Halloween 2012

The night before we carved the pumpkins that the kids picked at the patch.

They had very thick rinds and Mark decided a knife was not enough. His solution was fast, and I think he enjoyed it, but a drill does spray pumpkin pretty far.

 This year we had playgroup on Halloween so it was a good opportunity to dress up.

There are enough kids that it's an instant party. Just for contrast, here's a playgroup Halloween stair photo from 2006.

And before we went home all the kids got treats from a few of the moms.
In the afternoon the kids put their costumes on again and went to visit one of our favorite neighbors. Then Aunt Liisa and my parents came over for dinner and we had the kids trick-or-treat at different rooms inside our house. They had a great time and we didn't have to be out late!

 

Penny

helps me check the light for our Christmas photo session.We took our picture indoors this year which worked well. I like the light outside better, but not having the kids out in the cold made it seem easier. Also, Mark made me quit when we had an acceptable picture rather than trying for a "perfect" one. I think everyone was happier.

Field trip : pumpkin patch

We returned to the same farm we went to last year. It was a foggy morning, but cleared up during our visit.
We heard about how pumpkins grow and the different parts of the pumpkin plant from Farm Wife Julie.

This year the hayride was a little longer and the kids got to choose the pumpkins out of a larger field.

Henry picked one that was still attached to the vine so Farmer Bill came to the rescue.

 After riding back through the orchard there were the animals to visit in the petting zoo.

Then the best part of the morning- fresh pumpkin doughnuts!

The kids ran around and played on the playground some and we had a slightly chilly picnic lunch before heading home.

Sitting outside

The weather has been so nice here that even the baby came out to sit this afternoon.

She's wearing vintage Finnish pajamas that belonged to me and my sisters. I think she might be the last baby to do so, the zipper is about to give out. They've had a good run.

Apples!

When we made our list of plans for the year, apple picking was one of them.

For a few weeks now during school time one of the items the kids have been grateful for is apple picking.

One day I realized that if we didn't go soon we would miss the season. So on a pretty fall morning we put our galoshes on and headed across town to our usual orchard.

Every kid got to carry and fill a bucket. We picked 22 lbs. of Fuji apples.

They've been a snack-time favorite around here.

Aunt Maryann visited

She came for a brief stay, but we packed in a lot of fun. Saturday morning there was a one-mile fun run that Mark and the four big kids took her to. Then we had lunch at a Greek restaurant. Penny enjoyed the hummus great deal.

There was chai and board game playing. 

And cinnamon rolls for breakfast. We can't wait until she comes back.

Just a happy baby

It seems like she's going to be a talker just like the others.

Helena stirs the onions

for our refried beans. We've been a bit better about using our kitchen helper system. Penny is really going to want a day of her own soon and I'm not sure how to make that work. Having two days each week for the big kids was easy for everyone to remember.

Sand goatee

I hope she wasn't eating it.