Girl's Weekend at Lake LBJ

This weekend a few girls in the ward and I headed to one of their parent's cabin on Lake LBJ (Lyndon Johnson. He's from here). The views were just gorgeous.
and the cabin was the perfect "cabin", inside:
and out:
As with all cabins, I couldn't stop admiring the kitchy decor. I spotted a totally rad lamp:
matching mug:
bizarre ottomon with pillows attached:
fishing poles in the corner:
a gnome, keeping watch over the dock:
and very cool 70s brown potholders:
It was the perfect setting for a bunch of girls to sit around all day while we chit-chatted, scrap-booked, worked on projects, listened to music, watched a few movies, and never even left the house (except to relax on the deck).
Chris and Tiffany:
Me and Tami:
Lori and Cathy (sisters FOR SURE):
Carri, Heather, and Tami:
Michelle:
With large windows looking out on the lake, I loved watching the sun change throughout the day. Morning:
Mid-day:
Dusk:
For lunch I made my favorite Potato and Corn soup:
with braided bread (and real butter on top):
everyone loved it when I took pictures of us eating....
I got some good hours in on my felt hairclips; which means I should have enough inventory for a craft show this Wednesday night. And when dusk rolled around, I sat on the deck for an hour watching the trees turn gold and listening to the water. Very relaxing.
At some point, most of us checked in at home:
Everything seemed to be fine.
And I couldn't get over this cute cabin next door....and probably only because it was mint green.
Thanks ladies for a very fun weekend! It was so much fun getting to know you all better.

Pouring

This sunday afternoon as we danced around the house to Disney songs, we heard the rain pounding on the roof. So we went outside to see the pour-down. Lucy tried to gather raindrops in her hands.
and then she dipped her whole head in (now she's sitting in a nice warm bath).
How fun rainy days can be, especially when we're in an actual home. That may sound weird but as we watched the raindrops fall, Casey turned me and said, there's just something about not being in that old drafty apartment on a rainy day that makes it more charming. I totally agree. It's nice to know that water's not seeping in through old creeky windows.
Now I just want to curl up on the couch, watch movies, and eat homemade gingerbread with whipped cream. That was what my mom often had waiting for us on a rainy school day. What a wonderful welcome home after sitting on the stuffy/fogged-up school bus for an hour and walking from the bus stop with our Sesame Street umbrellas. Of course after drying off and eating warm gingerbread, it was back out to play in flooded street gutters. Oh, life as a kid.

Halloween

We planned to carve our pumpkins earlier in the week but Casey had a quick 2-day business trip in the middle of that. So, maybe this will be a new tradition: carving pumpkins on Halloween morning! Of course, it only works when it falls on the weekend. Maybe we'll try Halloween Eve like my sister-in-law Nicole does. All in all, we had fun. The kids ate popcorn while the parents did the carving.
Of course neither child wanted to put their hands in the goo. But that's okay. Lucy enjoyed watching me get messy.
The boys. (looking like they just woke up).
But they were working hard. Steady, steady...
I told Lucy to get her face in close to the pumpkin and I would take her picture with it. This is how she interpreted that. Frozen, with this funny face. Made me laugh:
Voila! (or Grrrrr, ooooooo, schreeeech!) Our spooky pumpkins. Mine and Lucy's ended up being Pumpkin 101 (I didn't even cut the mouth out properly and chopped the teeth off on accident). But Casey and Owen stepped it up a notch with Frankenstein.
After the carving we headed out for lunch. But on the way we found this cute little carnival just down the street from our house. So we had to stop.
The kids got to pet the animals,
eat candy,
and go for a pony ride!
while mom enjoyed this:
only for a short bit though cause my appetite was really looking forward to this:
That evening we got the kids back in their costumes and as we headed out the door, I noticed that the candy feast had already begun. I caught Lucy looking like this:
We walked down to our neighborhood park where the HOA had a small get-together and gave prizes to all the kids who were dressed up.
I thought this hot-dog was cute (and I don't even like dogs. The real ones, that is. I like the hot ones).
I couldn't get over what a perfect pirate our neighbor made. His eyes, his smile? Dead on.
The kids played on the park toys for a bit and then we hit the streets for candy.
Lots of fun decor.
One house had a haunted yard that went all through the backyard and they had the coolest smoke bubbles. I'd never seen anything like it. Owen got a little freaked out back there though.
At first people weren't answering their doors. Maybe we were too early? But Lucy didn't seem to mind. She'd just say, okay....let's head to the next one. Great attitude Luce. As the night went on though we found plenty of houses with treats. And Owen really got into it. He totally got the concept of "get the candy and put it in your bucket" and even more-so the concept that "it's YOUR bucket. This is ALL for YOU." At one point we tried to carry his pumpkin for him (since it was getting pretty heavy) and he quickly replied, "no no no!" Already grasping the concept of wealth!
The kids went for about an hour but I could tell that Lucy was getting tired. I asked her, do you want to go to that house over there or do you want to just go home? And she replied, I want to go home. Of course once we were home and I let them eat as much candy as they wanted, she was jumping off the walls (while watching Clifford episodes galore).
Owen and Casey hung out on the front porch with Frankenstein and handed out candy to kids. And that was our spooky night! It was very fun to be in a real neighborhood where we could trick or treat and also give out treats. Ever since we've been married we've been in an apartment or somewhere that's not "knocking friendly". So this year felt like a fun old-fashioned Halloween. It seems that a lot of what we're experiencing in our new life is just old-fashioned American fun. It's really great. Happy Halloween!

Hallow's Eve

Friday morning the Halloween festivities began. Lucy had seen me putting together her Sam I Am costume all week. So when I announced that it was finished and we could try it on (and take pictures) she was thrilled! She was very conscious throughout the whole process, making sure I did everything properly. She told me before I even got started, mom I'm going to need a red hat. Maybe she's a costumer in the making!
And since it's so fun to do an ensemble cast, Owen just had to be the Cat in the Hat. He kept that hat on ALL night long for the Trunk or Treat and then for Halloween. Good job bud!
Would you like them in car? Eat them! Eat them! Here they are!
It's always fun to make a costume that your kids are into. And this year was the most "into" it year so far.
For more info and pictures of the kids costumes, see MADE.
That night we went to our ward's Trunk or Treat at the church building. I was asked to the be photographer for the evening, which is what I love. An excuse to take pictures of your cute kids? Please!
Owen was a little slow at first, not sure what the process was. But by the next night, he was a pro and could have knocked houses longer than Lucy.
Half-way through the Trunking, they both took a break and started digging through the stash.
Keep going Sam!
The Trunk-or-Treating night was full of yummy drink prizes:
some overhead aircraft:
and a big chili cook-off with lots of tasty cornbread.
Some favorites shots of the night....
It doesn't get any cuter than this. His 70 year old wife was decked out in clown gear too.
Not sure what it is, maybe the glitter on his hat? But his expression is clear: he's just seen the most enchanted wizard in his life.Stay-at-home mom (a la 1950?)
If you'd like to see all the photos I took that night, click here. Yes, I started another blog. But it's just for moments like this, so I can upload a bunch of photos and share them with others.

Happy Hallow's Eve!