Goofy faces

What? You mean you don't take a bath and put on your jammies and then entertain everyone by wearing fake teeth and mustaches and goofy glasses?

Homemade Hayride (minus the hay)

Lola was so impressed with the short hayride she went on at the corn maze. I assured her that PoppaBobcat could make one at his house that would last longer. She held me to that promise.

Once my birthday rolled around, I knew just what I wanted: I wanted Lola to get her hayride and I wanted KJ to get to go hunting. I could knock both of these out with one trip back home. This is KJ's busy season so between work and moving in and out of a house, this was probably his only shot to go hunting. I knew two of my favorite people would be so happy to go home and get their wishes. Lola was PUMPED for her hayride. PoppaBob didn't quite understand what all the excitement was about, but was more than happy to make up a quick hayride for his girls.

Except for Poppa didn't use hay. His big round bales were being saved for their actual intent: to feed his cattle this winter. How dare he! (just kidding, Dad.) However, he claims it was because he didn't think the kids would want to get all itchy-scratchy from the hay.

So instead he rigged up his trailer with a few blankets, his cow dog, the kids (Lola, Cal, and cousins Teagan & Payton), the moms, and Gramby and off we went. The kids loved it. Lola gagged at the smell of the diesel truck, but had fun nevertheless. It was a little chilly, but Cal, being Mr. Tough Guy, fought hard to not have to stay covered in the blanket. He finally gave in to the 30-year-old blue knitted one, though.

Good times. Simple pleasures.

Awww, that cute baby calf -- which you can't even see in this pic bc he darted off. Oh well. I love going home....

Peaceful country and homemade birthday cake. :) :) :) :)

Krispy Kreme

A few Fridays ago I took the kids to Krispy Kreme for breakfast. We were still celebrating our house selling. (Okay, to be honest, we're still celebrating and it's been 3 1/2 weeks!)

This was their first visit. I knew Beezy would love to see the big donut machine, and I knew Cal would love a sweet glazed donut. I was right! Every time the machine would flip over the donuts she'd crack up. She also thought the glazing part was cool too. Cal just pointed to all the donuts on the conveyor belt thing and would grunt and show me his "more, please" sign.

And, despite how pretty all the colorful donuts look in the display case, you just can't go wrong with a simple glazed donut. I think those are the best donuts, period, no matter where you're at. Mmm-mmmm.

We all left very happy that morning. Granted, Cal used his shirt as a napkin the whole meal so there were lots of sugar flakes in the car and at home for a few days. Beezy, my sweetie, told me she really liked that place and thanked me for her donut. I love those crazy munchkins.

Cal's "packpack"

Beezy has always called her backpack a "packpack." I've mentioned this before -- things haven't changed! I'm guessing that's what Cal will call it too since I even find myself calling it that out of habit. He loves wearing his packpack for school -- even though it's almost the same size as him :)

Harvest Party 2010 (Lolabee)

I'm a co-homeroom mom for Lola's preschool class. I wasn't even sure what all a homeroom mom does since this was my first exposure to it; luckily, a friend of mine decided we'd wing it together! This was our first party to plan and it went great. Allison really did most of the planning, I just handled the craft project. Big surprise, I know!

There was lots of costumes, snacks, colorful cupcakes, pumpkin bowling, dancing/jumping/getting the sillies out, and a craft. We were going to have a storytime and read The Parable of the Pumpkin Patch, but my copy was boxed up and the store was sold out. The kids had lots of fun anyway.

Below: The pumpkin people! I basically made all 15 kids a pumpkin person the night before and they only had to glue on the face and stem; the boys got navy boots and blue bowties to put on their people (I should have got a pic bc they were cute) and the girls got fuschia high heels and hairbows. KJ helped cut out all of the little pieces the night before with me. He was such a trooper to spend 30 minutes cutting out tiny high heels and boots for his princess's class. :) (He really wanted to go to bed.)

Helping Others

"Tell them to use their money to do good. They should be rich in good works and generous to those in need, always being ready to share with others." 1 Timothy 6:18-19

Every year in the weeks leading up to Thanksgiving, Tucker the Turkey camps out at our church. He collects donations of specific food items which will then be turned into a basket, along with a turkey, to be given to a family who might otherwise not have a Thanksgiving meal.

This season is no different than years past. However, this year we delivered almost double what we normally have given - -and that's bc of the profits from my Etsy shop.

On my shop's header, I made a note that said that a portion of all sales will go to help others in need. So here we are! I was going to wait until Christmas and do some baking for the less fortunate, but knowing that we are a week away from moving (and our new house won't be ready for a month or so), it might be difficult to make that all happen. So, to be safe, we shopped for Thanksgiving baskets.

Thank you, Etsy supporters, for your purchases! Once my Etsy shop is restocked and hopefully having a grand "reopening" I will continue to always give to those in need. It doesn't replace the giving/helping we normally do as a family, but just adds a little bonus in one way or another.

