I Didn't invent the sewing machine!

Earlier this week, Jonah told us about his school day. He was laughing and saying how silly his teacher was because they "cut the food and make a face." It was fun to hear him describe how ridiculous the making of Jack-O-Lanterns is. It really made me think about how weird some of our traditions are. This week as we got closer to Halloween, I tried to see the festivities through Jonah's eyes and imagine some of the questions that he has to be asking himself.

For thinking it was so silly, Jonah really enjoyed it. In fact, all the kids wanted to do was play with the "pumpkin brains" (except Emma, she thought it was pretty gross).
We only carved one pumpkin this year. We wanted to give everyone a part of the design so we let the kids do a drawing for each eye, the mouth and the nose.

Everyone was very proud of the final result.
Well, as I posted before, Hudson had decided (last November) that we would all be Star Wars characters. So, here we are: Emma as Queen Amidala
Hudson was Darth Maul. The other day he had a school party and afterwards washed his makeup off by himself (with 3 bathroom towels). This time, rather than ruin the towels in our bathroom that no one can use (more on that in a minute), we threw Hudson in the tub and scrubbed him down. The water was so black after his bath and he thought that was great.

Now to the towels: We have a bathroom. We use said bathroom for several things, like, you know, bathing, washing hands as well as other things. Now I assume that when when we have company over they are aware why we have a bathroom and what we do in there. But, we have to pretend that we have never showered in there or dried our hands because our towels have never even been wet. We have very nice towels that just hang there, while the towels we use are hidden in a top secret location. Seriously, this makes no sense to me. It's just like the ten pillows on my bed that I can't lay on.

Here is Sammy as an Ewok. Gracie has been telling everyone for weeks that Sammy is "Chew-Wakka!"
Here is our Star Wars family. It's weird how things have changed this year. With seven in our family, a picture of all of us with 4 looking at the camera is acceptable. If you get a picture with 6 looking at the camera, there's a good chance we're going to frame it and put it on the wall.


Very cute Yoda is.
Oh, the candy of Halloween. The sweets and the cookies are nonstop. Gracie, to no one's surprise really got into the eating of the sweets. She had cookies and a donut and candy and popcorn and more candy and two hot dogs.
Well, all those sweets caught up with Gracie and she puked it all up halfway through Trick or Treating. Yes, Shelly took a picture of Gracie's throw up.
An hour after blowing chunks and she's eating DOTS. Is there a better day than Halloween?

Totally different topic, but Sammy has a new favorite food: Spaghetti!

Dear Tasha,

We want to thank you for being our cat and the many memories that come with that. You are a unique cat with no tail and one blind eye. We appreciated how you would allow five kids to dress you up and drag you around the house without even complaining. Well, we can understand how that got old, but we cannot keep a cat who has decided that she wants to eat Sammy and Gracie anytime she sees them. It is for that last reason that we found you a new family and wish you well.

The Stewarts
Emma was so responsible with Tasha. She would feed her every morning and would even clean her litter box, that is until Shelly decided that Emma was making a bigger mess than Tasha, and Shelly took over.

The whole family really loved this cat (except Shelly) and the the cat hated the whole family (except Shelly). Hudson especially loved Tasha and every morning he would move the kitchen chair (where Tasha slept) to the window and open the blinds so that she could "feel the warm sunshine." While she soaked up the rays, Hudson would kiss her over and over again.
Poor Gracie loved the cat and the cat just wanted to eat her. During this photo shoot with the cat, Tasha bit both Gracie and Hudson. Hudson and Gracie forgave her instantly but Mom did not.

Goodbye Tasha.

Thank goodness we got new clothes for school

Today Shelly heard the tape dispenser going crazy in the next room.

Shelly: Hudson, are you making something?

Hudson: Yeah!....Tape shoes....Come see, they are really cool.

Shelly: Tape shoes?

Hudson: Yeah mom, now I can walk in stickers outside and my feet won't hurt.

Hudson wore his tape shoes all day today.


Yesterday we had the Primary program and the kids said their parts and sang their songs so well. Nana, Papa, Grammy and Grandpa all came to see.

Hudson to Grammy, before going up to sing: "Grammy, I have to sing really loud, cause my Mom can only hear out of one ear."

Let Your Voice Be Heard.

Let's all make sure that we all get out and vote. No matter who you choose, the important thing is that you do choose.



Don't you wish we could all just get along?

We are ready for some Candy!

I have been as excited for Halloween this year as I have ever been. Now you'd think I've been so excited because our kids are at an age where it is so fun, or maybe because Jonah, as a 5 year old, is getting thrust into his first Halloween and we get to witness his discovery. Well, if you thought that I have been anticipating Halloween for those reasons, then you would be wrong. I have been excited because of Shelly's costume. You see, we as a family (Hudson and Emma decided) chose to all dress up as Star Wars characters. I am not the world's biggest fan of Star Wars, but when Shelly was assigned by Emma to be Princess Leia, this is what I pictured:



Unfortunately, this is what Shelly was thinking:


Today we went to a neighborhood harvest party. I learned a lot about Star Wars that I never knew before, like:
Jango Fett and Darth Maul can dance a mean Quick Step. Also, Yoda gets pretty grumpy without a nap (the sugar rush doesn't help).


I also found out that Princess Leia makes a yummy cherry cheesecake. There has to be some midichlorians flowing in her blood, because non Jedi cannot make a cheesecake so flavorful and creamy.

Also, on a side note, Yoda, can't you just use the force to pull them boogies out?

As it turns out, Darth Maul has a weakness for sugar cookies. I never would have guessed.
Darth Maul as a child on vacation with one of the Clones(His friend Boston).

