What is a Pirate's Favorite Restaurant?..........Arrrrrrrby's!

So another Happy Halloween has made it into the memory books. I was so wiped out by the time it was done, I could hardly believe my lack of enthusiasm after we got the kids down. It was a busy week and with it being the last week of the month, I didn't see my husband much as he always has to put in long days at the end of the month.

Friday (the night before Halloween) we finally tackled the pumpkin carving. Ethan had been talking about carving pumpkins into jack-o-lanterns and I knew there was no way out of it. Plus, I couldn't stand the thought of not having jack-o-lanterns on my porch for Halloween. We missed Kyle for the occasion not just because he is missable but also because he is the top dog in this house when it comes to pumpkin carving.

Here's Ethan with his finished product. He loves a book called Plumply Dumply Pumpkin (as do I) and he was pretty excited to be working on his own plumply dumply pumpkin. I let him draw the face and then carved around (some of) the lines letting him help me along the way. He was stoked!

We did one more small one together and then I put the kids to bed before tackling the giganto. I did a pirate ship in honor of Ethan's costume this year. I could barely straighten my fingers by the time I was done.


The next morning I made pumpkin pancakes thinking my kids would be completely delighted with the little jack-o-lantern faces I put on them. Ethan threw a fit and demanded the bananas be removed from his pumpkin pancakes. And then he wanted them completely off of his plate. So much for my festive breakfast. At least everyone ate.....even with pumpkin in the pancakes. That's success in my book.

Halloween day was busy. Kyle helped with a move. I took care of the errands. We had an awesome chili dinner with some friends and then raced home to make it in time for trick or treating. It was Kyle's year to hand out the candy while I went out with the kids. The neighborhood was packed with kids and Ethan was so good to stick with me the whole night.

It was impossible to get a picture of the two of them before we head out. Kids do not enjoy posing especially when candy collecting is being delayed and they're being tortured into dressing like a farm animal.

Here's Kyle with the kids in the aftermath. Poor guy hasn't made it into many pictures lately.


Those are some happy, soon to be sugar hyped kiddos.


A friend of mine lent me this costume when she heard I'd given up on Little Bo Peep. It worked great and I loved the bloomers!

Peep and sheep

Candycopia!!

Maybe wearing this sheep costume was worth it after all.

Argh Matey!

Reckless Abandon. You'd think we never feed her...


Appears this pirate found himself a treasure!

E-I-E-I-O

I was going to post this along with my previous post, but the number of pictures overwhelmed me as I'm sure it would most of my blog readers. Anyway, on Saturday we got ambitious and head out to an organic farm called Turner Farm in Indian Hill. The kids and I went last year with some neighbors and we had a great time. I wanted Kyle to share in the fun this year so I booked a reservation on a Saturday, invited some friends and we all went and tried our hand at the farm life. Oh there was plenty of mud and other stuff to step in, but we still had such a great time. (I guess I should speak for myself....I had a great time and I have found that I tend to get more excited than the average joe about festive excursions...except Jason, Melanie, Amy, Melissa, Sarah, Mom....I know you would be totally into this.)

So basically, this is a certified organic farm and they do these little tours that give you a taste of the simple life.

First we had to pick the turnips to feed the animals. Ethan thought that was pretty great!

Ethan's view from the hayride. Not bad!

Leah was totally into the hay

Getting ready to hit the pasture with our turnip crop.

Sheep herding (or is it shepherding)

Up close and personal. Feeding the sheep was probably the favorite activity of the afternoon.

Sidney giving Ethan some sheep feeding pointers.


Leah trying to lure the sheep with a turnip


Little Pumpkin Eater. The pumpkin crop suffered this year because of the wet weather so they had to supplement with pumpkins from the grocery store. That patch was still suffering from excess moisture. It was a muddy mess!

His eyes were a little bigger than his arms. So sad.

Finally, the perfect pumpkin!

En route to the pig pen...So Pretty!!

Suuuuueeeeey!!! We later learned these pigs were on their way to market in a couple of days. I know I like bacon, but I could never be a butcher. Too sad!

Those are 'Some Pigs'! These are the parents of the pigs from the previous picture. Little did they know.

It didn't rain on us, it wasn't too cold and I think we all learned a thing or two. Thanks to everyone who joined us to make the afternoon such a fun one!

Happy Fall Y'All

Wow! How come I always feel like I'm way behind on my blog? (Hmmm...probably because I am.) And then I'm totally overwhelmed with the amount of stuff I need to catch up on. October seems to always be a full month. Lots going on....Halloween, a mountain of family birthdays, hayrides, pumpkins, etc. A festive month it is.

I know I always lament the end of summer, but let's face it, fall rocks. Check out all the fun things there are to do once the air turns crisp.

