Scariest Pumpkins on the Block?

Not really - unless you call weird carving scary. Which some do. Last night we had our annual "Family Pumpkin Carving Night." A tradition we started when our oldest was 7 months old her first Halloween. We clear off the kitchen table and line it with newspapers, pick our pumpkin patterns and let Daddy go to work. Well..that's been the tradition but now we have so many kids that I actually have to participate in the carving of the pumpkins. I don't mind it's fun...but usually Paul gets the really hard designs and I get the really easy ones. However, somehow last night he got to do Lily's star eyes and I ended up with Julia's Mickey Mouse. The girls had fun separating the seeds though Lily kept talking about how "gross the pulp is." We roasted the pumpkin seeds and everyone has been munching on them all day. A fun night last night and a great kick-off to the Halloween fun today!

Homemade Candy Corn is NOT a new Halloween Tradition

So our way cool friends, the Hart's who happen to live in Hawaii, posted on their blog about making homemade candy corn. As soon as I read the title of their blog post I knew I had to try it. I mean what sounds more fun the week before Halloween than making your own candy corn? Which, by the way, I don't even really like. So I checked out the recipe and it doesn't seem to hard...not many ingredients and the Harts were successful so no reason to think I wouldn't be, right? So wrong...so very wrong. My first clue that I should abort this project should have been when Paul called and said: "Do you really need powdered milk..you know it's $6.00 for this box right?" I replied: "Yes..I need the milk and I am sure that we can find other things to use the milk for." Needless to say Paul was not thrilled.

So Tuesday it was rainy and gross so we decided it would be candy corn making day when the girls got home from school. So we get it going..follow the directions exactly and what I ended up resembled a white brick. Not doughy, no way to add food coloring..just a rock hard lump. Fail!! I looked up the recipe and this time read the comments and it turns out you should really pay attention to how hot the mixture is getting on the stove. Let me just give this disclaimer: I am fairly new to cooking on a gas stove so I forget it's much hotter than an electric stove. Not a worry..I'll just try again. Wrong. As I'm measuring the second batch I run out of powdered sugar. Grrr.

So the powdered milk/missing cup of powdered sugar has been sitting on my counter for 2 days and Paul keeps gently asking me when I'm going to make the candy corn since, you know, he's spent like $50 getting all the ingredients I need. He had brought home more powdered sugar the next day. I had some time on my hands today and figured I'd tackle it. And I did. And I learned it wasn't much fun and I still don't really like candy corn.

The recipe was pretty easy to follow and once I paid attention to the temperature I got the dough to the right consistency. However, I let it cool too long so it was hard to work the color in. When I got to the rolling out stage it was a royal pain. It was hard to get the 3 layers of dough thin & small enough to make normal size candy corn. Needless to say we have what looks like candy corn on steroids over here. The kids didn't really help much but they loved the taste of it and have been inhaling it all night. Every time I turn around Julia has a giant candy corn in her mouth.

The moral of the story? Walmart has candy corn for $.88 a bag - buy it there if you really like candy corn.

Trick or Treat Take 1

Last night we went with some of our friends from our MOMS Club to Sunrise Senior Center for Trick or Treating. I thought it would be a good opportunity to give the costumes a test run and bring some smiles to the residents. I mean what's cuter than little kids in fun Halloween costumes? Not much...

Of course getting ready for the event was not without drama but we got everyone dressed and to the senior center only a few minutes late. I wasn't sure what to expect when we got there but was hopeful that I could handle it with all the kids. Turns out they had the residents in the entrance way in a circle with bags of candy. Once she figured out what was going on, my typically shy youngest daughter showed no fear going up to strangers to get candy. None..in fact she may have gotten more candy than the older girls. Here are a few pictures from the event:

Just How Old Do You Think I Am?

