Chop, Chop, Chop, TIMBER!!

We cut down the tree on a rainy mild weathered day.  It was kind of weird and very un-Christmas like.  We tried a new place this year because our usual place was closed for some reason.  Our usual place is much more festive and charming.  AJ had fun regardless!

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving at my brother's house

 AJ and Uncle Craig

 AJ trying to jam on the guitar

 Adreanna

 Adreanna and Parker

 This fire truck is huge!

Parker

Field trip to the School Forest

AJ and his class had a field trip to the School Forest.  It was a cold, clear day but we learned a few things while we were there!

 Listening to our guide do turkey calls.  The kids thought it was hilarious!

 Max and AJ

 Kaden and AJ

Sam, Tyler, Max and AJ

Pound Cake's Birthday Extravaganza

So it wasn't exactly an 'Extravaganza'...


It was Pound Cake's birthday yesterday and AJ wanted him to have a pirate party hat. I told him I was going to make the hat while he was at school and he said, "Pound Cake will like that very much.". Apparently he is 5 today. Or 35 in dog years. We sang to him and AJ helped him blow out the candle in his ice cream. And then the ice cream tasted like wax... I love being a parent! :)

Badger Saturday!

Great day for a Badger football game!  And we had awesome seats too!

Oh sorry Mel, this is when the Badgers beat the tar out of Purdue... ;) Boilers down!

HO! HO! HO! Happy Halloween! Wait... What?!?

So AJ told me in July that he wanted to go as Santa for Halloween. My mom made his costume. If I would have made it it would have been in stripper fashion with tear away pants and coat and not nearly as cute. It would only be appropriate for me to go as Rudolph since I was pulling his "sleigh" (which is 3 pieces of cardboard and 4 rolls of red Duck tape that was way easier to make than anticipated). After AJ and I were dressed and getting ready to go trick or treating, I said to Steve (who was not dressed up) that we should dress him up as a drunk Grandma and put hoof prints across his chest. That would have made it an absolute classic! AJ had fun hamming it up and saying, 'Ho, Ho, Ho! Merry Christmas!' in the deepest voice he could muster while waving as if he were in a parade and handing out candy canes. It was a fun night!! :) Even though we all complain that Christmas stuff goes out way too early in the stores, the things I was looking for (reindeer antlers, white beard, etc.) were really hard to find! Small candy canes were found at Sam's Club so, needless to say, we have A LOT leftover. Hey, they'll keep until Christmas! 

If you didn't 'get' my costume idea for Steve- 'Grandma got run over by a reindeer. Walking home from our house Christmas Eve...' Maybe we'll surprise a few and show up like that around Christmas.

Hope your Halloween was as fun as ours!

What a day off of school at the mall in Appleton looks like...

Kendra and I packed up the kids and headed to Appleton for some retail therapy.  Well, we need real therapy BECAUSE we took our kids to the mall.  Just kidding.  We came home exhausted and with a few less dollars in our wallets...

 Amelia trying out the aviators...

 AJ trying on some readers!  Women's readers...

 Amelia in Urban Outfitters (Kendra was looking for some cool threads to wear to a Halloween party) trying out the chicken hat.  She even bawked.

Amelia calls AJ her silly boy friend.  I see why. ;)

Whatsa happenin' hot stuff?

Thriller!

I took Olivia & Amelia (K's girls) and AJ to see the Central Wisconsin School of Ballet's Thriller show.  The kids perform some different dances with a Halloween theme.  It was cute. I only knew 2 girls in it.  They did a couple of dances wearing a sheet as a ghost and used black light which was really cute.

These three spunky monkeys had fun!

A hike up Rib Mountain

We are always going for a hike up Rib Mountain since it is pretty much across the street.  Being goofy!

I have a video of AJ telling me that there is a snake in the hole behind him in the picture above.  And since he knows I am not a fan of snakes I did a fake scream on it.  It is pretty funny.

Skippy Jon Jones on stage

I know these pictures are terrible quality!  They were taken before we saw Skippy Jon Jones on stage at the Grand Theater.  It's always kind of dark in there and with the phone...  AJ and I both loved the show!

Have pile, will jump!

Playing in the leaves on a gorgeous October day after school!

 I love this funny shot!