Halloween

It's no secret around our house that Halloween is not my favorite day of the year.  I'm a notorious tightwad, so purchasing seven costumes is out of the question. I'm a barely adequate seamstress so that's the route we take every year, with more than a few swear words escaping my mouth as I attempt to sew some costume.  We always try to double up a costume piece with something that can be used later.
This year, the boys needed pajama bottoms, so I made their costumes from good ole flannel.  After sewing a pant leg, not once but twice, inside-out I was determined to never trick-or-treat again.  It would help if I began sewing a month earlier as opposed to the day before.

But upon returning from our evening excursion, and having so much fun with the kids, I am not so sure.
Shannon is sure...he stated matter-of-factly that this was the last year...we shall see!

Dominic couldn't believe his good fortune ~ how is it even possible to run up to someone's door and have them give you candy.
With a hop, skip and a jump he would dash to the next house.

We overheard Annika singing to herself while she twirled around the kitchen in her Tinkerbell costume, "I'm so happy, I'm so happy, I could twirl all my life!"

One of my favorite moments of the evening was when we arrived home, Dom hid behind the couch to get a good look at all his loot.
Naturally, Nickles discovered him and was utterly dismayed that Dom wasn't about to fork over his candy.

Shannon is the chief jack-o-lantern carver, so while I was sewing he was busy carving pumpkins.
This year we have the best pumpkins ever ~ I think that every year!
Thanks to an inspiring email that Aunt Rose sent we did think a bit more creatively.

The first couple aren't particularly holy or anything, but the last few are just cool!

Dom's last words before going to bed, "I wub candy a wot, I just wub it!"  

Dominic the Hummingbird

"Mom, can I have some sugar water?"

"No, why?"  why would I ask that?

"It's so tasty, it's really yum.  I like it.  It's sweet."

"Ok."

"Yay!!!  Mom said I could have some sugar water!"

That is why Dom is sitting at the counter drinking sugar water.

And I wonder why he has so much energy.

Random Bits of This & That

This week has been an absolute blur.  Time does pass mighty quickly these days, but this was an all new level....and I am not sure why.  It is good to have Katherine back home, if only to help peel potatoes ~ just kidding!  It is amazing how when one cog is missing in our family wheel, things just aren't quite as smooth.

Nickles, happy helping with a "big" job, and he knows the difference!

As soon as Katherine arrived home, she and Michaela were busy arranging a horse ride, as Katherine hasn't went for a trail ride yet.  While they spent the afternoon trail riding the rest of us rode bikes and walked up and down Grandma and Grandpa's road ~ and napped.

One morning this week Joshie and I had to run some errands in town.  We were running into the grocery store when this boy, about 13, asked us for some money so he could get breakfast.  I am a bit jaded to requests for money, and typically I don't even stop walking, don't even look, but this morning I stopped.  We asked him if he'd want to come in and we'd buy something in the store.  He declined, for whatever reason I am not sure.  But, as we were loading up our cart with bricks of cheese and gallons of milk and bags of pears and cereal it haunted me. 

Joshie was asking questions for which I didn't have answers.

"Mom, why does he need breakfast?"

"Where is his Mom?"

"Where is his Dad?"

"Can't he eat food at his own house?"

We picked out a bit of food for the boy, but all the while I was interiorly judging our choice of food and whether he would just throw something healthy in the garbage.  Certainly, this "breakfast" request was a ploy to obtain money for some unhealthy lifestyle he was addicted to. 

We gave the boy his little bag of food.  I could barely look him in the eyes and that is probably what he hungered for most, whether he knew it or not.  

A hunger for dignity, for respect, for love, not just another handout, no matter what our state in life.  

We, alone, cannot feed every homeless person on the street ~ and in Helena it is not many, comparatively ~ but we can give them a bit of dignity with at least a smile and a look into their eyes.  

That scares the heck out of me, I feel vulnerable, but I am going to begin.  

And this Christmas, we are going to do more than buy a few extra toys and dump them off at church.  I am not sure what at the moment, and I still need to run this by Shan, but it must be something more.  We will give of ourselves, give a bit more, because we are all capable of doing just a bit more, right?

I did not mean to dump that little sermon ~ but it feels good to get it all out.

