Pumpkins Carving Pumpkins

Last night we carved our pumpkins!

Emily took this very seriously. She decided to do a scene on hers of a werewolf.

Joe loved digging out the goop, and being able to carve his own with the safety knives.

Josh was having lots of fun, but would not carve anything until he saw what Joe was doing. Then he tried to do the same thing.

Valerie and I made ours girly. She was not into it while I carved, but after it was finished she loved taking off the lid and sticking the shovel inside the mouth.

Ryan carved one too. He did it really fast, and when he turned it around I couldn't help laughing. I love it because it is simple and happy. (his is the one in the middle)

Now we are ready for Halloween!

Halloween Costumes

I can't say that I do much around my house for Halloween. We carve our Jack-O-Lanterns and buy the candy. (usually more candy than we need.) But as far as decorations go not much happens around here. However the costume department is another story......................


Costumes seem to be a big deal at our house and take months of planning. The costume catalogs start showing up in Grandma's mail box by the end of July or early August. Ryan's mom and the kids begin looking through them and deciding what they want to be. Sometimes the costumes are ordered and sometimes we (Meaning Grandma does the sewing and I give my opinion and input) end up making them and by the first of October we usually have the costumes and are ready for all of the Halloween festivities.

This year was a little different, because last year about a week before Halloween the kids came up with the idea of going as the characters from the Disney Cartoon "Phineas and Ferb." This was a great idea however being the week before Halloween it was too late so I told them to remember the idea for next year. They all Happily celebrated Halloween in their chosen costumes and there was no mention of Phineas and Ferb costumes.

As usual in late July the catalogs started showing up and the kids began looking through them at all of the wonderful costumes. There were many that interested them and they were starting to get an idea of what they wanted. Then someone (I can't recall who) remembered the idea of Phineas and Ferb. As soon as it was mentioned they all dropped their other costume ideas and the decision was made. They are big fans of Phineas and Ferb and when it comes to Candice, Emily can relate.

Even though these were not costumes you could order from the catalogs I loved this idea, because it was perfect fit for our family, and the costumes seemed really simple. With the help of a couple of awesome Grandma's and a lot of looking around at a lot of different stores we were able to pull it off.

My mom was visiting for a couple of days and took on the job of the purple pants. I bought some fabric and a pajama pattern and my mom used her sewing skills to change the pattern. I know if I had attempted this they would not have turned out anywhere near this good. (did I mention I do not love sewing.)

The only white skirt I found that would work was a size 11, and we needed it to fit Emily, a size 0, and the Orange and cream striped shirt was long sleeved and we needed them to be short. Once again I was saved from sewing though. Ryan's mom happily took on the assignment of alterations and she did a great job.

To be honest the most difficult item to find was the red t-shirt. I thought that would be a no brainer, but apparently RED is not a fall color. After searching many stores (at least 5 + the DI) I remembered that Hobby Lobby sold t-shirts and the search was over.

So with the help of my great team here is

Phineas Ferb, and Candice

Even though it was a little more work, it was really fun to put together the kids costumes this year and have them turn out so well.

And What about Valerie

The kids really wanted her to be Perry the Platypus, and I know it would have been fun, but I wanted cute and girly so she is a......

U of U Cheerleader

To balance out all of the BYU spirit Grandpa has created in our home.

(Ryan and I need at least one kid on our team)

Red Butte Garden After Dark

Going to Red Butte Gardens for Garden after dark is a tradition in our family, and its always lot's of fun for the kids.

This year Grandma and Grandpa joined us along with Ryan's brother, Kevin and his family. This is cousin Asher's first Halloween.

This was Valerie's second Garden after dark. She didn't participate in the activities too much, but she had a great time checking out the garden.

The theme this year is "Haunted Holidays Around the World."

The first stop was to Easter Europe where the Gypsies helped us make a magical potion.

Then it was off to Japan where the kids made Obon Candles. After the kids made the candles, the volunteers lit the candle and then helped the kids release them onto the pond. when your candle is released you are supposed to make a wish.


The next stop was Australia where the kids played music around the campfire, and learned about the mystical Mimi's. Then they made their own Mimi fairy out of clothes pins.

