Saturday, November 2nd

We were all looking forward to our homeschool group's annual S'mores Bonfire event at the Phillips' home on Saturday evening.  The rest of the day was spent at the gym, around the house, making food to take and otherwise relaxing before we headed out!  It was such a fun time, and as always the Phillips did a lovely job hosting.

We were some of the first to arrive, so the kids ran around greeting everyone who showed up after.  Lincoln was taking a quick lemonade break.

Their scenic backyard - Jim and Waverly securing our seating near the fire ;-)

Judd and Lincoln on the trampoline - love these two goofballs, and what sweet friends they are!

My kids are obsessed with climbing the sprawling fig tree in the Phillips' back yard, and of course its even better when the leaves are all off it (bug-wise, according to them! hehe).  Scarlett~

The two traditional swings were taken, but Scarlett was undeterred and used her long arms and legs to hoist herself up on the handle bars.

The weather was so perfect!  In previous years, it's been a bit too warm or freezing cold - and really, when thinking of a fun bonfire with s'mores you want it to feel crisp but not uncomfortably chilly and we had just that type of evening.  Waverly was enjoying her perch on daddy's shoulders :-)

Waverly LOVES other babies!  More than any of my other kiddos at this same age, which I find interesting and adorable.  This is her little friend Miner - I think he is right at a month, possibly six weeks, older than her.  She always wants to touch the other baby - clothes, hands, face, whatever!

A few of the kids were ready to eat and set up on the fireside deck.

Several of us moms were down the yard a ways (near the play set) just chatting when we glanced up and noticed that *every single dad* in attendance was up near the back porch, huddled together.  I found this hilarious - like a junior high prom, the men and women did not mingle, lol.  That wasn't true for the entire night, but it was still funny :-)

So much excitement - baby bear was tuckered out.

Amanda P.'s aunt, Linda, was there to help her get food out and whatnot (playing the "Gram role," as I would call it, haha) and she made the hot chocolate up for the group.  Scarlett told me in no uncertain terms, "I really like your hot cocoa, mama, but Aunt Linda's is way better."  Thanks a lot! ;-)  Olivia and Victoria huddling up with their warm drinks.  It definitely got much colder when the sun finally went down!

Our sweet friend N, eating a perfectly squishy s'more!

We toughed it out as long as we could, but eventually Waverly grew uncomfortable being outside in the cool air, despite the layers.  I headed inside with her and we discovered we weren't the only ones opting for warmer quarters - Waverly's other little friend Caden (about six weeks older) was comfortably hanging out on the sofa, where I plopped her so they could stare at each other and try to put fingers in each other's mouths, lol.

Back home, everyone was full of good food and drinks and worn out from the fun evening :-)

Thursday, October 31st - Halloween!

Halloween finally arrived!!  The kids couldn't focus on much else all day and I wonder how/why regular schools even stay open on Halloween and the day after ;-)  It was all I could do to get the girls to plow through their material!  Lincoln was feeling much better but just not quite back to his usual self.  Jim and I discussed and were on the fence about whether he should go or just stay home for more rest... ultimately though, the poor kid was so despondent at the thought of missing out, so we came up with a good solution: we would take him in the wagon and he couldn't run door to door, but the girls would share their loot with him.  This ended up being perfect, as we kept Lincoln isolated in case he was at all still germy and he still got to experience the festivities.  We met up with a few families to partake in the evening's fun as we descended upon our favorite neighborhood for trick-or-treating!

The kids asked me every 15 minutes from noon onward, "How many minutes until we can put our costumes on!?"  The time arrived and they were all but bursting with excitement and anticipation!  I have wizened up from previous years and knew to take the pictures here at home when they are comparatively calm instead of when we are with friends ;-)  My lovely fairy, James Rogers (Captain America's son), and the pink ninja!

I must have snapped about 20 photos of all four kiddos together and these are the only two usable ones.  In this one, all are looking at me, but Waverly's bottle top hat was squishing her eyes so badly! lol

Of course, it's never truly a family picture until at least one animal comes over and is all, "Hey, what are you guys doing? Nothing important, right, so I'll just stand in front in a way that you can't even crop me out."

These two! My heart can't even handle it :-)

The kids pointed out that I was the only one not in costume, and volunteered that I could just be a witch since "I was already in black."  Thanks guys :-p

We met up with the Young, Phillips, and Cerdas families and after the kids patiently (I use the term loosely) allowed us to take one group photo, they were off and running - literally.

First house of the evening!

It would seem the wagon was a good call, as after about twenty minutes or so, James Rogers declared he was going to lay back for a bit and then he promptly powered down.  He snoozed as soundly as if he was on a feather bed in a quiet room! lol  

Fortunately, Captain America was fully prepared to helm the wagon and did an excellent job pulling him all around the neighborhood loop :-)

All in all, I think we trick-or-treated for just under an hour and a half - the kids had loads of loot and we made it back to the vehicles just in time to avoid getting rained on!  Perfect timing :-)  On the drive home, Waverly was none too pleased about the dark vehicle so we turned her spotlight on.  This afforded me the opportunity to watch her studying her fingers.  It was so precious to see her purposefully controlling each finger - it appeared as though she were counting!  Such a fun stage she is in, discovering new things every day.

