Why didn't the skelton cross the road?

Because he didn't have any guts! The annual pumpkin carving finally happened! The girls just love it and so do I because Jason does all the gross work and I get to be the photographer. Here are the before pictures....

The during pictures........

The picture of Lily eating the pumpkin after some gentle encouragement from Grace.....

And the final results!

Oh, and what do you call two witches who live together????

BROOMMATES!

Happy Almost Halloween from the Kolbs!

My Ella Bella

In the past twenty four hours, Ella has been in typical Ella form which inspired me to list the top ten reasons I love her:

10. Her sensational fashion sense. She has an uncanny ability to put together an unforgettable ensemble.

9. Her determination and ability to just pick things up, i.e. potty training, monkey barring, bike riding and tying her shoes are all things she figured out in, literally, a day. Sometimes she just gets it.

8. When she dances or sings, she totally doesn't get it that other people can see her but gets embarrassed when she realizes they do. Most recently she was doing a hula dance during Mass and Uncle Clifford caught a glimpse and she was mortified.

7. How she can make Grace the Stoneface laugh like no one else can.

6. The intensity with which she experiences emotions. Some may call it being a Drama Queen but I prefer to call it a passion for life. It is this intensity that was the basis for two of her funnier comments lately: Last night I asked her three different times to put away the stuff on her table. I finally became exasperated and raised my voice. She did it without a word and hopped into bed. About five minutes later she came stomping out of her room in the "I'm ticked off, slumped shoulder position" we all know and love and informed me, "You know, usually you are pretty nice to me but right now, you are being a real jerk." How do you respond to that? Second, this morning when I told her she was the only Kolb girl going to school today because Grace was still sick, she became hysterical and cried, "I never knew something like this could happen." After I reminded her how excited her teacher and classmates would be to see her and how worried they must have been yesterday when she was gone, she replied, "That's true.", dried her tears and put on her shoes.

5. Her own personal Ella quirks: the way she laughs in her sleep, the way she lays her clothes out on the floor the night before school-she lays them out so they actually look like a person laying on her floor, how she covers up all of her stuffed animals when she gets out of bed, the way she always has friends but can never remember their names, how she says playground commitment instead of playground equipment.

4. How she is the sort of person I would love to be. She is so generous, giving up her favorite necklace to Lily when she realized how much Lily loved it. And she is completely honest and genuine. She says what she is feeling and means it with her whole heart and soul. Sometimes that can get a person into trouble but it takes courage that many people do not have.

3. Her stories. She starts talking the minute she gets up in the morning and doesn't stop until long after she has been tucked into bed. I guess all that talking explains why she has to take breaths between all her words.

2. The dichotomy that is Ella: She is incredibly kind and loving but fiercely protective when she feels she or anyone she cares about has been wronged. She is so independent but needy and loves a good snuggle. Her all encompassing desire to be funny and make others laugh but her extreme aversion to having others laugh AT her. These qualities make Ella a very interesting but unpredictable individual.

1. Because when she tells me she is going to be a veterinarian, a jewelry designer or a singer when she grows up, I believe her.

And as I did with Lily, I have a couple of add ons for Ella as well,
***How much she loves Oreos

***Her intense focus on whatever it is that she is doing allows her to completely become one with whatever TV show or movie she happens to be watching. So much so that it sometimes is more entertaining to watch her watch a show then to watch the show itself. She's like her daddy that way!

Fritzie-I just love you with all my heart.

E=mc2

We spent an hour at the park this afternoon enjoying the waning days of relative warmth. We brought Baby Einstein and her two goofy sisters with us. Enjoy the weekend!

You are my sunshine, Josh!

Another weekend is coming to a close and it was another event filled, action packed one. My little brother Josh decided to visit us from the big city of Apple Valley. Now, he will not admit this but I do believe this visit was for purely selfish reasons on his part. He has been just itching to get a mention and even better, a picture posted on this blog and this weekend we found out just how far he would go to get this item scratched off his "to do" list, about 500 miles and 8 hours. He says he came to to hang out and because he hadn't been here in a while but I think we all know the truth of the matter!

Anyway, we had a big weekend planned and it started off with a birthday party that Grace and Ella were invited to. Unfortunately as soon as I got home from dropping them off, I received the "Mommy, can you come and get me?" call from Ella. I was totally surprised as she was at a very familiar friend's house but apparently there were just too many people there that she didn't know. I tried to convince her to stay but being a hard head like her mommy, she was not swayed. Luckily, the party was just a few blocks away and I ran right over and got her. She played it off though by telling me "I wanted to see Daddy and Joshy anyway." Josh showed up right as pulled into the garage and the fun began. Our plans were to introduce Josh to our dining out mainstay, Fryn' Pan but much to our dismay, the parking lot was full and we had to quickly rethink our dinner plans. On to Taco Johns we went and as there aren't many of these in the cities, it put a smile on dear Joshy's face. Our experience there and interactions with the hostess provided us with a lot of fodder for the rest of the weekend. Our bellies full, we picked Grace up from the party and proceeded home to prepare for our next agenda item. My wonderful friend, Amanda, volunteered to watch the girls so we could enjoy a night on the town. Josh was anxious to check out the Sioux Falls night life. Neal and Lynette were gracious enough to pick us up and we then met up with Jes, Jay and a couple of others at Stogeez. A couple of beers later, we decided to take a brisk walk several blocks north and try out Wiley's. Jason and I had never been there and thought it was a pretty cool place. Although, I turned into an old lady and wanted to leave after awhile because it was just too loud. Man, as soon as those words came out of my mouth, I really felt ancient. But seriously, it doesn't even make sense to go to a place that you cannot hear or have a conversation with your compadres so back to Stogeez we went. I was pleased to hear a positive babysitters report upon our arrival home but wasn't surprised as the girls were very excited to have Amanda and Ralphie come over. Many thanks to you Amanda!