I pick the girls up from school yesterday and our conversation goes something like this:

Emma: Mommy (because every single sentence must begin with this), my homework tonight is to ask you what you used to do for fun when you were a little girl.
Me: Oh..well..we used to play outside, play Barbies, play...
Emma interrupting: Um, they didn't have Barbies back then..
Me: What? yes they did...I had all kinds of Barbies. We played video games called Atari, a lot of the same things you did
Emma: You mean they had TV when you were a kid?
Me: Um, yes! How old do you think I am?
Emma: Well...
Me: Yes we had TV..ok so we didn't have cable until I was in the 6th grade and we didn't have remote controls but we had TV and it was in color!
Emma & Lily: Huh?
Me: We had TV but no Disney Channel. And you had to get up to change the channels because we didn't have a remote control.
Lily: You didn't have the Disney Channel???
Me: No..I did not.
Lily: Wow..you are old
Me: I'm NOT that old!
Emma: I bet you didn't have a microwave
Lily: No microwave? How did you make popcorn?
Me: sigh..We got a microwave when I was in middle school. It was enormous and took up half the counter and had a turn dial. But it was a microwave. And before the microwave we used a popcorn popper or we used Jiffy Pop on the stove.

On second thought..I don't want to know how old you think I am.....

Because I Can

If you know Julia, my 2 1/2 year old you may think she's sort of quiet and shy. And she is. In public. At home or once you really get to know her not so much. She's had some speech issues..the girl didn't utter a word that made sense until she was 2. And for the first few months after she was 2 it was mostly one word here and there. She was in speech therapy for almost a year. Well, the past 3 months or so her speech has really come along..blossomed if you will. She now talks and talks and talks. Just like her older sisters. And along with all the talking comes the questions. Question after question after question. So last night we were in the car and our conversation goes something like this:

Julia: Mommy, mommy, mommy, mommy, why? why? why? why? about anything and everything.
Me: Julia why do you ask so many questions?
Julia: Because
Me: Because why?
Julia: Because I talk now and I can

Ah..if only that independent spirit would manifest itself in the potty training.....

Another Fun Fall Weekend

I love October. There always seems to be so many fun things to do. This weekend was no exception! Friday night I got to go to Scrapmania with my friend Frances which always makes me happy. Paul stayed home with the kids and had a family movie night minus mom. The Hannah Montana movie was on the agenda and apparently loved by all. Saturday we took the kids downtown to Raleigh Wide Open. It was a great festival to celebrate downtown. Lots of good eats and fun things going on. Thankfully we went right before the rain set in. They had Wheel of Fortune tryouts going on and I really wanted to go for it but sadly Jacob had had enough so we had to go. So we didn't meet Pat or Vanna. Boo. And last night Paul & I got to go to an adults only Pumpkin Carving party. Fun times though our pumpkin did not win. Whatever. Maybe next year? Today has been a pretty normal, relaxing Sunday. Though wasn't it supposed to warm and sunny today?

A busy week to come getting ready for Halloween! On the agenda: Homemade Candy Corn and Family Pumpkin Carving Night!

Must See TV

Lovin some of the new TV shows this season. My new favs: Glee, Modern Family and Cougartown. Glee - funny, cheesy, over the top but fun and funny. Love, love Sue Sylvester and I love the music. I would totally buy the Glee soundtrack. Modern Family - laugh out loud funny. Love the characters, love the storylines, love the way the show is set. Lots of laughs. Funny stuff. Cougartown - I know this has gotten mixed reviews but I like it. I mean Courteney Cox and the girl from Dawsons Creek? Great. They are funny though Courteney Cox gets a little screamy sometimes. I also think the neighbor is super funny. So..it stays on the "DVR series" list.

What are you watching? New favs this TV season?

Fair in Pictures

Here are some pics from the fair yesterday:

Deep Fried Fun

The State Fair is in town and Paul needed to take a vacation day before the end of the month so we decided to make a day of it and go. We took the girls out of school a little early (sshh..don't tell) and went after we picked up Julia from preschool. As we ate, I mean walked, around the fair a few things came to mind: 1. What else can we possibly deep fry..wait..I'm sure we'll find out next year. 2. People will wear anything, and I mean, anything to fair. 3. I don't think we were the only people taking kids out of school for the fair. 4. There is always a line for the NC State ice cream. 5. If you go to the fair during the day on a school day there are no lines for the thrill rides but the kiddie rides are packed. 6. Really..pajama pants? You're going to the fair and you couldn't even put on jeans? 7. High heels? Really? Again..you're going to the fair. Walking, dust, rocks...and you wonder why your feet hurt? 8. You can spend a lot of money very quickly at the fair. 9. Parking is free! 10. Thank goodness we only do this once a year.

