Happy Halloween

This year C was Strawberry Shortcake. It was so simple and she got tons of compliments on it. We debated whether Strawberry's hair was red or pink.  In the end we went with pink as that is C's favorite color.

We left a bowl out hoping the trick or treaters would respect the note. I am happy to say they did.

Before heading out.  

We went with our neighbor Megan and her mom. They go to the same school but are in different classes.

First house.  We didn't go for long. Maybe 45 minutes. Both C and Megan are only children and both use to getting their way.  We had lots of fight and some crying/pouting over who could ring the doorbells. I could only take so much of it so we went back home.

She counted her candy for a homework assignment. She had 57 pieces!!

I let her have a few pieces while she helped me hand out candy.

We only had about 10 more trick or treaters.  So we closed up shop, got her a shower and she was in bed before 8pm.  It was a nice family evening.

Just Call Me Bakerella

I love to bake.  Mostly sweets. The problem is Jeremy doesn't eat sweets, so I end up eating most of them myself. So I was excited when I had the chance to put my baking skills to use for others recently.   I signed up to provide treats to the school's book fair preview for the teachers. I made lemon whoopie pies. They were huge!

I ended up cutting most of them in half so they would be more manageable.

I also made some Peanut butter, banana, chocolate chip muffins. They are super easy and are always a huge hit. You can find the recipe here. I also made some Fall Rice Krispy treats.  I just made basic rice krispy treats and added some candy corn and m&m's to it.  Also a big hit.

I also signed up to help the PTO with the Fall Festival.  I made the same rice krispy treats and some rice krispy pops. They were suppose to be pumpkins but everyone thought they were one eyed monsters!  

Some else made these but I thought they would be fun to make for Christmas or Valentine's day.

Today I am busy making some Halloween cake pops for C's dance class.  I will get those pictures up when they are done.

Meet Our Neighbors

I have said it before and will say it again. We live in the coolest place for natural wildlife. This morning on our walk Jake and I were serenaded by this coyote.

He was howling over and over. I think he was separated from his pack. The cool part is this is not in the middle of the dessert. It is across the street from our subdivision and just 1 block from C's school.

He howled for over 5 minutes. Jake was really good and just sat and stared at him. No barking. Once the coyote spotted us he scampered off into the brush. It was pretty cool.

C and I met this guy last week. He was trying to stalk a bunny. 

He was not as impressed with us and we were with him. He calmly licked his paws and then strutted off.

In the summer I spotted this guy on the way to the gym. He slithered in front of my car. So I stopped and got out. He wanted no part of me. He quickly slithered into those bushes. We had pet snakes as a kid, so these guys don't bother me.

Wish I could say the same for these guys. They give me the heebie jeebies.  And yes that is a Scorpion perched on my kitchen counter. Jeremy and C like to go on scorpion hunts in the evenings.

We have little black-light flashlights we use to find them. This is what they look like under the light. Apparently the black-light paralyzes them. It makes them easy to catch. Don't ask me why Jeremy feels the need to catch them and bring them inside my house though!

I am so glad C is getting to see these animals in their natural habitat. I have to admit every time I see one (except the Scorpions) it is pretty magical. I think it is so neat that we are able to live side by side with them and no one tries to hurt them.  It is pretty cool living where we do.

Kissy His Sissy

Jake sure does LOVE his sister.  Where ever she is playing he has to be laying near by.  This particular afternoon after school she was having a snack and watching a show.

He belly-crawled behind her chair and then proceeded to kiss her face.

It could have been because she was eating peanut butter. But I like to think it is because he just loves her so much!

A New Do

Yesterday I went and cut my hair cut. This is before shot of me (and hubby)!

You can see how long it was in the back. It was dry and just needed a change.

So this is what i had to sacrifice. Almost 5 inches!

I LOVE my new do!!

Of course I will never get it look this good again. I can never quite get it to look like the stylist does when I leave the salon. But I sure will try my hardest.  The best part is that Jeremy really likes it. He has always been a fan of longer hair on me. So I was happily surprised when he told me how much he likes it.  But I am glad he does because I really like it!

Wordless Wednesday

We Have A Reader!!

Look what C can do!!

When C entered Kindergarten she could not read.  She has always had a love for learning and all things school. So about 3 weeks ago, we checked out some beginner reader books. The first book took  awhile to get through. She was very patient and sounded out most words by herself. By the end of that day she was reading them fluently by herself. We are so lucky because she LOVES to read. We read everyday. She reads to us and we read to her.  Growing up I loved to read.  I am so happy that our girl has that same love. C was given a sheet from school to track her reading.  The school urges them to read for 15 minutes a day. If they do that they should reach the goal of 200 hours of reading by May. The reading can include C reading to us, us reading to her or reading to herself. Mrs. Wienke suggested that her class read for 10 hours total, every 2 weeks. We got our tracker sheet last Friday, so 6 days ago, and I am proud to say that we have already reached the 10 hours! We are super proud of you C!!

Our Daisy Girl

C was so excited that she was old enough to start Girl Scouts this year. We tried to start a Daisy troop at our school but could not find enough interested girls to form a troop. Thankfully after a month I was able to find a troop at a neighborhood church. They welcomed us with open arms.

Learning the "Make New Friends" song.

Checking to make sure I am watching her.

The first badge they worked on and earned was Olympic badge. They had to draw a mascot for their team. Of course C drew Jake and made him a pink ballerina.  All her favorite things combined.

At one of our first meetings C was chosen to hold up the flag and then the Girl Scout Law while all the girls read it.

Later she told me she was special because she was the one chosen to do so.  

Of course she had to have some Daisy gear. The shirt says "Daisy's Have Attitude."  And yes she does have that!!

C and her fellow Daisy Anna.  We have meetings 2 times a month.  Next meeting is opening ceremony. I am excited to see my girl officially welcomed to the Girl Scouts.