Saturday was a dreary day but for those of you who don't know Josh well, that didn't matter because the sun follows him around wherever he goes, figuratively speaking. The sun didn't actually come out but no matter where Josh is, good fortune is bound to follow and Saturday was no exception. After a morning of bumming around and a lunch of hot cha-chas, we were off adventuring again. Ella had another birthday party (she stuck it out for the whole party this time) and after dropping her off, we went searching for Halloween costumes for Grace and Josh. Apparently Josh just doesn't embarass easily as the pictures attached were taken in Shopko with people around. Grace thought it was pretty hilarious. Lily, on the other hand was not as amused. She is terrified of anything remotely scary and couldn't wait to get out of there. Poor thing didn't think it was very funny when I donned a freaky mask and crept around the corner at her. I suppose I will pay for that with nightmares later this week. We had no luck in the costume department and moved on. Josh wanted to check out our apartment so we detoured over there quick before picking Ella up from her party. We decided then to attempt a stop at Fryn' Pan again and this time we were met with complete success. Josh definitely sees why this is our default choice for going out to eat. He devoured the salad bar and the hot beef sandwich with glee and was ready to resume the costume search. The sun followed him right into the mall and led him to the exact costume he had in mind. Grace and Ella were delighted to find just what they were hoping for also. I guess the sun's rays extended to them as well. I am not going to ruin the surprise by revealing the costumes at this time. You will have to check back on Halloween for that! A pit stop at Sonic for slushes and we went home to relax.

As this entry is becoming much more lengthy than I intended, I will wrap it up. Joshy loaded up and took off this morning after many hugs and kisses from the girls. A terrific time was had by all and we are so glad he came to visit and hope he comes back soon!

Lily of the Valley

Nothing new going on at our house so I thought I would use this post to list 10 things or reasons why I just love Lily so "berry" much. Obviously there are more than ten but these are the ones that were on the top of my head! You can look for Ella and Grace's lists in the future! So, without further ado, the Top Ten Things I Love About Lily Jane:

10. Her incredible language skills: "Those shoes are adorable." "I just love broccoli. It's delicious." "Do you have an appointment, Grandma?". Sometimes it's hard to remember she is only two. But then she says something like "You're a dooty head." or "That poopy looks like a fish." and then you remember.

9. She gives the greatest, most snuggly hugs in the world. Anyone who has been on the receiving end can attest to this, I am sure.

8. Her most unusual taste in food-some of her favorites are mushrooms, broccoli, tomatoes, banana peppers, tuna, olives, clam chowder, pistachios (a very recently discovered favorite) and pickles.

7. Her complete faith and trust in Jason and I. We can make anything better with just a kiss. In fact, we can even take the owie right off of her and throw it away and in her mind, it really is gone. She also fully believes that we will "save her" from the horribly frightening crickets that live in the garage and from Harley, the big golden retriever across the street.

6. Her manner of speaking, "OK, can I have a gumball?" "What's this thing-gee?" and my personal favorite, how she says "Caaaaannnn I" before just about every request.

5. Her complete and utter fear of rubbery toys and "hairy" balls. It may be slightly cruel but sometimes we try to hand her one when she is unsuspecting and she physically shudders. It's pretty funny.

4. She frequently will come up to Jason or I, out of the blue, and say, "I love you berry much." Of course, she does this a lot while she is supposed to be eating and uses it as a diversion.

3. How much she idolizes her big sisters and loves being one of the girls. It always makes my day when I hear her say "Hey guys!".

2. How adorable she looks when she puts her head down on the table and folds her hands when she says her "Dear Gods".

1. The fact that it is impossible for me to look at her without smiling and having my day feel just a little bit brighter.

Oh, and I thought of two more so I guess it's the Top 12 reasons:

*Her "fat lips"

*When her smile seems bigger than her face

I love you Lily, my little moocher.

Out with the old........

In with the new. I finally got Jason to buy me a new hoopty. Check it out! It's an Expedition like our black one was but it's nine years newer with lots of sweet options. It's great although I have to admit, it was sort of sad to see the old one drive away for the last time. My sentimental little Ella said she is going to miss it but sure seemed pleased with this one while she was laying the seat back and then setting it back up, over and over again.

Grace and Ella love the DVD player and Lily loves the "roll up" or moon roof for those of you who are not proficient in two year old speak. However, the person I think is probably most excited about the purchase is my mom! She will no longer be subjected to incredibly intelligent and interesting but admittedly endless conversations about vehicles between my dad and I. I know it is going to be hard for you to believe but this became a bit of an obsession for me for a couple of weeks now. I think Mom would agree it's been a long road (get it?) but after a few detours, we arrived at just the right destination!