Halloween Town

Back in the late 1990's the cheesy Disney channel movie "Halloweentown" was filmed in our little town. I didn't live here then, but I enjoy watching that movie and recognizing the landmarks. There must be "something" about our town, since years later the "Twilight" movie was filmed here as well.

In the weeks leading up to Halloween our little old town got all decked out for the holiday.

The town square in front of the courthouse was made to look somewhat like it does in "Halloweentown", and local businesses put creepy figures out. It was all for a good cause too. You could vote for your favorite with a canned food donation.

One day after school I took Grayson and Rowan down to check them out. They thought it was great fun to run around old town and "meet" all the creepy new residents.

Rowan kept saying that "this would be too scary for a little kid!" I wonder who he was thinking of?

In the end they both decided that this super tall pirate was their favorite. He was mine too.

This little walk was the perfect way to get us all in the mood for Halloween!

Pumpkins

I don't know exactly what happened to us this year. Maybe we had too much soccer and bad weather. Whatever the cause, the reality is that we broke our more than a decade long streak of going to the pumpkin patch every year.

In fact we almost didn't do anything involving pumpkins this year. But Rowan's pleading face convinced me that we had to do something.

A few days before Halloween we went to the store and bought pumpkins. The selection wasn't great, and we had to pick through the pile to find ones that weren't turning mushy, but were able to find three that would work.

The boys like looking online to find designs that they can make, and I like that the little saws make it easy for them to do all their own carving.

They were pleased with their results, and didn't seem to have missed going out to the pumpkin field much at all.

My Guy

It's been over sixteen years since I married this guy.

He's my best friend, and makes me laugh.

He's also a great cook and a fantastic dad.

And you never quite know what he's going to do next.


He might just go out and start flipping a really big tire down the street.

And I love that about him.

Happy Birthday Paul!

A Picture in His Pocket

Rowan made it through a whole week without any tears or meltdowns about going to school. He was a little grumpy and overly sensitive at times, but seems to be making progress.

Several weeks ago when he was having a particularly hard morning, he asked if he could take a picture of me to school. (He carried a picture of our family in his back pack for about the first half of kindergarten.) I quickly found a picture of me, and cut it into about a 2X2 inch square so it would fit easily in his pocket. He headed off to school and didn't mention it again. I assumed he had lost the picture, or that it had gone through the wash.

A few days ago when it was just about time to leave for school he said he forgot something, and quickly ran upstairs. He came back down holding the little picture of me in his hand. He's been taking it to school everyday, and then putting it somewhere safe in his room every day when he gets home.

I asked him if he ever looks at it when he's at school, or if he just likes knowing it's in his pocket. He said sometimes he looks at it at recess if he's feeling lonely.

I tell ya, that boy knows how to melt my heart.

His Golden Day

(A very belated post about Grayson's birthday.)

On August 9, 2009, Grayson turned 9. It's hard to believe he's getting that old. One more year and he'll be in the double digits! For Grayson's birthday we let him pretty much call all the shots for the day. Grayson generally has very specific ideas about what he wants and what he wants to do. Thankfully they are usually fun and easy to comply with.
Grayson had only two things he wanted for his birthday this year, a Nintendo DS with a game or two and a warm, snuggly bathrobe. Thanks to generous relatives Grayson got enough money to buy a DS, a nice case and several games. He was VERY excited! The robe was a bit more difficult. August is not really a good time to shop for a warm robe.


After much shopping and internet surfing I decided that I was just going to have to make him one. He was pleased with the results, and the team reference.

His other wishes included getting fish and chips at the Bowpicker in Astoria, having cupcakes that he got to decorate, going to Fort Stevens, and playing at Shipwreck beach. We said YES! to all of the above.
It was a little windy at Fort Stevens, so mother nature got to blow Grayson's candles out for him.


Grandma and Grandpa came and spent the day with us. I don't think they've ever missed one of the kids' birthdays. We love them for that!


Then it was off to explore the fort. We've taken the kids here a couple of times before and they never tire of it.


Paul and Buster liked it too.


When we finally got down to the beach Rowan talked Grandpa into walking down to explore the wreck of the Iredale.

And then even though it wasn't very warm, the boys just had to get into the water.


And act like maniacs in the waves.


Then for some reason, being wet and cold, getting covered in sand seemed like a good idea.


Then everyone was covered in sand.


Rowan kept claiming he wasn't cold, but was snuggling up to me quite a bit.


Fuller never admits he's cold. Even when his teeth are chattering through his smile.


We rounded out our wonderful day with lots of digging in the sand,

and hanging out together.

We concluded our day with ice cream comes from Custard King, and a quiet, contented drive home.
Grayson said it was his best birthday ever, and he wants to do the same exact thing next year!

Too Big to Miss

During the last week of August we took an drive down to Salem to the state fair. I think we are "state fair people". We didn't make it last year, and we missed it. There's just something exciting about going to the big one.

Like dreaming of going on the biggest, scariest ride you can find.


One thing I really like about the fair is how educational it is. There is so many interesting displays about our great state. Makes me proud to be an Oregonian.

We also like to talk to the animals. This guy was saying, "give me a pretzel". So we did, with his owners encouragement of course. Apparently he loves the salty snacks.




And we looked nostalgically at all the wonderful preserves. It made me wish for a simpler life.


Then, when we get tired of walking at the fair,it's always nice to stop for a foot massage.


The boys all had a great time on the bumper cars, which was a new experience for them.

Except poor Paul got stuck with Rowan the crazy driver.


We always end the fair with a trip to the dairy maid stand for ice cream.

It didn't disappoint.

Work in Progress

I've gone a little hexagon crazy. I was looking for a new project (even though I have plenty of unfinished ones), and I kept seeing hexagon ideas. This is a great project for me in so many ways. Since I've never done paper piecing I get to learn something new. I also get to practice my hand stitching, which can use some work, and I get to use up a lot of scraps.

I love that this is going to look like a crazy jumbled mess. Something about that just seems fun and appealing.

Although I am toying with the idea of putting a solid color between the my hexagon groups. That might make the colors stand out a little more.

But then it might make the quilt look a little too orderly. Any suggestions would be appreciated.