The little boys just got up, so now my day begins in earnest! 

Dom and Annika had to run out and see the snowflakes drifting down right after they jumped out of bed.  

Yay!!!!  

Fall & Apples...Apples & Fall

Fall typically brings the smell of cooking apples to our kitchen.  We don't have our own trees but always seem to end up with enough to make applesauce for the year.  Today was probably the last picking day, unless Shannon schlep some more apples off someone.  We picked Grandma and Grandpa's trees with Uncle Gabe and his kiddos.  It was blue skies and freezing cold.  Uncle Gabe had the genius idea of backing his truck up under the apple tree and bing, bang, boom ~ the tree was all picked!  

The fun is over and the work begins....but mmmmm, the smell is heavenly.  

We may just do a pot of pie filling or sauce a day to stretch out the warm feeling it brings to the house.  

Joshie managed to climb up and snag the 15 or so apples left in one tree!

Apparently, Michaela didn't want us to know she was around ~ 

she was hiding in her camo. 

Sweet, crispy, cold....

Yayyyyyy!  

This is totally random, but for the record, in the event someone out there is reading this ~
Our goddaughter had better not be a cow for Halloween!
Do you know what that will do to her?
She'll be damaged for life!
let pierce be the cow....he has farm blood anyway

Gratitude ~:o)

Saturday, Shannon and I spent the better part of the day sitting in the hospital.  I am typically not too hypochondriacal, but...that is not what I wanted to write about.  What I did want to write about is what we returned home to!  The little kids probably spent most of the day watching movies, and, frankly I'm fine with that.  The olders cleaned the bathrooms (even using silver polish on the fixtures), washed the laundry, ironed the laundry, put away the laundry, prepared dinner, set the table, and made a pumpkin pie!  

So, it was mostly Michaela ~ I was so proud of her ~ and thankful ~ and relieved.  She is much more capable than I give her credit for!

It was delicious to lie in bed with the smell of pumpkin pie drifting through a neat and tidy house and contented cherubs all in bed.

And I am perfectly fine, just a ruptured cyst.
Nothing that four hours sitting in the ER couldn't fix.  That would make anyone feel better just so they could get the heck out of there!

Joshie

We were sitting in a parking lot on the Carroll College campus when a highschool girl from our parish walked past our vehicle. 

Joshie says, "James must like her."   (James is my cousin, also in highschool)

"Why would you say that, Joshie."

"Oh, she is just such a squirt."

Perplexed, I asked him if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

"Oh, it's a really good thing."

Obviously, our son is no Casanova.  We'll keep encouraging him to think these kinds of things about girls and if the time comes that he actually calls a girl a squirt...well, we won't tell him that a squirt is probably not an endearing term.

Homecoming

As I sit here tonight with the rain drizzling outside, Shannon reading to the kiddos downstairs, and Nickles squealing somewhere in the background, my heart is at rest.  My family is all back under one roof.  I didn't think having one of my kiddos away for so long would bother me much, but now that Kath is back I realize it kind of did!  Not that I wouldn't let she or one of her siblings go somewhere again if need be, each child is just missed when they are not home.  It makes me dread college days...like pit-in-the-stomach dread...but those days aren't here yet!

The trip to the airport quite an exciting event today.  No one could wait to get there.  We arrived a bit too early, then waited some more.  Joshie and Annika were so excited that they couldn't stop hugging the rest of us.  "Aren't you so excited, Mom?!?"  

We watched the plane land, waving all the while.  Michaela reminded us that Katherine couldn't see us, but hey, who cares, right?

I may place this picture on the kids' bathroom mirror, or possibly right next to their beds, so that they remember how much they love one another when they are arguing next week, or tomorrow, as the case may be.

And so, in our at-the-moment-peaceful home, we are all back together and I will try not to take that for granted as this time is so short before they all head their separate ways.  

Annika's Day

Annika's day was perfect right from the start.  The boys went to work with Daddy which meant she had Momma pretty much to herself for schoolwork.  This is always welcome for her as she gets her work done fast and gets extra reading in.  It also means she has time to play with her Playmobile til her heart's content!

