Happy Halloween!

Halloween To Do:

      1. Buy more candy (my neighbor told me we live in a busy neighborhood for Trick or Treaters)
     2.  Kids have to finally decide on what their going to be for Halloween (after all it's only the night before!)

I confess I didn't spend a dime on costumes this year.  Before you feel bad for the kids and think that they are deprived because they didn't get new Halloween costumes...well, it's true they didn't, BUT!  They have a trunk and it's very (overfull) of, 'dress-up-stuff.' So I had an amazing, frugal (cheap!) idea and told them to pick something, and that would be their costume! They didn't argue, I didn't even get any strange looks!
Jackson didn't hesitate, he knew right away that he was going to be, a 'Star Wars Clone.' Chloe, on the other hand, couldn't decide what she wanted to dress up as! I mean the first day it was a butterfly, the next day a dog, then she wanted to be a hunter and a cowboy (I'm not entirely sure how that would of worked?), after that, a pig!  I have to say she had an endless list of possibilities, but she knew she had to come to a decision - and fast! So she finally decided to be a...MAGICIAN! (We were so relieved that she finally made her decision!) {Whew!} Baby Lucy was a snap to pick for.  We gave her two choices, an angel or a dog.  I had her all dressed up in her adorable white angel dress and wings, and all she could do was try to wiggle her way out of it and get to the dog costume! So we knew what we had to do!

Here they are between the school Halloween dance and going out, Trick-or-Treating.

Lucy wore her costume all day too! In fact, she even won a prize at our local grocery store for cutest costume! My only problem is, she still will not take the costume off (oh, how I wonder how long this stage will last?) I am looking forward to getting my daughter back someday.  For now, however, she is very happy being a dog.

Even doggies need breaks sometimes!

Happy Halloween Everybody!

Pumpkin Carving!

Pumpkin carving went well. However, I mistakenly told the kids to draw a picture of the face they wanted on their pumpkin. (What was I thinking!) This is what they drew

  Being that I'm not hugely artistic and I think I've carved the same face on every single Halloween pumpkin we've ever had, their adorable drawing was NEVER going to happen. So, we compromised, and took a little bit of what they wanted and a little bit of  my steak knife skills, and we made a Jack-O-Lantern that everybody was happy with! {Yay!}

My mom's recipe for pumpkin seeds!

A crowd pleaser {Yum!}

We named him, 'Jackie'!

 

Saturday Mornings...

We enjoyed a lazy Saturday morning at home.  Able and I heard giggles from Jack's bedroom, so we had to go see what was going on. This is what we found!

So CUTE...

Please don't grow up too fast,
these times are so sweet!

She's Got the Blues!

Today baby Lucy came out of her room with little blue hands, a little blue mouth and a big mischievous smile! None of us had any idea what she had gotten into. We searched everywhere for a crayon or a marker...until...Daddy found a small blue tablet. It was the one the dentist (who obviously had never had a two year old running around his house), gave her. It was included with a free toothbrush, toothpaste, dental floss, and 'the tablet'. The idea is, the kids first brush their teeth and then chew on the tablet. It will darken the parts in their mouth where they've missed spots.


Well, I guess we had all forgotten about it...except baby!
She was actually quite proud of herself. She had a big smile on her face when she came to show us what she had done. Her only complaint was that she couldn't seem to get the blue color off her fingers. She kept trying to wipe off her hands, but unfortunately I think it might take days... And of course there's church tomorrow. I'm pretty certain that no amount of bathing will remove the blue before then. (Oh, how nice she will look in her pink dress, ruffle socks, hair bow and...{ehem} oh yeah, dark blue fingers too...)
Here she is...

Fall

Fall is my favorite season of the year. I love all the beautiful colors outside, the crisp air and all of the yummy smells associated with fall like, cinnamon, vanilla and cloves. Today, Able bought me a candelabra that I love! The candles are not only beautiful, but they smell so good! It makes our house look very festive. He's such a sweet man!

It's hard to see in this picture, but there are iron birds and leaves attached for decoration

The kids noticed the candles right away, and Chloe thought they were so pretty that she gave us both hugs! : )

Hair Pretty

I LOVE Chloe's curls! However, they do have their challenges...(or maybe it's just me!) I'm always looking for cute, little girl hairstyles to try.  It's important to have it out of her face and we love braids! She is mostly patient with me and really loves to pick out 'hair pretties' each day that match her outfit.  In fact, she loves lots of color and she might even put every 'hair pretty' she owns on her head, all at the same time, if I would let her! (What can I say, she's my creative child!)
Here's a new style we tried today.  I divided the front of her hair into three sections and french braided each. *She insisted we add some 'flare,' so we added four hair clips as well! :)

A view from the top of her head

From the side

Our First Snow!

cute little snowmen with carrot noses

time to make giant snowballs

baby Lucy watches from the front window snacking on a cookie

time to come inside and warm up with some homemade chicken noodle soup