Fall into Color

After Keira's eye exam yesterday morning, we spontaneously decided to go to the Arboretum. It's been a long overdue and right now is the perfect time to go. Thousands of pumpkins line the trails and Cinderella Fairytale structures adorned with all kinds of that strange yet beautiful fruit.

I took over 800 pictures, here is a small collection: un-photoshopped. Erik's computer is "sick" at the moment and I don't have the fancy stuff on my computer, so this is what you get - perfect imperfection.

Kassidy was not in picture taking mood yesterday, so there are only a handful of decent pictures of her.

An uninvited guest during lunch.

I took this set of pictures in the Beast's Castle.

"How am I going to get in that fountain?"

I really liked the texture and color of the fountain, the slow running water and the purple blossoms in it.

The tile at the bottom of this pool is gorgeous.

My favorite part of the arboretum has always been the Women's Garden. I have a picture of the statue's head on my fridge. The kids and I could have stayed among the butterflies and flowers forever. It was so quiet and relaxing, away from all the people.

Katharine seemed to be in a bit of a sultry moon yesterday, which made for some interesting pictures.

What's inside this old pecan tree?

That girl LOVES to get messy!

New Art

I found an assortment of art lying around when I got home tonight.




The first is a Wolverine puppet, by Lukas. He made one for around a dozen other superheroes as well..




Next up is Katharine figuring out the new hierarchy at Hogwarts once Potter's kids start attending.




Lastly, here are some "power cards" by Lennon and Lukas. It is interesting that the boys are already thinking this kind of stuff up before they even know that these kinds of card games already exist.

Boy bed, girl bed

Happy Birthday, Keira!

Keira turned three years old today!

We had awesome birthday waffles for breakfast.

Keira birthday facts:

Keira's favorite food is macaroni and cheese

She still loves to drink soy milk, but was the only one of our kids who liked beer when she got to try it

She loves to play with dolls, and sleeps with Raggedy Anne and Perry

Keira's favorite book is currently "We're going on a Bear Hunt"

She is pretty tough, and will stand up to her brothers or anybody else who gets in her way

She stopped using her pacifiers a few months ago once the last one was lost

She loves to work on puzzles, and will complete 48 piece ones by herself

She LOVES the iPad, especially for watching "Phineas and Ferb" on Netflix

Keira's nickname is "Cutey Pie"

She is a definitely a Daddy's girl, and all of her siblings think that she is my favorite- don't worry kids, I love all of you the same :)

She loves to go to dance class

It is still too early to predict which Hogwart House that she would be sorted into, but it would likely be between Gryffindor and Slytherin

Her favorite color is purple

She can be bribed with M&M's

She likes to say "I love you, Mommy", "I am so mad at you!", and "Okayyyy!"

She likes to do everything herself

Keira also loves to stick band aids and stickers all over her body and draw on herself with markers... I predict that there will be some tattoos in her (adult!) future

Football Practice

A beautiful night for practicing some flag football!

Happy Birthday, Lennon!

Lennon turned four years old today!

His party is on Saturday, but he got gifts from the family and some birthday cake tonight.

Lennon Birthday Facts:

Lennon's favorite foods are nutella and salami (but not together)

Lennon is still addicted to soy milk

He loves playing with Superfriends toys

He wants to be a zoo keeper or a superhero when he grows up

He still sleeps with his Kathe Kruse towell dolls (two bears and a donkey)

His favorite superhero is Robin

Lennon is a night owl, and is usually the last kid to fall asleep

Lennon is very sensitive, and is definitely the whiniest of all our kids :)

We still call Lennon "Captain Lennon", or "The Captain" for short

He LOVES puzzles, and works on 300 piece puzzles with his Mom

If he went to Hogwarts, he would be sorted into the Ravenclaw house

Lennon is really good at finding out where I hide my iPad

For his birthday he asked for Superfriends toys, puzzles, and a flashlight

Lennon loves to ride in the seat on the back of my bike, but is getting too big for it

He insists on sitting on the big kid swing, but hasn't figured out how to get it moving just yet

His favorite TV shows are "Phineas and Ferb", "Scooby Doo" and "Wild Kratts"

Lennon's favorite books right now are "The Very Angry Ladybug", "Where's Waldo", and anything with superheroes

Favorite phrases: "You're smart, Mommy", "I'm hungry", "Can I have a little bit more milk please?"

He likes scissors

Lennon just started choir, and he still goes to dance class

After the Storm

A big thunderstorm rolled through tonight, and we went outside to walk around and play after it was over.

I haven't said very many nice things about the weather as of late, but nothing beats Texas after a rain storm.