After school Michaela was planning on helping the neighbors do yard work in return for all the hours she has spent riding their horses.  While she went to their house Annika and I went for a bike ride with the little boys.

The dog ain't getting away...the leash was wrapped around his arm so tightly that 

his hand turned blue.

"Yo, Mom, the stroller...it's in the ditch!"

Annika had enjoyed her day thus far, but it was about to get exponentially better!  Our sweet neighbors had went to a saddle sale and purchased a children's saddle and needed Annika to try it out.
She has been watching her older sisters ride and was waiting for her day to come.  It finally arrived and this little girl was in HEAVEN!

Mrs. Maixner is the best teacher ever!

Biweekly Menu

I am feeling incredibly organized.
This will be four weeks with a menu and it has made my life exponentially less stressful!

Wednesday ~ Burgers, Beans, Carrot Sticks
Thursday ~ Cauliflower Soup, Bread, Apple Slices
Friday ~ Stew, Mashed Potatoes
Saturday ~ Spaghetti Pie, Lettuce Salad w/lots of Veggies
Sunday ~ Garden Quiche, Pumpkin Bread
Monday ~ French Dips w. Leftover Stew Meat, Broccoli & Carrot Sticks, Apple Slices
Tuesday ~ Potato - Sausage Soup, Salad, Bread
Wednesday ~ Cube Steak, Mashed Potatoes, Peas & Carrots
Thursday ~ Roast Chicken (make or buy extra) Au Gratin Potatoes, Salad
Friday ~ Sloppy Joes, Cabbage Salad
Saturday ~ Grilled Elk Steaks, Baked Potato, Green Beans
Sunday ~ Chicken Pot Pie, Mashed Potato, Peas
Monday ~ Meatloaf, Oven Fries, Green Salad
Tuesday ~ Chicken-Rice Soup, Bread, Broccoli-Grape Salad



In other news ~ Today we made autumn mobiles with aspen branches and an assortment of leaves the kiddos gathered.  The kids think they are beautiful and that is ALL that matters.  They actually lend an outdoorsy feel to an otherwise dull corner of the house.

Eric, for reasons unknown to me, decided to try some blue food coloring today...the thick pasty cake-decorating kind.  The funny thing is, he thought I wouldn't notice.  

Boys....what's a mother to do?

G'Night!

Weekend Happenings

It was a bit of a lazy weekend around here.  We finished canning applesauce and apple pie filling, we made caramel-apple cinnamon rolls and even made a few caramel apples ~ yum.
Shannon fit in a football game and got a couple loads of firewood.  Despite not having a lot of down time it was still refreshing.

Nicholas couldn't wait for breakfast so he just dug right into the sticky rolls.
This kid does not take meal time lightly.  He sits at his corner of the table and eats and eats and eats and just when we think he's done, he packs away some more.  This is a pleasant change from our last two boys who we had to force-feed at times.
We're not exactly sure where he's putting it all as he's not exactly a pudgy one!

There were green tomatoes piled on the counter which I decided to try making into salsa.
It was either that or feeding them to our lazy chickens who don't deserve any extra treats due to their lack of egg production lately.  Eric and Joshie tried threatening them into laying again, but that did not produce results.  I think they told them something like this, "You chickens better start laying or you'll be bear bait or soup."  

Now I've lost focus.

The salsa turned out quite delicious ~ if one ever has an excess of green tomatoes, this wasn't a shabby way to use them.

And I just thought they all looked pretty lying there in a pile.

 Dom and Nickles even helped cut the tomatoes.  Dom is now sporting a nice bandaid on his index finger.  Nickles just mashed away with a table knife, which is probably what I should have given Dom to use as well.

We spotted a bear from our kitchen window Friday night, but the bear hunter had went flying with Grandpa and Annika.  We spent the evening watching it root around for grass, grubs and whatever else bears eat.  Dom was intent on not letting it out of his sight, perching on a stool til it was too dark to see...not that he saw anything through his binocs anyway.

Bear watching....

 ...and bird watching!

Here's to a new week....we are all looking forward to Kath coming home Friday, especially Eric and Joshie.

I was teasing them that she might just stay in Seattle til Grandma comes home and Josh began crying. 

He misses you the most, Katherine! 

XOXO