Halloween Morn

For the first time ever {I think}, October 31st is coming in a two part post.  I started my day party {which also means school} hopping for spooky day celebrations.  It made for a hauntingly long Halloween.  My, how I will enjoy two years down the road when Halloween falls on a Saturday.  

But, until then, this year I lucked out with Jack and Maggie's parties not overlapping.  As a matter of fact, they were perfectly spaced with a 30 minute gap in between for travel time.  That was a huge score for me.

My first stop was Jack's Kindergarten room.  Ms.S had fabulously educational themed centers for the kids.  Their pumpkin passports were in hand and they were busy little ghouls.  Instead of manning a center, I got the honor of being party photographer.  Hmmm...where did Ms.S get that idea?  Guess I've shown up one too many times with a lens shoved in Jack's precious little face.  I think I'm becoming known as "Jack's Mom with the camera" among the K kids.

Jack was all smiles.  Thank goodness. {and I note that for a reason to come}.

I especially loved watching him intently concentrating on his scary story.  It starts with a boy entering a spooky house.  Then he hears a loud noise...I'm on the edge of my seat, how about you?

Next up was Mermaid Maggie's  party.  I was really looking forward to joining her.  And thought she was too.  Apparently not...

And that is about all I can show you from that pout fest celebration.  Don't ask me.  I'm still trying to figure it out myself.  All I can tell you is, I walked in the classroom door and it was all over.  The rest of the party, Maggie sat on the carpet with her head hung low, not participating, and not speaking...only pouting. And when it turned into crying, we packed up and left.

She can't explain it and I surely can't either.  So, I gave her a big hug, told her we would try to have fun next time and sent her little mermaid tail up to her room for a nice nap.

And then it was Halloween night...

Carving Pumpkins and Time

We finally carved our pumpkins this afternoon.

When did our lives become so busy that I actually had to "carve" out time on the calendar for this staple Halloween activity?  Between soccer practice, tennis, homework, school projects {for both bigs!}, and everything else that seems to consume our days, I actually had to schedule this in.  Geez.  Time to reevaluate.  Nothing like a Jack-O-Lantern to make you realize that.

But, I can proudly say our front porch is Halloween ready.

This year we took a different approach. While at CVS this week, picking up a humidifier for our still sick Lucy {yes, bummer, I know}, Maggie and I spotted a pumpkin carving kit book.  I was up for something new and Mags was really up for the cat design.

So on this beautifully sunny afternoon, we hit the lawn with our nifty CVS book, two pumpkins, and a few other needed supplies.

As always, the kids promise they are going to help me out with all of the pumpkin gunk.  And in their own ways they did.  Maggie did one scoop before declaring that she didn't, "want to get dirty".  From then on she suggested I scoop it out, transfer it to her spoon and she would sling it in the trash.  So we did.

Lucy tried her hardest to get right in the middle of it all, utensils and all.  Unfortunately, she had a lot of effort, but little success.  It sure was cute to watch though.

And Jack did his fair share of scooping and...get ready for this...taste testing.  Yes, that is raw pumpkin pulp on his chin. And wouldn't you think that after trying it once and realizing you didn't care for it, you would stop.  No, instead he tried the wall of the pumpkin, then the seeds, and then part of the stem.  {I promise he's not as odd as I'm making him sound...I like to call it curious}

After pulp scooping, it was time to carve.  Our book came with these crafty stencils, a wax crayon, and a kid friendly carving tool {that actually worked}.  Maggie chose the cat, as we all knew she would.

And Jack, of course, chose the most complex creepy looking creature of all, just as I knew he would.  It took fooooreevvver and it was impossible to cut, chop and carve all those details.  But, I let him try...and that he intently did.

While Jack sorted out the details of his pumpkin, Maggie branded hers.  My Magpie is very obsessed with writing her name at this stage in her precious 3 year old life.  You can bank on finding it written on every piece of paper in our home.  And now happily, it's on our pumpkins too.

With a bit of carved out time and pumpkins, I had a very special afternoon with my kiddos and I know they did too {they even told me so}.  So, with that being said,  this is what we have to show for it {the smiles are my favorite part}...

{I'm not so sure if that is exactly what that thing is supposed to look like, but it's close. And more importantly, Jack is happy.}

Happy Halloween Eve!

Two Big Pumpkins and One Sick Pumpkin

I have succumbed to the fact that the Pumpkin Patch pictures were just not meant to be this year.  First it was the blazing hot heat, this time it's a cold.  Unfortuantley, not the weather kind of cold.  The sniffles, congestion, and here comes the fever kind of cold.

