Trick or Treat!

We had a great Halloween this year!! The weather couldn't have been better...so good, everyone was out on their porch handing out the candy. Our neighbors were even handing out beers to the parents......We started the day with the school parade and party. Here is Braden "Yoda" during the parade.

After the parade, they gathered in the classroom for a story while we set up for the treats.
One of the activities was to frost a cookie to take home......

I think the party went well....keeping 20 kindergarteners somewhat quiet, occupied and excited isn't the easiest thing...especially hopped up on sugar!!

The trick -o- treat evening started at Nana and Papa's over on Circle Drive and then a quick trip to Grandmas house. We then got dinner on the go and headed back to the neighborhood for some fun.

At Grandmas...she gave them chocolate dipped pretzels and marshmallows.

Group shot of the fam


This is the only attempt at getting a picture of the kids in their costume that they were looking in the general vacinity of the camera...i'm sorry, my kids are HORRIBLE when it comes to "look and the camera and smile" pictures.....HORRIBLE!!!

Another "mother of the year" moment....Fin eating in the wagon while we are trick or treating....

We did one lap around the block and then headed back to the house to hand out our own candy...Braden had more fun doing this, however he really liked trick or treating...wasn't afraid of any of the houses. I think he even said Thank You.

The good news is.....Halloween is over and Thanksgiving is around the corner. The bad news is....I WAAAAAYYYY over bought Halloween Candy....Any suggestions on what to do with it, besides eat it??

oh one more.....so upon checking Bradens candy bag for bombs, razor blades....ok, anything with peanuts we discovered this....I think it is officially the strangest Halloween treat!!

'twas the night before Halloween.....

So tonight we took on the daunting task, for the second time this year, to carve the pumpkins. I think we need to choose smaller pumpkins...these took forever to clean out.
Sean cutting the first cut.....

mmmm....pumpkin guts.....

Braden started the evening trying to help Sean. The pattern they picked was waaay to complex for Braden to do....so he came to my side of the table to help me.

He did all the straight cuts....all by himself...and did great. His favorite part was pushing the pieces out as we finished them. Where was Finley you might ask....under the table, why, we dont know.

Finley and My finished pumpkin....cool kitty with add on eyes.

the pirate....aaarrrrgh
and the aftermath.....

Tune in tomorrow for fun from the Kindergarten Halloween Party (yes, I am the room mom......) and of course the evening festivities...

Ok that was fun!!

So now I want to do something else fun.....'

You decide the topic

1. Ask me to take a picture of something in my daily life and I will....(Kari I stole this from Amber)

2. You can ask me any question about myself and I will answer it...within reason....(I stole this idea from some random blog, too)

I will start the"game" on Monday....

So you choose which game we play.... #1 or #2.

....and the winner is....

Sarah Spelman...aka Sarah Fransene

Sarah and Kieran said...
trick: toilet papering houses back in Galesburg. i am sure we did someone's house on or near Circle Drive (but it wasn't your parents...i don't think...) :)treat: pumpkin spice lattes.pick me. i will wear it even though i don't cook well. :)
October 26, 2008 9:31 PM

Congrats Sarah!! I am going to try my best to get this in the mail TODAY......

Keep your eyes peeled for other giveaways!!

Playing with Pictures

this weekend found my friend from waaaayyyyyy back when back in the Burg. Em and I took her to lunch at the yummy (1 hour wait) Landmark. Megan and Chris are expecting their first child (girl) in early February. She looks and feels great....lucky duck.

Sunday the fam headed to the constuction site to meet with Dale, the contractor. While chitchatting about the generator Finley disappeared....only to holler that she was stuck. She was in the side yard....which is ALL mud currently and her shoes were stuck........in the mud.

did you know that pumpkins float.....(yes we are doing science experiements in the bathtub.)

Sunday evening was the Children's Halloween party at SCC. We attended and had fun with the donut on a string contest, pluck a sucker, grand prize game, mummy bowling, pin the nose on the pumpkin and the mummy wrap!!!

not sure why this above arrangement didn't turn out the way I wanted it to.
Will be back soon with Halloween pictures........can you believe it is Halloween again???

My First Giveaway

So here is my maiden voyage at ruffled aprons. It is obviously in a Halloween theme. Because I am so excited that I completed it...i'm giving it away...thats right, giving. All you need to do to enter to win is comment on this post your FAVORITE Halloween treat (or trick) ((or both)). On Wednesday I will announce the random winner.........good luck.

Here is a Question

Ok. Well, maybe there’s more than one question here.
Pick one (or more) and fire away.

1. How often do you brush your teeth in a day?
2. If you could (despite consequence) change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
3. How do you get your coffee or tea from someplace like Starbucks...or home?
4. Why do you think God allows us to go through painful seasons in life?
5. Favorite gum flavor?
6. How far are you from where you want to be?
7. What is your least favorite word?
8. Do you get the oil changed in your car on a regular basis?

Pumpkin Carving Party

Sean, the kids and I joined a bevey of other fun people to have dinner and carve some pumpkins. April and her cuties Hunter and Peyton had us over from some messy fun. Everyone got in on the action, kids and adults alike.



Mike and Kylie

Jaci and Parker (with some crazie hair)
Jennie and her girls
Hunter and Peyton...the 4 year olds, carving their own....they are way good

Poor Jakob de-gutting his pumpkin while his momma is watchin

while drinking a ho-garten....I honestly have a photo of Alyssa helping Jake carve, however thought this was more fun!!
Alison, Jordan and Kamden....observing....why no Carving????? You could have made one for the lil' pumpkin on the way!!
this is Ava, cute as can be, in Bob the Builder goggles....safety first!!

and here is Finley, the hot mess, with the same goggles ON UPSIDE DOWN???

Its hard to tell...but in this picture half the kids have ditched the pumpkin carving parents and opted to play in the garage.....
The finished product

Bradens Frankenstein (seans work) & Finleys winking pumpkin (my work)
On the porch when we got home. Thanks April, Jim, Peyton and Hunter!! We had a great time and hope to see you all soon!

Halloween and PUMPKIN YUMMINESS

I love peeps....I don't love to eat them, actually can only stomach maybe one. I love them for their cuteness. Add them to cupcakes, actually use a whole one in a cup of hot cocoa, skewer them and use them as decoration......


Attention all Pumpkin Pie lovers.................

I must start this by saying that if there was a pecan, apple, cherry or pumpkin pie sitting in front of me I would eat the pecan, apple and cherry pie before the pumpkin pie. Strange thing is that I LOVE the taste of pumpkin...Pumpkin muffins, bagels, cookies, creamer in my coffee......but the pie CREEPS me out, I think it is the texture, I have texture issues (see tagged post earlier). BUT if the pumpkin pie comes in the form of a Blizzard from Dairy Queen it is PURE FANTASTIC YUMMINESS (is that a word?). Try one, really. Sean and I skipped dinner tonight and had a Pumpkin Pie Blizzard instead......and we both ate them. all of it. gone.
Act fast, it is the flavor of the month and it is the 20th today.

Happy Birthday Sean

My dear husband had his 35th birthday last week and of course we celebrated!! I took the easy way out this year and had a Italian Cream Cake and a few cupcakes made by a local bakery, however we (the kids....Braden actually) decorated them....

cheese......
Happy birthday to you...notice the "Dora" hats.....Thanks nana, slim pickins at the Walmart.
This is how all the pictures look with me in them......that is why you never see pictures with me in them....NO ONE pays attention. If I have the camera I am yelling "hey, over here, lookie, lookie, finley, finley, finley, fin put your hands down, braden get your finger out of your nose, sean please smile......." does this sound familiar to anyone or is just our family????