I think that someone should write a book about Darth Maul as a schoolboy, you know before he is bad. They could make it about how he is teased ruthlessly by a young Obiwan Kenobi because Darth Maul has a red and black face. It would really turn the Star Wars movies on their sides, you know who is really on the Dark Side of the Force? They could even make in a broadway musical and call it "Dark Side". Someone reading this is going to have the skills to pull it off too. Tell you what, acknowledge me in the book and you can have this incredibly original idea for free.
The other day Gracie fell asleep while we were sitting together on the couch. Now when I say this never happens, I mean this NEVER happens. It was great and Shelly thought it was great too. In fact, while Gracie was asleep, Shelly asked me to get the table set for dinner. When Shelly saw that I was holding a sleeping Gracie, she set the table herself.

What's that? Sammy needs a diaper changed? A blowout? Darn babe, you know I'd be all over that if it weren't for Gracie sleeping in my arms. I even got to eat dinner on the couch and watched Ironman. I love you Gracie!
Just a cute picture of Emma before school the other day. She was also dressed up at the neighborhood party, but none of the pictures turned out. She is Queen Amidala and Sammy is an Ewok and we will get pictures up of them after Halloween.

Chucky Cheese, Circumcision and Puppies

First, let's get to the puppies. Nana and Papa's Miniature Schnauzer had 5 puppies last week. We finally went over today to get a peek.

We put this little guy up so Sammy could see him. Sammy kept leaning in to kiss him (we like to say he was kissing him, but he was pretty much sucking on the poor puppy's face).
Gracie was, to our surprise, very gentle with the puppies.
Jonah named this one Bagera (after the panther on the Jungle Book)

Hudson did not want to stop holding the puppies. Nana offered cookies to the kids, and Emma, Jonah and Gracie ran off to eat them. However, Hudson would not leave the puppies. He named one of the ones he's holding Chipmunk.Emma named this one Max. I love it when Shelly puts curlers in her hair.



Sammy is at the great age when kids start to feed themselves. Food gets in their hair, all over their clothes and seriously caked to the floor.

Lucky for us, Sammy's mess making hasn't been an adjustment. Gracie's been at that stage for nearly 2 years and is showing no signs of leaving any time soon. If anything Gracie is becoming more proficient at her food mess making. She has the ability to make a huge mess with yogurt, cereal, bananas (fill in any food you wish) and make it in a way that it is not discovered until the smell gives it away and by then it is so much more joyous of a clean-up.
I see this picture and I am amazed at how much Emma looks like Shelly. I used to be a little envious of this and thought that I wanted a child that looked like me. Then, one day a friend pointed out that if I had a child that looked like me then they would look like me....Forever, and why would I want to wish that on a child. Point well taken, so, here's to my kids not looking like me.
We used to have sing and dance night once in a while when it was bed time but the kids weren't tired enough to go to sleep yet. It never works and the kids just get more hyper, but it's so much fun we still do it once in a while. Lately, however, we've been singing and dancing nearly every night.

Here is Gracie on the drums. The way sing and dance night works is you crank the music up and sing and dance, it really isn't hard.
Jonah, by far, has the best dance moves of any of us. The music selection is also very important. In our home American Idol music has been banned, and that means current and past singers. Sorry Kim Clarkston and Clay Archuletta, take your crappy karaoke music to another home. By the way, Shelly and the kids have decided that my ban on everything Idol is stupid and as yet have not obeyed my embargo. My kids seem to like "Magic" by America, "Piece of My Heart" by Melissa Etheridge and "Corn Dogs" by Ryan Shupe and the Rubber Band.

Hudson dancing with maracas on his ankles.

Emma had the gross idea of smothering bananas in yogurt and then rolling them is sprinkles. Shelly let them do it because:
1-She's a cooler parent than I am.
2-She thought it would get Gracie to eat a banana.


Although it doesn't look like it in the picture below the kids thought the banana with yogurt & sprinkles were great. Although, Gracie picked off and ate the sprinkles and left the banana and yogurt.
Here are a couple of pictures of Jonah and Hudson. They really are the best of friends. This week we went to a High School football game to cheer on some young men from our ward. Jonah and Hudson were really into it, and were so loud cheering for "the scouts."We want to thank Chuck E. Cheese for moving in down the street. We have taken the hour ride to the old Chuck E. Cheese in the past, but now it's only 2 minutes away. Jonah really liked the horse ride and Emma showed her Stewart athletic prowess on the basketball game.


Hudson was actually really good at the basketball game.
Sammy somehow got in some Z's amidst the loud noises and screams coming from 150 unsupervised kids.
Jonah loved this game where you pop bubbles by touching the screen.
Ahhh, the tickets, that is why we love you Mr. E. Cheese. My kids are obsessed with the earning of the tickets. So that, as we are trying to leave, they can spend 30 minutes deciding between the pop rocks candy or the plastic dolphin. On one hand you get to eat pure flavored sugar that explodes in your mouth or you can have a dolphin that you cannot eat, but you can take into the bathtub. Jonah and Emma chose plastic dolphins and Hudson left with 2 packages of pop rocks. Let's see, two 25 cent plastic swimming mammals and Hudson on a sugar rush right as we are trying to get him to bed. All this was ours for the price of 120 tokens that we bought. Thanks again Chuck for moving in next door.


This is Sammy before his surgery, we had to wake the poor kid up at 4:45 to go to the hospital. He got through the surgery without any problems and has been recovering great.
Mom with our little guy right after the surgery.Sammy is getting back to normal and has been happy since being allowed to jump in his jumper again.