BOO AT THE ZOO 2013

Holding daddy's elephant tail

What does the fox say?!

Dancin' and shakin' his tail...

Fox on a fox!

Hiding in the woods...

Costume parade and dance party

Light saber glow stick fight with Manu and Leo (Transformers!)

(Yes, James is picking his nose. We told you to stop that buddy. Now it's on the blog because this is the only group photo I got all night where you're all facing the camera...)

So, she pretty much had 1-2 pieces of candy in her hands/mouth ALL NIGHT LONG. When we tried to take them away or offered to hold her candy pail, she screamed "That's MY candy!" She has a sweet tooth just like her namesake (Grandma!) and Grambot and mama... James, on the other hand, ran around all night and didn't ask for a single piece of candy until he got in the car to go home. And he ASKED for a piece. Sometimes I wish their personalities had a "mesh" button so we could avoid the extremes ;-)

 More evidence of the candy crazy Cora... Growling at me when I tried to take away the sucker...

 In summary, the kids highly enjoyed themselves tonight. They played games, danced, and ate candy. They rode the merry go round twice and the train once (and we again skipped the reportedly super scary haunted hayride). Jay and I, however, think we'll switch things up next year and visit the Children's Museum's Halloween party, since Boo at the Zoo seems to be going downhill in our eyes (this year there were less games, no bouncy houses, no costume contest, and they had set it up like a fair with tents selling items like glow swords and candy apples, and carnival rides that you had to pay extra for - a bit of a money grab if you ask us). What matters most is that the kids had fun though, so we're happy we went. P.S. Fleece costumes that fit as comfy as pajamas (or a Snuggi...) are pretty perfect for cold October nights!

AMCA HARVEST FEST 2013

Optimus Prime and Ariel ready for their school's Halloween party

James and his teacher Ms. Katy, who wowed the kids with her superhero costume

Cora and James with his teacher Ms. Tina

LITTLE PUMPKIN CARVER

James is old enough this year to design and carve his own pumpkin (with extremely close supervision - and don't worry, he used one of those tiny orange-handled pumpkin carving saws, not the giant knife in the photo, which Jay used to open them all up).

Cora is old enough to design her own pumpkin (drawing the face on - wait til you see how cute it is!), but daddy took care of the carving for her. She didn't mind that one bit though, since the pumpkin guts were "yucky" and "swimey". She spent the next 20 minutes washing her hands... 

PUMPKIN ADVENTURE AND THE PLAYGROUND

Agape chose the Ag Museum Pumpkin Adventure as their pumpkin patch/fall field trip this year. There was no pumpkin patch (though we did quickly grab pumpkins from a pile at the end of the day), but there was a hay ride, barn animals (including a brand spanking new baby pink pig that the kids immediately named Wilbur), milk and cookies, and plenty of walking around through the old buildings on site, as well as the actual museum with the many miniature train displays. The kids had a great time, and they were EXHAUSTED when we finally left at 12:30pm (4.5 hours on this adventure, without a lunch break). So, naturally, the teachers decided we should take them across the street to a playground to eat their picnic lunch. Well, since we all drove separately, apparently they changed their mind and nobody texted me, so the kids and I played there solo for two full hours before they finally agreed they were tired and were willing to head home. The playground was awesome and the weather was great, and since we had it to ourselves, I played an intense game of hide-and-seek with the kids, which we all loved. But then a pair of brothers 2-4 years old than James showed up, and the kiddos promptly demoted me to supervisor while they played Batman (little brother), Robin (James), and Superman (Cora) chase The Joker (big brother) as he ran and hid over and over and over. I could definitely run as fast as that kid, but my ability to sneak and hide in the tiny nooks and crannies and slides and ladders wasn't nearly as good, so I took a seat to watch. It was actually pretty cool to see BOTH James and Cora be so friendly with new kids and play so well together (and I bet the boys' grandma was grateful they all wore each other out with all the running). Mine weren't in the car but 5 minutes before they were completely passed out, despite the promise of cake pops (mama needed coffee for the hour drive home, since I started work at 6am today). All in all, a very fun day. Wish daddy could have gone along! I suppose he'll get the next field trip :-)

James and some of his classmates. The girls...

Kiddos in the middle on the hayride! We sang Ms. Tina the birthday song as we rode along.

James looked at this pair of mules, pointed to the one that came to get a closer look at the kids, and said "That one's the girl!" When I asked him why he thought that (a dangerous question to ask a 4-year-old, especially mine, and especially in front of his teachers...), he told me "Because she has eyebrows!" Whew... He did correctly identify the male cow in the barn later though...

They were fascinated with the (non-working, display only) outhouse. And the many piles of mule poo.

"White milk" and sugar cookies all around.

James with his girls again...

Ringa-ding-ding go the bells

I thought it was adorable that he stuck his milk jug in his front pocket!

Ms. Katy talks about the veterinarian display.

My kids are SO SPOILED by their teachers... James hitching a ride with Ms. Katy while Cora commandeers the stroller Ms. Reese was pushing.

Most of the kiddos who attended today's field trip. I could totally list their names after spending 4 hours with them today, but I won't. I was quite proud of them all for behaving so well throughout the adventure!

Heading to the car with her little pumpkin in a makeshift "pack pack".

 I promise James was there at the playground too. This girl just needs slightly more supervision...

FALL 2013 SOCCER PORTRAITS

DADDY LEFT THE GATE OPEN...

We were watching a movie (I was relaxing under James' super soft Spiderman blanket, trying to rest my legs after my 14-miler this morning, and also trying not to fall asleep...) and the next thing I heard was giggling from above me. Surprisingly, this is the first time they've done this. And they thought they were pretty awesome for sneaking up there to watch the movie.

AN IRISH WEDDING

 We attended my coworker's Irish wedding this evening. (We even paid for a babysitter so that we could stay out as late as we wanted... which turned out to be 8:30pm... we're getting old...granted there was an hour drive to get home afterward...)

 The couple (Matt and Kayla) used the Irish tradition of ringing bells at the end of their ceremony, so all the attendees went outside with their bells and rang until the getaway car was out of sight. The significance of the bells is that the couple is suppose to keep a set in their home, and should they ever have an argument that they have a hard time solving, they ring the bells to call a truce and remind themselves of their wedding day and vows. Jay and I thought it was very sweet.

The reception was held in a barn. A FANCY barn. There were buffet tables set in just about every nook and cranny, and each held a different southern specialty: shrimp and grits, BBQ sundae (cole slaw, baked beans, and pulled pork layers topped with a cornbread muffin), potato salad, black-eyed peas, and chicken. There was a table devoted to coffee and sweet tea. A table for party favors (mini jars of honey, produced just down the road at the bride's family's farm). A table where you could cook S'mores. And of course a bar. The cake table was our favorite though... There were FIVE different types of cake (and a sixth was tucked away at a separate table - a strawberry cake), and you better believe Jay tried three of them...

 I've honestly never been to a wedding (even when I worked at fancy restaurants and country clubs as a waitress) where the cake table was more demolished than this one...

There was dancing...

...and Jay even got out there for a slow dance with me, despite the ankle brace.

 We had a fun evening out, celebrating our friends' new adventure. Congratulations Matt!