Halloween Decorations

Our neighbors are super big into holiday decorations. We are currently in the throws of Halloween decorating in my neighborhood. That translates into: "We are now surrounded by a large number of skeletons, gravestones, spiders, and strobe lights." While I enjoy this, my small princesses don't enjoy it so much. It's a bit scary for a 4 year old and 30 year old mother (who happens to look 23, by the way).

Since we can't decorate as scarily as our neighbors, we have done a few Halloween crafts / projects with Emma and Brooklyn to help decorate our house for Halloween (or for you "Jesus condemns all things Halloween" folks, you can call it "fall happiness decorations"). They're both pretty easy, and they make fun little mementos. Or at least, fun blog posts.










Ghosts: paint the kids' feet with white paint. Turn the page upside down and paint eyes. You now have ghosts.











Mr. Potato Head Pumpkin: Get a pumpkin and put Mr. Potato Head accessories on it.

First Field Trip

Emma had her first field trip with her preschool today. I helped drive the kids out to the Vanzandt Pumpkin Patch. It was a good time, but I was reminded on the way out there that I, for sure, don't want 4 kids. It was so loud in my car. Luckily, Allyn rode with me!

Violence in Media Isn't to Blame

According to a new study in Scientific American, violence cannot be blamed solely on media (games, movies, tv, etc). They blame the parents for not instructing their kids in appropriate social behavior. Brilliant! It's amazingly sensible. Perhaps even common sense. It's about time the scholars learned to think inside reality. Article is here.

Now, I'm going to play Halo 3 with my 4 year old daughter. Or perhaps Gears of War.

Frank Broyles / Sports Illustrated Signing

Sports Illustrated is currently selling a tribute to the SEC to celebrate the SEC's 75th anniversary. Frank Broyles has agreed to an in-store signing of these issues. If you're a fan of the on-the-way-out Athletic Director and Arkansas god, drop by and get a copy of the magazine and get it signed by the man himself.

When: Friday, November 2nd.
Time: 1:00 PM - 2:30 PM
Where: Wal-Mart on 6th street. Get directions.

Also, there will be a limited number of signed poster-sized covers (pictured) that can be purchased for $10. All sales from the posters will go to help build a new gym for a local elementary school.

Pumpkin Spice Continued....

I made a new discovery today that I needed to share with all the pumpkin spice latte lovers out there that are on a budget and can't afford Starbucks on a regular basis. (Peter, I'm sorry to sway a few customers away, but I don't think Starbucks will hurt from this post) I stopped at the Kum and Go in Springdale (across from Hastings) to get gas today. I looked at the front door and saw a sign that said, "New-Pumpkin Spice Cappuccino". I figured that I would splurge $1 and try it out. I am so glad I did!!! It was actually better than the Starbucks version that I had on Saturday morning. Kudos to the Kum and Go for a splendid fall treat!

Allison & Brooklyn

Weighing in....

We took Brooklyn for her one year appointment today. She got 3 immunizations and her flu shot. Emma also got her flu shot. Luckily, John was able to meet me up there for back up. Emma was much more aware of what was coming compared to last year, so it was drama at its finest!

Here are B's stats at 1 year:
Weight: 19 lbs. 8 oz.
Height: 28 in.
Right around the 25% which is a little less than her previous check ups. I guess crawling and walking is helping her slim down a bit. Luckily, she still has her cheeks and her rolls! I always like to compare Emma and B's stats at each point. B has always been just slightly bigger. This time was the same. She was 8 oz. bigger and 1/4" taller.

Brooklyn's Birthday Party

We had Brooklyn's birthday party at Johnson Park on Saturday. Her party inspiration came from a cupcake that I saw a few months ago. Thus, the decor centered around cupcakes and B turning 1.
B is our only way to ever have an outside party because the rest of us were born in the dead of winter. I was hoping for a nice fall day with no rain. God answered my prayers with no rain, but it was HOT!
Brooklyn did not waste time eating her cupcake. She dug right in! It was a fun day!

Happy 1st Birthday Brooklyn!!!

Brooklyn,

It is hard to believe that a whole year has passed between these 2 pictures. It seems like yesterday. Happy Birthday Brooklyn!! Our family was made complete when you were born.
We love you,
Mom, Dad, and Emma

Pushing Daisies & Chuck

So far, this season's new TV shows have kind of sucked. I deleted Cavemen from the DVR after about 3 minutes of watching it. Absolutely painful. Life is pretty good, but not gripping. Private Practice might turn out decently, but isn't super so far. Journeyman is intriguing, but probably won't last a full season.

The only new show I've been impressed with so far are Pushing Daisies and Chuck. Chuck is really funny and the characters are quite enjoyable. The plot is also really good (chuck is now an inter-agency super-computer that the government must now protect from spies while he continues to work at a Best-Buy knockoff).

Pushing Daisies is just plain unique. I'm not sure I can explain it well enough to do it justice. The concept is extraordinary and the characters are easy to like. I recommend watching it. It's sure to come off as weird aPublish Postnd dumb to many, but to you weirdos out there, it's your cup of tea.

Loving the Curls!

A Child's Mind

Emma: Can I eat my popsicle outside?
Me: Sure. Where are you going to eat it outside?
Emma: On the chair.
Me: Okay.

A few moments later, John looked out the window and just laughed. I got the camera. We are not sure how she came up with this seating arrangement, but it seemed to work for her.

I am addicted now....

I love things with pumpkin in them and I live for the start of fall so that I can make pumpkin crisp. So, when I saw the Pumpkin Spice Latte at Starbucks I was intrigued, but since I'm not a very big coffee drinker I didn't know. After reading Shelli's blog and in honor of October 1st, I decided I needed to spend the $3.48 and give it a try. I'm hooked! It was so good. Everyone must try.