Turkey Bowling 2012

It's time for the annual Turkey Bowling at our church.  We started off watching Charlie Brown's Thanksgiving special.

Then, it was time for a lunch of pizza and lemonade.

Next, time for bowling.

Preston tried to bowl with the huge turkey, but stuck to the cornish hen instead.

When the kids weren't bowling, there was a craft available.  They had to list what they were thankful for on a  food serve glove and then fill it up.

Put 5 candy corn in the fingertips (or M & M's)...

add some popped popcorn...

tie with a rubber band and then ribbon...

and you're done.  The kids immediately ate their "hands" once we got in the car.

Each kid got to pick a prize at the end.  Kaitlyn got a parachute man.

Preston picked out a football.  But since he knocked down the most pins in his age group, he got a big chocolate bar.

Another fun day!

Colonial Day

It was Colonial Day for all the 1st graders and I was eager to help out Preston's class.  I remember this special day when Kaitlyn was in 1st grade and I knew Preston would have a blast as well.  As Preston went to the other classrooms for his rotations, I stayed in his class and made a ton of these little arms for the corn husk dolls.

 

I did manage to sneak away at one point to watch Preston make his totem pole.

 



 

He made lots of really cool things all while learning some history.  He weaved a placemat, made symbols on a "buffalo hide", decorated a totem pole, made God's eye (the craft sticks and yarn), and made a corn husk doll.  Preston also learned how to make butter.  So much fun!

 

I just love seeing that smile!!!

It is days like this when I love being a mommy.

Halloween 2012

Is it just me or did Halloween sneak up on us this year?  Thankfully, the kids didn't want extravagant costumes.  Preston wanted to be Spiderman (w/ the muscles in the costume) and Kaitlyn wanted to be a Purple Spotted Leopard Pillow Pet.  Yes, you read that correctly.

 

It was actually pretty easy to make.  I got her some pink clothes, cut out some purple felt pieces, and pinned them to her clothes.  Done!

 

We  headed to the Fall Fest at our church.  Preston had to earn a Royal Rangers badge for doing a good deed at a community event.  He signed up to help with a game.  Craig and Kaitlyn helped out at the Sand Art table.

 

Preston was in charge of bowling.  He looks so excited, doesn't he?

 

Then, they played some games.

 

We all played Bingo together.

 

And went on a hayride.

 

We ended the night with a late dinner from Sonic and went to bed exhausted.  Next year, I promised the kids they could experience Trick or Treating.  Can't wait to share that experience!

Pumpkin Patch 2012

It was time for our annual trip to the pumpkin patch.  We decided to go on a Saturday after Craig walked in the Susan B. Komen Walk For The Cure and Preston's T-ball Game.  It also happened to be hot!  Here are a few pics showcasing our fun trip.

The kids always love going through the maze.

They posed on some of the wooden structures.

Preston can be such a ham!

We all poked our heads through the pumpkins.

At first, the kids said they were too old to pose with the cartoon characters.  It about broke my heart!  But I knew this day would come.  :(  Finally, Preston decided to stand with the Smurfs.  That made me happy.

We took some time to check out the few animals on the property.

We all went on the hayride, which is one of our favorite parts.  I love the view of the pumpkin patch when we're riding around.

The kids also rode on the little train.  They look completely bored in the picture, but I think they enjoyed it still.

Of course, we had to take our family picture in the same spot that we do every year.  Notice what we're wearing?  It felt like summer.

Craig and I had to sneak in a little picture too.

Fortunately, Craig's parents were able to join us for part of the trip.  We brought home some pie pumpkins and then took a nice nap.  Good times!

Fall Party 2012

The kids and I had our annual Fall Party.  We spent a Saturday just relaxing and doing some fun fall things.  Kaitlyn and Preston picked out some crafts to decorate.

Then we made some Halloween Brownie Bites.  These actually didn't pull apart that easily.

So, they didn't bake into perfect little shapes.  But they were still delicious!

We also popped some popcorn and watched our favorite Halloween movie, Hocus Pocus.

Next, we went to the annual Harvest Stew Festival at the library.  This year, Craig was finally able to join us.  The kids enjoyed the little petting zoo.

The kids played games.

We were entertained by a juggler/fire eater/unicyclist.

Preston decorated his own cookie.  Promptly after this picture was taken, the cookie fell on the ground!

 Of course, there was stew.  

Can't wait for next year's Fall Party