Halloween.....sorry, can't think of anything better!

OK, to avoid blogging 5 days in a row, you'll be getting a slideshow of not only trick-or treating, but some school "Autumn Harvest" activities. Our trick-or-treating pics were taken at the Waterford last night, which is the highlight of Halloween for us!

Autumn Program

Wow!! Three days in a row I think. This is some sort of record for me. Today was Sammy's very first school program. It was completely uneventful, aka, pretty boring. But it was very fun to see Sammy sing and be a real kid. He didn't cry or just stand there motionless either. He did pretty well. Good job Sammy! Daddy, Grandma Marilyn, Grandma Great and Grandpa Great came and shared in the morning with us!

Cookies!!!

One of my favorite things to do during holidays or special occasions (if you can call Halloween either of those things) is to decorate cookies with Katie. This year Sammy decided he would join us and we all had a great time! You'll notice quite a difference in Katie's cookies vs. Sammy's. :)



Busy as a bee decorating...and then...her finished product....



Sammy happily decorates, frosts and sprinkles.....all in about 90 seconds



and the boy's finished product...



I know you thought I'd be too embarrased to show my cookies, but I can handle it :)



And since some of these went to Katie's friend Kael who had a finger accident at school, we had to sample and make sure they were fit to give away!!

Pumpkin Carving

Tonight was the big pumpkin carving night at our house. The kids have been waiting for this day ever since we went to Greenbluff a couple of weeks ago. Here are a few highlights.



Sammy watching intensley as Loren begins carving.



Katie doing the same...



Katie carving ON HER OWN



Scoopin' out the guts



Showing some scary faces...well Katie anyway



Ooohhhh, scary!!

Katie's New Scarf

If any of you know how poor my knitting skills are, you'll really appreciate this miracle that's happened. Katie asked me to make her a purple scarf for Christmas. So naturally I got my needles and yarn...and went right to work....fully expecting complete failure followed by a trip to the mall. Well, after completion of said scarf, I decided it needed some "flair." So I went online and read how to do this flair and here it is.... Oh-this is a Christmas gift for Katie. So if any of you tell, well...you're in big trouble. BIG!



I'm feeling confident now. I think I'll go knit a hat....then head to the mall :)

Hallelujah it's fixed!!

This may not be the tremendously lovely sight for sore eyes you've been waiting for...but it certainly is to me! After a couple of hard hours of work by Loren, I have my sink back. No sock sucked up by the washing machine, just years of literal crud finally taking over space in my drain. I've never been so thankful to have the dishwasher, washing machine and faucet running at the same time. It may seem silly, but I actually spent time thanking God for a working kitchen. Funny how these things make you appreciate every day things so much. I'm also thankful for a husband who recognizes my need to have these things working :)

Sink Update

I know the very few people who read my blog have all been in suspense to get an update on my backed up sink, so here it is. Loren has determined that thewashing machine did NOT suck up a sock, it is NOT the disposal, but in fact a clogged pipe very near the actual sink itself. I went to lowe's today and purchased two contraptions (one of which Loren will choose to unclog the pipe).



And in case you're wondering....he chose the one on the left.

Still...more dirty dishes....


The drain pipe auger (aka contraption on the left) did not work as successfully as hoped. I am heading back to Lowes shortly to find more contraptions so Loren can "rig" another contraption and hopefully blast out the clog with some water and more wiggling of the contraption on the left. As silly as this sounds, I'm really enjoying my "break" from doing too much cooking seeing as how I can't do the dishes :)

I love my sink

Tonight my kitchen sink backed up...at about 10:00....with a sink full of dishes....and houseguests....I think I may be sick. We thought it was the disposal at first. Then Loren realized the pipe was clogged. He couldn't find the snake "thing" that is supposed to unplug anything you can possibly imagine. SO he came up with an alternative. His newest theory is that my washing machine sucked up a sock (which it has been known to do) and plugged EVERYTHING up. So lets all be appreciative of our working kitchen sinks, cause I could really use one right now :)
I'm really missing it. That is a sad statement I know, but oh the joys of life when Loren gets it working again! Here are a few photos for your enjoyment...



The non-problem causing disposal.


Dirty dishes

I'll let you know how it turns out!!

Picture for Mary

Here you go Mary! This is Katie's 5th birthday cake and Mary is doing a butterfly cake for her daughter's birthday. I hope it turns out better than mine!

How I spend my free time

I'm absolutely sure no explanation is needed....

Our visit with the Kroll's

A few weeks ago we had the pleasure of having our dear friends the Kroll's over for the afternoon. It was so good to see them after so long! I think almost 3 years in fact, jeepers :) Jack and William have grown so much and are so handsome! Here are a few pics of our day...

Flower Child

As it turns out, Katie has a green thumb. In the Spring, Katie plucked the seeds from the previous year's sunflower and planted them. This is what happened....