

Picking Pumpkins

Yesterday we went with all of the family to the pumpkin patch and picked out some pumpkins. The farm that we went to was full of pumpkins and fun places to explore. There was all different kids of antique farm equipment laying around the yard. There were cows to look at too and they also had a huge pumpkin launcher. The farmer kindly did a demonstration for us. Everyone loved it! Here are a few pictures of the day.

                                                     Little Miss Jelly Bean

Little Man

                                                                  Kai

                                      Tante Emi, Kai, Jelly Bean, Me and Little Man

A Sunset

My Man, is in the Coast Guard and has left for another patrol and will be back in December. We have 3 kiddos so far. Kai is 5, Jelly Bean is 3 and Little Man is 1..almost 2. My man leaves every few months for 2 months at a time and we are accustomed to this life. It's pretty much all we as a family have ever really known. Our life is a Big adventure. Right now the kiddos and me are on the other side of the country in Washington visiting My Man's family and are having a great time. The weather here is alot cooler here than it is at home. I didn't pack as well as I should have. I should have packed a few more sweaters and long sleeve shirts and packed every single empty spot in my suitcase with socks. It doesn't help that the socks are constantly some how disappearing...

The atmosphere here is so different than it is back home. We live in the city. It is loud. Always loud. Fire engine and police car sirens, trains, planes or the occasional gunshot or fireworks make up the noises of the night. It's always bright with the lights that every city has. Here on this little island it is quiet. So quiet. I've been here for almost a week already and I haven't heard a siren or a firework yet. All I hear is the chirping of the crickets and the hoot of the owls. As soon as the sun goes down it gets dark. All you can see when you look into the sky is millions of stars for miles and miles in every direction. It is so peaceful and quiet here.

I have watched a breath taking sunset every night so far. The sky is filled with a beautiful and vibrant array of colors and goes down behind the mountains. As soon as the sun disappears the temperature drops about 10 degrees. I am reminded of how big and mighty my God is. How much he cares for me.My man is gone. I am drawn closer to the Lord because I  have to lean on His strength and His love to keep me going through my day. I sure do miss my man already. But I know that even when my husband is absent for a couple of months, that God will never leave my side. He is with me every single day.