Halloween 2010

or

Fall Family Time

or

Our Growth Group

or

Parenting in the Raw


Out of all these title choices I ultimately decide that Halloween 2010 was the best, kind of all encompassing!!

Did we have an awesome Halloween? Over all yes. Did it have it's moments? Yes. But that is what families are all about. That even amidst screaming babies, cranky two-year-old and a 5 going on 18 little girl, we still manage to find the joy and love in every (most) moments of the days.

In general I love the fall. Going to the pumpkin patch. Getting out the sweatshirts. Carving pumpkins. Warm apple cider. Yum. But Halloween, dressing up and trick-or-treating is not my bag of tea. I could do with out that part of it but my kids love it. This year I think we managed to strike a good balance.

To start with our pumpkin patch trip was priceless. We went to Nipomo Pumpkin
Patch and of course manage to pick out 2 huge pumpkins to adorn our front steps until November 30th when we get to partake in the 2nd annual pumpkin roll (stay tuned).

My favorite part of the pumpkin patch is to get a tradition pumpkin picture of all the kids, however that was a major fail this year. About 10 minutes to the trip I realized that my picture was not in the cards. Matteo was not going to cooperate. Sam is 8 therefore standing with your siblings or family, is just not cool apparently. Serafina was ready and willing to participate, and well AJ was AJ...a baby. After I let my picture go we had a great time and did manage some interesting group shots! Gotta love it. Here is AJ but my internet is being to slow to load more so hit my dads page for the rest, they are great: click here



On the day before Halloween we had our pumpkin carving day!! Wohoo! The kids all had a great time carving. We managed to get our tradition baby in pumkin shot, and we even carved what I have to assume is the worlds smallest pumpkin. Followed by an great dinner: candy corn pizza and dragon breath bread sticks! Again click here to see a pictures. (because my internet is to slow to load.)

Halloween Day - started awesome and ended awesome. There were a few bumps along the way. In the morning we headed off to church were we heard an awesome message about Reformation Sunday and 2 Timothy. Then it was home to hang out until trick-or-treating in the village, and we would end the night with our Growth Group (ahh my happy balance).

Here is a picture of the group all dressed up and ready to head to the village..





Whats that you say?

I have 4 kids.

Yes your right.

My daughter is in the house screaming because..her hair hurts, her costume is bugging her, her socks are scratchy and well pretty much her world is falling apart.

I knew this was coming and tried to prepare for it. My daughter only wears cotton dresses. I am not kidding. So a week ago I her try on her costume and wear it around the house to make sure she was happy with it. She was. On Halloween I had her get her costume on 15min before the boys so we would have time to adjust what might not be right. But even with all the extra prep, when it came time to walk out the door she flipped a lid. I told her she needed to get it together and we would talk..but she was to wrapped up.

OH MY...it was amazing. So I had to say...sooo...sad.... It looks like you wont be trick-or-treating today.

Off to her room she went and home she stayed in her room. (Nana stayed home with her and graded papers). Nothing like being in the trenches of parenting on Halloween!!

She did get to go to Growth Group after trick-or-treating which was awesome. Our growth group leader spoke a little on reformation Sunday and also all saints day with the kids. And they put together some fall themed games. It was a great way to spend Halloween and it was an awesome balance for me, in letting the kids dress up and trick -or-treat but not having the whole day center on that aspect. The kids were just as happy if not more excited about getting together with our growth group then trick-or-treating (yeah).

And of course for all the pictures of trick-or-treating in the village click here.

That wraps up Halloween 2010.

Halloween

Another great Halloween has come and gone! The kids had a blast and for the first year we actually went door to door!! Our good friends the Long's (the cousins, if you recall from the ear piercing) invited us down to their neighbor to trick-or-treat. The kids had a great time. There was about 8 kids in our group and they they loved running up and down to every house. Their neighbor was great fun as many of the house went all out on decorating and the adults passing out candy were even dressed up and acting their parts, it was great. Before that we did the traditional village trick-or-treating and of course New Life's Fall Festival.

