Happy Halloween!

The kids are at this wonderful age where I can still pretty much dress them like I want to and I really wanted them to coordinate their Halloween costumes.  (Last year- The Tortoise and the Hare).  This year, Mary wanted to be a butterfly and said Adam should be a cocoon.  As cool as that would be, I have absolutely no idea how I would create something like that and get Adam to wear it.  We compromised and decided he would be the Very Hungry Caterpillar and she would be the beautiful butterfly he becomes.  

Her costume needed the all important wings.  I searched online and found a website for making some.  I knew I wanted to try tissue paper to create the look of Eric Carle's drawings.  We headed out to the dollar store to look for the necessary supplies.  Color me surprised when we found actual wings, already made...for a dollar!  Whoo-hoo!  This saved me so much time.  We also found a big pack of tissue paper.  So we came home to "make the wings". 

These are pretty, but we want something super special and unique.

 We cut the tissue paper into strips.

 And then into smaller pieces.

 We then glued the pieces on the wings.

 And, maybe had some fun.

 The finished look!

 I was planning on looking for a red beanie cap and gluing felt pieces on it as the caterpillar's face for Adam's costume.  I found this fantastic one on Etsy.com instead.  It is way better than I could have ever made.  He was actually scared of it when we first got it.  I guess the eyes freaked him out.  Luckily, constantly putting it on him every morning has helped with his fear.  Later, bribery worked- "If you want candy, you have to wear your hat.  Otherwise people will think you're just in pajamas."  The hat went back on.

 I made Mary's antennae out of an old headband that had butterflies and even though it would be cute, I thought she needed to stick with the character, so I wrapped them in yarn.  Lots and lots of yarn and added extra on top for the balls.  One's taller than the other.  Oh well.  

 I thought last year was great when Mary realized that people were giving away free candy and she wanted to go all around the block to every house possible.  She was 3.  Adam is 22 months and he figured it out after the first house.  He barely talks, but he got his point across loud and clear.  We would walk to the door, Mary would ring the bell and say, "Trick or Treat!"  Adam would put his basket on the ground, point at it and grunt really loud.  If the people were dumb enough to let him pick what he wanted, he would grab the biggest handful I have ever seen.  I had to return some.  At least he would say, "Thanks!"  He also couldn't wait until we were finished, so he unwrapped a lollipop and commenced candy consumption  after we had only been to a few houses.  He was so funny.  You could tell when the sugar rush set in.  He was running full speed down the sidewalk to get to other houses.  That was one happy kid.  Mary had a great time, but I swear, she seemed to have more fun giving huge handfuls of candy to the kids who came to our house.  She's such a giver.

Happy Halloween everyone!

Woody Pickle Putthoff

 Last week, we picked out our pumpkin.  This week, we carved it.  Mary helped me design the facial features and the kids enjoyed scooping out the "guts".  Well, Mary did.  Adam was a bit unsure and preferred to watch and taste an uncooked seed (which he promptly spit out).  He couldn't get enough of the roasted ones, though.

I like how Mary showed me her gooey hands and Adam had to show me his (ungooey) one.  Such a copy cat.

 Mary named him Woody Pickle Putthoff.  Adam approved.

 And you can't make a Jack O' Lantern without putting in a candle.  

It was an extremely busy weekend painting the guest room from a dark Air Force blue to a bright, super sunny (maybe a tad too sunny) yellow.  You can't walk into that room without feeling happy, that's for sure.  Doug was busy constructing a shelving unit for the garage that hangs from the ceiling.  Cool.  Thank goodness we have some kids that like playing outdoors on the playground.  *Note Adam's "road rash" from a tumble this afternoon*  Even though we were busy, I'm glad I was able to take the time to have some good 'ole fun making cookies (oh yeah, we made sugar cookies and decorated them) and jack o' lanterns and memories.  Until next time...

A Beautiful Fall Day...

A beautiful fall day... led us on a morning adventure to a pumpkin patch.  I think I was almost more excited than the kids...almost.  The first thing Mary said to me this morning was, "Mom, did I sleep good last night?"  I replied, "Yes, you slept great."  Then her eyes lit up and she said, "So we can go to the pumpkin patch?"  "Yes!!!!!"  Of course, I didn't mention that we would still go no matter if she had bad dreams and kept me up all night or not.  The kids have been such troopers through all this moving and unpacking.  They deserved an outing.

We found a great farm about 30 minutes away and it was the perfect size for the kids.  We got to pick our own pumpkin from the field.  Adam and Mary had a fun time pushing the pumpkin barrow around.  I loved that we got there right when it opened, so it wasn't crowded and we didn't have to worry about the kids and they could just run and play and well, just be kids.

Looking at a baby pumpkin.

 There's our new pumpkin!

 Now, for the "posed" shots.

 Love!

 The highlight of the trip was the hayride.  It was all Mary could talk about in the car on the way there.  We sat behind a pair of beautiful Belgium Draft horses who did a better job of following commands than my own children.  This was right before our ride started. I love the happiness on Mary's face.  Notice Adam's really interested in the button on his overalls.  Hee,hee,hee.  At least he wasn't trying to touch the horses' backsides.

 Checking out and petting the horses afterward.  What a great morning.

 This beautiful fall day didn't end with the pumpkin patch.  We took advantage of the weather, the free child labor and the fact that said labor rarely naps these days and planted our new cherry tree.

I keep saying, "I'm NOT a baker."  But lately, I find myself baking.  Hmm, maybe you can teach old dogs new tricks...  Today, I made some super yummy homemade soft pretzels.  WOW!  I made 2 in the traditional "pretzel" shape, but that took too long.  I made a couple into thin sticks, but that took too long.  I hacked off chunks of dough and threw them in the boiling water, now that was perfect.  Added some kosher salt, popped them in the oven and then served them with mustard.  Yum!  The kids scarfed them down and barely let me have any.  I made a second batch and to try something different, after pulling them out of the oven, I dipped them in melted butter and rolled them in cinnamon sugar.  They ended up tasting like little donuts.  The kids enjoyed 2 of those for dessert.  Good thing we're not on low carb diets!

 That's a whole lotta mustard.

 Adam liked the one that resembled a worm.  Go figure.  I think it was really because it cooled off the fastest and the chunks were still hot from the oven.  Hey, I can dream, can't I?

And to top off this beautiful fall day...Mary was looking for cool rocks under our deck that we can paint and she found a Geode!  A little soap and water and now it's nice and sparkly.  What a find.

Sometimes I have to sit back and smile and say, "I love my life."

This Saturday...

This Saturday, we got "arts and craftsy" outside.  Leftover packing paper made excellent craft paper, egg cartons provided great dividing cups to hold paint, and nature inspired our creativity.

 This Saturday, we watched Daddy thatch the lawn.

This Saturday, we raked...and raked...and finally, gave up to rake some more tomorrow.

This Saturday, we tasted paint.

We had a fabulous time.

And we decorated a wall with art, favorite pictures and vinyl sticker frames.

This Saturday, we exhausted ourselves.