That's one ginormous tree! And the ginormous leaf that Ethan picked up made one heck of a leaf rubbing. We had plenty of entertainment with a couple of leaves, some paper and crayons.


Monday, we went to the park and took a little walk while we were there and had a scavenger hunt. My kids crack me up. They are so totally distracted by everything and just thrilled with every little thing they seem to find.

Getting a close up view of the leaves.

I try not to let them pick the wildflowers at the park, but it happens sometimes. This is just too sweet.

This had to be posted because this is such a classic Leah thing. She loves closing her eyes and walking and it's pretty hilarious. No serious accidents to report yet because of it. Maybe it brings her other senses to life and it's another way to experience the fun.

Leah found this rock, climbed up and was so proud.
>

Time to rest and have an apple. (Still eating the apples from our apple picking expedition. Although I'm surpised how we've gone through them.)



We've had our fair share of wet weather this month as well, so that's when you have to get creative inside to fill the time.

We were decorating gift bags and he really got into his art as I'm sure you can tell.

A 'Tubation' creation. This is one of Ethan's favorite building toys and he's pretty pleased with what he has created.

Wearing our pumpkin shirts to make pumpkin cookies and then eat pumpkin cookies. Yum!



Yesterday we had our Primary Trunk or Treat party at the church. The youth were in charge of planning it and our Mia Maids put together two booths to entertain the masses. Everyone seems to really have a great time at this activity and my kids still can't get over the load of candy they brought home. It's not even Halloween and they've already got quite a haul. These two pictures are spoilers of their Halloween costumes, but I figure we're close enough.

That's one heckuva handsome pirate and the sweetest (albeit candy thieving) little lamb.


I was hoping to go as Little Bo Peep (you know, because of my little sheep), but I lost my steam and thus it's just a festive t-shirt this year.

Autumn Air

So it really has gotten colder and it's to the point that I'm not comfortable anymore. I will now be cold for at least seven months and there's no way out of it. You know things are going downhill when your husband looks at your hands in shock wondering why they look like his grandma's. (I know I'm young to say this but I have arthritis in my hands and the cold makes them look and feel a little more crooked.) But, if you're going to be cold no matter what, you might as well try and enjoy it to take the edge off. I love October for it's festivities and I have found that the midwest is especially festive this time of year. There is so much to do around here that is either free or dirt cheap that it's a stay at home mom with two rocket fueled kids' dream.

It rained the morning of our playgroup last week and so instead of heading over to the park it was scheduled at, we went to the indoor playground at Sharon Woods. What a great place to burn some energy and I highly recommend it to all those that have children that are ready to bounce off the walls during the colder weather.

Helloooooooo!!!

I don't know if she was saddle sore or what but that face screams, "Get me off of here!"

The rain cleared up after about an hour and since you can't eat inside anyway, we took our lunches outside and then went for a walk to explore the area.

The area was so pretty. Where Ethan goes, Leah follows usually shrieking and laughing behind. She has become quite an adept climber because of it. Don't let that tiny stature fool you.


Cincinnati has such a great parks system. It's one of the things I love about living here. We went out to another one of those great parks on Wednesday to check out their 'Little Tyke Hikes'. They do it every month and it's completely free. It was a little too structured for my little Leah at the beginning, but we went on a nature walk and collected all kinds of cool seeds in a bag that the kids had decorated and that was awesome for both of them. After the hike, we went to a playground to eat lunch and in typical style, my kids ate about two bites and then were chomping at the bit to get to where they really wanted to be. Ethan to the water fountain (no, cold doesn't seem to be an object at all), and Leah to the swings exclaiming "whee, whee" (her word for swing now).

This is the view I have of Leah everytime we go to the playground these days. She beelines for the swings.

Oh but she loves it and it's so cute. It's even more fun when the two of them swing at the same time because they crack each other up, which also cracks me up and usually anyone else that sees their antics.

Our final big outing to report was yesterday. We went to Shaw Farms with our playgroup. This place has become a tradition for us and I think this is the fourth time we've been and by far the muddiest it has ever been. It hadn't rained for a few days so I don't know why there was so much mud but Leah was a total mess by the end. She took a fall into what could only be likened to a tarpit and covered herself in mud. She didn't seem to mind and I at least got her hands wiped up. (The staff would not let me use a sink to wash her off so I was stuck with baby wipes. I was just praying no one pooped their pants because it took one heck of a lot of wipes to clean those hands.) The rest was a lost cause and we all had to ride home in our underwear. Always a sign of a successful outing, right?

'Can you see me now?'

Check out the goat riding skills.

With one of the oh so lovely pumpkin people.

