FAVORITE FOTO FRIDAY

This week's theme is Halloween...what did you expect???

WRAP UP!
A quick wrap up of our week...

Monday: I subbed in the afternoon at Hansen. Allie had dance after school. Jake & I made on last trip through Cathy's Hallmark before they close for good.

Tuesday: I volunteered in Jake's classroom all morning. I subbed at Hansen all afternoon. Allie had Scouts after school. I had a playground fundraising meeting that night.

Wednesday: I volunteered all morning in Allie's classroom. I subbed at Hansen all afternoon. Paul & Ben came over to play while Allie & I made cookies for Paul's b-day. The kids had religion class, so Kelley & I went to dinner while they were learning about God.

Thursday: I volunteered in Allie's class all morning. I subbed at Hansen all afternoon. The kids participated in an all school walk for lymphoma in honor of Allie's friend Hunter & Jake's teacher Mrs. Marshall...both are now cancer free!

Friday: No school! I took the kids to see High School Musical 3. We waited in line for 20 minutes for tickets, they loved it so it was worth it. We went with my friend Cathi & her girls. The kids saw lots of their friends at the theater. I also met with Cathi about the upcoming Teddy Bear Tea. That evening, we had an AWFUL dinner at Lone Star with Scott & managed to get Jake some much needed long sleeved shirts.

Saturday: both kids started basketball. We spent all morning in gyms watching/playing ball. I went to the UNI craft show with friends. Jake went to Paul's b-day sleepover & movie. Allie got to pick dinner & we ordered OP pizza. We watched a Goosebumps movie on TV & it scared Allie so she barely slept that night...neither did I!

Sunday: Allie & ran to Walmart, then we came home & cleaned. We had lasagna for dinner & carved pumpkins.

Next week: I'm subbing all week in Mr. Wagner's class (yea), Allie has dance, Jake has a Scout Halloween party, I have a playground planning meeting, I am babysitting 2 kids on Wednesday after school, the kids have religion, I have conferences for both kids, Jake has a UNI basketball camp, I have Halloween treats to make for the kid's classrooms, we have trick or treating, class parties, both kids have basketball, I have a PTA budget meeting & Jake has a Scout bowling party. Whew!

THIS WEEK...

Here's our week in a nutshell...

Monday: sub at Hansen, dance for Allie
Tuesday: sub at Hansen, Scouts for Allie, fundraising meeting for me
Wednesday: sub at Hansen, babysit after school, religion class for the kids
Thursday: sub at Hansen...NOTHING else in on the calendar...I'm getting in my PJ's early & watching Survivor & Grey's!!
Friday: no school!! final Teddy Bear Tea meeting, take kids to see High School Musical 3 (if we can get in).
Saturday: basketball starts for both kids, b-day party sleepover for Jake at Paul's house
Sunday: carve pumpkins

HANGING OUT WITH COUSINS

The kids and I went to my parents house on Saturday after Jake's last soccer game (they lost). We had dinner with my parents, siblings, nieces & nephews. The kids played & played. They were busy outside coloring Nana's swing set with sidewalk chalk...what an easy form of entertainment. We also went to Ben's soccer game (the purpose of our trip). He was pretty fun to watch.




The cousins

Allie picking apples

Jake in the apple tree

The kids & Michael coloring

Ben playing soccer

FARMING

The kids got to go to the farm that Uncle Will works on. They got to ride on the combine & see how it works. Allie informed me that the corn that they picked wasn't the corn we eat, it was "television corn". I asked her what she was talking about & Jake piped in "commercial corn". The got quite the education!!

After their farm work was done, they got to pick apples from a tree & they thought that was so cool.


Allie, Ben & Jake on the tractor/wagon

Jake hanging out in a tire

Allie's turn

The kids with Uncle Will on the combine

Allie got to push the button that puts the corn into the wagon

FIELD TRIP

Jake's class went on a field trip to another 3rd grade teacher's farm. The 3rd graders at Hansen have been going on this trip for over 30 years. Several parents that were on the trip went as 3rd graders years ago.

The kids got to ride on a hayride, explore the woods, play games, ride on the tire swing, pick pumpkins, pick Indian corn and pick popcorn. They had an awesome time!


Jake with a pumpkin

Jake on the tire swing

Jake & his buddies on the old log eating lunch

Jake picking out Indian corn

Jake & friends on the hay ride.

PUBLICITY PHOTO

Here is our publicity photo for the Teddy Bear Tea. Who isn't going to WANT to come to our event after seeing this??

WILD WEEK!

Yes, it was another wild week that left me wondering where did the week go??

• Monday...Allie had parent's day at dance. We got a preview of her upcoming recital dance. So far it looks good. Jake had football practice & was pretty excited that they didn't have to run a ton!
• Tuesday...I went on Allie's class field trip to Hartman Reserve. We hiked, made cider & explored the nature center. It was a bit rainy, but we made it through the day. Jake had soccer practice in the pouring rain. He was soaked. I skipped a Festival of Trees meeting that morning...oops!
• Wednesday...I spent the day running errands & cleaning the house. Scott met me for lunch at Hu Hot. Religion was cancelled so we spent a nice evening at home.
• Thursday...I spent the morning in Allie's classroom reviewing math with the kids. I spent the afternoon subbing in my old classroom. Jake had football practice that evening.
• Friday...I subbed all day at Orchard. Jake had soccer practice after school. We went to Carlos for dinner & rented movies. Baby Mama was a great movie.
• Saturday...Jake had his final football game & it was awesome! They won 39-0. Jake had 1 TD, 2 extra points scores, 3 interceptions and pulled TONS of flags. Unfortunately his soccer game didn't go as well. They lost. Jake was so upset, he was goalie the 2nd half & worked his tail off, but couldn't stop a few balls. After the game, we went to Pepper's to cheer on UNI. We then met friends at my house for drinks & chatting outside. It was gorgeous.
• Sunday....we had a Scout meeting at the pumpkin patch. It was a great time. Jake went to see the Chinese acrobats at UNI with a friend. He said it was awesome.