We really did have a good time. My sister in law came with us so that was good. Always better up to up the child to adult ratio. It's also nice to have someone to share the food with and since Michelle is always up for eating anything it's all the better. The girls got to ride a bunch of rides and play a game. Julia was pretty nervous about the rides at first but after she did one she couldn't get enough..very cute. Jacob mostly rode in the stroller and screamed. He did thoroughly enjoy the ice cream though. Mostly we just walked around and ate. And speaking of food here's what we ate and what I thought of it since I know that's what you're all dying to know. And let me preface this by saying there were 3 adults and 3 1/2 kids eating most of this food. I did not consume all portions of this list. I might could have but I didn't:

1. Al's French Fries- As Michelle says - got to start with fries and they must be Al's. Two locations to serve you.
2. Footlong Corndog - kids loved it.
3. Deep Fried Ho-Ho- I was pretty excited about this one. It was good. Great? No. But definitely worth trying.
4. Roasted Corn on the Cob - got to have one...every year...so yummy.
5. Fried Dough - with just cinnamon and powdered sugar - this got rave reviews from the my kids. Especially Jacob who squealed with delight upon eating this goodness.
6. London Broil Sandwich - I actually didn't eat this but apparently it was good or so said my husband.
7. Fried gizzards on a stick - I kid you not. Again..not something I ate but Michelle and Paul did..apparently it delighted them. I just thought it was funny.
8. Ribbon Fries - one of my fair favs. They were yummy and Jacob loved these too. So did the rest of my kids. Lily actually looked disappointed when they were done.
9. Ham Biscuit - Again..not me but Julia, my 2 year old, loved it.
10. Deep Fried Cookie Dough - Simply the best thing I ate. My favorite, favorite thing. Oh. So. Good. Way better than the ho-ho or the snickers.
11. Pig Lickers a.ka. Chocolate Covered Bacon - Seriously they call them pig lickers. That's just funny. My opinion? Not as good as I was hoping for. It was only OK. I much, much prefer the deep fried cookie dough. Paul and Michelle thought it was good but not great. However, my 2 and 5 year olds? Loved it...couldn't get enough. Go figure.

Now that my arterties are sufficiently clogged I must go wash my veggies for tomorrow since I'll only be eating that and water. Again..glad it's only once a year. Pics coming soon just too tired tonight!

Sick Day

Nothing like an unexpected Monday Sick Day to get your productivity jump started for the week. Emma started sniffling yesterday morning and by 5pm she had a low grade fever, a runny nose and little cough. We gave her some cold medicine and I went to Walmart and stocked up on Tylenol and Motrin because where's there's one child with a fever another could be right behind. She rested last night and had a good nights sleep but at 7:30 her temperature was up so she stayed home from school. Poor kid was upset she didn't get to go to school. She was out on Friday too due to the funeral. She said "but I can't miss 2 days of school in a row." Sure hope she always has this much enthusiasm for school.

So..here we are..home..all day..on a Monday. Actually it's been good - I've vacuumed the baseboards downstairs, completed 5 loads of laundry (even got to the delicates basket), whipped up a batch of chocolate chip cookies and started dinner. All in all a very productive morning. And the good news is Emma's fever is down and she should be able to go to school tomorrow. Going to go lysol the house again to hopefully keep this from spreading..wish me luck.