The second Leah saw the animals she couldn't be distracted away by anything else. She was so intrigued by every last one. Unfortunately, this was the muddiest place and where the fall occurred due to a foot that had been sucked way too deep in the mud for a new walker to manage.

Ethan was not so sure about the geese. They were pretty loud and hostile looking.


It was all I could do to keep that girl's fingers out of the cages. Check out that funky rooster though. No wonder she wanted to touch it.

My little pumpkin posse. Could I get them both looking? Heck no! I was lucky to get one of them looking. But at least they're both there. Big success for me!

In other news, we finally have a new roof! It's been tarped ever since Hurricane Ike, so we're happy to be whole again. And, I found out today that Leah is freakishly scared of helium balloons. The checker at the grocery store offered the kids balloons and I thought, "What a treat!" Leah started screaming the second it got near her and screamed until I was able to get her out of the car and away from it. She's been eyeing them leerily ever since, but seems okay as long as they don't get near her. If they do, watch out! Have you ever heard of such a thing? Shocking behavior from a child who I could swear is going to grow up to be an adrenaline junkie. I guess she won't get her fix riding hot air balloons.

Apple Core....Say No More

This week was mostly a bummer for getting out because of all the rain we've been having. We had plans to go apple picking with our neighbors over a week ago but the rain foiled our plans and has continued to foil them. This past Friday we decided to give it another try and woke up to (surprise) a pouring rainstorm. We thought we were done for and we figured we'd just have to wait until next year since the apple season is coming to a close. Well, it cleared up in the afternoon and we decided to brave the elements and give it a try. Good decision.

We went up to an orchard in Blanchester called A&M farm, one of the few that would let children as young as ours actually pick the apples. We were prepared for a muddy mess but were pleasantly surprised when there was nothing of the sort and 25 rows of apple trees for the kids to run around and freely pick apples to their heart's content. It was perfect for Ethan. Pretty much no boundaries and plenty of room to run. And he LOVED hunting down the apples. We ended up with a few that won't be too edible but at 50 cents a pound (a pretty smokin' deal for apples, plus there's no charge do the actual picking), it wasn't much of a problem. If you're interested in apple picking with little ones, I highly recommend this place. Here's a few pics of our exploits.

Ready to get to work!

Limitless options (which was a little scary with Leah in one arm, a load of apples in the other and an exuberant boy who just kept adding to the collection with reckless abandon)

Strapping young apple farmers


Never a lack of enthusiasm...this is such a classic Ethan look. I love it!

Roaming the fields. I had to include this to show all of you that haven't seen Leah in a while that she is now finally walking and has left the crawling stage behind. It's so cute. Little toddlers waddling around has to be one of the most adorable things on the planet!

Hmm...I think I'm hungry
>

This looks like a good one.


They call it Red Delicious for a reason!

The whole gang after a successful harvest!

Our Totally Awesome Vacation....and if you thought the Utah travelogue was long...wait till you see this!

We weren't planning on taking another vacation after our big Utah trip, but Kyle planned and executed a crazy good time and we took off for New Hampshire where his uncle has a house on Lake Winnipesaukee! My only knowledge of the place came from "What About Bob?" which we learned was not actually filmed there. Bummer. Anywho, Kyle convinced his brother's family to join us on the drive and we all braved the 15 hour trek with our wild band of kids. I had never been to NH or Lake W and had never seen many of the sights that can be seen on the way out. We took off on a Saturday and stopped in Kirtland (which I always want to call Kirkland these days thanks to Costco).

Kirtland Temple. It's like herding cats to get all four of these guys in a picture. I'm just glad they're all there. Who cares if they're looking.


Newel K. Whitney store
Even in old Kirtland, Ethan found every air conditioning unit and thoroughly enjoyed himself.
School of the Prophets

From there we continued to Buffalo where we stayed the night with some very generous friends of my sister's-in-law and also went to Niagara Falls. The Falls were indeed spectacular but it's sort of an unnerving place if you have small, exuberant children.

Can you see the Falls behind us to the right?

The next day, our little caravan made it to Palmyra where we went to Hill Cumorah, the Sacred Grove, and the Joseph Smith boyhood home. It was so cool to see all these places I've learned so much about my whole life and that have shaped the very core of who I am and what I believe.

Hill Cumorah...it was a bigger hill than I thought it would be.

Kyle and Ethan took the short cut back down. I opted for the long way since I didn't want to recreate a scene from 'The Princess Bride'.


The Joseph Smith boyhood home..rebuilt but still the original location.

The Sacred Grove


We continued on with a short stop somewhere in Vermont for dinner, where we lost Ethan's shorts and shoes after a chocolate milk incident. We finally arrived at the lake that night after at least 400 showings of 'Kung Fu Panda'. Kyle's parents and aunt and uncle were kindly waiting up.

