Happy Halloween!

Halloween was so much fun this year!  We were joined at our house for trick-or-treating by Brian's parents, my mom, my sister Sarah and nephew Cooper.  Addison was dressed as a pink princess (I even let her wear the jeweled headband I wore in our wedding) and Kennedy was a tulip fairy.  After the kids were all ready to go and it was dark enough, we began our mission.  This was the first year that Kennedy was really into Halloween, once she got the hang of it, she was running up to the doors and running on to the next house, it was a challenge to keep up with her!  Addison was so polite and always said "please" and "thank you".  Once we were finished and back at the house, we still had a few trick-or-treaters coming to our door and it was too cute, when the girls would hear the doorbell ring, they would run to the door with their buckets and sit there thinking they were going to be receiving candy from the kids coming to our door.  Silly girls!  I can't wait to see what Halloween has in store for us next year!

Picture Time!

It was about that time to get the girls pictures taken so we could update friends and family in our holiday card, so we went to Portrait Innovations and got it done!  Kennedy had a bit of a rough time, but all in all I think it was a successful trip.  Now for our family portrait session, we will see what is in store for us.

Liepold Farms Pumpkin Patch 2010

We had an amazing time at our annual trip to Liepold Farms Pumpkin Patch!  We were joined by many friends and family, which is always a bonus!  Both girls were able to take a ride on the mini ponies, they both had grins from ear to ear.  After the pony rides, we went on the hay ride, corn maze (this year's theme was Bugs....per Brian it was not as cool as last year's Star Wars theme), and pumpkin catapult.  By then we were all ready to have a bite to eat and it turned out in our favor that the Burgerville mobile cart was on site ready to feed us yummy food.  We ended our visit by picking out pumpkins.  It was so funny, there were little wheelbarrows for the kiddos, we only grabbed one thinking Kennedy was a bit young to use it.  Boy were we wrong!  Miss Kennedy was fighting her sister to use it.  That was a bit of a struggle, but it all ended well :)

Fishing at the Rainbow Trout Farm

The girls got their first fishing experience at the Rainbow Trout Farm on Mt. Hood.  We packed up the car and headed to Mt. Hood with Brian's parents and Brandon's family.  It was so much fun!  There are several different shallow ponds each with different sized fish, there is no catch and release, so if you catch it they measure it and you pay based on the length of the fish.  It was very easy to snag a fish, sometimes too easy!  Addison thought it was pretty cool, but when the fish was out of the water and daddy wanted her to touch it she was not going to have it!  We were lucky to get her to hold the fishing line with the fish still attached for a picture.  Kennedy didn't get to reel in a fish, as she was a bit too young for that.  However, she loved watching, and seeing the fish swim around the bucket.  I think we will definitely go to the Rainbow Trout Farm again!

Burleigh Family Camping Trip 2010

This was the second year that the Burleigh family (along w/ the Stahl family) took a weekend off and went to Beverly Beach, off the Oregon Coast, to go camping.  However, this year we were joined by a few more families, the Fast family and the Wells.  The weather was much more conducive this year, as it was not nearly as rainy and cold.  The girls had a great time playing on the beach, Kennedy especially liked filling up the buckets with sand.  Addison and Cooper had fun running and chasing each other on the beach.  Will we do it again next year?  I guess we will see!

The Many Faces of Kennedy

Here are a few pictures of Kennedy goofing around, with a few serious shots mixed in :)  She is seriously one of the happiest kids I know!  Oh, and my favorite is her "cheese" face!

Addison & Kennedy visit PD Farms

Addison & Kennedy spent 1 week with their Papa Phil & Mama Dianne on their farm, PD Farms, & had a wonderful time! Brian & I sure missed them, but managed to get along without them. The girls helped pick berries, went to a few farmer's markets, played with their cousins and much more. Here is a message I received from Mama Dianne during their visit:

"Sorry no pictures last night. We had a great day though, helped outside a bit. Then we went to the market in Enterprise. The kids were really good, and enjoyed the live music in the park. We sat and ate popcorn, pet puppies, and danced to the music. Okay well the kids danced, Kennedy was hearing a different tune than I was but she was a dancing fool!!

At one point in the evening we lost them both!! Okay we didn't really loose them because we were right there with them, but they were hiding under the table, which has rather long clothes on it. But they could both reach from under the table to the top...........where the bowls of peaches were. Yep, that's right they were snitching peaches from the table, on the other side from where we were standing. So, when we lifted the cloth up there were girls, peach pits, and juice running down their arms. What a juicy mess, but it was all good and washed off.

We went to a mexican diner that Phil and I often enjoy when we are up that way for dinner after the market. We knew they wouldn't be to hungry after multiple peaches, carrots, popcorn, berries, and yeah I bought them a homemade oatmeal cookie. That's all pretty healthy. So, the special of the day was a banana smoothie. Which of course we ordered to share. It came in a very pretty margarita glass, so I had to of course test it to make sure it was alcohol free. The glass had me fooled. It was delicious, so I poured some in each of the girls glasses to which Addison said, "I don't like that". Papa asked her if she had ever had one and she said no. I told her she had to take one taste, if she didn't like it she didn't have to drink it. That is the right Grandma response isn't it? Well Kennedy loved hers, Addison said she didn't. However when the possibility of Kennedy drinking hers as well as her own, Addison asked if she could try it again.

Now, she loves it! She said it just had to wait for her to learn about it. Learn about it? I do not know what she learned except that Kennedy loved it, but then Addison loved hers. I was sure Addison needed to stretch her legs so she and I ran/walked the 4 blocks to the store, (I forgot to bring a diaper bag) to buy diapers. But, Grandpa drove to fast and beat us. She informed him he was supposed to let us win, but it was okay we could all be winners.

We got our diapers........do you have any idea how many sizes and varieties of diapers there are in the store. It is enough to make any Grandmother shake her head. Back in my day, NOPE we did not use cloth, but there was only one variety....LOL. We loaded back in the truck and headed home. Addison asked how far it was, while Kennedy sang, and we told her just a short ways. Addison began to sing also, her ABC song. She does a very good job by the way. After she had sung it several times she counted to 100, well it was a shortened version of 100. She then told us, it really isn't that short of a ways. She and I continued to talk all the way home, it was a rather random conversation. But it was her best effort to stay awake, which she did. She asked if she could watch one show before we went to bed.

How could that go wrong? Well let me tell you the cartoons on TV at 9:30 are NOT appropriate for kids. First thing we changed to iCarly. Wow, I did not know cartoons had cuss words and inappropriate stuff. Wow!! So, she watched iCarly and went right to bed as she promised. Kennedy during this process just cuddled with Grandma, which is a welcome end to any evening. Sorry for no pictures, but a rundown of the evening.

We are having a good time!!!! "