Pumpkin Carving Extravaganza

Maybe that's a slight exaggeration - we did only carve one pumpkin - but he was a biggie!

Before carving

During carving

After carving - can you see the only candle I had that I could put in the pumpkin - in it's lovely flowered holder?  Can you believe I didn't have 1 darn votive or tea light candle in my house?  Ridiculous!

You get the full effect...ooooh - scary!

And he provided a little snack we enjoyed afterwards.  In fact, I'm snacking on a few that were left over as I post this to tide me over until dinner. :)

We Did the Mash

The Monster Mash...

Personalize funny videos and birthday eCards at JibJab!

It was a graveyard smash!  Happy Halloween!

Hooray for Sisters!

I got to spend some great time with my sister this morning, so I wanted to give a shout out to her.  No matter how long time goes between spending time with her, it is never awkward or weird...we can pick up right where we left off like we just saw one another the day before.  She'd drop everything to help me out if I needed it & I would do the same for her.  Work, kids, and just the general busy-ness of life mean that we don't see each other as often as we'd like (even though we only live a measly 15-20 minutes from one another!), but I'm so thankful for the times we do get to spend together.  Love you Kristen!

On an aside - this is one of the only "grown-up" pictures I could find of us - from our brother's wedding 6 years ago!  We really should pose together sometime soon...or maybe not since we'd just look older. :)

Do you remember?

Did you have this much fun in Kindergarten?  I dont' think I did.  KCFD Firefighters visited yesterday.  Not only did the kids learn about fire safety (I got a stop-drop & roll demo, as well as an army crawl through imaginary smoke demo) they also got to check out a real-live fire truck and watch the firefighters spray water from it.  Believe me - if you know any 5 year old boys, this was a day straight from heaven!  Today was a field trip to Kaliedoscope.  Luke came home with lots of treasures.  I remember going myself as a kid & what a wonderful place it is.  With the Halloween, make that FALL party next week, October is shaping up to be a pretty great month to be in Kindergarten!

PS - Thanks to Mrs. Borsella for being so great about posting pictures to her website so I can see how much fun Luke is having!

Happy Birthday!

To the one I love.

A New Season

Clues that fall is here:

1.  I'm wearing pants...and socks.
2.  There is a chill in the air despite today's sunshine.
3.  School is in full swing.
4.  Leaves are starting to turn & fall.
5.  Orchard apples.
6.  Ginger abandons all her "cool" spots, ie, tiles, linoleum, spots right next to vents - for her warm spots, ie our Brandon's lap, blankets, and "sun" spots:

Yep - she knows the season is changing too. :)

Wow!

I admit it - I'm a proud mom. I think my kid is pretty darn smart.  He remembers everything.  He knew his letters & numbers before age 2.  You could point to any make of car & he could name it at age 3.  He just has an amazing memory...one that sure would come in handy for myself sometimes!  However, one thing that has not ever been easy for him is writing/drawing/coloring.  Those fine motor skills are not easy for him.  He has struggled to grip his pencil/crayon/whatever the correct way and it can be frustrating for him.  He's really come a long way, though,  and really has been liking writing down some of his favorite words he knows - Mom, Dad, Ginger, play, and more.  Tonight, though, he really showed me what he's been learning in kindergarten over the past few weeks.  Each day in his class, one of the students has been the queen/king for the day.  The queen or king gets to tell the teacher things about themselves & the teacher writes it all down, demostrating how to properly write in sentences.  Luke comes into my room earlier with his little notepad & tells me how one of his stuffed animals (Fox in Socks) is king for the day in his room & he proceeds to show me what he's written about Fox.

Just in case you're not practiced in the art of reading an emerging writer's work - it says, "Fox is 7 years old.  His favorite color is red.  He loves his mom."  Notice the correct capitalization at the beginning of each sentence & periods at the end (except for the last sentence where he ran out of room (: ). I am in awe of the kindergarten teacher - that he could sit down & put this together without any prompting or support just thrills both the mom & the teacher in me.  So - sorry, but I'm in proud Mom mode tonight & couldn't help but share my excitement.

Happy Birthday!

Happy birthday to my dad (and me).  Growing up, I always thought it was pretty cool to have my birthday just 3 short days after my dad - something special that he and I shared.  We got to celebrate with the family last night and we had a terrific time with one another.  As the years go by, it is getting more crowded & a lot louder, but the fun we have together doesn't change.  It's such a blessing to enjoy my family so much.

The birthday kids

The highlight of my night - lots of wet birthday kisses from my neice Ellie. :)

A New Old Favorite

Brandon & I love to get out and walk with Ginger every day, but this love is not shared with us by Luke.  Since he's started school, I try to get home as quickly as I can on 2-3 days of the week so we can get a walk in before Luke goes home & spare him.  Well, let's be honest, it also spares us a lot of whining.  We've always enjoyed heading down to the Amity Woods Nature Trail since it opened two or three years ago, but this summer, in addition to the concrete trail, they've cleared out brush and laid down mulch in new trails through the woods.  This has become a way to entice Luke into walking with us and enjoying it.  He considers it an "adventure" to "explore" the woods.  And if Luke loves it, I don't even have words to put down how Ginger feels about it.  She is literally "on the trail" of the wildlife she scents out as we walks.  It has been a pleasure to enjoy this new old favorite.

