Happy Halloween!

OK. Seriously? More rain? We have had the most beautiful weeks followed by the rainiest weekends. Fortunately even the rain couldn't dampen the spirits of a grass fairy and a pink fairy. And I got to do fancy makeup and hair, which was all I needed! (well, that and some "borrowed" halloween candy!) Oh, and puppy pumpkin. Trick-or-treat!

Do you want a makeover?

Because Kate and Anneliese will give you one in a skinny minute! And if you're not interested, there's a line of animals just waiting to get in to the Kate and Anneliese Makeover Hot Seat. Check out those "after" shots!

Happy Birthday Anneliese!

Anneliese finally hit the big 3! To celebrate, we had a great afternoon of pin-the-tail-on-the-dry-erase-easel-donkey, swinging (on the spankin' new swingset), cake and PRESENTS! Everything was a huge hit, and the Princess Vanity (scored for $8 at a clothing exchange - WOO HOO!) has definitely earned its keep! Oh yeah - and the swords. Definitely the swords. Styrofoam is a much more pleasant way to be hit in the face than cedar branch. All for one and one for ALL!

I like Ruby

Kate's latest passion is writing books. She used to be the illustrator and I was the ghost writer, but now that she can write some words, she's on her own. Her latest is dedicated to Ruby, the beloved dog of Amy and Allison. This one's for you girls!

New family pics

When we realized that Anneliese had no hair in the last family pictures we had taken, we finally decided it was time to do it again.

And if you're looking for a great photographer, folks - check out Sally Gupton (sallyguptonphotography.net - and check out her August 12th blog post at sallyguptonphotography.net/blog/ for a Jak&Jewel shout out)! She was way fun to work with and did a great job. Even the butterflies cooperated with her!

Here's what happened when we loaded up the car with clothes and headed out to the field on Meadowlark Dr. here in Winston. (I think if you click on the slide show - it will take you to a larger version. Because I'm so sure you want to see us all bigger and stuff.) And, yeah - that's Blake climbing a silo.

The Unforgettable Fair!

Yep - the fair. Rides, animals, funnel cake, racing pigs, Ed and Heba, flu shot. It's all there.

I wish I could come up with something a little more clever here, but honestly - it's 10:30 and I just finished making the ugliest cake in history for Anneliese's birthday party. We're really banking on "tastes better than it looks" folks. Seriously. Good night.

Surprise!

If you know Blake - you know the boy loves a party. And he loves games. What better excuse to bring these things together than a surprise party for his birthday! I had such grand plans . . . Sadly, the weather had bigger plans that day. SO - my extravagant rent out Joanie Moser softball field for an afternoon of games got moved to our house. Yes friends, that meant @ 20 adults and 15 kids in. our. house. And it was great! No - there was no flag football or cornhole, but there was a little Dance, Dance and a pretty mean game of Cranium. And the Bradshers and Crawfords stuck it out the whole day through dinner for probably the last pizza party before the Bradshers head out to Africa. Pretty sweet Plan B if you ask me. Happy Birthday Blake!