Les Miserables at the Arvada Center

Mike and I are HUGE fans of the Broadway musical "Les Miserables". You could say that we are groupies, even. I think I have seen this play 8 times now. When we heard that the Arvada Center (a small city theater) was putting on a production of Les Mis, we started to think about getting tickets. Then we found out that the lead role of Jean Valjean was going to be played by a broadway legend in this role (yeah--don't ask me how a well known broadway star ended up in Arvada, CO). Of course we immediately bought great tickets...and then a few days later read in the paper that Randal Keith (the broadway star) fell and broke his foot during a performance. Sigh.
Of course we went anyway, and I am here to report that we were SO IMPRESSED with the Arvada Center's production! Mike and I had a wonderful little date and this show did not disappoint. I am so amazed at all of the local talent that was in this play. The singing was outstanding. I am very glad that we were able to enjoy Les Miserables for the 8th time! :)

A stop at the playground

We stopped to check out a playground near Centaurus before a football game last weekend, and we hit the jackpot! Carson was in heaven--he loves to go down slides and climb up and down stairs on the playground equipment. Sometimes he will swing, but it isn't his favorite thing.
Daddy and Carson are crossing a bridge to go see the big fish:

THIS big fish!

His favorite thing on the whole playground was this rocking motorcycle. He LOVED it! We had a hard time getting him to say goodbye to his beloved motorcycle. Thankfully this park is near my school, so I am sure we will have many happy returns. :)

Centaurus won the football game that night, and the team plays for the League Championship this Friday. Good Luck, Warriors!

Carson found a new place to play

I never realized that a laundry basket could creat so much fun in one afternoon. :)
Carson loaded up all of his mates & his favorite blanket--

and they were comfy cozy in the "tub".

Could he be more relaxed? :) What a cutie. He gives a whole new meaning to what is important in life.

Alissa Brown's Wedding

Carson attended his first wedding reception on Oct. 11th. It was a very cold but great day to join the Brown family and celebrate Alissa and Josh getting married. Carson even got dressed up for the event! Here, he looks like he is still sizing up the situation and all of the people that were at the reception:
The reception was held at the Evergreen Lake House. It was gorgeous, and as we drove up, there were Elk everywhere along the road. Here is Carson with Mommy as we arrived at the reception.

Daddy and Carson are clapping for Josh and Alissa as they come in!

The reception was beautiful. What a location! We spent most of our time trying to keep up with a mobile Carson who was darting in and out of tables. :)

Then we realized that there was a brilliant "Kids Corner" where Carson could play. What a great idea! There were crafts, glow necklaces, and homemade playdough. In this picture, Tiffany is showing Carson some homemade playdough...

which he tried to eat. And it must have tasted so bad--because Carson doesn't usually cry this hard!!

Daddy to the rescue--something that tastes GOOD to eat. :)

One of the highlights of the reception was Tiffany's toast as the Matron of Honor. I have to say that it might have been the best toast I have ever heard. Well done, Tiffany! Another highlight was watching the traditional first dances, and seeing Jack dance with his youngest daughter Alissa. I just love this picture--but you will have to look at it sideways because I couldn't get it to load correctly and I am done messing with it. This is one of my favorite pictures of the night.

When the traditional dances started, it actually began to snow outside. It was really pretty. Unfortunately, we weren't able to stay long enough to see Carson really cut it up on the dance floor--we didn't get home until after 11:00 p.m., and I finally realized why people don't let their little kids stay up that late...it was 3 days before Carson's sleep schedule was back to normal!!

We had a great time and wish Alissa and Josh the best. The Brown family is very special to us, so we were very glad that we got to be part of such a wonderful event! :)

Carson and the crazy 80's Bat

So far, Carson is a pretty big fan of Halloween. I am really looking forward to the school events and "Boo at the Zoo" this year, because it is so fun to watch Carson try out new things. This weekend, we pulled out some Halloween decor, which means that the crazy 80's Bat who sings "You Spin Me Right Round Baby--Right Round, Like a Record Baby" and spins on his tree perch is the new table centerpiece. As you can see, Carson was very excited to meet this crazy bat.
Man, mealtime just got that much more fun!! This is definitely the BEST decoration Mike has ever gotten for me--it just never gets old!

