Carving Pumpkins?

Ok, so are there ever those posts you meant to do, but never got around to. Well, this is one of those. I think I've mentioned before that we love Halloween in our house. A lot. Every year we carve pumkins. But this year there was a new development. Here let me show you:

Here is cute little Nora. She loved every minute of digging her hands into the slippery goo of the pumpkin guts. She love weilding a knife (with daddy's help, of course!). And I don't know how, but her pumpkin even ended up looking like her. It's her pumpkin doppleganger.

Brian thinks he's hilarious. I've learned that this "vomitting" out the pumpkin innards is a family tradition. You can't break tradition! Ok, so I think it's pretty funny too. But don't tell Brian.

Then there's Ethan...
He has decided that the worst smell on the planet is pumpkin pulp. He could barely stay in the room. He was gagging and almost throwing up every time he got a whiff. He would not come near the pumpkins.

I eventually tied a bandana around his face ala old west train robbers. That helped for a little while. It was so funny.

Nora loves it, but check out Ethan in the background. I made butternut squash the other night and Ethan wouldn't eat it because, "It smells like pumpkin."


Last year:

Oh well.

Family Get-togethers

Chris and Kristy came to visit. So what did we do for fun? We made dioramas of course!
Let's just say I was getting rid of a lot of shoe boxes. I have this thing about keeping the shoe box... I'm not alone right? Anyway, it's no fun to just throw all the shoe boxes away, you gotta DO something with them.

Here is the monumental mess we made, so fun!

This is Ethan's masterpiece, he called it "California Dreamin'"

Brian's was very abstract (and disturbing). He took the longest. Actually it wasn't disturbing, it was very interesting, and I loved it.

Here is my tropical paradise. I seemed to have a lot of flower papers and blue colored paper, so I went for it. Notice the tiki hut. Brian asked me, "What is a tiki anyway?"

Here is Kristy's work of art. Notice it is peaceful, uncluttered, well thought out, and very clean and neat. Also, the boy is reading his scriptures. It is very well-made.

So when is the last time you made a diorama? It is quite thereputic, and very very fun for the kids. Oh who am I kidding, I was the one having fun. The kids ran off and did something else about 20 minutes after we started. Go make a diorama, that's an order!

Hop-Scotch

We went to IKEA today, to get out. Here is a cute video of Nora learning to hop-scotch.




I love that girl!

Christmas Images

2009

I'd said I'd be back in the new year, and here I am. I know you missed me.... My kids have been saying a bunch of funny things lately, and I haven't been writing them down! So I forget! Aak.
Here are two I remember because I've retold them many times, but I want to write them down so I never forget:

Ethan
We were going out to eat for the first time in over a month (thank you Brenda for the gift card). And Ethan starts arguing with us about where we are going. Finally Brian says, "Ethan, that is enough, I don't want to hear anymore arguing from you." To which Ethan replies, "Dad, I started this confrontation, and I'm gonna end it!"

Nora
For the first time Nora was going to spend the night at grandmas house without Brian or I, she was VERY excited. She was telling me all about how it was going to be just her and nobody else going. Then she looked down and a bit concerned and said, "but mom, you're gonna hafta take me, cause I can't drive."