Thanks Dee!

We invited Dee to come with us, the kids and I, for a walk in the reservoir. Guess I should have mentioned that I still had some pics to take for my class, huh? Um, thanks Dee for not giving me the "I'm so annoyed with you face" and actually smiling.

Too Funny

We delivered our ghostly goodies last night. You should have seen the kids they were so into it. They would walk slowly up to the house and one of them would put the candy down and the other would ring the bell. Then they ran like bats out of hell, flat out. Our car was waiting with the lights out and the kids would launch themselves inside and we took off. Too funny, they loved it. Now we will see if Jessica can keep the secret since one of the houses has a classmate living inside. Anyone else ghosting?

We've been Ghosted!

We received quite a nice surprise yesterday morning. On our front doorstep was a little bucket of candy and an envelope. Inside the envelope was a letter and a picture of a ghost. The letter read:

You've Been Ghosted!

The Phantom Ghost has come to town,
to leave the goodies that you have found.
If you do not wish a curse to fall
You must continue this "Phantom" call.

First, post the ghost near your door so it can be seen

And leave it there until Halloween.

This will scare other visiting Phantoms away

So be sure to participate and don't delay.

Second, make 2 treats, copy 2 ghosts and 2 notes like this.

Deliver it to 2 neighbors that might have been missed.

Don't let them see you, be sneaky, no doubt

And check back later to make sure they put their ghost out.

You should act within 2 days so please be quick.

Leave goodies only at the doors where the Phantom has not hit.

Deliver it before 8:00 but when there is no light

Ring the doorbell and run and stay out of sight.

Be safe, have fun and try not to be seen, share in the spirit of

HALLOWEEN!

Needless to say the kids are so excited that we have been ghosted. When I brought Justin to school today another mother said she was ghosted too and her kids couldn't stop talking about it all day. I just went to Walgreens to get our goodies. We will deliver our treats tonight. Thought I would share this with all of you, maybe some ghosts could come to your neighborhoods.

Here is one of the treats we will be delivering.

Here is the ghost in our window.

The Last Soccer Game

Yesterday, Sunday, was the last game of the season. Jessica was excited that both Aunt Sheri and Grandmommy were going to be there to watch her play. Let me back up a little. This past Wednesday on the last practice they played parents against the kids. The parents were an embarrassment and lost something like 15-5. The coach kept the boys that are normally the big scorers back in defense and put all the other kids up front. He made sure every child got a goal. Let me tell you, the dad in goal had a tough time looking like such a buffoon- especially when it took some kids, like Jess, many attempts before they got one in the goal. The girls were on such a high, they each got goals, Jessica ended up getting 3 total that night. It was very fun (unless you were Justin trying to play but not understanding why you didn't always get the ball. but they even let him score one goal too and he was ecstatic). What I noticed was that in the game on Saturday many of these girls suddenly had a lot more confidence than they had been showing all season long. With Jessica it has been a struggle all season to just get her to get her foot on the ball during the game rather than just running along side whoever was dribbling the ball.

Which brings us to the final game on Sunday. When Grandmommy arrived Jessica told her she thought she was going to score a goal. Marc and I smiled and nodded. The thing is, they have been drilling it into the Jessica to go to the net. Jessica, wanting to follow the rules and not upset anyone, always runs right to the net as told. She in fact is very good at going to the net. The problem is that she doesn't really know what to do once she gets there. She hops around and when the ball gets near her she gets so excited and kicks her feet but thats about the sum total of what happens. Coach has been saying to her the past few weeks, "I can feel it Jess, you are so close, it is going to happen soon". Add to this that passing the ball is not something anyone on the team really wants to do, so being at the net is only good if the ball is passed to you. So there she is at the net. She got really close once or twice, but the other team knocked it away or she went wide. Then with less than 5 minutes in the game she has her chance again. She is AT THE NET. The ball come, we are all so excited and.... SHE SCORES A GOAL!!!!!!!! We were on our feet screaming. She was high as a kite. She turned around and ran right towards her coach. He usually stays on the sidelines and lets the other 3 coaches get on the field with the kids, but he came running onto the field to give her a double high five. I could tell he was just as excited as the rest of us. I got no pictures of any of it because I was carried away. Afterwards I asked another mother who had her camera if she got any pics and she said she didn't because she was screaming and waving her camera in the air too.

So Jessica's team ends the season undefeated. We try to tell her that is not usually what happens, but for now she says, "my team always wins". She is already talking about soccer next year and looking forward to basketball soon.

As a side note I have to say I was hesitant to sign her up for Soccer. Marc really pushed for her to play. Knowing her coordination, lack of focus, and sensitivity I just thought she was not ready for competitive sports. I was very concerned about how she would be coached, we have all heard the horror stories about agressive coaches and dads and I wasn't sure how she would do in that environment. In the end it was a great experience. Her coach was wonderful. He was very supportive and positive- all the time. He really gave her the confidence and support she needed. I truly believe he was as excited by Jessica's goal as when his own son scored a few weeks earlier. All of the dads that helped out were so nice and positive with the kids. Of course it didn't hurt that her team never lost.

Here are a few pics I did take yesterday.

Visit with Aunt Sheri

Sheri came up for the weekend. Soon after she arrived we headed out to Randalls to pick our pumpkin, go on a hayride and run through the corn maze. The first time through the maze we missed signs #3 and 5 so we went back in again. This picture was taken during the second run through the maze. Justin saw that someone before him had used their pencil to leave a mark as to where they had been. He thought this was a great idea and stopped at every intersection to leave his mark- a W (no idea why). So Sheri waited patiently while Justin put his plan into action.

the only way I got Justin to look at the camera was when I said I was about to drop my camera, he thought that was worth a look.

Sheri agreed to be my subject, since my other subjects were not so interested.

And sadly this is how Justin spent a lot of the weekend. Everything is frustrating to him, everything is upsetting him, everything is unfair or not nice. Thought I would capture the moment, I mean when I look back at this time it is important to remember how it actually is, right? Wouldn't want to end up with a third child...

A trip to the Pumpkin Patch

Justin's preschool went to the Pumpkin Patch on Monday. It started out cloudy and cold but by the end it was nice and sunny. It was a great time with a nice group of people. Here are just a few of the many pictures I took. In no particular order. First Miss Laurel- adorable.


and my friend Jenn said she would not give me a ride home unless I got a cute picture of her daughter, the pressure was on. I wasn't sure how to get home in a car never mind on foot. so what do you think, did I earn my gas money?

Justin actually asked me to take this picture of him, so I did!

My blog poster child, Miss Amy.
There are these huge slobbering cows that come up to the hayride and take ears of corn right out of your hand. Justin loved this part and fed them many ears.
This next picture was taken by Justin- not bad, my new apprentice.

King of the Pumpkin Patch!

wouldn't be a field trip without Mrs. B
Miss Amy's big brother Luke, what a great poser!
King of the hay bales!

Yahoo!

Took the kids to the reservoir today since the weather is so beautiful. Grabbed my camera on the way out the door. So glad I did. Finally got a pic of Justin where he is not yelling at me (is it bad that I told him we were not going to keep walking until he gave me a nice face?), oh well I will take what I can get. Of course now I realize he really needs a haircut...