Halloween

Andrew was invited to a Victorian era themed murder mystery party so we had to throw something together pretty quick - lets just says all my reading may have paid off.  I was able to create a stunning cravat and an impressive que, if I do say so myself.  Kate helped me make the hat - ended up way too tall but he looked pretty good.

I think the ringlets down the sides are my favorite part!

Lily wanted to be red riding hood - no fussy dress or anything, just warm clothes, a fabulous red cape, pigtail braids and she was very happy.

True to my Emmy she found a character with red hair, Pepa from Encato.  This dress was fun to make, especially painting the patterns on the collar.  Kind of sad that she really only wore it twice but that's the gig I guess.  Her earring choice was the perfect touch.  We ran out of time to do much with her hair- I had hopped to do lots of crazy curls😢.

I refused to make Kate a Rapunzel dress but she created this look for about $10.  I painted the shirt but she did the braid on her own - simple but fabulous.

Kate had friends over while I took Lily, Emmy and some friends trick or treating.  Our neighborhood was so popular this year we literally ran out of candy.  Part of that probably had to do with the fabulous weather; it was the only warm day that week and the last warmish day all fall.  

Somehow I failed to get pumpkins this year- guess we were just too busy- next time.

Well this year we didn't know what to do for family pictures because we were missing Natali and Mack.  I thought we would just skip it till spring but the girls started asking when we were going to do it.  They didn't want to miss a year and Andrew didn't want Senior pictures so I figured we'd better just do the four kids that were home or we might not have a shot of Andrew's glorious hair. 

I scheduled the shoot and then the weather plunged.  It was 30 degrees outside on this chilly fall morning but the kids managed to find a few smiles though Heather may have had to edit out the red noses.

I told her to take a lot of pics of Andrew to give him some options for yearbook.  They turned out pretty great.

OBX

Greg and I spent a wonderful weekend together on the Outter Banks.  Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge didn't disappoint.  We saw 14 bears and a red wolf (one of less than 25) in two days.  

We also enjoyed a few lovley walks and a peaceful guided kayak excursion through the marshes.

The kayak trip added a few gators and lots of turtles to the list.

We left the preserve and headed to the coast where we visited the original Duck Donuts in Duck, NC.  Wow- we were not disappointed.  The warm vanilla cake donut base was incredible no matter what the delectable toppings.

The Brew Thru was unique enough to earn a visit - we just got soda.

Our hangliding class was cancled due to high wind😢.  We will have to do it next time.

We saw beautiful coastline, sand dunes, lighthouses, Kill Devil Hill and the Wright Brothers museum and monument.  Plus we enjoyed good food and valuable time together.  And the kids just played with Grandma Dame so it was a win all around - thanks Mom.

Fall Happenings

After our trip to Florida and watching several dozen episodes of Bluey with Spencer, Emily decided to make pavlova.  She has always loved meringue so she figured she would love this and she did.  It doesn't look too pretty, in fact I'm pretty sure it is all wrong, but she loved eating in.  I didn't like the crumbly mess it left whenever it was touched but all things concidered I'm pretty amazed with what she turned out.

Greg's peach tree went crazy this year and we got over 100 peaches.  We ate a ton, froze a ton, ate a bunch more in milk and I tried my hands at tart making.  These were so yummy I made them several times.

The 7th and 8th grade GT classes went to the Boise River over in Caldwell for a field trip and I got to tag along as chaperone.  It was fun to see Emily with her friend and be reminded of how silly middle schoolers are.

They got to check the termidity of the water and dig for little critters under rocks and trapped on the netting.  It was a little cold but we all had fun.

One morning on the way to the bus stop my little cat whisperer started clicking at Dita and the cat started following.  Then Ditten started following too - It was Lily's dream come true.  It was a slow walk but the cats both followed a coaxing Lily all the way past the Bishop's old house before they found a cosy spot and hunkered down.  Lily gave them a last snuggle and caught the bus; best morning ever.

Lily had fun playing soccer this year.  She did an expecially nice job on defense but still managed to  scored a goal.

While I was in NC with Greg Lily got to go to the Old Penitentiary for a field trip.  I was bummed to miss it but her chaperone sent me these photos.