Nettesheim News: (random order with random pictures dispersed throughout)

Great Pumpkin Party 2011 - we had a great turnout!

Rose is finally drinking milk! really her birthday was only 18 days ago but my other children switched over so easily that this has felt like forever.

I am still in love with this wink!

Benji is a READING machine. He loves to read and I love that he has picked it up so fast. After a week or 2 of school I sent a note in his backpack that his baggy books were to easy so they bumped him up a level and give him two books at a time and he is still flying through them. He can read just about anything BUT he doesn’t do much reading outside of what is required.

Benji loves having Tay, Ky and Mar living with us - non stop fun.

Packer can spell his name! He wouldn’t even try at Joy School last year so I was excited to see him get it. We were at the park and they have letter blocks and he told me he was going to make his name – I assumed that meant finding a P, which he did find, but then he just kept on going! He is still Mr Project, today he helped me deep clean his bedroom and played with every little thing we found like it was Christmas morning.

Soccer is over for the season, we'll be back in the spring.

Rose is a standing machine – by that I mean she loves to pull herself up to everything, if she is awake then she is most likely standing up holding on to someone or something. She cannot stand by herself yet. She also loves to climb. Her favorite spot is up on the couch. And she is discovering the Love Sac this week since we have it back, it has been being babysat by Bens brother since our house is FULL.

My Big Girl at one of many soccer games

“So is Cali potty trained?I mean you don’t have much time before the new baby comes and YOU DO NOT WANT 3 in DIAPERS.” Thank you mom for the reality check! 🙂 I would love for Cali to be out of diapers but it just isn’t happening. She sits on the toilet, grunts, makes fake pee sounds, talks about using the big girl potty BUT she has never physically ACTUALLY used the toilet so we are still waiting. I think I will force it when she turns 3 if it hasn’t happened yet.

Cali with Aunt Michelle at Soccer - it takes all of us to keep her happy - she is my toughest child (still)

Benji is a social machine lately. He keeps making knew friends at school and comes home itching to play with them. He tells me that he is one of the funny guys but Isaac is super funny and Tye is kinda funny like him. He also enjoys playing with Truman and seeing guys from school at soccer. He hasn’t made any lasting friendships yet but he is getting the friend thing down. Having older cousins live at our house is giving him some insight on how the friend thing works.

Caramel apples for FHE this week!!

We got a few Halloween costume items in the mail today. Packer lit up SOO bright when he got his. He was grinning from ear to ear. He is still stinking cute and innocent and easy to please and … I just want him to stay this way forever 🙂

Tara and the girls dipping the apples in butterfinger.

“I am the Mom, you the sister, you the brother and Rosie is the baby.” This phrase comes out of Cali’s mouth several times a day. She is ALWAYS the mom and she is good at it. She is bossy, calls everybody sweety, and takes care of everybody. Sometimes I forget that she is still just 2.

let me help with the apples - please

Ben has become the Master Chef around here. He cooks EVERY Sunday and we ALL love it. My siblings have a standing invitation to Sunday dinner and he has never disappointed. Some of his specialties are Benoganoff, Bensagne, Corn Ben and Chili, Ben Vida (pork burritos), and classic ‘Sunday Dinner’. These are 3 to 6 course meals for 10 to 16 people so it is no small task. I wish every day were Sunday.

We celebrated Taylee's 11th birthday on the 11th!!

Rose is always sick lately. Not necessarily take me to the Dr sick but just enough to make her GRUMPY. It seems about weekly that she gets a little fever and just can’t be happy. On Sunday she was a monster. She had a quick nap from 10:30 to 11am and then I brought her home from church at 12:30 and let her have another little nap until 1:00. I wanted to go to the last part of church so we headed back over and she lasted maybe 5 minutes before yelling loudly and then waving to all of the women when she got her way and we exited the building. I never leave church early but this time I did. Ben says he will wrestle her next week and we both think there will be a better outcome.

I love when babies pass out on the floor - adorable.

Benji is growing up, this months milestone… he can walk to or from school by himself! I am soo excited for this because that means I shouldn’t have to load the van with lots of kids to go get one kid a football field length away from our house! And once he is independent then he will be able to take Packer next year and Cali after that and… ahhh I see a light at the end of this tunnel 🙂 I know winter will bring its own challenges with walking to school and he still convinces us to take him when he can BUT he is capable of going by himself and that is huge.

Our big First Grader! showing off his desk.

I have been helping out in Benji’s class on Thursday mornings! It’s fun to see him in class with his classmates. I am helping a few of the kids with their reading. At first I figured that some other mom probably had more time than I do to help but after parent teacher conferences I signed myself up and it is working out great. I love it.

the Legos have resurfaced - I hid them for the last 2 months to keep the clutter under control BUT we all love the Legos.