This week will be another quick one. We have dance, 2 soccer practices, our last soccer game, religion, Jake's class field trip, volunteering in each kid's room, Teddy Bear Tea photo deadlines, a PTA meeting and I sub 4 days next week.

Me & the kids at the pumpkin patch

Jake's Scout group

Jake & Allie

Ellie, Allie & Grace

Jake & Sam

Allie warming up at ballet class

Jake

My soccer stud

The goalie is ready

Allie picked out a pumpkin



Hunter, Morgan & Allie on the field trip

Allie's class

Allie making cider

Caleb, Braden, Ben, Carmen, Allie & Kayleigh

Allie's class again (note Allie & her best buds in the front...Andrea, Morgan & Allie)

GOODBYE FFF

OK...I have failed! I can't handle the regular Favorite Foto Friday posts. It is causing WAY too much stress in my life. I have to let it go!

Here's the deal...when I stole the FFF idea from a fellow blogger (thanks Stacy) I was really jazzed about the idea. I loved tuning into Stacy's blog to see what she chose for pics. I had lots of fun sifting through old pics & coming up with themes. As the weeks went on the task wasn't quite as fun. This was because a lot of my pics weren't on my computer & I had to scan them in. It became a chore. Now, I find myself in a panic on Thursdays wondering "What will my FFF theme be & how will I get through my 20+ photo albums to find the right pics AND scan them in?" It isn't fun anymore...now it is a chore & frankly I can't handle the pressure. My life is full of other pressures that I can't get rid & so I must say good bye to FFF on a regular basis. If I am in the mood to find the pics & post them, I will. It may be on a Friday or I may get a bit nutty & post them on a Tuesday! Who knows?? I may post frequently knowing that I don't have a deadline...I may never post favorites again...you'll have to wait & see!

So long FFF!

KITCHEN


Here are some pics of my new appliances & paint in the kitchen. I was going to wait to post until the counters were in...BUT...we haven't found time to go to look at them. Maybe this week????



My new fridge with the freezer on the bottom. We had to compromise & not get the water in the door b/c the space was too small & we had to go a size smaller with our fridge.

My double oven. I LOVE it! It has a convection oven or regular oven in the bottom part. I can bake lots of cookies at one time. Can't wait for the holiday baking season to begin.

My microwave...I'm still learning all of it's features.

My dishwasher with no controls on the outside. And it is amazing how well it cleans. Especially with the water softener.

My new Uppercase Living saying that Kim & Michael put up for me. I ordered more :) Oh & the new paint color.

ANOTHER WEEK...GONE!

Here is our week in review...

• Garden Club: Jake officially joined Garden Club at school. They meet every Friday morning from 7:30 until school starts. You can join beginning in 3rd grade. Initially Jake wasn't interested, but once he heard how much fun it was, he was on board. The kids spend the morning pulling weeds, planting seeds & other garden stuff!
• Friends Over: Jake invited Carter over to play on Thursday after school, Allie invited Kayleigh. Both friends were easy to have around & the kids had a great time. Ben even snuck into the mix when he heard there was a football game in the back yard.
• Book Bag: Allie finally received her book bag at school. Each week the reading teacher send home a book bag full of books at her reading level (all 1st graders get this). Allie has been waiting and waiting for the beloved bag to arrive. She read every book in it the first night.
• Tests: Jake is still doing well at school. He is scoring in the 90's or 100 in every test he takes. Yeah Jake!
• Football: Jake's team got to play their game in the UNI Dome this weekend. The lost again, bringing their record to 0-5. Next Saturday is their last game. Jake did look decent & pulled flags like crazy. He had a couple of nice runs too.
• Soccer: Jake's team won their soccer game on Saturday. The score was 9-1. Jake was goalie during the 2nd half & did well. He also scored his first goal of the year.
• Cheer Camp: Allie attended cheerleading camp this weekend. She got the "motion award".
• Party: Jake went to the triplet's birthday party. I think we counted 35 third graders at the party (about 1/2 of the class).
• The Mile: Jake placed 5th in his class for his mile time (out of the boys).
• Sleep Over: Jake spent the night at Nick's house on Saturday night. Allie had our sitter Alishia spend the night.
• Guests: We had guest all weekend. Michael, Kim & Drew arrived Friday evening. We grilled out & went to bed early. Saturday, we hooked up with Alishia & went to the kids events & out to lunch. We grilled out Saturday night. On Sunday, mom & dad arrived. We had brunch & went to Jake's game in the Dome.
• Gunnar's House: Allie went to Gunnar's house yesterday afternoon. When I came to pick her up, I found her & Gunnar hiding in a tree!
• This week: we have our last 2 football practice & a game, 2 soccer practices and a game, parent's day at dance, I am scheduled to sub & volunteer at the school, Allie has a field trip (I get to go), I have a hair appt (go away grey), I have a Festival of Trees meeting & deadlines, Jake's Scout den is going to the pumpkin patch, Jake is going to GBPAC with a friend to see the acrobats, it is UNI's Homecoming....whew!

Allie does Alisha's hair

Allie & Alishia

Allie & friends at Cheer Camp

Jake messing around

Allie with her award from camp

Jake at the Dome, running for the hand off

Jake after his game

Drew at the Dome

Paul, Jake, Ben & Adam at the party...they always seem to find each other

The whole group!