Audiobooks are my new Best Friends

I love audiobooks. Love them, love them, love them. And, love, love that the library has so many to chose from. This weekend we had to go on an unexpected road trip. Sadly Paul's grandmother passed away last Sunday so we needed to travel for the funeral. Destination: August, GA where his grandmother lived for many years and where his grandfather was buried. It's about 5 hours to Augusta from our house. And we took all 4 kids. The last time we took a road trip, to VA to see my aunt, I had gotten a couple audiobooks and it worked like a charm. If you've been reading my blog or know my kids at all you know my 6 year old talks non-stop. And when I say non-stop I mean all. the. time. So for her to actually be quiet for any length of them (say 10 min) is appreciated. So, Thursday I popped by the library and picked up a few audiobooks for the trip. They had some oldies but goodies: "Ramona Quimby, Age 8", "Nancy Drew," "Stuart Little", "Encyclodia Brown." Brings back many memories from elementary school. Nonetheless I settled on "The Magic Treehouse" (5 hours!), a Cam Jensen mystery and "Ramona Quimby, Age 8". Lily ended up riding with my mother in law but Emma was so excited to get to hear the books. She asked for one as soon as we got on the road and we listened to the stories the whole trip. It was so peaceful. Success!!

The rest of the trip was good..or as good as it gets when you are traveling for a funeral and traveling with a one year old that's just learning how to walk. We got to see a lot of Paul's family that we hadn't seen in a long time and I got to meet some cousins that I've never met. Everyone was excited to see the kids and though it wasn't easy having Jacob with us I'm glad they got to see everyone.

Potty Training Troubles

Oh my do I have a stubborn girl on my hands. We've been trying to potty train Julia for months. And literally I mean months. I started in June when she was just shy of 2 1/2..my other 2 were totally trained by then (well except for pull ups at night) so I figured she should be too. Day 1 was a disaster so I decided maybe she wasn't ready and we had summer travel coming up so I'd wait. We tried again in July. Again..disaster. She'd wet and says "I pee." She just wasn't getting it. Then we were moving so again I decided to wait. Around Labor Day I decided to get serious. You see, my philosophy, for a while has been that you have to be just as ready as the child for it to work. I mean you have to commit to staying home, minding the clock, cleaning up messes, laundry. No easy task. But, I was ready. We set up a potty chart. With stickers! And candy! And prizes! And no luck. None. She cried when she went on the potty and after 3 intense days we saw nothing. Just a bunch of dirty laundry. So I gave up. Thought I needed to change my method. The problem is I'm not sure what to do. Should I just wait it out? I mean I know she won't go to Kindergarten in pull-ups. I'm just sick and tired of buying her diapers. So I'm looking for help my friends. Anyone have any recommendations on things that worked for very stubborn, strong-willed children? Anyone have any ideas on how to get her from being so adamant about not using the potty. It's making me crazy and people..I need some sanity back. Not to mention coffee money for the winter (peppermint mochas and gingerbread lattes are coming). Help!

One Kid Weekend

My mother in law bravely offered to take all 3 girls to her house this weekend for a sleepover. At first I thought it was just Friday night but she said she'd really like them to stay Saturday night too! (Brave, brave woman) They were so excited to get to spend the weekend at Nana's. Shopping! Barbies! Junk Food! So. Much. Fun! We were just as happy to send them. I cleaned the house on Friday in anticipation of having a clean, quiet house all weekend. It was great. Friday night we caught up on the dvr'd shows from the week. Glee, anyone? Saturday morning I got to sleep in and Paul did his usually Dunkin Donuts coffee run. We didn't really have anything pressing to do, which was strange. No real house projects, no real errands. It was so nice to be lazy and actually have some quiet around the house. I actually got some scrapbooking done. We ended up going out to lunch. Then after Paul went to the gym I went out and did some shopping by myself. No kids! After Jacob got to bed we had a nice steak dinner and watched a movie. This morning we went out to breakfast then to church then out to get the girls. They had a wonderful time with Nana! It was nice to have some peace and quiet this weekend but we were excited to see their smiley faces this afternoon. Julia told us at dinner "I missed Mommy, I missed Jakey, and I missed Daddy but I had fun with Nanny." I guess that about sums it up.

