HALLOWEEN 2013

October is drawing to a close as I sit on the couch thinking about how tired I am.  October has certainly lived up to its wrap of being one of the busiest months of our year.  And here we are at the end - it always goes out with a bang - Halloween.

Last night we carved our pumpkin.  We haven't done this with the girls, and they loved it!





They asked for the pumpkin to have "Butterfly Eyes," so that is what they got.



We rounded out that evening with s'mores - always a win in my book.



Then, tonight was the big night.  Halloween had arrived.  We put on our costumes and readied ourselves for the party.  Of course, sugar cookies were a part of the mix.



We were cowboys and Indians.  John had brought the girls' outfits from India when he was there last year, and we decided to build on those.  It turned out really fun.



The kiddos turned out adorably, as we all knew would happen.

We had a party with 21 kiddos that was mass pandemonium and super fun.  The group shot is missing several kids, but you get the idea.



Then we trick or treated.  After the first house, we decided to split into smaller groups so as not to overwhelm any one house with our massive swarm of children.

After most people went home, we passed out candy at our house.  Our neighborhood is no joke on Halloween.  We also sorted the candy.  Lily's idea.

All in all, it was a wild success.  We are so blessed with friends, and I am so blessed to live life with my handsome cowboy.



Peace out, October.  You've been real.

FALL BUFFALO TRIP: HIGHS & LOWS

The Buffalo was calling again, and we answered for the sixth fall in a row.  This has certainly become one of our very favorite traditions.
Here's 2011 and 2012.

High:  We arrived this year at pretty much the peak of fall color there in Ponca.  The word spectacular doesn't go far enough as a descriptor for the beauty.

High:  We ate at the Ozark Cafe on our way into town, and we haven't been in 3 years, so it was a fun treat.  It is a North Arkansas establishment that is home town delicious in Jasper.  We had happy campers all the way around.

Low:  We didn't do a great job of coordinating plans of arrival, and so we made Ellen wait for us for a long time.  I felt real bad about that.

High:  We did a hike that we had never done before that turned out beautifully.  It was two miles round trip and had gorgeous scenery all the way around.

This is our best and only family picture from this trip.



Low:  Bella got tired at the very end of the hike.  But - we have got to hand it to her.  She did awesome  for so much of the hike.  She walked almost the whole way and only required candy bribes at the end.  Sweet girl.

High:  We headed to our cabin to soak in the view and enjoy a tasty dinner.  We always eat amazingly well at the cabin, and that is helped even more when Becci comes with us.

Low:  I forgot the goat cheese for the Goat Cheese Burgers.  Bummer.  But, we turned them into Whisky Baba Ganoush burgers, which did turn out pretty well.

Low:  We are all die hard game players.  We all assumed that someone else would bring the games.  No one did.  We played Hearts with cards I happened to have on hand, which was fun, but not what we had envisioned.

Low:  The babies, who have been sleeping much better at home, had a pretty awful night of sleep.  Bummer.  I realized that I don't love it when I expect to get sleep and instead get up to feed babies at 12:30 and 5.  And by don't love it, I mean that I was pretty frustrated.

High:  Waking up to the beauty of the gorgeous valley view and letting the babies nap on the couch after breakfast.




High:  Seeing the girls become gamers.  I think Lily was winning this one.  Also, their morning hair is pretty epic.



For anyone curious, we always stay at the Buffalo Outdoor Center, and we love it.




High:  We hiked Lost Valley this morning.  This is a place we go every year, and it never lets us down.  Also, it is easy to hike with a group.

(aww, Sisters.)

Low:  After yesterday's hike in Compton, Bella insisted on being carried.  This is no easy feat, even for Super Dad.  Thankfully, Becci was with us, so we had enough hands with us to carry all our children, except for Lily, who did awesome on both hikes.  It gives us great hope for the future.

High:  The time away enjoying the majesty of fall that God gives us here in Arkansas is always such a blessing and privilege.  It's restful, relaxing and recharging - even with the kiddos in tow.



Peace out, Ponca - until next year!

THIS WEEK: HIGHS & LOWS

Without further adieu:

High:  My polka-dot jeans from Target that I got on clearance.  I want to wear them everyday, and I am loosely settling for every other.

High:  We had a bunch of friendsies over last weekend for pizza.  With our 20+ kiddos running around, it was crazy, but always good to be with friends.  (John got that second sweet pic!)




Low:  Every evening at home this week the babies have chosen to cry simultaneously connected with dinner time.  It makes everything feel so stressful.  Good thing they are cute.



High:  John and I did get a great date night this week.  We ate at the Packet House, which is at an old house built in 1869.  It was so very tasty and atmospheric.  I particularly enjoyed my s'mores parfait dessert and sitting next to the original marble fireplace.

The best part of the date was being with just John.  You realize that there are so many things to talk about that you may or may not get to cover in every day life.  It is fun and necessary to have extra space and time to just catch up and dream.

High:  We got Bella a Hello Kitty karaoke machine that is really just a CD player with microphones.  They are obsessed.  We bought some CDs on our date night - my favorite is the Christian Hit CD done by Veggie Tales that includes popular songs from my high school days.  Hilarious.  We had fun getting it set up and testing it out.



Low:  We knew this would be the case, and it is worth it, but this thing can be really loud.  Also, the girls like to change out the CD after two songs every. single. time.  William sums up my feelings about this in the next picture.



Low:  There was an outbreak of Hand, Foot, Mouth disease at our MDO, so they closed it down after Wed.  So far, I've seen no signs of it, and I am hoping we dodged that bumpy, fevery bullet.

High:  Because we had no MDO, we headed to the Zoo with friends on a beautiful fall Thursday.  John was able to meet us there for a while as an added bonus.

High:  I've enjoyed a more laid back pace this week, which has been a real blessing.  It's allowed me to enjoy the kiddos more and relish where they are.

High:  When Lily said, "Baby rainbows are called Rabies!"  We'll never know where she came up with that one.

High:  Having my Mom tell me that she sent out an email to the entire staff at her school about having to move staff medications to a new location.  The email sent before it was finished.  All it said was, "Hell."
Oh, I laughed so hard about this.  Bless her heart.  (She said I could share.)

I'm so thankful for the life God has given us.  It always feels like far more than we deserve, and the truth is that it is.  Happy Friday!