The funnest thing was both big kids wanted to put on their costumes at 7:30am, I decided it was a battle not worth fighting and they wore the costumes from 7:30am until 9pm!! Starbucks loved it as did the gym!

Serafina waiting for her brothers to come so we can get pictures!




The clan: A dog, Batman, and a ladybug. I was told that lady bugs like to sit on plant so she had to sit on the pumpkin.



Matteo even got into trick-or-treating. He walked around with his bag open.

Daddy, Sam and Serafina and the start of the haunted house!

Carving Pumpkins

Before we get Halloween pictures this evening I thought I should post pumpkin carving pictures from last weekend. We had a great time and keeping with tradition Trevor and Jen came down to join in the fun. I think now I will let the pictures say the rest because there are so many cute ones!

Sam mucking out his pumpkin. Each child had a pumpkin, Matt assisted Sam, I assisted Serafina and Jennifer assisted Matteo (he only did stickers on his personal one, but then helped carve Trevors)

The group hard at work.

Serafina mucking out her pumpkin. She was more into then I thought she would be!

Matteo and his sticker pumpkin.



Helping Trevor, this was to much fun for him. He loves to get dirty.


Taking his hand at carving.


Being Darling.




The kids doing the poking of their designs. What concentration, both kids did most of the poking on their pumpkins, I was quite amazed compared to last year!



Serafina got into the craving part of her pumpkin also. That is the difference between my kids though because you wont find a picture of Sam carving he was on to something else by then! They crack me up.




This year not only did we carve but we also bedazzled our pumpkins with a little bling!


The pumpkin carving group.

Matteo enjoying a candy corn shot! (Orange sherbet ice cream and milk, rimmed with yellow sugar)

For dinner Nana prepared Sluge Cups



and Spaghetti and Eyeballs...yummy!!



A close up on the eyeballs.

Hope you all have a great Halloween. I would say I need to go get kids up from their naps to get them in their costumes but my children have been wearing theirs since 7:30 this morning. Starbucks appreciated it!

October Baking

This October my mom and I have attempt two different yummy Halloween treats which both turned out absolutely adorable if you want my opinion. One was our artisan style cookies done in a ghost shape and then bagged with candy corn to give to friends and family. They were a huge success and amazingly was the easiest artisan cookie we have done. We ended up making some where around 100+ ghost when all was said and done. Of course I am writing all this to share the pictures:

All decorated ready for packaging


One packaged


A group of ghosts!

Second I volunteered to make cupcakes for the kids school. Every year they have an Oktoberfest and well baking is my way of helping out. I wanted to try and do a cute Halloween/Oct cupcake and my mom found the cutest idea- dirt cupcakes. We frosted the cupcakes in chocolate frosting, then dipped them in crushed oreo's and topped them off with a gummy worm crawling out of them. Personally I think they are just about the cutest thing. Again pictures:

Close up.

The group

Pumpkin Patch

What a pumpkin patch!! Trevor and Jen sent us to a new pumpkin patch this year (instead of the traditional Avila Valley Barn)and we were definitely not disappointed. The pumpkin patch is called Nipomo Pumpkin Patch. They are a family grown patch and have been around for about 3yrs. They have the biggest pumpkins I have ever seen for sale. We ended up bringing home a pumpkin about 150lbs for $12 (did I mention their prices are incredible!) Last Thursday we went to downtown SLO to look at the giant pumpkins. The kids were sad they couldn't get very close or touch...well today were they excited. Not only were they able to get up close but they could touch the pumpkins also!! We were allowed to walk through the giant pumpkin fields and they even had a pumpkin all set up for pictures. We had a great time and the kids took their time picking out each one of their pumpkins. They were allowed one little one they could carry and then a bigger one to carve next weekend. It was fun getting to see what shape, size, stem, etc excited each one. They made great choices. So if you live on the central coast and want a fun family pumpkin patch, huge pumpkins and not the craziness of the barn head out to Nipomo Pumpkin Patch.

Heading out into the patch.


Picture time!


Sam and his carving pumpkin.


Serafina and her carving pumpkin.


Sorry Matteo you can't carry that one!


That's better!