Evelyn's 5th Birthday Party

Evelyn's 5th Birthday Party was this morning at Baxter Park.  We asked a college student to come and paint faces for us, and she did a great job!  Brian created an elaborate scavenger hunt for the kids to find their lunch baskets, and they had a good time! Evelyn is certainly blessed with good friends!

Evelyn the Cat

Evelyn and Her Friends

Being silly...

Evelyn requested a butterfly cake this year...

Marianne was also a cat!

The girls!

Happy Halloween!

Today was a really fun day, the girls enjoyed morning school at home, picnic and playtime at the park with friends, and then trick or treating on campus!

Carving pumpkins together since 1998...
Cookie Monster fro Marianne, Yoda for Ewan, and Tinkerbell for Evelyn.

Marianne was quite determined to be a monster this year.  I sewed polka dots on an outfit and we purchased crazy monster hat, socks and gloves.  She asked me, "When will it turn blue?  Monsters are blue."  I did not know that monsters were blue, but she was happy to wear it anyway.  She was pretty cute...and asked each house if they had a lollipop for her.

With her monster pumpkin

Little Bo Peep, looking beautiful.  The bonnet was mine as a little girl...

Little Bo Peep with her sheep!  We borrowed this great costume for Ewan from the Fitzpatricks...

Is there a baby under that sheep costume?

Beautiful blue eyes...

Ewan the sheep. 

Evelyn and her friend Bailey

Marianne was ready to skip trick or treating to play in the little tykes car with Pablo, but we talked her into going around with us...

The Fisher kids with the Fitzpatrick girls!

Ewan's First Trip to Catalina Island

We traveled with Pepperdine to Catalina Island on Saturday as part of their "Sophomore Experience" for the students who do not go abroad their sophomore year.  Pepperdine paid for everything, and it was a delightful day.  The girls loved everything - riding the bus to Long Beach to take the ferry, the ferry ride, watching the scuba divers on the island, the old Casino, riding a glass bottom boat, and a huge pelican who came to visit.  We had a golden day.  Ewan was golden too, full of smiles.  I won't count his four dirty diapers against his behavior record, for he was a very happy camper!

Here he is full of smiles and wonder the day before we left...he always gives the sweetest smiles after you change his diaper!

He really enjoys his jungle gym...and can play in it for a long time while Mommy is busy cooking dinner..

On our Catalina Day, full of smiles in his stroller.

Pepperdine had catered lunch in the 100 year old Casino on the island.  The ballroom was beautiful, and so was the view!

The cove full of sail boats

Still smiling in his stroller!

Classic pick from Marianne, with the view of the round historic Casino ballroom in the background

The girls really enjoyed the glass bottom boat.  We also saw cormorant birds diving from the surface (we have read several books that talk about these black birds, so it was neat to see them)

The smiling, laughing face Ewan often sees from his carseat as sister leans in to get a smile!

This pelican seemed so huge close up!

And Ewan, today before Bible study.  This is a six month outfit from Titi Esti and Uncle Scott.  His hair certainly seems red in these pictures!

Happy Birthday Evelyn!

Evelyn turned five today!  I still remember driving to our induction appointment, early on a Thursday morning, and her first cry late that night at 10:53pm.  We love you darling, and are so proud of you.  We have been doing all kinds of fun things to celebrate this week - we will go to Catalina Island with Pepperdine on Saturday!  That will be very fun, and your birthday party must therefore come a little late.  Here are a few updates all about our FIVE year old.

She just this week started riding her bike for short spurts without training wheels!  We are thankful for knee, elbow and wrist pads from Meme and Grandpapa for her birthday!

She loves climbing, climbing...

The volcano she helped to paint...

Being with Ewan...she calls Ewan her "Best friend."

Evelyn and Marianne modeling their new slippers from Granny and Grandpa. 

Sampling my chocolate birthday cake with Granny

Enjoying running during a soccer game a few weeks ago.  She is really enjoying her soccer season.

Evelyn can do the monkey bars! 

Wearing Christmas pajamas from Abuela to the park in the middle of October...with an orange bow.

Looking graceful and elegant during ballet class. 

With her family on the way to blue and orange madness!

Evelyn is not afraid of Willy the Wave, Marianne was not so sure about that mascot with the large blue head.

Doing a throw in...

Playing store.  Her store is a great deal - you can buy most things for free, including the bouncy seat for my youngest son!  I told her I needed to buy a birthday present for my daughter who was going to be five, she had lots of ideas.

We went to the pumpkin patch on Monday, part of our birthday week.

We met our friends the Muellers there...the girls had a great time!

A little over 3.5 feet...

Riding Tinkerbelle!