Trick or treat, smell my feet...

Is it really Halloween already?? This fall has flown by.

We're still here. I know all seven of you have missed me. I've just been stricken with pregnancy induced narcolepsy, so anytime I sit down for more than 12 seconds, I pass out.

My kids are already high on life, with the anticipation of refined sugars that will fill their pails later this evening. I am sending warm thoughts filled with peace, serenity and extra energy to all the teachers we know and love. I don't know how y'all do it. This morning alone, I've had to tell my monkeys to CALM DOWN 84,000 times, at least. I've instituted a "NO sugar for the day" rule, because of what lies ahead in our day.

Hail, who completely understands this rule, tried to trick me into a treat already...

Hail: Can I hab an Oreo for bweakfast?
Me: NO. You know the rule today! NO junk all day. Besides, what kinda Momma would I be if I let you eat Oreos for breakfast all the time?? How about something healthy... like a poptart??
Hail: Ugggh. But Momma!! Fine den. Can I just hab the white stuffs from da middle?? That's not junk. It's not eben the cookie.

Sigh.

Instead of carving pumpkins this year, we opted to paint miniature ones. Don't judge. Do you have any idea how long it takes ME to scrape pumpkin goo out of FIVE pumpkins?? The kids always start out gung-ho and excited, but once they are reminded of what all carving a pumpkin entails, they bail. So, this year we painted. And they actually loved doing it. They even painted one for the Bitty Princess. It's funny, but I don't realize just how large a group we have until I see something laid out before me, like six lil' punkins all in a row.

We sure are blessed.

Wishing you all a happy, fun and safe Halloween! May you find your day filled with many more treats than tricks!
Love,
Big Momma and the silliest Punkins from the patch

Changes in latitude, changes in attitude...

We've been MIA for a little bit, but I gotta say, we're NOT missing any of our usual actions.
We've had a great time, however, we may very well need a vacation from our vacation when it's all said and done. As usual, The Storm has lived up to their reputation, and made our trip an eventful one.
In the words of Jimmy Buffet, "If we weren't all crazy, we would go insane."

The Elptit in the Room

This is from Thunder's (first grade) spelling test last week. I wonder if doing homework together as a group is the problem.

Nah. Surely not.

A Boy and His Dog

Flash Flood and our chocolate lab, Belle, have a special relationship. She tends to all of our children like Nana from Peter Pan, but she especially loves Flash Flood. Belle is such a sweet and patient dog.

"Here ya go, doggie. Here yer beaw. Want it?? Want yer beaw??"

"Mmmmm-Waaaah! Oh, wee. I wub you, doggie! I wub you!"

Sweet girl. We can't imagine life without her.

Deep thoughts from Hail Hudson

"Hey Momma, do cheetahs only live in da jungle??... So dey don't live near us?? Not even in the woods?.. Do cheetahs eat peoples?? But if a cheetah saw a people, would hims try to eat dat person?.. Can people ever run faster den a cheetah? I bet Daddy can run faster. I bet Daddy can get his gun and shoot dat cheetah.. Can a BB gun kill cheetahs?? Can a big gun kill dem??.. Can a cheetah run faster den a bullet??.. What are you eating, Momma? Can I hab some? Would cheetahs eat dat kinda soup??...."

The above conversation took place in less than a minute and a half. And he's still going, I just quit listening.

Hail's been wearing that one batting glove for nearly three weeks straight. He sleeps in it. He plays in it. He only takes it off to bathe.

The kid's a nut.

Check baby, check baby 1-2-3-4

Testing, testing.. Is this thing on? Oh, hot mic.. Hot mic...