We did the Halloween thing this year…we actually took the  kids trick-or-treating in our neighborhood, and Connor and Lucy had a blast.  Tyler visited two houses (our two neighbors directly across the street) and then went home with Tim.  He really wanted to open his twizzlers and didn’t care to go anywhere else.  Also, he hated his costume (See video link below). hehe  Connor was the Green Lantern superhero and Lucy was Snow White.  I’m not really into candy (as some of you may know) and I’m not really into the spooky, dark aspect of Halloween, but I did really enjoy seeing the kiddies dressed up and having such a fun adventure trick-or-treating in the neighborhood.  Enjoy the pics!  Notice in this video how quickly Tyler’s attitude shifts when he finds out what’s at stake.  hahaha!

The lovely Snow White

Fierce green lantern

The crying dinosaur

Tyler getting his first piece of candy from Mrs. Robin

This year we joined Community Christian Homeschoolers Co-op.  My main reasons for joining were fellowship for the kids and support for me.  So far, our experience has been good.  We meet with about 10 other homeschooling families for a lesson twice a month and field trip once a month.  In October, our field trip was to Coon Hollo Corn Maze in Micanopy, FL.  The kids got to enjoy a hayride, during which they fed cows, and a lesson on the corn plant.  They also had fun climbing haystacks and riding a tractor-pulled barrel train.  We did attempt the corn maze, but took the easy way out, because I was hot and the stroller kept getting stuck. 🙂

Connor and Nate Fick on the hayride

Marianne and mini-man

Connor bravely distributing food pellets to the cows

Little lu (the city girl) was not a fan of the cow smell..hahaha!

Climbing the haystacks

Playing in a big tub of dried corn

Connor loves climbing trees

Mini-man in front of the haystacks

The new skateboard with safety gear

We are so thankful for the cooler weather.  I am no longer trying cajole my children to spend time outside, like I was during the oppressive summer months.  Instead, they beg me to go outside and ride their bikes during every free moment they have.  Tyler’s two favorite words right now are “vit” (short for vitamin, with a long “i”) and “bike.”  It’s hard to tell which one he’s saying because they sound pretty much identical.  He loves his vitamins, and he LOVES riding his tricycle and his truck ride-on in front of our house.  Connor and Lucy love to race around on their big wheels and “big kid” bikes, and Connor is also a huge fan of his razor scooter and now his new skateboard.  So the four of us are spending most of every afternoon outside in front of our house.  I’m loving it! 🙂

Tyler can't reach the pedals yet, so he sits on the step behind the seat of his trike, and does Flintstone feet to get around...quite cute!

Little Lu on her big girl bike

Big brother on the big wheel...yes, that's a pillow...he says the seat hurts his back...hmmm 🙂

Riding down the driveway in the wagon...word to the wise, you can't steer those things while you're flying down an incline..

Lots of skinned knees these days...we all participate for "Injury Intervention" 🙂

There might be another post like this one in the next weeks.  I love taking pictures of my kids playing outside.  The weather is gorgeous, and they’ve been having a great time.  Stay tuned.

Working from home

I just had to make this mini-post, since I caught this priceless picture of the hub.  Usually he is holed up in his home office working, but on rare occasions he emerges and works on the couch.  Cushy job, huh? 😉

I turned 33 years old a few weeks ago (October 19, to be exact).  This is not really post-worthy, but the pics of my children eating “my” cupcakes are.  My wonderful husband gave me flowers for my birthday and took me shopping for some new duds.  We were supposed to go out for a romantic dinner following our mall expedition, but since we were the last customers to leave the mall (at 9:15PM), we ended up picking up my favorite fast food (Moe’s) before heading home.  Thank you to all who called and texted me that day.  I was really overwhelmed by all the thoughtfulness from my dear friends.  PS  Have I ever mentioned that I love my thirties so far…except for the slower metabolism that is. 🙂

Random shot of Tyler with a marshmallow stuffed in his mouth..couldn't resist

Gotta love that artificially blue icing 🙂 (And sorry about his crusty nose)

Little Lu