Dia de Los Muertos ~

We added to our altar for Day of the Dead this year...the little guitar player.  My dad loved to play the guitar!  We love and miss you dad!

First Dance ~

 The first dance at middle school was tonight...it was Halloween themed, so costumes were encouraged!  As if these kids need a reason to get dressed up :)  The girls got ready at Sharon's house and then did a sleepover at their house after the dance!  Sharon took these photos for me...thanks Sharon!  :)   Justin chaperoned the dance and had a good time.  He said it was hilarious, none of the kids really danced so much as jumped up and down.  I was sorry to miss it, but wiped out after the Halloween party at Stove, so I stayed home and relaxed with the house all to myself.  These girls sure are growing up!

p.s. Here's a shot of McKenna and I hitting the dance floor at the Stove Party!

Pumpkin Patch Fun ~

 On our way home from Denver we decided to stop at our favorite pumpkin farm, Bartels!  We had to stock up on pumpkins and of course replenish my stock of roasted green chilies for the year, so off we went!

 I was able to get a lot of cute photos of Jordyn this year, so you can get a good look at her new braces she got on October 18th.  So far she doesn't seem to mind them and she said she can still chew gum (even though that was on the Do Not Eat list).  The only thing she has a hard time with so far is apples and thin crust pizza.

They had a monster truck you could ride on this year, which was new.  It looked like fun, but instead we got right to the business of picking out a pumpkin!  It was pretty late in October so we didn't think there would be a good selection, but there were still plenty of gorgeous pumpkins out there!

 Naturally we had to stop at the pumpkin chunker to watch some pumpkins fly!  Finally she found her favorite pumpkins and we were good to go!  Another wonderful afternoon at the pumpkin patch!

Thank you Bartel Family!  We always have a great time on your farm!

Hamburger and Flies ~

 Jordyn's Choir Performance was tonight and it was a lot of fun!  They performed two songs, but the first one was my favorite, Hamburger and Flies.  You can see her in the back row, third one from the right.

The band and orchestra performed as well.  Here is a shot of Kaisen and Andrea getting ready to take the stage.

After the show we went to Verns...Justin says its a tradition to go there after any musical performance or dance...I think he just wanted a chili cheeseburger...who knows, maybe he was inspired by the song!  :)   Of course the joke of the evening was trying to get Jordyn to the show while still keeping her shirt white.  That lasted about 2 minutes after she put it on, as she got lipstick all over it!  hahahahah!  This family was not made for white shirts!

Pot Belly Fun ~

 Jordyn had a sleepover at Andreas last night for Andreas birthday party.  It was Harry Potter themed, hence the outfits!  It also happened to be Sharon's birthday that next morning, so while I was there we decided to grab a bite at Pot belly Restaurant to celebrate Sharon!  Please excuse our pajama-like clothes, this was an impromptu lunch!

 The girls were wiped out from their all-nighter, and even Victoria was tired...as you can see she made this lovely bed for herself at the table!  hahahaha!   I love last minute luncheon dates!  Happy Birthday Sharon!  :)

Visit from Old Friends ~

 Justin's friend from his Merchant Marine Days was in town for a visit.  We haven't seen Jeff since before Jordyn was born, so obviously, its been a while!  His wife and son were with him, so Jordyn had some fun goofing off with Bobby, showing him around the island, etc, while the adults had some fun catching up. 

 It was my first time meeting Sally, but I felt like I already knew her, as Jeff and Sally have been together longer than Justin and I!  It was great to finally meet everyone and we had a short but fun visit.  They are planning on coming out again next August for a jam at Uncle Sids house, so that should be a good time!  It was a crazy but great weekend! 

Wine Glass Painting Fun ~

 We tried something new this weekend...painting wine glasses.  Sharon has always wanted to try it out, so we thought we'd invite a few friends over to give it a try.  Of course, we started off with some margaritas and appetizers first...gotta get in painting mood...then we got started!  As the hostess, I was only able to get one done, but it was a lot of fun, and I can see myself getting hooked on this!

 We all liked the Aspen tree design, so that was the one we all started with...and each one is unique and pretty in its own way.  Stephanie added a little black bear to hers at the base, and then dated it, which I thought was a good idea.

 The wine glasses were coming along nicely, but then it was time to enjoy some dinner.  I made grilled chicken, roasted potatoes and grilled veggies.  Yum!  It was getting dark so we all called it quits and sat around the fire for more laughter and fun stories.  What a great bunch of ladies!

 Here is a photo of all of our art...they all came out really cute I think!  I would happily drink wine out of any of these!  We didnt "bake" them in the oven, we figured each person could take theirs home to do that, but we were all happy to take home a lovely new piece of art.  It got us all thinking about gift ideas, holiday themes, etc.  Endless fun!

 And here is a picture of the glass I made, next to a bottle of wine Karianne brought over for me as a gift...she said it made her think of me, and I love it!  Can't wait to "bake" my new wine glass and then use it with this wine!

 The women were originally supposed to spend the night, but they all had other things going on early the next morning, so my planned breakfast was instead devoured by my family!  Look what you ladies missed out on!  Thats okay though...Jordyn was psyched to eat all the donut holes to herself :)

Happy Weekend Everyone!