The lake was spectacular. We enjoyed it to the fullest.

...tubing


...canoeing


...skippering


...fishing


I had never caught a fish before this. I'm not a big fan of fishing. It's the thought of a hook being jabbed through the roof of my mouth that gets me. The smile on my face betrays the ickies in my stomach. My sis-in-law, on the other hand, is just the person you want with you if your survival depends on fishing.

...relishing


...guarding


...kayaking


...wading


...cruising


...grinning


...swimming


...sitting on the rock of the bay (hee, hee)


...taking a solo ride (Just kidding. Just appears that way. Although I wouldn't put it past him.)


...driving....she's just waiting for the 'all clear'.


...and more grinning


We waterskied....well, Kyle and his brother waterskied. I was just dragged around flailing behind the boat. Never got up. We enjoyed many good eats including some of the most perfectly roasted s'mores in recorded history.

We also took one day to explore the coast of Maine which was pretty cool. We stopped in the little town of York and took in the sights. It was Ethan's and Leah's first time to the ocean. And as cold as the Maine Atlantic is in September, they loved it!

The Nubble Lighthouse


Leah the little sailor


Salty Dogs

Ahhh, the ocean. There's just something about the way the air feels and smells.


Kite Flying


Feeding the gulls


Beach Babies


Nana and Ethan taking it in

Swimming in the sand. She couldn't get enough of this.

The week came to an end too quickly as they always do and we had to hit the road for another 15 hour stretch.

On the drive home, we stopped in NYC to see ground zero. It was the 9/12 when we went and so the place was pretty decorated.



Survivors' Memorial


It's always cool to see NYC but I don't recommend it as a pit stop on a long road trip. Lesson learned.

We spent the night in Pennsylvania at my brother's house. They recently moved there and so it was fun to see their new digs, minus my brother unfortunately. We still got to see my sister-in-law and my niece and nephews who we are all very grateful to for their hospitality. The following morning we hit the road again and stopped in Gettysburg which was totally amazing. It's so humbling to visit these battle sites and there's so much to be learned. All these pictures were taken at key battle sites at Gettysburg.

The Wheatfield....location of some of the fiercest fighting at the Battle of Gettysburg. Over 4000 left dead and wounded after just two hours of fighting.


Devil's Den with a view of Little Round Top, the location that was key in turning the tide for the eventual Union victory of the battle.


If Ethan were a Civil War soldier, I have a feeling he would be an artillery man.


We stayed way longer at Gettysburg that we anticipated but still made it home about 11:00 pm (and after another 400 showings of Kung Fu Panda).

Honestly, it was such a cool vacation and I'm so grateful Kyle's aunt and uncle were so generous with their home and that Kyle convinced us all to go. Good people, good times!

My Annual Ode to Summer

I'm not a huge fan of summer ending. I love summer. I love all the things you can do outside. I love playing in the water and not feeling cold. I love not feeling cold period! I love the long days. Don't get me wrong, I think autumn is great, I just wish it turned into another summer instead of dreary old winter. Anyway, we've made the most of our summer and even if my kids don't remember a thing about it, I will......and there's a lot I hope I always remember.

Budding artist. I sure hope that sidewalk chalk is non-toxic

One of the hazards of summer adventures is summer accidents. When Ethan had to get the staples removed from his head, we thought it would ease his fears if he could practice on Kyle. He's being so careful.


Popsicles!!!!


You can't see the water in this one, but Ethan is jumping around in a mister at the park. Oh that face!


Ethan and his cousins "painting the fence". It's actually just water, but the fence gets darker when you 'paint' it and I couldn't believe how long they were occupied doing this. It was sweet!

We've enjoyed many hours at many parks....





We've spent many days at The Beach (the waterpark by our house)....including one day when Kyle and I went on our own and rode the water slides like a couple of 12 year olds. It was awesome!

We've taken in our fair share of fireworks, and spent loads of time in the backyard keeping cool with all sorts of activities.





Kyle and I also made a token trip to Kings Island. This is one of the few summers in recent years where I was not pregnant or breastfeeding, so I was able to enjoy it all. Kyle made the all star page in my memories when at the end of what we thought was our final ride of the night, they announced that if you could get back in line in 33 seconds, you could ride again. He and his buddy were off like a shot and ran like crazy to get back in line. The sight of two grown men with young hearts leaping over chains to get a final ride on the 'coolest' and 'newest' coaster at Kings Island totally cracked me up. And to top it off when the ride ended, Kyle started a chant on the train shouting, "One more time! One more time!" Ah...summer. The kid in us all gets to come out and play.