Home and washed up, the kids gathered in the living room where we had dumped all of the candy they collected.  Each one was able to select four pieces to eat as they wound down from their big, exciting evening.  Happy Halloween!

Thursday, October 24th - Passport Club: Russia! and Karate Belt Testing

After a night of virtually no sleep thanks to a very unhappy and uncomfortable baby, and a middle-of-the-night bed visitor named Lincoln, it was time to delve deep into my rapidly depleting energy reserves and host our Passport Club: Russia gathering!  It went really, really well and I was impressed with how attentive the kids were and how willingly (okay, minor bribery was involved...) they sampled the Russian snacks I provided.  Everyone did a very good job on their presentations as well and enjoyed the Russian children's game we played outdoors after lunch.  Another successful Passport Club in the books!  To finish the full day off, the kids had belt testing at karate in the evening and now we have three Orange Belts!  Congratulations you guys!!

Sometimes he wakes us up, pillow and blanket in hand, other times I simply wake up to find him already wedged between us. 

The baby was up from about 11:30 p.m to 9:20 a.m. - fun times!  I just stuck her in my wrap and got busy laying everything out for arrival.  To start,  I had coloring sheets and cups of crayons for the kids to design their own matryoshka dolls (otherwise known as Russian Nesting Dolls).

I had a "little kids" table set up for the smaller kids (Lincoln, Judd, Charlotte).

My Russia board, with presentations, craft supplies and the little set of nesting dolls the kids had painted the day before.

Friends began arriving and coloring.

I presented on the Russia Board, and I feel the kids did their best job yet of listening!  It's really neat to see their growth, month-to-month, with listening, presenting, and Q&A skills.  Afterward, it was snack time - I decided to do Russian food at snack time and simply provide pizza for lunch.  This worked out well, and the kids were pretty brave in trying the various foods, including caviar!

Judd and Lincoln both tried the caviar and both summarily spat it back onto their plates, lol.

There were also strawberry-filled blintzes, chunks of karavai bread, special chocolate treats, Russian pear soda and more. 

I'd had a difficult time choosing a craft because there were just so many options!  As I scoured Hobby Lobby one afternoon I came across these paper mache eggs and thought it would be really fun for the kids to create their own faberge egg masterpieces.  They turned out well - the kids painted the eggs, then let them dry during presentation time and went back later to finish them with jewel stickers.

Kids (and moms) seated for presentation time - they were actually seated facing the sofa, but turned around for Lincoln's presentation which utilized the TV for pictures (because daddy helped, and he's fancy like that~).

The moms had taken turns holding Waverly for me during most of the goings-on, and I was finally able to take her back in hand for presentation time.  Because I think it's fun and the kids always like it, I always try to dress natively for whatever country I'm hosting.  Bright and flowery dress for Brazil, borrowed a sari for India and this time I wore a long, flowing white skirt, black peasant blouse and a black & white platok on my head.  Waverly thought this was most unusual ;-)  The girls also dressed Russian-peasant-girl-esque with long flowing skirts and loose tops.

Lincoln presenting on Snow Leopards and AK-47s (because awesomeness).

LOTS of questions from the audience, haha.

Victoria did a great job presenting on the Karakurt Spider, and didn't even giggle one time on the last portion; it noted the rare bite side effect of spontaneous dancing that has been recorded throughout history.  Earlier in the week, she would bust out laughing every time she tried to say it! hehe

Scarlett also did very well, nailing all of the difficult Russian names!

Snagged a shot of the picnic lunch we had in the living room, although I don't know what prompted the Very Serious faces :-o

The cats had quite the gourmet lunch as we bequeathed the caviar and sprats to them.

After a fun game of Karavai Bread in the front yard, the gathering was officially over, but our friends stayed to play out back for quite a while which was the perfect way to unwind.  N decided to make herself into a faberge egg, which I thought was hilarious and creative :-)

Our friend Julia loves Salty... this is amazing because she used to be terrified of dogs - especially Salty! Now they're best buds and he sticks to her side like glue when she's over for a visit :-)

Ms. Amanda succeeded in taming the no-sleeping-baby and had her snoozing quite nicely.  It only lasted for an hour but it was still a welcome break for my tired arms!

When everyone left, I had the chance to take a couple of pictures, both of Victoria's work (since it was all I could find).  Here is her colorful matryoshka doll page!

And her designer faberge egg :-)

After demonstrating their skill and knowledge, the kids were awarded their orange belts.  First, Victoria~

Then Lincoln~

Finally, Scarlett~

Terrific! :-)  So proud for them of their accomplishment.