Big Tex, Four Eyes, Halloween, and Other Miscellaneous Stuff

Big Tex
After living in Texas for nearly 15 years, we finally made it to the Texas State Fair. Yee-Haw! Now we just need to get the kids to a real rodeo and we'll consider ourselves bona fide Texans! The fair was a once in a lifetime experience (meaning that once in a lifetime is probably about enough). Actually, it was pretty fun and I'm glad we went.

We hung out with Big Tex. He's like a lot of other Texans .... only bigger.We rode the biggest ferris wheel in North America. It was pretty much like any other ferris wheel .... only bigger.
We saw a lot of cool animals including horses, cows, and goats. We also saw a baby giraffe, baby zebras, ostriches, a camel, lamas, and a whole lot of other animals. We saw the the most disgusting hog ever. I did NOT take a picture! He was like other hogs .... only WAY bigger. Anna did her best to make sure that all the animals were well fed (except the hog, he had had enough).We watched some entertaining pig racing. I have no idea if these were bigger or not.We indulged in a lot of the deep fried food that the Fair is famous for. I probably shouldn't have indulged so much because my stomach was not one bit happy on the ride home. However, the fried cheesecake was to die for. I only WISH it had been bigger!
Four Eyes
Josh has moved on from having two cute eyes to having four very cute eyes. I think he looks awesome with his new glasses, and he is thinking that a whole lot of things are looking pretty awesome now too.
Halloween
This years line up for Halloween: Seth - biker dude, Aleah - Cruella Deville (she liked this costume enough to use again), Josh - Woody from Toy Story, Anna - fairy.These are the results of the annual cul-de-sac pumpkin carving party. I LOVE that tradition!

I'm On It!
I just have to say that I ADORE this kid! Seth is smart and funny and great with his younger brother and sister and generally just fun to be around. One of the things that I absolutely love about Seth is that he rarely complains. He is always good about doing his chores and his homework. And lately, almost any time I ask him to do anything - from taking out the garbage to finding socks for Anna to fixing lunch for everyone - his automatic response is "I'm on it"! Who could ask for anything more?

Hiking
Aleah and I recently got to go on a Mother/Daughter "hike" as part of a church primary activity. We hiked all the way to the top of Mt. Bonnell (elevation 780 feet above sea level). It was so fun! I watched Aleah as she ran around and explored and had fun with friends and hung out with me. I just LOVE this girl! She really is amazing! She is smart and talented and fun and adventuresome and determined. How did I get so lucky?