Little Red Riding Hood x2

 This year, Little Red Riding Hood decided to ride a pony to Grandma's house.

 Her sister too.

(Capes by Rachel, of course)

 We stopped by Bates Nut Farm for a maze, hay ride and pumpkins. 

No, Colin didn't do the maze by himself.

The girls are still too short to show up.

 A hay ride through the corn fields.

 Em picks the biggest she can find.

 Katie helps Daddy. Yea right.

 We grow giant pumpkins every year.  This year was no exception.

But there was a slight problem, the pumpkins were large. 

Bigger than anything you find at the store,

but not giant enough for my husband. So we bought a couple.

Tonight we will stop by the local rest home before

Trick-or-Treating the neighborhood.

The girls and I hopped in the car late on a Wednesday evening for a quick trip to meet Kelle Hampton.

There were a ton of people there. San Diego loves Kelle. The common feeling of being among friends that you just haven't met yet was fun.  Waiting in line wasn't terrible, it was just a chance to chat with the other moms.
Emily loved that she and Ms Hampton have the same bangs.  This has become a theme as Emily is very particular about how I cut her hair.  She describes how all the girls in class have their hair trimmed.  So cute.

 Sisters, sisters.  I am surprised how well they get along.  Their quirky little friendship is so full.  

Full of love and occasionally annoyance.

 Old fashion curlers for one dollar. Check

 Fun curls for the day.  Katie would not sit still for a picture.

 Little sister is dying to cook. But it's hard finding safe things for a two year old.

 Big sister is dying to cook too.

 It wasn't raining this day. 

The neighbor's sprinkler broke so it poured in August.

 The girls as brunettes.

When you get colored, sugared cereal  for the first time, this is the proper amount of joy.

Yes, I'm the mean mom that  usually only allows healthy foods for breakfast.

Aunt Heidi's Bridal Shower

Fancy hats, good food, beautiful day at the park.  Count us in.

We had a blast playing the games and enjoying an English tea.

 Dressing up as brides in toilet paper.  Em and Katie loved it.

A little tired from all the fun but still so adorable with her fancy hat sliding off her head.

Congrats Heidi!

Trip to Northern California.

 Alcatraz.

 Golden Gate Bridge.

 We spent a lot of time in NorCal this summer. One highlight was visiting Grandpa Bob and everyone up there.It was fun as usual.  A slow pace of life.  Beautiful property.  Good food.  We had a blast.   I'm thankful for so many good memories.

 Best tree swings ever.

Em really got the hang of it.

I couldn't get her off.  And I was totally scared she would slip but I'm glad I didn't say anything. She was super proud of herself.  This is one of those activities, all kids should try.

I have pictures of Katie on the other swing but I can't find them right now.  I'll post later.

The Hospital Ball

 One of the perks of Colin's job is going to the Balls.

There are several through the year so we usually pick a couple if Colin is actually home.

 Sorry the phone picture is terrible.

That's gold on top, well gold leaf.
I ingested gold.

It was an amazing desert.

Ya know when kids like to smart off for the camera,

well my husband likes to do it as well.

He likes to pretend he is a grouchy old man.

San Diego for the day

 When we spend the day in the city, we usually stop by this park.

The girls love to run.

And they love airplanes.

 

 Besides running, there are always a ton of flowers to pick.

 And then there is running again.

 And since they don't tire easily, Daddy has to chase them.

On this particular day, a swarm of hundreds of bees flew right over us!

We screamed and ran for the car.

Thankfully they couldn't be bothered with us.

Great day.

 We saw a fun crafty activity in Family Fun (I think that's where we saw it).
We ran around the house for felt, an old candy tin and our smallest stuffy animal.
He needed a bed!
It's worked well as a car toy while I drive the girls.

 

Weekly red roses.

That is a luxury I never dreamed I would have.

As it turns out, Colin thought it was important so 

any time the vase it empty, he fills it.

I love walking into the bedroom knowing I'll see my roses.

I thought it would be a phase that would pass quickly.

After 5 months, I am happy to see it looks like it will stay.

After the shot appointments.

 Nobody likes shots.

So I brings a piece of candy and our kites to shot appointments.

We pull off at the same view point.  

The ocean obliges us with great kite flying wind.  

The Marines oblige us with something to watch and often wave back a the little girls yelling hellos to them from the view point.

 Katie is hilarious. 

 I know no one is surprised by her penchant to fly her kite with her teeth.

It may not make the shots better but it a good distraction.

Little Orphans

Why do kids love to play with clean laundry?!  This is one of my favorite games.

Two little orphan girls visit me with a sad story of being hungry, dirty and lonely.

It's quite funny.  It always ends with me asking them to come live with me in a big empty house with lots of food to be eaten.

Their sad faces are so pitiful. I love it.

Emy is learning to sew.  She was absconding with all of my sewing supplies.  It was time.  We made up her sewing box of every little thing she would need, picked awesome fabric and pillowcased a blanket.  She even did a finishing seam to make it look good.  I love that the seam is all over the place.  We even backed up and started again a couple of times.  She's hooked.