Our Cute Cleveland

The Rubicator strikes again

I was downstairs working on our budget. I could hear the girls and didn't think they were doing anything they shouldn't be, until I went upstairs to find a 5 pound bag of pretzels all over the living room, also dog food (we were dog sitting) and Ritz crackers ground into the carpet. The blankets on the couch are from me, when I came upstairs to this mess I went and got my blanket and curled up in it for a good 30 minutes before delving into the clean up process :) Oh the joys

The difference between my 2 year old and my 3 year old

Take a closer look. Yes, that is toothpaste and deodorant smeared all over the bathroom and yes the Rubicator has struck again.  She can get into so much trouble when I am feeding Cleveland.  I had gotten a game and a puzzle out for the girls to entertain themselves with while I went to feed the baby, and this I what I came out to find! So if you ever just drop on by and my house is an absolute chaotic mess you will know why.

FREE ZOO DAY

We finally got to go to the zoo as a family and seriously had the best time! The animals were so much fun to watch, they were so active and entertaining....our favorite was watching the elephant drink, and then going to the bathroom---we couldn't believe how much came out of that animal. YIKES!  The new  carousel is absolutely a dream come true.  Take advantage of the free zoo days this winter, they are the last Wednesday of December, January, and February!  

Deals Deals Deals

I always love a good deal....Try to guess how much I spent..... just guess?!? I'll tell you how much I didn't spend... I didn't spend $375 (that is how much I saved). I got all of this for $88.00, yes that is right.....A SCREAMING DEAL. Was it worth getting up at 4am this morning to start clipping coupons? Yes sir. It's kind of a rush to get the deals...boy, I need a life.

Cleveland's Baby Blessing

So his pants look a little crazy and hiked up to his neck, but they really were cute...I promise :)

Happy Halloween

Isn't my family the cutest...It's 'scary' (okay, so Kedrick is the only scary one here). He had to forewarn the girls before coming up the stairs to show them.  

Big Girl Bed

We bought Brecklin a 'big girl' bed and this was her first night in it.  She did not like it, we found her sleeping everywhere but her bed....under the bed, behind the rocking chair, in the hall, in our bed (without us knowing), etc. So the bed remains in Cleveland's room (unoccupied--but works great for bribing them to be good or else they have to sleep in it), but now the girls are sharing a room, which we tried numerous times and it didn't work but now is working remarkably well :) 

PUMPKIN PARTY TIME

The girls had a great time picking out pumpkins at a local pumpkin patch and Grandma and Grandpa Ridges pumpkin patch.  Every year the Ridges side has a Harvest Party the first week of October. It probably one of my favorite traditions.  We get to pick out pumpkins, roast hot dogs around the campfire, where we also stuff ourselves with Mom's homemade chunky hot applesauce, s'mores, baked beans, and this year Haley went all out and made us fancy schmancy caramel apples which were soooo delicious.  It is so fun to chat, and enjoy the crisp fall air.

CUTIE PIES

HOW CUTE ARE THEY??????  We are having a blast with the three of them, they are simply the best....and did I mention how great it is to not be pregnant???? It's nice to go up and down the stairs and not be winded.

FRUITS (and veggies) of MY LABOR

It has been a busy canning season at the Ridges home, and I can proudly and happily say (or yell) I AM FINALLY DONE.  Yahoo, what a great feeling.  It was a lot of hard work but it sure makes me happy to look and see what I have accomplished this year. I put up peaches, pears, pear sauce, tomatoes, salsa, vegetable soup, grape juice, apricot juice, lots of jams, applesauce, and apricot syrup. The long and exhausting canning days are done until next year.  Good night!  

Happy 3 year anniversary to our house

It was 3 years ago this month that we bought our first house, the house we are still living in today! I want to wish our house a happy anniversary.  We have truly put blood, sweat, and tears...and quite a bit of money into our home to make it what it is today.  When we came across this house it was an absolute stinky, disgusting mess of a place.  When our family came to see what we were buying they couldn't even stand to be in the house for more than 15 seconds.  Our house was a repo and the prior owners (who built it and lived in it for 15 years) didn't take care of it at all, lived without any flooring for 2+ years and let their many, many animals go to the bathroom wherever they pleased. There were holes in the walls, dirt and grease everywhere...but hey it's home, right! Well 3 years later, and a lot more than 3 projects later, and a lot of paint later,  we have made it home.  A new roof, a new fence, a newly graded yard with new grass and flower beds, new paint everywhere, new carpet everywhere, new tile, new fixtures, Kedrick finished the basement, I painted the cabinets in the kitchen, lots of decorating and finishing touches---and at last we can take a deep breath and huge break from projects and just enjoy the hard work we put into our home to make it what it is.  :)  Will we ever buy a repo again....probably not.  Has it been a good ONE time experience, sure! Was it worth the good deal we got on the home... I think so.

Happy Fall y'all

Kedrick took the girls up to Snowbasin and took them hiking and sightseeing. He also took them on a ride on the gondola. They had a wonderful and refreshing time, and Kedrick was thrilled to finally get to see the gorgeous fall colors.

A little peace and quiet

Aren't kids great, especially when they are sleeping!?

Cleveland

Here is Cleveland getting some sun to try to clear out the jaundice.

His first official tubby time, and after--it tuckered him out.

THE BIRDHOUSE

When Kedrick had some time off of work after Cleveland was born, he built the girls a birdhouse.  We thought it would be 'fun' for them to paint it. Well, it really wasn't fun at all.  They did great for about 2 minutes, then there was just a lot of screaming and fighting.  Then they decided to start painting themselves, which wasn't easy to get off at all--needless to say we learned our lesson about 'fun.'  It was fun for them to put the birdseed in and a lot less stressful on our part as parents.  Well, we still haven't seen any birds come, but it sure was 'fun' making it.

SNAKES!

Kennedy is our brave one, just like her dad. We have had a lot of snakes in our yard and garden this year and Kennedy has taken a liking to them. She was pretty proud of herself and how brave she is.

The Rubicator

This is Brecklin Ruby--she has many nicknames...Ruby Slipper, Rubixcube, cube, and the latest and most fitting "THE RUBICATOR" She has tamed down a bit over the last few months, but she is still very busy and very much into everything.  Basically for awhile Kedrick would ask "Who did this, or who did that?" Now he knows, it was the Rubicator.  She can take the smallest of all pieces of food and somehow she can get it in every nook and cranny of her face, hair and hands. It never ceases to amaze me. We keep thinking it will get better soon, but it hasn't, so her clothes continue to get stained, and our kitchen continues to be messy :)