Halloween Party 2015

It’s taken me a little while to get this post together because I had a little difficulty with my blog program, so I’m catching up a bit.  One highlight of our last weekend was the awesome Halloween party at Mousey and Poppy’s house.  It was the perfect evening for an outdoor party, and the kids (and adults) had an absolute blast!  Our girls and the Williams girls were in attendance with some mutual friends of both of ours, and even a few dogs to go with it!

The activities for the kids started with a scavenger hunt of “bones” out in the field, and that was followed by some toilet paper mummy making.

  

After the first two activities, the kids ate some Halloween party food then got ready for the donut on a string activity.  They had to race to see who could finish the donut fastest without using their hands.  That’s an activity I think I could have excelled at!!

  

The next big event was the magic show put on by Madame Vanish and her assistant, Lucious. 

  

The magic show was quite impressive.  Madame Vanish and Lucious have quite the entertaining act!  After wowing the kids with several impressive tricks, they really topped it with their grand finale – the levitation of Lucious.  This video doesn’t quite do it justice as it’s a little far away, but the levitation act was most definitely the highlight of the show.  Check it out here: https://youtu.be/JCPmZTh4cLs  Madame Vanish and Lucious definitely inspired several young budding magicians. 

With the buzz from the magic show still brewing, the kids then headed down to the woods for their haunted woods walk.

 

In addition to all the props in the woods, there were several characters waiting in various places to jump out and scare and little party goers who happened to walk by.

  

 

After all the kids got their turn on the haunted woods walk, we all enjoyed some time sitting around the bonfire.  The kids played and ran hard in the field then tried their hand at using the props  to scare each other at their own version of the haunted woods walk.

 

 

The evening finished off with the kids having to feel some “dead things” around the bonfire, and Lyla continuing to press Poppy on the secret of how he levitated!  It was such a great party, and my parents did an amazing job of making it so fun for the kids.  We so appreciated all their hard work to create all the games, the magic show, the haunted woods, etc., to make it such a fun night of memories for the kids.  Our girls had an absolute blast, and I know we did too.  What a great night with family and friends!

 

A Visit to Scruffy’s–Photos by Nina

Lately, Nina has expressed an interest in photography.  Last Monday when the kids have off school for Columbus Day, I took them to a hike at Morven Park.  I brought my camera with me, and Nina wanted to take a lot of pictures of things she thought were interesting in the woods, flowers and plants we saw, and other cool sights.  So, this past Saturday afternoon when we went to Scruffy’s for ice cream after Lyla’s soccer game, Nina asked to take some pictures again.  I think we’re going to need to get this girl a camera for Christmas! 

Here are some pictures from our visit to Scruffy’s – all taken by Nina. 

 

Soccer

Lyla has been playing soccer again this season, and Mark is the coach of their team again as well.  Depending on the week, the team can play pretty well or pretty bad, however we can’t complain about Lyla.  Whether or not the team is playing well or not, she has been working hard and having fun.  This past Saturday, she had a great game!  It was almost unseasonably cold and windy, but that must have done something for the team because they played their best game of the season.  The fall season is flying by – only two more weekends and then they’re done until the spring, but we’ve enjoyed watching Lyla play and have fun this season!

This is a Big Deal!!

So, last night was a big deal in the world of some young people in the area.  And, no, it wasn’t a Taylor Swift or One Direction concert, but it felt like it from all the excitement and energy.  It was a visit from a famous juvenile author, Rick Riordan.   He is hands-down the author of Nina and Emme’s favorite books.  The books are nothing sort of an obsession. 

Earlier in the week, Barnes and Noble was distributing a limited number of wristbands to attend an evening to meet Rick Riordan and get a signed copy of his newest book.  So, after getting the wristbands (thanks to Shenley) we braved insane traffic, and for me, feeling terrible with some sort of virus, to attend the event.  The event started at 7:00 and was only open to those with a wristband, but according to the people we talked to in line, some wristband holders arrived at 3:30 to get their spot in line!  Clearly this is serious business!!!   We didn’t arrive at 3:30, but we got in line around 6:00 and just before 7:00 we were filed very officially into our seats.  

I was very pleasantly surprised at how engaging of a speaker Rick Riordan was.  I can see why he relates so well to young people.  He’s very well spoken, but he’s also very funny and clearly seems to “get” the mindset of a tween or teen (and in our case, pre-tween).

I wish there was audio for the picture below of the girls.  Rick (picture on the left) had just announced that there will be a five book series coming out in 2016 that will feature the beloved character, Percy Jackson, and his friends.  The decible level of the screaming that took place was off the charts!  It even managed to penetrate my very congested head and ears.  Again, if you have a kid who’s a fan of these books, you get what a big deal this announcement was.

  

At the end of the event, all the young people were given their signed copy of Rick Riordan’s newest book and a shield to go with it.  This was definitely one of those moments as a parent when you realize that all the rushing around, sitting in traffic, plotting to get the wristbands, and being out late on a school night (when mom is feeling awful) is worth it.  Shen and I commented that we felt this way about getting U2 tickets when we were teenagers, and here we are watching our kids have that same excitement at a tween book signing.

It was a big night for them, and we love their love of reading and fascination with this author and his books.  It’s definitely something we’re happy to support!

 

Lunar Eclipse

Since last night’s lunar eclipse was a rare one, I wanted to try to get some photos of the “blood moon” as it was called.  There were several factors that made this eclipse rare, but one of the main factors was that it was a total eclipse of a full moon that was called a “Super Moon” meaning that it was at it’s closest point to earth, making it appear bigger and brighter.  Also, there have only been five times in the 1900’s that there has been a total eclipse of a Super Moon.  The next one won’t be for another 18 years.  This moon was also called a Blood Moon for the red/orange color the moon takes on during the eclipse.

I had a great view of it from our back deck.  Despite many reports of clouds that were blocking the view of the eclipse, I got lucky that there weren’t any cloud issues while I was out watching.  It didn’t take it long to progress to just a sliver of light, but it was very pretty to watch while I had the chance!

Fun Family Evening

This past Saturday, we had a fun family evening at Mousey and Poppy’s house.  We had some great food, played Cornhole, and Cayenne and Maggie got to play.  However, the highlight of the night came when the kids started trying to climb in between two trees.  They made it look so easy, that the adults commented that of course we’d be able to do that too!

   

Shenley and Pops gave I a valiant effort – proving it was really much harder than it looked.  Maybe our ankles just don’t bend the way they used to, or our weight to strength ratio isn’t what it used to be, but it sure was entertaining to watch. 

  

Poppy got quite a bit of attention when he came crashing down from between the trees.  Even the dogs were concerned!

It’s a fun evening when the family gets together (this time, however, minus Nina, Emme, and Bo)!

Playmates

It hasn’t taken Cayenne and Magnolia long to become great buddies.  Their first meeting was a little dicey, but that’s to be expected.  Cayenne was over the top wound up, and Maggie was just getting used to everything.  However, now, they’re great buddies and great playmates.  When they get together, it’s running, wrestling, chasing, and just overall good puppy fun!  I’m so glad Cayenne has a puppy playmate in the family now. 

First Day of School 2015

Yesterday was the first day of school, and like I feel like I say every year, “I can’t believe they’re already…” and this time it’s 2nd Grade and 4th Grade!!  They were both very happy with their teacher assignments, and both had good friends in their classes, so there was a lot to be excited about.  They were both excited leading up to the first day, but in the morning yesterday they both realized they were a little nervous also, so they called what they were feeling “nervicited” – a mixture of nervous and excited.

They both had a great first day and were all smiles after school and this morning as well.  I think we’re off to a good year!