FYI

I figure this is as good a place as any to get the word out without too much effort. The McDougal family will soon be increased by one ... yep it is true, I am pregnant and due the end of May! It has taken me awhile to actually be able to say it out loud but my waist line is definately expanding and I won't be able to just blame it on too much Halloween candy for too much longer. I still am trying to decide if we are completely insane or blessed - time will tell. I have of course been completely sick and then just last week I got bulldozed with a horrible cold but other than that things are going as to be expected.

Please forgive the Christmas background before Thanksgiving but I was goofing around trying some new ways to spruce the blog up and i figure with the time it takes me lately to accomplish anything... better sooner than never!

Halloween '08

We started our Halloween Day by taking the kids to Dinosaur Park.
We met the Gallacher cousins there... the kids had a great time.

Our three little trick or treaters!

On Halloween night our ward hosted it's annual chili cook off dinner and trunk or treat. Here are some pics of the kids and their friends!

Our not so scary witch and Mithchie.(aka ... Madi and Sienna Morris)

Jojo and Miss Butterfly (aka...Teagan Morris and Elli)

Stitch, Fireman, Indiana Jones & Wizard (aka... Isaac, Seth, Robby & Cambden)

Five Things You Didn't Know About Robby...

Robby is the middle child in our family and the only boy... he has an older sister and a younger sister. He is always a good sport about it and in his younger years had plenty of practice in patience as Madi would play dress up with him.

Robby rarely sits still or quiet ... even if we are just driving in the car you will eventually hear "blow up" or gun noises coming from the back seat. I am never quite sure what we are blowing up but it is hilarious to watch in the rear view mirror. "Boys will be boys!" Other random noises that are a constant in our house are whistling and a strange "woooo" noise that you just have to hear to appreciate.

Robby is a great big brother (most of the time)... he is always trying to help Elli or share something with her to make her happy and even though she is not always nice back he keeps trying ... what a trooper!

Robby is not always the tough guy he tries to portray... his bedroom is in the basement along with Madison's but Robby hates to be down there by himself. He can stall with the best of them when asked to go down and get pj's on or brush teeth until he is sure that Madi will be down there also. You've gotta love a tough guy with a tender heart!

At our recent parent/teacher conference with Robby's teacher she informed us that his math level is that of a 2nd grader at the end of the 2nd grade year. She wants him to start going into the 2nd grade class during their math time ... we'll see what happens.(if curious this math gene definately did not come from his father) Now the catch -- his teacher told us that kids that are ahead in certain academic areas usually end up being bored as they get older and tend to get into trouble. ( So the question is - do I take this converstaion as a compliment that Robby is doing well in Math or as a bit of a warning that I should be scared for him in the future?) Whatever happens it is fun to watch him count everything and he especially loves telling time and figuring out how many more minutes until something.

Robby is an awesome little boy and we love having him as part of our family ... We love you Robby!

So now you know a little about Robby. We tag Isaac, Kaitlyn and Shelby.

St George Escape

Madi and Robby were off track the last 3 weeks of October and James had to head to St George for work so the rest of us decide to tag along. I will admit that by the end of 3 days with all of us in the same Hotel room - mom was a ready to come home but overall it was a great trip. James had the car most of the time so me and the kids hung out at the hotel and went swimming most of the time. The hotel had an indoor and outdoor pool so it was perfect for all times of the day. I think our kids could swim forever. Monday night we caught up with the Bain family who now live in St George and we went to a local farm that had a corn maze, hay ride, play area, steer roping, trains and petting zoo. The kids had a blast and you would think that our kids and the Bain kids were long lost friends - they had so much fun together. Thank you to the Bains for a great evening! On Tuesday we headed over to Snow Canyon and went hiking through the red rock and then went to the Sand Dunes where the kids played for about 2 hours. It was beautiful and a lot of fun ... we were happy to have awesome weather! On our way home on Wednesday we decided to stop at Cove Fort... besides the 30 degree drop in temperature since we left St George, it was really interesting (even the kids liked it). Overall... a great little vacation!

Crazy Hair Day

The kids had crazy hair day at school the other day -- they had so much fun coming up with what crazy hair-do they would do that day(Madi thought about it the entire week before. Madi ended up with a side bun, a side braid and a back ponytail. Robby ended up with spikes(not many other options for brillow head) and then they both had pink highlights. Elli's hair was done just for the picture ... (aka: bed head!) The morning was crazy for me trying to get it all done before school because it is always hectic in the morning but after looking back at the pictures it was well worth the chaotic morning. The kids had so much fun and they looked great.