Yummy Homemade Fun

I do my best to cook dinner all throughout the week.  At this stage in life it is easier for us than going out and I love to have family meals at home.  Cole loves when we all sit down at the table together.  He comments on it every time.  The weekends, however, are different.  There are times we cook and there are times we are so busy (or I want a break) and we go out.  This past Saturday was a great family day for us.  Rhonald had been working a lot of weekends but he had this past one off.  We started the morning together at the Pumpkin Patch and then after naps (from everyone) I mentioned I would love a pizza.  Well, Cole had the great idea of making our own pizzas instead of ordering one.  So, we all made a quick trip to a local grocery store to buy pizza supplies.  They turned out really good actually and were very quick.  We all had fun and got what we wanted on our pizzas!  It was a great idea that I plan to do again for sure!  The best part was that we were making them together and enjoying each other's company...funny how the small things turn out to mean so much!

Pumpkin Fun

This weekend I realized we had forgotten something...we had purchased our pumpkins but we forgot to carve them!  So, in our pj's one morning we brought in the smallest pumpkins we had and got to work.  We planned on carving all of our pumpkins...honestly we did...but after doing 2 we decided we would wait and do the others later.  By later I mean never :)  Cole was much more into it and helpful this year.  He even volunteered to stick his hand in the pumpkin to pull out the "goo."  Lily Kate wanted to be on some one's hip the whole time watching what was happening.  I'm sure she thinks we have lost our minds half of the time!  In the end, I think they turned out to be very cute!  Cole was happy and really, that is all that matters.

Blocktoberfest 2011

A local church that we have been visiting hosted their first ever Blocktoberfest last night and there are 3 words to describe it....So. Much. Fun!  We invited the Burrow crew to come with us and we are so glad that we did.  We got there when the gates opened and I am so glad that we did!  There were people every where.  We have never been to anything like this...there were carnival rides and carnival food...a petting zoo, games, bouncy houses and more!  We enjoyed the fun for 2 hours and when we left we still had not seen and done everything.  This was Cole's very first experience with a ride of any kind and he loved it!  A trip to Disney is in our future for sure!!!  Lily discovered both cotton candy and funnel cakes and was in toddler heaven.  Cole and Ben got their faces painted and thought that was just the neatest thing ever as well.  It's funny - we ended up running into just about everyone we know (or at least we felt like we did).  I cannot tell you how much fun we had - spending time as a family and with friends and enjoying fall.  It was a perfect night!

Sweet Noel

Cole has been begging...literally begging...me to let him help me babysit Miss Em's baby boy, Noel.  Noel is so terribly sweet and Cole has just fallen head over heels in love with him.  Well, the other day, while Ben was in preschool Miss Em brought Noel over to play with Cole and Lily Kate (and to have some girl time with me).  Cole was thrilled!!!!  He loved playing with Noel and making Noel smile and laugh.  He is in love with Miss Em too so it was a nice treat to be able to have so much attention from both of them.  I could not help but think back to 5 years ago...Emily and Jim lived around the corner from us - the only children we had were dogs.  Emily and I would talk all of the time about the day we would have children and how we would take them for walks and they would be best friends.  Oh look how far we have come....and our dreams have come true for sure!  And we do take them for walks together and they are the best of friends...the big kids and the babies.  It is so comforting and awesome to have friends such as these!

Cole's First Fly

As I have mentioned before my boys are in love with fishing...mainly fly fishing.  Although Cole is too young to actually go fly fishing with Rhonald he does love to learn about it.  I have no doubt that when he is old enough he will be great at it.  At 3 years of age he knows the difference in a dry fly and a wet fly...what you catch with the different flies, etc.  Rhonald loves it.  Rhonald also loves to tie his own flies.  A typical scene is Rhonald tying a fly with Cole on his lap watching.  Well, the other day Cole asked if he could make one.  Rhonald makes flies from patterns he has in books...flies that have worked in the past for years.  Cole did not quite get that and wanted to make his own.  So, he searched through Rhonald's things and picked out what he wanted to use.  Rhonald helped him make one with what he had chosen.  It actually turned out very pretty, although not very functional.  But you never know...if he keeps this up he may actually discover something great!

Grammy

"Grandchildren are the dots that connect the lines from generation to generation."

                                                                                                            ---Lois Wyse

Crystal Bridges

If there is one place we have really enjoyed exploring this summer/fall it is Crystal Bridges.  What a beautiful and fun place!!!!  These pictures were taken awhile back but I totally forgot to post them.  Cole's favorite part of the trail is the over look of the museum where there are always a 100 construction trucks to ohh and aww over.  Lily just loves to people watch from her special seat.  I do look forward to the Spring when she can run after Cole and explore all that this trail has to offer.  We are so blessed to live here!

So Smart

When you are a parent you think your child is the absolute smartest child in the whole world.  Well, I am no different....look at my sweet girl stacking her rings!  She knows this is a huge accomplishment because when she first began doing it we would all shout and clap.  Now when Lily Kate does it she shouts and claps for herself!  So sweet and oh so smart don't you think?!

Wordless Wednesday

Boo!

When I worked at the hospital there was a girl there that always talked about how her neighborhood "Boo'd" one another.  It sounded like so much fun but was something that our old neighborhood would not have gotten in to.  I had forgotten about it until this fall when I read about it again on a blog.  There are a few things that you may not know about me...
1. I love holidays
2. I love traditions of all kinds
3. I love doing fun things for other people
4. I want my kids to love all of these things too
So, when I was reminded of the "Boo Bags" I just knew I had to try it.  Basically what you do is secretly drop off a bag of fall goodies to your neighbors with a poem that explains that the "Boo Bag" is all in fun and is for them to keep but they must return the favor by "Booing" someone else in secret.  It is supposed to be a night time "ding dong ditch" type thing but that is kind of a sore subject in our neighborhood right now (it has been happening a lot) so we went with the "drop the bag off during work hours" thing.  Cole was beside himself with excitement as we bought our goodies at Target and made our bags.  Since we were starting this tradition off we made three bags and delivered them that day.  I prayed it would catch on...or at least that someone would "Boo" us because Cole was so excited about it.  Well, 2 days went by when wouldn't you know...Cole found a bag on our front porch!  Oh the excitement!!!!  I hadn't thought about it but I realized at that moment that I then had to run to Target again to make 2 more bags to pass out but it was worth it (and who doesn't love going to Target).  Well, since then we have seen several "Boo" bags around the neighborhood and several signs on doors letting others know that they have been "Boo'd!"  It really has been a lot of fun!  I know Rhonald was so proud of us and the tradition we started but I think he is ready to stop hearing reports of who was boo'd that day (Cole and I are on the look out to see how far it spreads).  Just one more memory for my kids to take with them one day!