It really is just the little things, eh?

FALL has officially arrived!

I know that Summer is really gone when the leaves fall off of the big tree in the front yard. Every year, all the neighborhood kids rake the leaves so we can collect them for a big pumpkin bag before Halloween. It is great--I look outside and the leaves are in piles in my yard. Of course, there are times when the leaves just beckon to be jumped in before we bag them up...

Jett, Jaylee, Juju (Juliana), and Carson are all raking leaves in this picture:
Each year, the kids get smarter and smarter. This year, the conversation was as follows:

Jaylee--"Hey Lisa--are you going to PAY US for raking all of the leaves?"

Lisa--"Ummmmmm, what would you like?"

Juju--"Money. Lots of money."

Lisa--"Thats what we ALL want, Juju. How about some candy instead? Because I definitely don't have any money to give you."

Everyone--"YES!! We get CANDY!!!!!!!"
Candy is a small price to pay to have the leaves raked every Fall...

And the end result is a nice big pumpkin bag of leaves!!

It is time to start gearing up for Halloween...

So far, Carson LOVES pumpkins and the crazy Bat decoration that sings some 80's jams. :)

Eden and Carson finally meet :)

Darren, Cherish, and Eden came to Colorado for a visit at the beginning of October. Eden is Carson's closest cousin in age (she is 9 months), and we have been dying for these two to meet. We went to the Denver Zoo, but mostly we just hung out and let the kids play together.

Carson and Eden hit it off right away--but lots of times they wanted to play with the same toy, so there were some tense moments trying to work out a compromise :). Here they are at Grandma and Grandpa's house playing in the living room:

All Bedwell Grandchildren know of the "Alphabet Train" at G & G's house. Everyone sings the "La La Alphabet Song" for at least 4 hours after playing with this train...ha ha

Carson absolutely LOVES this train. In this picture, though, I am a little worried that he has already picked up the saggy pants fashion trend, and this just ISN'T going to happen in my house yet!

Here is beautiful Eden. She is so cute, and already walking. She is trying to be a tunnel for the train to go through!

Here they are negociating some terms in the kitchen:

We watched BYU beat up on Utah State. Here are the boys--

When I say the boys, I mean all of them--Carson joined Grandpa for some football action, and loves to clap when something good happens!

Carson kept a pretty close eye on where Grandma was (this is her pantleg). I'm glad that Carson has been made aware that Grandma has other grandchildren, because the shock might have been too much with everyone there at Thanksgiving (we are going to Darren and Cherish's house in Sacramento). It only took a short time for him to adjust and "share" Grandma with Eden :).

So cute!

Playing together--they even tag-teamed the penguin that you see in the background!

Cherish and the kids are playing in the basement. Carson hasn't quite figured out that he needs to duck a little bit to go inside the tent. He just keeps smacking into it, and then gives up. It is funny...kind of. Only if he grows out of it--THEN it is funny!

Cherish and Eden are looking at some pics. Eden is one of the most photogenic kids I've ever seen! She stops and poses with a smile for pictures!!

Here is Eden trying to figure out all the bells and whistles on this toy:

When Carson and Eden were playing in the basement, Eden started to touch Carson's hair...and then pull. In this picture, she looks like she is grooming him--like monkeys in the wild. The best part is that Carson was looking at a book and was totally unfazed. Cherish and I just let it go after a bit, and Eden pulled Carson's hair while he gave no reaction whatsoever.

Aunt Lisa wants some Eden time. What a classic picture of "who ARE YOU??" She is so snuggly and tender though--once she gets used to who you are:

Eden and Carson both like to eat everything...including plastic balls.

Her Daddy, however, is eating Chocolate Death Cake--I mean "Death by Chocolate" cake...

Not bad, huh Cherish? The good ol' hold-the-camera-out-for-the-picture technique really works!

Here is the Bruder and Schwester with Eden.

We are so glad that Darren, Cherish, and Eden made the effort to come out for a visit. I know that Grandma and Grandpa appreciated more time with Eden, too. The best part is that we will see them again in November when we go to Sacramento for Thanksgiving!! :)

Eden and Carson have a great future together as cousins--they are off to a great start!