Sunday afternoon nature walk

Jim took the kids on a nature walk this afternoon. They were on the lookout for animal tracks, scat, and critters themselves. Highlights from the walk: a Ring necked pheasant, Red tailed hawk, deer tracks, crossing the river on the "tree bridge," Owen falling in the water, and then doing a face plant in the leaves. Great memories!

A visit to the farm

We visited Calder dairy farm to see the animals and sample a little ice cream. It almost felt like we were back in Vermont!

I'd rather swallow a spider

Marney is not enjoying piano lessons these days, it is a struggle to get her to practice. So tonight when Jim asked her to come down to practice, this was her response, "I'd rather swallow a spider." Jim replied, "that can be arranged." She decided it might be wise to practice. This is going to be a long 6 months! (Thats the rest of her commitment to piano this year)

Days of the dead

On Saturday we went to Mexican Town in Detroit to see what was happening during the Days of the Dead celebration. Madeline has been reading about it, and got us all curious. It was a friendly and colorful place to visit. We had a great meal, did a little window shopping, and stopped a bakery (the largest variety of baked goods I have ever seen!) and picked up some traditional treats to bring home and sample. It was a fun family outing and we can't wait to go back. It is a growing area of Detroit and we hope it continues. It should look totally different when all the construction on I-75 is complete.

Trick-or-treat!

What a beautiful evening it was. The neighborhood was all decked out, and the kids had a great time!

Pumpkin carving

Now it really feels like fall around here, the pumpkins have been carved! Happy Halloween!

Halloween crafts

This was a fun morning spent making some Halloween crafts.

Boys at the beach part 2

Boys at the beach part 1

Dad, Bob, Jim, Jacob, Jonah, and Owen all went up north to the cottage this past weekend for a well deserved "Guys only" getaway. Looks like they had a great time, and made some lasting memories for the boys. It sure was quiet back here at home, but we managed to have some fun anyway. Stay tuned for more pics!

Whip your feet

Carpet square from the Scrap Box: $1.00
The imagination to turn it into a door mat for your bedroom & include instructions: $0

(Marney: "Sometimes sounding things out just doesn't work.")

Our Little Fish

Marney is really enjoying swim club, and we have really enjoyed watching her grow both as a swimmer and a person. She is in the pool 5 nights a week and loves every minute of it. I'm so glad she picked a sport I can actually watch, (when the girls were diving, I had to look away often!) and that I can understand! Soccer still escapes me! Sorry Madeline, I'm trying to learn!
P.S. Jim is now our official family photographer, he took some great shots last night at the swim meet. I can't take a good photo with a digital camera to save my life. (As an extra added bonus, I may finally have some proof that I am part of my kids life!)

Quote of the day

Marney: "Mom, it says here that snails burn themselves in the winter."

Me: "That says bury, honey." :)

Corn Maze Fun

Have you ever been this tired?

After the corn maze, Owen was so tired he fell asleep in his chair at our favorite Mexican restaurant La Fiesta in Dundee.

Allergic to your best friend?

Well, Owen is. We just found out that he is allergic to almost everything out there, (except food, thank goodness) but including our dog Rosie. They truly are buddies and play outside together all the time, it's so cute. "Come on Rosie, lets go play in the sandbox." Thank heaven for modern medicine.

Do you know the colors of the rainbow?

Owen is having a hard time remembering the names of all the colors, he can sort them, but when it comes to saying the names, he is stumped. Madeline came up with a physical activity to help him. He would jump over each group and Madeline would say the name, then he would say them the next time through. It helped him a great deal, and it was a great cooperative activity for the two of them. It was lots of fun to watch them work together. Thanks Madeline!

Thank heaven for little boys...

I called the kids down from quiet reading time for circle time this afternoon, and the complaining started. The girls were bent out of shape about something. We sat down and the girls and I started talking (as girls do) about why they were upset. Well the discussion went on, and on, and meanwhile Owen was on the outskirts playing with the dog (as boys do). So when the tears started flowing and the hugging began, Owen pipes up and says "Um, I thought this was going to be circle time, not hugging time?" He is all boy! We all had a good laugh and felt much better. Thanks Owen!

"Bubblegum wrapper" bracelets!

The girls spent part of the day on Sunday working on these super cute bubblegum wrapper bracelets. I remember making long chains with real bubble gum wrappers, now they are making bracelets and earrings with origami paper. They turned out so cute! Thanks Grandma for the great idea!

part four...

In the midst of all this, Owen wasn't feeling very well. Turns out he has pneumonia! Here he is getting a breathing treatment and some computer time. He has been in rare form from those oral steriods and the albuterol! When you normally think of sick kids you picture them lying on the couch in front of the TV all day, sleeping occasionally. Not this guy, he has been climbing the walls! Talking non-stop, harassing his sisters, constantly in motion, energy to spare! Can I get some of that?
Thankfully he is getting better.

part three...

A field trip to the cider mill with Jen and the kids!

part two...

Soccer Saturday! Madeline has been having a great time playing soccer this year. She was hoping her friend Becky would be on her team, but that didn't happen. They ended up playing against each other this week! They ended in a tie and had lots of fun!