Happy Halloween!

 Halloween was fun, as always. We visited Erik and left him and Lilly pumpkins. Audrey had gymnastics, but didn't want to dress up. Michael informed me he was an Air Force pilot like Mike. 

Halloween fell on a Sunday this year, so the kids dressed up on Friday for school, and did most of their trick or treating on Saturday. There is always a debate about doing things on Sundays in Utah. It's not only a Utah thing, but people like to pretend it's a Utah thing. Gray could only go on Sunday, so the boys were nice enough to go with him Sunday as well. Lots of candy to be had in the Starley home. 

Sarah and her friends dressed in coordinating Scooby Doo costumes and won a school wide award. I happened to be subbing that day, so I got to see her, and take pictures of neighbor kids as they came through the school dressed up. The boys dressed up as Purge characters even thought they've never seen the movies. 

Audrey changed her costume a dozen times, and that's not an exaggeration. She'd chosen skeleton a couple times, so I bought her a costume just in case. Then she decided she wanted to be a skeleton kitty and I'd be a cat as well. (Flash back to 2010 when Sarah and I were cats) Mike wasn't there with us, but we still had fun. Audrey understood how trick or treating worked and she ran from house to house. 

Halloween Recital

The kids piano teacher had a smaller Halloween recital. I'd normally give it a separate post, but neither of the kids put much effort into their pieces, so I'm going to stick it here. At least they participated, blah, blah, blah. (Alright, this was the "Random October" post for October, but this was the only thing left to blog so it gets its own) ;) 

Happy Birthday Audrey!

 We blinked and our baby princess turned 3. Yes, it has been three years since our very last child was born. (So don't try and talk me into a 6th, we're good) ;)

For her birthday we went to Airborne and she had a blast! It was two weeks before her birthday, because that's when Mike could be home, but she didn't know or care. She got presents and that's all that mattered. 

We came back to our house for cake and ice cream. The talented Anna L-loyd made the cake. 

On her actual birthday we celebrated again. She didn't mind at all. We got her another birthday cake and had fun celebrating her again. 

Here are her stats from her 3 yr check up- 29 lbs (33%), 36.5 in (38%)

Audrey is an absolute delight! It's amazing how much personality she already has. 

Audrey loves Bubble Guppies, Word World, and Disney movies. (It's February and she's obsessed with Frozen and Encanto) 

She has a great sense of humor, even though her jokes don't make sense. 

She's in the golden age of playing games like Hide and Seek, where she hides in plain sight. 

She is all of her siblings favorite, and we adore her. 

Sarah begins National Honor Society

 Sarah has been a part of the Junior Honor Society since she started JH, but this year she was able to join the legit NHS. They had an induction ceremony and a few of her friends are doing it as well. They're more on the ball with setting up service and follow through, which has been good. 

Riverjoy Holiday Haven

 Well, we did a thing. My sister Ashley, and her husband Dave, bought an awesome house in Estes park last year. They talked my parents into also buying one. Next they bought two more. They talked to us about buying one, so we started to wrap our heads around it even though Mike was gone. Our place was listed and Ashley told me about it. I called her agent and he has us under contract in a few hours. We bought it furnished, (nothing was included) which is the only reason I was able to buy it without Mike home. 

Although we went under contract in August they wouldn't let us close on it until Mid October. The summer/fall months are the most lucrative and they want to milk it for longer. I didn't mind too much, because it gave me plenty of time to prepare. I rewrote the welcome guide, got signage ready, and started buying things we wanted to change out. The property has a holiday theme, which seems to work well, but the previous owner had gone way overboard. Although I added things, I was mainly taking things off the wall. 

We left the morning of the 15th and I signed the closing documents and then saw it for the first time when we got there. I signed for Mike with a Power of Attorney, which took FOREVER. ;) We brought Roland with us and the Holts came and stayed in one of Ashley's places. I stayed busy getting our place ready, and the kids hung out and walked to Estes. 

My sister Jess was up at Estes at the same time. While the big kids were off at Ashley's, Audrey and I walked to my parents to see Jess and her kids. It was Audrey's first time meeting Jessica, Leyla, and Tyler. I didn't know it would be my last time seeing Jessica in person. I'm glad I was able to visit with her, give her a hug, and tell her I loved her. 

We took the kids to the new mountain coaster and they loved it. Audrey got rides from siblings and cousins. They would have done it all day if we'd let them. 

Here's our place if anyone is curious. 

https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/52507910?preview_for_ml=true&source_impression_id=p3_1645662504_jDE6IJE3BvzUkuCt

Fear Factory with the big kids

 Mike was able to come home for Columbus/Indigenous day, so we planned some family fun. He took Sarah and Steven to the haunted house and they all survived. Audrey kept asking to see the pictures for weeks because she thought it was the coolest thing ever.