Nostalgia

I am watching this classic with Luke

It has been years since I last watched it, but it brings all the feelings of joy I got from watching it when I was a kid.  Maybe even more because I get to watch my own child enjoying it too!

A first for me this summer was watching this classic:

Yes - I am sure if you are reading this, you are horrified, as everyone else has been when they've heard I'd never seen it.  My students from last year felt I was very lacking in my education because I had never seen the Wizard of Oz.  One of them gave me a copy of my own as a parting gift at the end of the year, so I had to make sure I watched it.  I have to say that I didn't love it, but I think I would have enjoyed it much more if I had actually watched it as a child.  At least now I don't have to sheepishly admit my lacking in this area when it comes up in conversation!

What I Love About My Job

What do I love about my job?  These people!  They make coming to work every day an adventure.  Sometimes, they even make it feel like it's not a job.  Working with middle school students is a challenge and a joy all at the same time, but it is made all the better when you get to do it with people you really love.

Showing off our (7A) Titan spirit today!

Yep - we're rockin the headbands

My "roommate" Jodi and me

Toni & me

Our new math teacher Brandi (there is a reason for the bikini over her clothes) with Toni

Chris & Jodi

First Day of School

It is official.  My little guy is now a kindergartener.  I am proud to say that I only teared up one time today - in the shower before anyone else was up, so I didn't embarrass anyone.  I was just thinking about my little 4 pound baby who showed up 8 weeks earlier than expected & how I remembered looking at him thinking about what year it would be when he went to Kindergarten ( is that just the teacher in me, or does everyone do that?).  I thought at the time that it seemed so far away, but let me tell you...it has happened in the blink of an eye.  I am so proud of this kid, though.  He wanted to ride the bus this morning & he did it & got to class with no problems this morning.  He was pretty proud that he also found his bus home this afternoon without the help of his teacher.  We were informed that "riding the bus is so fun!" & they are going to get "so crazy" in PE tomorrow.  What a moment...to see him basking in his independence & being so proud, but so sad because my little one is not so little anymore.

My baby - 1 day old

11 days old - still so tiny!

Not so tiny anymore!

Ginger is proud too!

My handsome boys!

First day for both of us

Happy Anniversary

Happy 14th anniversary to my wonderful husband!  I can't believe it has been so many years.  It is a blessing to know each day that I am still excited to come home to my best friend & favorite (well one of 3) person in the world!  Enjoy a couple wedding pics - sorry for the quality - this was before the day of the digital camera, so I just took a couple pics of the pics. :)

Sealing the deal

Newlyweds!

Summer's End...

My principal has told us that our theme for this school year is "Endless Summer".  It's a nice thought, but sadly, it has ended.  We tried to end it with as much fun for Luke as we could.  A trip to the Deanna Rose Farmstead was a fun way to spend a morning & we spent as much time by a pool as we possibly could, but alas, summer has come to an end...

Doesn't he just look like an explorer?

Hanging with Dad

Living his life-long dream of "driving" a tractor

He was so excited to see a John Deere Tractor

Getting ready for the real deal

Battle Scars

Luke learned to ride his bike without training wheels at grandma's and grandpa's last week.  He did great!  However, all of us who have learned to ride bikes know that it does not come without a crash or two.  This face is the result of yesterday's first big crash.  And, I'm sure you're wondering...was he wearing his helmet? Alas, I will not win mother of the year - I left his helmet at home when we visited grandma and grandpa yesterday.  I can assure you that will not happen again!  I'm sure it won't be the last time he has some big scrapes, but hopefully, they won't be on his face next time!  Thank goodness we have 2 weeks until school starts for the face to heal! :)

You Can Take the Dog off the Farm...

but you can't take the farm out of the dog.  Not only does Luke love visiting my parents who live out in the countryside, but Ginger does too!  Seriously...we call her the farm dog anytime we go visit.  As soon as she gets out of the car, she is off & running, sniffing out all the wonderful scents of the other animals that must  wander around their property.  Our well-behaved sweetheart becomes a dog that doesn't listen to a command we give her once she's on the trail of something.  It is hilarious to watch her run around like a puppy, because at home, she doesn't have enough room in our small yard.  It's hard to believe from watching her there that she is nearly 9 years old!

Exploring

Nose to the ground

It's all good

Exploring with Luke

The frog Ginger obsessed over once it jumped down on the ground where she could stalk it. :)

Gotta love the farm!

Yum!

Veggies from Brandon's garden

Peaches from my dad's tree

I love the summer growing season!  It is so amazing to have such a variety of fresh fruits and veggies to choose from.  I feel like I should be orange from all the carrots I eat throughout the rest of the year.  I can't wait to enjoy the cucumbers and tomatoes at dinner tonight & the fresh peach crisp I plan to make later.  My stomach is already growling...YUM!