Happy Halloween

Sunday is a strange day for Halloween. Church in the morning and Trick-or-Treating at night. Just weird!

I decided to spiff things up a bit and made a "spoooooky" dinner. These ideas were borrowed from friends' blogs (Carol!) and the internet. We had Mummy Dogs and Worm Juice.



We also had "Crunchy Fingers."



I figured I had to do something creative to make up for times when I completely fail at being a mom...like taking Evan to 7-Eleven for breakfast. Evan declared that the carrot fingers were "gross," and only ate half of his Mummy Dog. Hudson ate all of his carrots, but barely touched his dog. Sometimes I wonder why I try? Oh yeah, I remember. It's so I can take photos for later proof that I did these things way back when!

After dinner was done, the boys showed off their costumes. Imagine...they were both soccer players! Evan was originally going to be Indiana Jones, but he was the one who came up with switching to be a soccer player. Let's just say we did nothing to discourage this cheap and fantastic idea! We dressed Hudson in Evan's old gear, and we were good to go! Easiest Halloween costumes EVER!



I have to give Evan credit for some bargaining skills! He told Eric that since he saved us money by not buying a Halloween costume, he wanted us to pay him a dollar! Cracked me up!

Evan's buddy from school joined us for Trick-or-Treating. The kids must have thought they were in a running race, because we parents could barely keep up with them. They had quite the good haul.

Now aren't all three of my readers impressed?! I managed to get Halloween pics and story up ON Halloween rather than two weeks later. See? I'm trying.

I hope you all had a very happy Halloween.

Pumpkin Patch

I realize these photos and events are out of order, but until I can get myself back on track blogging about our amazingly interesting life, snippets will have to do. It sort of mirrors my life right now: a jumble of work, cleaning, soccer, Hudson-chasing, correcting, driving, and on and on.



My mom took us to the pumpkin patch last week when we were off for Columbus Day. It was a fairly hot day, but the PP was so pretty. My children had little interest in actually picking out a pumpkin or looking nice in a stinkin' photo. They were interested in pulling wagons all over the place and back...because they have never done that before. Sigh.

Anyhow, it was a nice afternoon. And we got pumpkins. Did my pumpkin duty for the year.

Mismatch Day

Last week was Red Ribbon Week at our school. Evan got into the different themes every day. Wednesday was Mismatch Day. He looks so goofy that he's cute.



We had a great time last week.

Friend Makin' Monday

I know I said my neck hurts to look at the computer screen, but I'll post this real quick and then be done. This is my first time to participate in Friend Makin' Mondays (www.alltheweigh.com). Here goes.

1) Do you prefer talking or texting?
Texting if I'm in a hurry.

2) Do you make your bed everyday?
No, barely ever.

3) What sounds do you hear right now?
I can just barely hear the tv out in the family room. I am back in the office.

4) List three things that you always carry with you:
My iPhone, wallet and keys.

5) What are your favorite TV shows?
I watch tons of tv. I admit it. TV is my escape/hobby/love. Here is just a sampling: NCIS Los Angeles, Grey's Anatomy, Private Practice, The Bachelor/ette, All My Children, 90210, Gossip Girl, Hellcats, The Vampire Diaries, and on and on.

6) Is there a hobby that you'd like to devote more time to? If so, what is it? Scrapbooking. I am going to a workshop next week.

7) What is your favorite drink?
Pepsi. I can drink it all day long.

8) Share a couple of cool facts about your family:
We are related to Susan B. Anthony. My parents went to a high school so large they didn't meet until their senior year. I went to a high school so small that there were only 96 kids in my graduating class.

9) List one thing that you will do for yourself today:
Take a bubble bath.

10) Share something that you're thankful for today:
I am thankful that I do not suffer from chronic pain. After spending the day nursing a sore neck, I do not know how people are able to cope with being in continuous pain. Sidenote: before my dad died he suffered from crippling arthritis, but he never complained, and he never let it keep him from doing things he wanted to do. I aspire to be like that, but I guess it didn't happen today since I complained quite a bit.

Pain in the Neck

I hurt my neck getting out of bed this morning....literally.

My alarm went off, and I jerked out of bed so suddenly that I pulled something in my neck. It made for a less than stellar day. It hurts to turn my head. It hurts to lift my head up or down. It hurt while driving. It hurt at school. Hurt, hurt, hurt.

I have other stuff to post, but it hurts to stare at the computer too long. It hurts all the way from my below my ears to the top of my shoulders. My back now hurts from compensating all day long for the sore neck.

The lesson here? I should not have gotten out of bed this morning!

All Aboard!

My friend Laura has two boys who have outgrown their Thomas the Train tracks, trains, and gear. She couldn't stand to just give them away, so she asked if I'd be interested in taking the toys for the boys.

Um...YES!

I knew if anything, Hudson would love them.

Laura dropped off bags and bags of tracks and trains this afternoon. Hudson instantly started playing with the trains, hooking them together, and calling, "All Aboard!"

It wasn't until a train whistle sounded that Evan decided this train thing might actually be pretty fun. The two boys spent about two hours playing trains tonight. And they didn't bicker. Not once! It was a small miracle.

I was reluctant to have them get ready for bed because they were playing so nicely together.

The only downside to all this? Take a look.


My entire front room is covered in train tracks. That wouldn't be so bad except for the fact that my front room is also the walkway to the back of the house.

For tonight, we just pushed the tracks as far out of the walking path as possible. Hey, what's a little mess of tracks compared with hours of happy play?!


Boys and trains. The perfect combination!

Happy Birthday Evan!

Today is Evan's 6th birthday! Wow! That is really strange to say. We are now the parents of a 6-year-old and a 3-year-old.

Evan had his first "friend" birthday party today. Up til now it has always been family parties, but today he had 20-something kids join him at Me N Ed's for pizza, cake, and presents.

The party started at noon, and at one point I figured it must be at least 3 p.m, but a quick look at my phone showed me it was only 1:01! We were hopping the entire time keeping kids busy, fed, and entertained! Who knew kid parties could be so exhausting?!

I don't think Evan has ever received this many presents at one time! His little heart was racing as he ripped open one present after another.

It was a really fun time.

Happy Birthday to the little man who made me a mom. I can remember how I felt 6 years ago tonight. I was in awe, relieved to have given birth, and quite scared that this new life was depending on me. Being a mom is the best thing I have ever done. It is also the most demanding and tiring thing I have ever done! I wouldn't trade it for the world.

Evan,
You are such an amazing little guy! You make us so proud to be your mom and dad. You constantly amaze us with all of your abilities. We love to watch you succeed.

You have some amazing qualities such as your compassion for your friends. I see how you give big hugs to your teammates when they make a soccer goal, or how you console a friend who gets hurt on the playground. Watching you be generous with friends makes us so very proud of you.

You are such a happy guy. You are able to get along with so many different kids. It's fun to watch you hang out and play with kids of any age.

You are competitive and work hard at both school and sports. We hope you always have that drive to improve whether it be at math or making soccer goals.

You are such an important member of our family. You are a son, brother, cousin, nephew and grandson. We all love you very much and are having so much fun watching you grow and learn.

We love you, Peanut!

Love,
Mom and Dad