I knew she was on the verge Saturday.  But, by Sunday, our "we declare this Pumpkin Patch Picture day", Lucy was a goner.  Post naps, I pumpkined the bigs up in their attire and then headed in to wake up the littlest.  She was warm.  I knew it wasn't a good idea.  But, the bigs could not be talked out of it.  So after a squirt of Motrin and a wipe of that nose {for the 200th time that day}, we were off.

And "off" only being down the road to the local patch thankfully.

That Motrin treated us well on and off.  The bigs explored, searched for the hidden sparkle pumpkins to earn their prizes, and hit the mini maze.  Lucy was definitely intrigued by the patch.  She would check out a pumpkin, then wail for me, then check out another pumpkin, and then wail for me again.

Not exactly her first real pumpkin experience that I was hoping for.

So as you can imagine, when it was time to get that money shot of the trio in the patch, it was anything but easy.  I think I literally threw Lu down in front of her bigs, ran backwards while hop, skip and jumping over pumpkins, all the while trying to beat the clock of Lucy realizing we were unattached.  Forget about adjusting anything on my camera.

And that is why this is about as good as it got...

And that's only after I edited out the endless snot and drool {as I did in every other picture below}.

The good news here is Lucy did have some wonderfully happy moments.  She was extremely curious, eager to touch, and good and filthy by the time it was over.  This child has no sense of staying in pristine condition.  Doesn't she know how hard I work to dress her? {totally kidding for those of you who think you know me so well and took that literally}.

I'm only bummed that she couldn't enjoy it to the fullest.  It's tough being a sick baby.  But I have to say, for being a sicky, she was a toughie, in true Lucy fashion.

I only made Jack do this once {and sadly I still don't think I had adjusted my camera yet}.  But, it just looked so unnatural, you know him posed on a pumpkin. So, I sent him off to do what boys do at the patch...climb over and hurl pumpkins.  It seemed much more fitting.

Now this little Pumpkin Princess, on the other hand, was on her absolute most precious pumpkin patch behavior ever.  I could have followed her around with a camera in her face the whole time and I don't think she would have minded a bit.

Since Lucy was not letting me out of her sight, I assumed it best to try to seize the opportunity.  And although she has a serious face of distress here, it has nothing to do with that nasty cold.  Super Baby had reached a point of pure frustration stemming from the fact that she couldn't pick the pumpkin up...and trust me she mightily tried.  {In that moment I had a brief flashback of Jack four years ago at the patch}

This Lucy sized pumpkin patch was much more fitting.  The smile reemerged.

All the while, sweet Maggie's smile never left.  She was in pumpkin euphoria.

After the pumpkins were chosen and our wagon was filled, I gave one last ditch effort for a picture of my three little pumpkins.  And if you merge the two pictures below you just might visualize the perfect shot.  To do so, you will need to take Jack and Maggie out of this one...

And Lucy out of this one....now, isn't that just perfect?

I figure two out of three isn't bad.  With that being said, I'll leave you with these...

Now, I've just got to get that littlest pumpkin well before Halloween night...ugh...only 3 more days!

Halloween Debut

Okay folks, we had our first actual Halloween event this weekend.  And that meant the costumes finally made their debut {and I say finally, because you know I've had these things for a month now}.  We attended the annual "Trunk or Treat" at Maggie's preschool.  This is always a must do evening for my kiddos.  Actually anything that involves candy is a must do for them.  

I, on the other hand, like it for a few simple reasons other than the candy.  For starters, we get to dress in our riveting costumes more than once. And, most importantly {to me anyway}, I can get a few pictures before the much anticipated Halloween night.  I don't know about your kids, but the last thing mine want to do is pose on the 31st.

The picture thing worked out so so.  I was a little off {couple wrong settings on the camera, antsy kids, and a really clingy baby}.  But, as they say, the show must go on.  So here it goes...

I present to you my littlest mermaid, Lucy.  Eat this up because this is about all you get.  Littlest has a serious case of the sniffles and was not having any of that Momma putting her down business.

And I now debut the Mermaid Princess herself, my ever loving Maggie {who just had to have green sparkle shoes to complete her attire, of course}.  Love my fashionista.

And what scene is complete without a hero?  Our fair maidens will certainly be protected by none other than the fearless Batman, played by our very own Jack.

I told you he was fearless...

I then tried to get the whole cast together for a debut picture.  And well, you can see how that went.  Did I mention Lucy did not want me to put her down?

We decided it was in our best interest to admit defeat and head out to the Halloween happenings for the evening.

Jack was a pro this year.  No warm up period for him.  He showed his little sisters just how to get it done {and even used his manners without being reminded}.

Maggie, however, did have a warm up period.  But once we got through that she was dazzling....and slow...and particular...and indecisive.  I loathed the sound of, "choose what you want darling".  Seriously just throw something in her bag already, you don't know what you are asking for.