After Australia was Mexico where they celebrate The Day Of The Dead. Grandma and Grandpa decided they needed masks too.

On our way to the final destination we went through the "Haunted Forest." There are black lights set up throughout the path that made Emily glow from head to toe. The kids always love this part and it is always more fun than spooky for them.

The final stop was Ireland where the Jack-o-lantern originated from. So the kids got to paint pumpkins. There were also a few creepy crawly things in here to look at. Like a giant cockroach a stink bug and a couple of tarantulas. Grandpa wanted to show Valerie the tarantulas, so he took her over to it. When she saw it she growled at it.

Garden After Dark is always fun for our family and gets us in the Halloween spirit. It also gives us a chance to test out the costumes and make sure we are ready for the big day. After a fun night of exploring the garden we made it home with the kids half asleep. When we got home Valerie wanted to walk inside by herself, so I let her. After getting a few things out of the car I went inside and found her asleep on the stairs.

I felt exactly the same way. It was a fun night, but time for bed!

Great Grandma's Pumpkin Patch

On Monday the kids were still out of school for fall break, so we took a trip to Tooele to visit my Grandma. When we arrived she told the kids that they could go pick a pumpkin from her garden to take home for Halloween. My Grandma has always had a great Garden, and I have learned a few tips from her in planting and taking care of my own garden, but I still have much to learn.

The kids were really excited and wanted the biggest pumpkin they could find. They started trying to measure each pumpkin.

Emily and Valerie both thought this pumpkin was the best.

But the boys did not agree. They liked this pumpkin the best and they were sure it was the biggest.

So we ended up with one for the girls and one for the boys

They will be perfect for our Halloween Jack-o-lanterns.

Lunch With Grandpa

It is always a treat to get invited to go to lunch with Grandpa.

The kids love their Grandpa and love spending time with him. So when I told them he invited us to go to lunch during fall break they were very excited. Ryan's dad keeps the kids supplied in BYU attire. So they all dressed in their shirts for the meal.

On the drive into Salt Lake Valerie started to fall asleep. But when we told her that we were going to see Grandpa she woke right up and was wired with excitement for the rest of the drive.

I think that it is no secret how much the kids love their Grandpa. When the elevator door opened he was mobbed with screaming and hugs.

Thanks for the fun day out Grandpa!

Fire Station Field Trip

Josh has always loved two things. Trains and Fire Trucks. So he has been looking forward to his preschools Fire Station Field Trip since the beginning of school.
When Josh came out of his room this morning he said

"Mom watch!"

Then he shot his hand up into the air

as hard and as fast as he could.



He then said "I have been practicing raising my hand all morning

so I will get picked to help at the fire station."



Valerie and I were invited to go too, so we could help drive the kids to and from the station. Josh liked having us there with him.

When we arrived there were other schools there too and the room was very crowded. (One of the schools brought double the kids they said they were going to. The fire chief was not happy.)



I was worried because there would be even less of a chance that Josh would be chosen from the crowd. But, all of his practicing paid off and he was chosen to help demonstrate "stop, drop, and roll."

Unfortunately the room was so crowded I could not get a good picture. (I had to stand in the hall outside the room.) But I did get some rolling action on video.

After a great show we got to go see the trucks.

It was a great day at the fire station.

Red Fire Dragons

Softball season has already come and gone this fall and I have yet to post anything about it.

This is the last season Emily will be able to play with the younger girls. She has been playing with most of the same girls for a while now and they have become good friends and play really well together. A couple of them will be moving on with her next season.

Emily has been playing for six seasons now and is doing really well. Her two favorite positions to play are second base and catcher.

At the team party at the end of the season she was given the Golden Glove Award for her great catching skills.

Emily is a great catcher. Not much got past her. She is also getting really good and throwing the ball from home plate to second base to try to catch the base stealer's.


Ryan coached Emily's team again this season. He loves doing it. This season he had a little help. Valerie was not shy about taking charge of things. At one of the games she even stole one of the parents chairs when they were not looking.

I can't wait for the Spring season. It is so fun to watch Emily do something she loves.