Friday's TREATS and a few dog TRICKS!

We had a great Friday. After dropping Dominic off at school in costume, the other boys and I joined Papa Gertie for breakfast (his TREAT). Then, I TREATED Gertie (the dog) to a trip to the dog park. See what a great auntie I am? I got the better end of the deal, didn't I? We had a blast at the dog park... I suppose Gertie did too! Devin was a bit upset that I wouldn't let him get down and muddy with the other dogs, but he did well in his stroller for the little while we were there (He did try to offer a shoe to the dogs, but I caught it before it hit the mud).

Gertie, in full stride.

A Dirty Gertie!

After dropping off Papa and "Dirty", we were off to pick up The Red Power Ranger from school. We arrived as the class was finishing up their party and were ready to be dismissed for the weekend. Let the sugar high begin!

The entire 2nd Grade, in disguise.

photo by Grandma Gertie.

Jackson, Dominic and Dillon (in case you couldn't tell).

Mrs. Davis and Dominic.

Finally, as if we already had enough fun for the day, Daddy left work early and invited us all on a trip to Apple Hill - nothing like waiting until the day before Halloween to go! We made it and enjoyed all of it. There were hardly any crowds; lots of people, but not too crazy. After visiting our favorite spots, the drive home was wonderful and I now have a nice apple/cinnamon smell in my car. Yum! (Sorry Gertie, no offense!)

And now, I rest. 9:00 soccer game is going to be a killer! Better yet... dragging two boys with me to a Moms in Motion workout is going to be grand at 6:00 in the morning!

It's Cousin Vinny's Birthday!

... and he couldn't have PICKED a better day!!!

Our nephew/godson turned THREE today! Seems hardly possible, yet seems like he should be 5! Our Vinny-monster has surpassed most of his cousins on the height and weight chart, but we know that will come in handy for his future Football or Wrestling career. It was an outstanding day for a birthday, as rumor has it, there will be some fall-like weather coming to our area soon. Perhaps this was the last hurrah as far as good outdoor weekend fun?

And yesterday, we took the boys to Safetyville for their Halloween Haunt. It was much too warm for Devin to wear his monkey costume, but the other two wore their Power Ranger costumes and would rather live in them all the time! The cousins, Supergirl and Sleeping Beauty, arrived before us and joined us for some games and a picture to two. Everyone got tons of loot and will be satisfied with the pre-Halloween sugar high for awhile.

Donovan, Sydney, Peyton, Dominic

Here's Devin: not in his monkey costume,
but monkeying around at Vinny's birthday.

Well, shiver me timbers!

With the unusual wet and windy storm we had last week, we were lucky to have everything still standing upright and no damage to structures. Living on a cul-de-sac does have its disadvantages: we get all the crap blown to our house from up the street. Oh well.

On Sunday, our tree came down... by chainsaw. With roots destroying the sprinklers and mow strips and also growing closer to the driveway, it was time for it to go. There must have been some prime bird property in that tree since we have an entire section of sidewalk COVERED with bird poop. It was gross and I hated seeing my kids run through it all the time. So poop no more!

Happy to get his work boots on, Donovan helped Daddy and his friend be lumberjacks for a few hours.

Dad is up a tree.

Reporting for duty!

In the thick of it.

Working hard.

Devin supervises.A view from our side gate/driveway. Tree was at left.

Happy Birthday Kyle!

Last week we attended the annual Sharing Parents Memorial to honor those babies that have left us too soon and are always in our hearts. Ironically, October is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month, as well as the month that our dear nephew and godson was born. Happy Birthday Big Man!

Kristie helped make the memorial special and was included in the dove release ceremony and allowed us to watch the release of butterflies. The kids were in awe.

The Patch

For the past few years we've made a tradition in visiting Bishop's Pumpkin Farm in October, thanks to Party of Six. It was their tradition that we hopped aboard on. I love the pumpkin patches they have here on 67 acres. Instead of selecting a pre-picked pumpkin from a limited amount to choose from, here, you get a hayride out to the countless vines of pumpkins to personally select from. There is so much for the kids to do, it makes the trip worthwhile, since it is a few towns away from us. It was a great visit, with perfect weather and a great picnic lunch among the not-so-great mosquitoes. I love taking pictures of the kids here. Grandma Gertie even helped get some candid shots for us.

Perfecting Pasta

Yep, this self-feeding stuff is going just fine!

Let's Get Physical!

Saturday's game was entertaining, to say the least! I think the Sabercats had about 6 shots on goal and none went in. We certainly celebrated those misses on the sidelines with high fives all around. Dominic was showing an aggressiveness toward the ball that we hadn't seen before. It was enjoyable to watch while it lasted.

Grandma Gertie got some great pictures of Dominic taking down an opponent twice his size. What does that boy eat? Mine?... nothing. Upsettingly (I just made that word up) the team lost 1-0, but I hope the next game will be just as entertaining to watch.

Being the soccer mom I am, I took it upon myself to create the team's banner and without injury. It was when installing the rebar post into the ground to support the poles that I obtained a metal sliver in my thumb. Thankfully my blogging abilities are not affected. But that sucker is still in there and it HURTS!!!