Every year I look forward to shopping for these baskets. Ever since Lolabee was 1 1/2 years old (the age Cal is right now) she's helped me to shop for the food and then deliver it to the carts at church. She's old enough now that she understands what we're doing. It's vital to my role as my kids' mom that they are aware of how blessed our lives really are and how to always look for opportunities to serve. As Cal grows, he'll begin to understand as well. Luckily, we belong to a church family where there are always ways to help others. And, for me, sometimes actually going out and buying things to give helps me to teach my kids better than simply writing a check and dropping it in the mail or offering.

Bee's melon (not her head)

May 1, 2010

Lola plants her watermelon seeds from the kit that Uncle Just got her.

Flash forward to September and see one of her melons!

Halloween 2010

My little gnomes

Lolabee loved her costume.

Cal barely fit into his. He looked more like Tweedledee. Ha!

He was okay as long as we didn't put on the beard.

At least he didn't mind the bushy eyebrows.

No beard = happy

Beard = sad

No beard = happy again.

This pic cracks me up. Reminds me of Buddy on Elf.

My girl and her always-mistaken-for-fried-eggs flowered hat.

He liked having one ear in the hat and one ear bent over on the outside.

Pumpkin Patch (2009 & 2010)

The "official" pumpkin patch picture.

I'm trying not to let it get to me that Lola's not even looking at the camera.

Last year it was quite chilly.

This year, not so much.

I swear it feels like this past year flew by so fast.

Ghost Toes

Let me just say: Halloween is not my favorite "holiday." I honestly could skip it altogether. I sure as heck don't ever like to decorate with any of the spooky, typical Halloween fare. Pumpkins are as wild as we get. This year, we barely got that done with all of the house craziness we've been dealing with. (Thank you, Lord, for getting it sold!)

However, I made an exception this year and painted Beezy's toes to look like little ghosts. Gramby had bought her a kit of Halloween glow-in-the-dark polish, so this is what we came up with. She loves her little ghost toes. She told every nurse at the doctor's office about them.

Corn Maize Field Trip

I thought about dragging out this post into two or three days just bc there's so many pics, but ultimately decided to share it all at once. Last week, Lolabee's class went on another field trip, this time to the Corn Maize. This was my first time to visit and I have now added it to my list of annual things to do. She had a blast. I think the pictures speak for themselves. So fun!


That great big smile in the bottom pic is Lolabee riding the schoolbus. That's how every field trip starts out: Giant smile and excited to ride the bus. Every field trip ends with her asleep in my lap. The Duck Race was lots of fun for her; such simple activities, but she loved all of them.


The Corn Box was probably her favorite. She thought it was so cool to rock out in all those corn kernels. I'm still finding kernels in the car and a few in the kitchen. Notice her bling on her left hand. She's super proud of that jewel. She got it in the treasure box at school and has worn it almost everyday since. She even takes the time to wash it separately when washing her hands.

Cow Train; Poppa Bobcat needs to make one of these! While observing her on these field trips, I've noticed she tends to hang out with the boys a little more than the girls. I noticed that she likes to chat and, most times, they seem to find her a little entertaining. I can relate to having lots of guy friends, though. In my teen years, I quickly learned that being friends with the guys was MUCH MUCH MUCH less drama -- especially in a small town. The guys always made me laugh, and they liked to eat my mom's cooking. For now, though, I think it's so fun to see her little personality around all the kids. She's very sweet, likes to laugh, takes direction very well, and is a little shy in some circumstances. I just love her.

The hay ride. I happened to catch Lolabee really telling this little boy something. (bottom pic, middle) He was listening so intently. I wish I knew what in the heck 3-year-olds could be discussing so seriously. Corn Cop made me laugh. Neon green Chucks. Bee's shadow waving.

Hay Hop. Enough said.

The Corn Maize. She'd pretend she was Dora at times, working her way through an adventure. Fascinated by the ears of old corn she'd find. On this trip, I also noticed that, at least at this age, she can be somewhat of a loner. I totally relate to that too! It's not bad by any means; she just was confident enough to explore on her own and still always had fun. That's not to say she never played with the other kids, though. I always want her to be who God created her to be.

Brothers

What was Cal up to while Lola was baking? Just what every brother probably does: He barrels into the kitchen to see what she made. Sister shows him, then tells him they're not ready yet. Brother disappears.


Brother comes back again. This time to see if the cookies are ready to eat yet. Checks the oven. Not done yet. Disappear again.

Run back to the living room to get thrown in the air by Daddy.

I couldn't figure out how to make my camera speed up enough to capture Cal really in action. He gets pretty high. Here, he's actually coming down. (Amanda, you know I'm not digging the throws! I get all clammy-handed watching this stuff. Addie's tosses send me over the edge!)

It was dark outside, all fake lighting inside, doing something super fast, tried different settings -- just couldn't get it to do what I wanted. That's kind of the story of me and my camera's relationship most of the time. I see things in my mind but can't make the camera cooperate. Oh well. And, to top it off, I meant to take a pic of the kids finally eating their cookies. I forgot in my hurry to get a bite too!

I'm wondering if this is sort of what it'll be like when the kids are teenagers. That'd be cute. Hopefully Bee will still enjoy helping in the kitchen. And, something tells me that Cal will always be one to help us eat her creations :)