Costume Craze

Tis the season..you know the one where Party City puts a flyer in the paper with their Halloween costumes in it every week therefore sparking the following conversations during Sunday breakfast: "I want to be a ladybug" "I'm going to be a fairy" "No..no I changed my mind I'm going to be Strawberry Shortcake" "Wait no I'm going to be Supergirl"...and on and on and on. Needless to say the "What are you going to be for Halloween" conversation has been happening around our house for a few weeks. They've been asking (begging) to go to look for costumes for a couple weeks now and I decided today would be a good day. No real reason for that other than I'm a bit tired of hearing about it. So after I picked the girls up from school we headed up to Brier Creek to check out costumes. We had already looked briefly at Target and Walmart but didn't find "It" there. Thankfully we only need to find "It" for the big girls - Jacob is going to be the most adorable monkey. Ever. Courtesy of Old Navy which really has the cutest baby/toddler costumes. Ever. Julia is going to be Minnie Mouse. Why? Because I found her a nice, relatively cheap costume at the Disney store last year. I'd love, love to find a theme for all my kids that coordinated. Maybe next year. I'd also love to be that mom that makes the Halloween costumes but considering I can't even sew a patch on a Daisy uniform I don't see that happening. But..I digress..TJ Maxx didn't find it so we headed to Party City. Which, had coupons that expired last week. Why oh why didn't I go last week? Ugh..Anyway..we looked. And looked. And looked at their Wall O'Costumes. And Emma found hers first - Pretty Kitty. Seriously. A pink and black cat costume. Why? I have no idea. I didn't even know she liked cats. A few minutes later Lily found hers..Barbie Cheerleader. Really. Why? The outfit was pink. She was a cheerleader last year. But..not a pink cheerleader. And not a Barbie cheerleader. Whatever..that one was on sale. So we're set...1 pretty kitty, 1 Barbie cheerleader, 1 Minnie Mouse and the cutest monkey you'll ever see.

Family Fun at the Farm

October is one of my favorite months of the year. The weather is usually great and we always have a ton of fun things to do. Today we took our annual trip to Hillridge Farms for a day of fun and to pick our pumpkins. The last 2 years we've been we've been a little closer to Halloween and it's always been packed. This year we lucked out and it was a beautiful (though a little hot) day and it wasn't that crowded. It was even better because our good friends, the Dickeys (Frances & Steven and their 3 girls) and Jen Guild went with us. I made a point to dress the family in coordinating clothes with hopes of getting a good family picture at the pumpkin patch. Paul was thrilled to say the least.

When we pulled in the parking lot the girls immediately remembered the farm and couldn't wait to get started. First thing they wanted to do was hit the bounce house. After the bounce house we did the maze and giant slide. Another huge hit was the corn playhouse which is like a giant sandbox and instead of sand there is dried corn. The girls all loved, loved it. We opted to keep Jacob out since he would just eat the corn. We also played on the playground, did the duck races, did the hay maze and finally did the hayride.

The girls were so excited when we reached the pumpkin patch. They immediately ran off the wagon and into the patch looking for the. perfect. pumpkin. Some of the girls had an easier time than others selecting their pumpkin but in the end I think they were all happy. We also took some time for family photo shoots. I did get a couple good ones! Yay! And somehow we managed to get all 12 pumpkins and 7 kids back to the cars successfully. A great, fun day full of family memories. Here are some pics:

First Grade Homework

Emma's homework for tonight: Draw a Venn Diagram to show how a TV and a microwave are alike and different.

Um..excuse me..what? Draw a what? Apparently my memory really stinks because I can't for the life of me recall this term or have any idea what in the world she's supposed to do. I'm starting to panic a little thinking I'm going to have to use google to figure out what a Venn diagram is so I can explain it to Emma. And, I'm hoping I can google it without her knowing that I'm doing it so I don't appear dumb. I was at least hoping to get to 3rd or 4th grade without having to use google to get through homework. So I casually ask.."Emma, do you know what a Venn diagram is?" She replies: "Sure do..let me show you" And she proceeds to get a piece of paper to draw a Venn diagram as she is explaining it to me.

After she drew it I totally knew what she was talking about I just didn't know the proper name for it. This is just the 2nd quarter of first grade. I'm pretty sure I am in BIG trouble!

Of course you probably know what a Venn diagram is but in case you don't click here for the definition.