Trick or Treat

Halloween Night~ October 31st, 2009

Kids in Costume.

Full of Excitement!
They're ready for a night on the town.

Wand in hand.

Weather is tolerable.

Light Saber to guide us in the dark.

Hand over the candy, and no one will get hurt.
Thank-you!

Great friends to share the night with.

Ryan (4), Colin (6), Nolan (5), Maggie (6), Molly (4), Lilly (3), and Ellie (4)

The motherload...nothing beats a bucket full of candy in Lilly's book!

Nolan had a lot of fun counting and sorting his stash. Having him tell me, that he's organzied made me smile. Yes son, that is my kind of organization...and something I did as a child too. :)

It was a Happy Halloween!

The Story of Jack & Jill

Jack and Jill started as ordinary pumpkins. They rode home in the back of our car after being picked from the Shady Hallow Pumpkin Patch in St. Augusta. Nolan knew that this pumpkin was the right one and immediately fell in love with its smooth skin and bright orange color. Lilly picked a smaller one and was happy with the fact that it wasn't too heavy for her to carry. Jack & Jill made great front step decorations for the two weeks they lived here with us, but were ready to get out of the cold and come to life on the night before Halloween. Nolan ever so carefully rolled his in off of the front step and into the kitchen for carving. Both children set to work and enjoyed cutting and digging out the seeds. It has always been my job to cut the faces, while Mike bakes the pumpkin seeds. By the end of the night, our pumpkins had personality. We lit them, put them back outside, and came in to enjoy a bowl of warm, yummy pumpkin seeds. The End

Ding-dong Ditch!

Lilly: Who rang our doorbell and left us a bag of treats?

Nolan: I have no idea, but holy cow Lilly...look what's all in here! There are bouncy balls, stickers, candy, pencils, mini flashlights, and even a candle for mom!

Mission: To locate a house that hasn't been "Boo-ed", and leave them a treat!

Quick! Ring the Bell.....and RUN!!!

Hurry Lilly! Nolan waited for Lilly to get to the bottom
before ringing the bell. He didn't want his sister to give them away.

Tonight was the night we realized that every house in the neighborhood has lots of front steps...Trick or Treating was going to be a litte more tiring for those with little legs. :)

Nolan posted our sign to keep future "ghosts" away.

The kids were introduced to the game, "Ding-Dong Ditch" this month. Apparently, our neighborhood gets really exctied about Halloween, and this is something that is traditionally done up and down our block each year. On Sunday afternoon, we heard our door bell ring, but when we went to see who was there....there was NOBODY! The kids were a little puzzled at first, but when they saw a treat bag sitting on the front step, they could hardly contain themselves. Who would leave a bag full of treats by our door and run away? The bag had a note inside instructing us to spread the Halloween joy by placing the "Boo" sign on our door and then going out to find a house that hadn't yet been hit and "Boo" them. So in other words, play an honest game of Ding-dong Ditch!

Nolan and I excitedly went to Walgreens to purchase some goodies so we could participate. However, we weren't quite quick enough and had another package at our door before we got home. (Oops....forgot to hang the "Boo" sign in our window before we left!) So, we gathered goodies for two neighbors and left the house with a mission. Booing their neighborhood friends was pretty thrilling for both of them. Lilly was in charge of placing the goodie bags at the door and Nolan rang the doorbells. Once they completed their tasks, they ran away giggling and proud. It was a lot of fun for the whole family. We are very happy to be part of this neighborhood tradition.

Annual Fall Hike~ Millstream Park

Halloween Warm-Up

The kids were excited to try our their costumes today!

Lilly made an enthusiastic cheerleader,

and Nolan was the ever so forceful, Darth Vader.

May the force be with you!
We borrowed the cool costume from a good friend and
purchased the red light-up saber for special effects.
Way cool...as Nolan would put it!

2-4-6-8...what do we appreciate?
Candy, Candy, yeah.....CANDY!!!

Nolan is devising a serious plan...
Just how much candy can I get...when it's not even Halloween yet?!


The kids visited several local businesses this morning as a Halloween warm-up.

We spent about an hour practicing our Trick-or-Treating skills.

They had a lot of fun... no troubles... and a bucket full of candy when we were done!

Look out neighborhood!

We geared up and ready for the real day.

May your supplies be plentiful.

