Happy Halloween

Our beautiful pirates were ready to get the night underway. We ate our traditional chili and cornbread dinner and got our annual visit from Chip and Teresa.
They always spoil the girls with yummy Halloween treats! Then we headed to Hank and Leslie's to Trick-r-Treat. Pippy Longstockings greeted us at the door. Unfortunately for Matt, Hank borrowed costumes from a neighbor for the dads to wear. Matt hesistantly chose this lovely gecko number, but was a very good sport.
Michael was just as surprised when he arrived, but went along with it and put on this Wolverine costume. The 3 dads sure made the kids happy and gave us all a great laugh! I'm just worried about what Hank will have in store for the moms next year! It was finally dark enough and the kids were so excited to head out. Dominic could hardly contain himself, but was patient long enough to get photos of these great costumes.

What a colorful bunch!

My Mom was visiting for the weekend (somehow, I didn't get a single picture), but she stayed at the Lebitski's to pass out candy and watch the World Series. The rest of us headed out to fill candy bags and check out the haunted house we visited last year.
Dominic went to the first two houses and said "I'm not very done yet. My bag isn't to the top." It was so cute so we continued through several neighborhoods trying to meet his goal! There were lots of great houses...several firepits in the driveways, scary decorations on porches, a house giving out full-sized candy bars and an amazing haunted house that went through the garage and backyard.
Classic!

After about 2 hours of door-to-door candy hunting, we headed back to the house to find a happy Grandma (Giants won 4-0), ate some spider snacks, drank some apple cider and most importantly, sorted through the goodies.

Everyone had their favorites and worked hard on trades. Emily tried to get all of the Twix, Lauren wanted all of the Reese's cups and I got all of the Almond Joys and Laffy Taffy's!

Unfortunately, tomorrow is a school day so we couldn't stay too late. Another successful Halloween with great friends and lots of candy to satisy our sweet tooth for the next several weeks!

Paying Tribute

Tonight we went to Pala Casino to see Don't Stop Believin, a fantastic Journey tribute band. We had several October birthdays to celebrate and Tim and Stacey have been to many concerts at the Grand Cabaret at Pala and suggested we all go. We loved it!

Stacey and Tim

Hank and Leslie

We sang along to Open Arms, Faithfully, Wheel in the Sky and many more. I'm not sure what was a better show...the great performance on stage or the groupies on the dance floor. It certainly seemed like Cougar Night and they were sure entertaining. The final song was, of course, Don't Stop Believin and it was the perfect ending to a very fun night. Thanks for the idea Stacey and Tim. We can't wait to go there again and the best part is it's FREE!

RED RIBBON WEEK

This past week our schools participated in Red Ribbon Week, a great opportunity to talk with our kids about drug and alcohol abuse. At the middle school, they read a story each day about lives affected by drunk driving, drug abuse, etc. in their pride class. Taylor had to wear crazy socks one day, sunglasses another and dress as twins on Thursday. I didn't get any photos, but did enjoy hearing about all she had learned each day.
Allison was a good sport and let me take a photo each morning before heading out the door. Her school's theme was "Live Life to the Max! Drug-free works for me!" MONDAY: "When I grow up, I want to be drug-free." Dress as something you would like to be when you grow up.

TUESDAY: "Follow your dreams, don't do drugs." Wear your pajamas.

WEDNESDAY: "Drug-free, the healthy way to be." Wear athletic attire.

THURSDAY: "I've made up my mind-no drugs for me." Wear something on your head. (Note the new gap in the smile. She lost tooth #7 last night!)

FRIDAY: "Let your true colors shine! Wear red day!"

Caramel Apple/Pumpkin Party

Lauren's mom hosted a Caramel Apple/Pumpkin Making party after our 3-0 win against FC Murrieta today. Our girls really enjoy each other on and off the field, so they love any opportunity to get together. I love seeing them out of their uniforms, hair down and being so girly!

One station was set up with all of the apple toppings...chocolate chips, M&M's, coconut, almonds, oreos, candy corn, frosting, etc.

Taylor made this lovely creation The girls will be on a sugar high for sure
They found time for a little dance party.
Maylie, Taylor and Jenna pose before their dance

Another station was set up for pumpkin decorating

Taylor and her masterpiece

CHEERING WITH THE PACK

Allison couldn't wait until she made it to 3rd grade so she could participate in the "Cheer with the Pack" clinic at Great Oak High School. She remembers watching Taylor do the same thing a few years back. She passed around flyers to a few of her friends and was so excited to practice with the team on Tuesday and Wednesday night and then perform at tonight's Varsity football halftime show. Our neighbor Melanie-she used to babysit Allison when she was a toddler.
Allison with Carly and Madi
Karis, Kaylee, Lorien and Allison ready to head out to the field
Each girl was paired up with a JV cheerleader to sit with during the 1st half. Allison loved her buddy, Paige!
Our sweet friend Karlee found Allison in the stands
GO Wolfpack! Halfway through the 2nd quarter, the girls took the field and got to cheer with the varsity team.

Halftime show

Doing their stunts...Allison is in the middle group lifting up Karis

Allison and Kaylee sitting with us to watch the 2nd half

Karlee found all of her favorites, Emily, Taylor and Allison

It may not have been a great night for our football team, but Allison had the best night. She had a smile from ear to ear and can't wait to do it again next year!

Domestic Diva

On Monday, Taylor started her new 9 week elective, Home Economics. She absolutely loves Ms. Butler and has spent the 1st week learning about doing the laundry...all with a POSITIVE ATTITUDE! Tonight's homework...sort, wash, dry, fold and put away 3 loads of laundry. I LOVE THIS CLASS TOO!

My little "know-it-all" thinks she has it all figured out, quizzing me on my laundry knowledge:

"Do you know you have to turn jeans inside out to make them hold their color longer?"

"How do you get an ink stain out of clothes? -Hairspray!"

"What about blood?- Cold water and detergent!"

"How do you sanitize the washing machine?- Chlorine bleach"

In the coming weeks, she will learn how to sew, cook/bake and raise an egg baby. I'm sure this class will be more valuable than anything else she learns in middle school! I just can't wait for new curtains and dinner on the table! Matt's hoping she learns how to mow the lawn and clean the pool, too!

Earth Model

Taylor has been working hard on her 1st Science project of the year...an Earth model. I dropped $20 on a styrofoam ball ($13.99 for styrofoam ??) and acrylic paints at Michael's, then left the rest up to Taylor. She wisely recruited Matt to build a wood base and stand...

then she painted the Crust, Mantle, Outer Core and Inner Core...painted the oceans, glued on the continents and used a Sharpie to map out the Tectonic Plates. Everything was marked with labels on toothpicks... and a paragraph explaining all of it was glued onto the wood base. TA-DAH!!!