Fall Favorites 2009

Two favorites today.

First, Halloween pajamas. Snuggly and cute.

We Skyped with Caroline before pumpkin carving.....wishing the whole time she were here with us.

We love Skype!

Onto the carving. Blake did his best to gross out Jack.

And, it worked.

Lainey helped more this year than ever before. Last year, she spent most of her time eating the pumpkin. See that here. She looks so different now!



It was chaotic and messy and frustrating and fun. That is life with children!



Our 3 pumpkins......mimicking our punkins.......Jack, Lainey and Carter. I think they kind of look like them!

Blake took everyone upstairs for bath and I got to clean up this mess.

Then, with everyone squeaky clean and ready for bed, we lit our masterpieces. Job well done, kiddos.


Roasted seeds and they were delicious......then packed some for Carter's school snack today. We're joining him this afternoon for his class party. Providing some of the food and helping serve the kids. I'm sure Jack and Lainey will be a huge help.

Don't you?

Fall Favorites 2009

Leaves. Plain and simple. I took the little ones out to walk and play and they ran through the leaves.



"Yainey try! Yainey try!"



They made it "snow" with the leaves.





Our front yard is not entirely covered....but the largest tree is changing from green to bright yellow.....right before our eyes, it seems.





Sometimes her sweetness is too much for me. Her gentle personality....the way she smiles....so lovely.



The leaves are all gone from the smaller tree that covers our patio.

Lainey found her pockets while we were playing. Pockets are cool to a 2 year old.

Hello, gorgeous.

Hello, wild.

Run, Lainey, run!

A secret?

It was a fun afternoon.

This morning, we walked outside towards the car and the kids immediately asked "Kick yeaves, Mom?"

Of course!



And, the morning sun......it was bright and beautiful.....making everything seem especially pretty today.




Old houses boast large trees and this brings tons of crispy, crunchy fall leaves.

And, kids love them.

Fall Favorites 2009

A quick one.....but an important one......Roasted Pumpkin Seeds. It's the best part of carving a pumpkin!

I look forward to these all year long......such a yummy, slightly nutty, salty treat!

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups raw whole pumpkin seeds
2 teaspoons butter, melted
1 pinch salt

Directions:
Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
Toss seeds in a bowl with the melted butter and salt.
Spread the seeds in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake for about 45 minutes or until golden brown; stir occasionally.

I like the good old-fashioned variety, but you can use all sorts of seasonings. A few:

Lawry's Seasoned Salt
Garlic Salt
Cajun Seasoning
Italian Seasoning
Chili Lime
Mrs. Dash
Cayenne Pepper

Think popcorn......most gourmet popcorn seasonings work for pumpkin seeds, too.

We are not carving until Thursday, so I'm still 2 days away from this savory goodness. Can't wait!

Fall Favorites 2009

OK, so we're back in the Midwest, unpacked and getting ready for a busy week! While in Texas, we extended our hotel stay in case we were too tired to drive overnight as planned....and we were....and the kids were sleeping soundly for the first night since arriving.....so we slept. And, slept. And, slept. And, woke at 7:30. Left at 8am and arrived in Overland Park at 7pm. Along the way, we were reminded of why we like overnight drives so much. :)

Kiddos did their best.....but it's a full day in the car. Plain and simple. Lots of stops to keep kids happy and for potty breaks and it's just exhausting. But, we made it and I'm super giddy at the thought of all to come this week. Halloween specials on TV.....lots of yummy treats to make.....a spooky movie or two......and then trick-or-treating!

More on all that later.....let's get back to routine with another Fall Favorite.

If I lived in north Texas, the Dallas Arboretum would be a Fall Favorite for sure. Lots to see and do.....year round, actually......check the site here for special events. The Holiday Celebration is a ton of fun, too. Carriage rides, live reindeer and hot chocolate.

Enjoyed seeing all the pumpkins and squashes and gourds labeled with their actual names rather than the ones I've assigned to them over the years.

Look at their version of a candy apple!

Mega cool pumpkin house.

Britney braved taking the kids inside and I'm so glad she did. Love this picture!

Something strange happened while on this outing. Lainey acquired a new sticky-sweet smile....featured here.....and in a few photos below.

So, we have super sweet Laine and super wild Maci. Britney's growing accustomed to the craziness. She looks like a pro here!

The entire arboretum was beautiful.......beautiful......enjoyed it all. Love the mix of fall pumpkins and still-lush greens.

OK, back to the sweetness. Lainey walked over to this pretty gate and started posing away. It was so over the top, I didn't know what to do. Except take pictures, of course. Click on one for a close up of this ridiculousness!







Maybe we do need to look into this whole toddler modeling business so many have suggested for her!

Cutest cousins....



Love how my girl stops to smell the flowers.





Like that outfit? Praise to Coco....it's a Bram original.....passed down to Jack.

We explored a bit into the cabins and sod houses and peaked into pioneer living.....cool stuff!












It was a fun day. I'm updating backwards since I started with our Friends Dinner post last night. So, if my brain can compute which was the event just before this, I'll post about that tomorrow. But, give me some time. I'm exhausted!