We WILL be BACK!!!

The Great Pumpkin

We're off to find the perfect pumpkin!


Nolan was determined to lift them into the wheelbarrow.


He didn't realize how much work this was going to be.

Lilly found the perfect "little" one for herself.

A fun filled day for our family!

The weather has been so unpredictable this month, so finding the perfect Saturday to visit the patch was quite challenging. One Saturday morning we woke up to a snow covered lawn and the next, was rainy and cold. Not your typical fall, that is for sure. Thankfully, there was one decent weekend in the month of October. So off to the Shaddy Hallows we went.

The kids were excited to enter the patch this year. Hundreds of bright orange, round pumpkins were laid before them. Pumpkins of all sizes waiting to be picked by a special child. Nolan liked all of the big ones and had fun rolling them over to the wheelbarrow. When he couldn't lift it in, he opted for a smaller one. Lilly fell in love with the little ones and carried hers around most of the trip. They did get tired combing through the patch and dodging the vines, so Mike pleased them both by pushing them and their pumpkins back to the car. It was a great day at the pumpkin patch.

Muffins w/ Mom and Dad

Nolan and Lilly really enjoyed having us at school with them for Muffins w/ Mom and Dad day. We got to go to school a little early and have breakfast with the kids in the cafeteria. It was a real treat starting off the day together.

My "Heaven on Earth"

My Scrapbooking Room

I have always dreamed of having my own scrapbooking room...or should I say that it has been a dream of mine for the past five and a half years. Setting up shop in order to preserve a few memories was often more work than it was worth. What you see here was stored in large plastic bins and hauled to various scrapbooking retreat houses and mania scrap nights. It was a ton of work! If I did set it up at home, it seemed to get in the way or attract the kids like a magnet.

When we purchased this house, I ever so sweetly asked Mike what he had in mind for the fourth bedroom upstairs. He is typical guy and said that he really hadn't thought about it. The only rooms that were on his mind were the basement and the garage!

After two months of living here, I have designed a small piece of Heaven right in this house! It took me a little while to figure out exactly how I wanted to arrange, organize, and design the room...and even longer to get Mike to assemble the shelving units once the decision was made. However, they fit perfectly and turned out exactly like I had envisioned. I am able to organize and store all of my supplies so that they are ready to use when my creative side calls.

Pictures of my family hang on the wall under a rub-off that states, "We may not have it all together, but together we have it all." The paper behind the photos is what inspired the color theme in the room. The aqua blue walls are cheerful, bright, and calming all at the same time. Pink, lime green, chocolate brown, and white were the accents colors I chose. They work well and bring a lot of life to the room.

The white cupboard doors are perfect for hiding my stamp sets, ink pads, and various other embellishments. The drawers in the middle house my punches, cutters, tape, adhesives, and small do-dads. Black and white pictures of my family and friends are displayed throughout the unit, as well as the word "laugh", which makes me smile. The circular mirrors were added at the last minute. I think they work well amongst all the squares. Three canisters of goodies line the top shelf for the nights that require a surge of sugar. Snacks are a must in the scrapbooking world!



From my desk (which I scored on Craig's list), I get a nice view of the front yard. This room is particularly bright due to the double window, so it makes the perfect crafting room. Actually, Mike and I are glad that one of the kids didn't end up in here. The street lamp outside the window, even makes the room glow at night.

The clock on the wall is one of my favorite accessories. It was a "must have"... something that wouldn't have worked in any other room in our house, but is definitely perfect for this space.


This was our old nightstand, which I tried to pawn off on my Grandma...good thing she didn't want the pair. It made the perfect corner stand for all my letter stickers, chipboard, and miscellaneous goodies. I can be thankful that Mike doesn't pay close attention to the Craft's Direct receipts that come home. Yikes!

I added the pink Gerber daisy next to this rub-off to add texture and dimension.

I am so lucky to have a supportive husband. He knows how happy this hobby makes me, and I thank him from the bottom of my heart for allowing me to have my very own scrapbooking space. It feels so good being in here. I am hoping to accomplish a lot during the winter months, now that I don't have to set-up and take-down each time I want to work.

It is truly my "Heaven on Earth"!

Creating memories is something we're good at.

I hope to preserve them, so that our family can look back years from now and see that...

Together, we had it all!