And Lucy?  Well, can we just say, lovely?  Even with Lu's runny nose and tear stained eyes I got to see the 1st Trick or Treating experience all over again and it was absolutely divine.  {sigh}  Baby girl was fascinated by the whole concept.  This picture is her first "trunk".  I hate that she is burry {obviously someone else took the picture for me}, but I will hold on to this memory forever.  Her sweet little excitement is crystal clear in my mind.

And as cute as it would start, it would end even cuter.  Each and every time Lu plopped down right there on the ground to check out her loot and then would show it to me.  As if I haven't seen enough candy if my lifetime, but something about her pudgy little fingers wrapped around it....mmmm....I could eat that baby up, forget the sweets!

So let's just say between the consciences candy choosing and the plopper, it took us a while to make our rounds.  But I do adore my mermaids. {I'm pretty sure Jack had flown off by this point, rightfully so}

We topped our evening off with pizza and all our costumed friends.  And even though I somehow got stuck at the kid's end of the table {there were 8 of them}, I just loved being with my grown up gals,  even if it was from a distance.

The count down is on...5 more days until HALLOWEEN!  We are debuted and prepped for the party!

For A Change

I thought I would share a little something unrelated to Fall for a change.

For starters, my girls in the tub.

See I do peel those Halloween outfits off of them on occasion and wash those yummy little tushies.  Maggie refers to the dimples all over Lucy's as "curls".  Tell me this isn't the cutest thing you've ever heard, "Mommy why does Lucy have curls all over her hiney?".  I thought I might roll out of the bathroom laughing, through the hall, and straight down the stairs.

Who doesn't love a precious "Maggie-ism"?

And then, a little self feeding yogurt session at breakfast.  I can't believe I get to do this for a third time.  Pinch me. Oh, the absolute simple joys {and never ending cleaning up} of a budding toddler.

And someone please tell me what color this child's hair is?  I swear she was our brunette a week ago.

If you're as lucky as I am, you get to spend your breakfast hour squeezed between two sweet things like that one up above and this one down below.

Jack and his big kid self heading off to Elementary school has given me an all new appreciation for these moments.  {I can assure you I could have done without the reminder}

So, I'm guessing it will be back to Fall posts with the onset of cooler weather...finally.  If I'm honest, and you know I always am, the only thing that excites me about that is a change in wardrobe {especially for my kiddos}.  I despise being cold.  But even I can reluctantly admit, it is time...for a change.

{Supposedly} Fall Festival

Surely you can't be tired of Maggie's Halloween get up yet?  She's only had it on in the last three posts. And Lucy in the last two.

Seriously ya'll, I promise it's been washed every time.  In my defense, I've just got to get my wear out of those holiday outfits...even if it is ANOTHER blazin' hot day.  So if my Mother of the Year title wasn't stripped last weekend, it's definitely a goner now.

So what did we do on this 80 something degree day in October when I so forcefully dressed my girls in Fall attire?...why, it was Maggie's Preschool Fall Festival.

It was a girl's trip up to the sweltering Fall fun.  Jack had a soccer game, so Clay and I had to do a bit of divide and conquer.  Which by the way, I'm getting really tired of.  This solo business with two little ones is not cool {literally}.  More importantly, we really missed the boys.

I will admit it was nice to solely focus on Magpie and let her make alllll the choices.  The majority of those choices were art related.  Had big brother been there I'm pretty confident it wouldn't have played out that way.  It was a good day for Mags.  And she certainly deserves it.

She did hit a few bounce houses and obstacle courses throughout our visit.

And the littlest was always waiting with bated breath for her at the exit.

By the third time of watching little Lu wait in anticipation for her big sister, I could no longer handle it.  {I snuck the littlest in through the back}  Lucy thought she had hit the jackpot.

From there, we headed off to more art.  I'm starting to wonder why I didn't push harder on an "art party" in our recent birthday discussion.  Maggie was mesmerized by the colored sand and the fact that it was a necklace upon completion just about made her October.

When I finally thought I might melt in, you guessed it, the sun, I suggested lunch to the girls under the largest and shadiest tree I could find.

Then it was off to more...art.

I think Lucy's sandwich from lunch might have melted in her hand.  I'm assuming that's why it's still stuck to her hand at the Hay Treasure Hunt booth.

We topped off our girl's trip to the festival with a pony ride.  I could only snap Maggie from behind.  There was no way to leave Lucy unattended while mounted in a saddle {another reason I missed those boys and their extra set of hands}.

And speaking of Lulu, I'm still debating whether this is a look of "I love pony rides" or "get me off this live animal".  Your take?

I vow to get my girls dressed up in some other form of Fall attire before this pumpkin season is over.  Those corduroy pumpkin suits are just itching to get out of the closet.

Happy gloriously sunny and sticky Fall to all.