You Should be Careful

Yesterday was Scott's birthday. As I was frosting the cake, I was asking Scott if he wanted all 34 candles, or not. He said having that many would be a ridiculous & when you get old like that, is is a dangerous fire hazard to put all the candles on the cake. Gillian gave us a serious warning, "You have to be very ceerful (careful) of old." Okay. We'll be careful about getting old.

When I lit the candles she started singing the birthday song all by herself. Then, she stopped short, in order to get to blow the candles out before dad did it. She got them all, in only a few tries. (All 12, not 34!)

Peyton took a few of the candles and set them up in his own slice & sang the birthday song again. He kept singing for quite a while, before deciding to have any of his cake.

Gillian is a lover of white food. She likes butter, sour cream, ranch, whipping cream, frosting, etc. (generally the fat food category). She just calls all these thing "white". As she was eating her frosting off of all her cake, she asks, "Why is this white so hungy for me?!" I guess it knows you need it? I don't know? Good question.

Quadrilla Man

My husband has turned into a Quadrilla man. He is totally into it. He likes to play it almost every evening. And, the kids like it pretty well, too.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Just Because...

...I thought the colors were fabulous.

Here's the local tree the persimmons came from.

Gifts

These are little gifts for a couple of friends. I hope they last a good while. The only "fresh" flower item is the Kangaroo Paw. But, those are extremely hardy. So, hopefully it will power past Thanksgiving.

Whites at Highland

This wedding at Highland Park in Ben Lomond, Ca was full of white Hydrangeas.

Bride Cristina & Groom Clay look pretty happy!




I loved the ceremony pieces.

Corsages & a boutonniere

Bridal bouquet - Hydrangeas & Cymbidiums

Sweetheart's table - Hydrangeas, Lisianthus, Phaleanopsis.

I love these guest tables.

Before I left, I got to try some of the great wedding food done by Kimberly's Catering. WOW! Yummy ribs & soup. And those were only appetizers.

That was Full

I picked up flowers for Saturday's wedding this morning. The curly willow was 5 feet tall! It was a challenge to fit it all in my Yukon XL. I was quite proud of my achievement. I put the 3 kids back in the car.
Then I realized I had a double stroller that now needed to fit in the car, too, Without damaging the flowers. AH!
I am so glad our Maclaren Twin Triumph is so compact! I got it under the kids' feet. Barely.

My little guy got pretty worn out from the whole ordeal.

Bed Head

Peyton woke up with the greatest bed hair the other day. I was so crazy about it. It was so cute. Some folks always get bed head. But, this was the first time I've seen my son like this. So, I had to take pictures.

Speaking of Peyton & of beds, he moved out of his crib, into a little big kid bed yesterday. It is going fairly well! Nap times have been a little bit of a struggle. But, bed time went so smoothly last night. It was amazing. Our little guy is growing up pretty fast.

I <3 My Garbage Man

The day started off a little slow. I slept in a bit. Was totally groggy when my kids came in to tell me that if was 7:05. "Get up you crazy bones! It's O 5!"
Sitting on the couch scratching my head, I realized that it has been quite a while since I took a shower. But, I woke up too late to get it in before Scott leaves for work. Ugh. Start the coffee brewing. Go to change the baby's diaper. Gillian comes running in to tell me that the coffee is spilling everywhere. I know about this one. It happened 3 days ago. I don't know why. But, it happens. With greater frequency these days. But, I am not sure the coffee pot is actually broken. So, I don't want to throw it out. I just keep brewing vinegar through it to try to clear up any clogs.
Anyway. Scott leaves for work. Moira is too fussy to put down. So I am just sitting there holding her. That's fine. Then. I hear the garbage truck. Oops. Forgot it was garbage day. I run out in the front yard in my p.j.'s, with infant in hand. The truck is already to my house. I realize the can is too heavy for me to maneuver through my tight driveway, while I am holding Moira. UGH. My can is full. But, I guess I missed out...
NOT TODAY. The driver got out of the truck & came & brought my can to the sidewalk. I have never witnessed such a thing. This is not the first time I have been late on bringing my cans out. Usually the driver doesn't even wait in his truck 1 extra second. But, this guy got out & did it himself. I was very impressed. I hope he gets a raise. Excellent customer service!!

I've Changed

I grew up not doing Halloween. And, I was determined that was the way it would be for my kids. Yes. I had to admit. Dressing up in costumes is extremely fun. But, Halloween is bad. I'll have none of it.


But, I married a man who thought differently. He loved Halloween. Didn't think it was bad. And, wanted his kids to be able to enjoy it.


After a few years, I changed. I came around. This year, it was August & I found myself talking to people about Halloween. Telling them what my kids were going to be dressed up as. Buying stuff at the fabric store for their costumes. Planning it all out. Summer wasn't even over! What happened to me!





I tried to think of costumes that could then be worn as normal clothes, too. And, that weren't too hard to make. My dad was trying to talk Gillian into asking me to make her a Boo costume.
Thanks for the genius idea Dad. But, I don't think I have enough creative juices flowing for that one. Thankfully, Gillian was rather easy to persuade & I made her what I felt like making. She didn't get to choose. So, I made a Gypsy costume. She wasn't super thrilled about it. Until everyone complimented her while she was going door to door. She grew fonder of it, with each bit of flattery.
Peyton was a fire man. All I did was put white duct tape bands around the arms of his jacket. Kinda lame. But, he can make anything work. He's just cute.

The kids loved going trick or treating! Scott took them out & they went to tons of houses!


My younger siblings, Matthew (Nacho Libre), Jacob (the Jester) & Lizzie (from Japan), all went out with them. I thought they'd only go to a few houses & then come home. They were gone for about an hour. Now they have way too much candy! And, my house is a sticky mess. Candy drool & candy hands. Ugh! I am just trying eat down their stashes as fast as I can. Let's get this done with.
Anyway. Back to our Halloween party. Lizzy & Scott & I decorated with spiders & webs. Gillian wanted spiders so badly. I was pretty proud of my first attempt at Halloween decor. Scary (sort of). But, not gross or pagan.


I had my harverty decor out, too.


Moira, the Butterfly, stayed home with me & my dad & passed out candy.

While We Were Away

We spent a lot of time together in the great outdoors.

Walking.

(Sometimes, some people got tired.)

Finding little bug & critter friends.

Playing in the good, clean mud.

And discovering how cool farm equipment is.