october 31

i love halloween.  but this year it's been hard for me to get into the spirit with all we have going on.  i wasn't even up for making or buying costumes this year.  brooke and gavin both had cute michigan uniforms, and i talked them into wearing them for halloween.  they were pretty darn cute if you ask me!!  the weather couldn't have been worse for trick-or-treating though.  it was very cold and rainy and windy.  we braved the elements with coats and umbrellas, but we were all ready to call it a night after a quick round of treats in our neighborhood.  come next year, i don't think we'll have to worry about cold or rain on halloween!

october 30

it snowed today.  for real.  a dusting of snow before halloween!  crazy, crazy.  we spent the day gathered inside in front of the fireplace, and i prepared for my last "official" day as an employee of P&G.  due to the terms of my voluntary separation package, i have to turn in all of my work equipment and my badge tomorrow.  i pulled out my work bag that i haven't touched in 3.5 years and booted up my computer to clean up some files and save some documents before handing it over.  i was surprised how the simple act of opening up that computer took me right back to my working days in an instant.  i'm so far removed from those days, yet it all came flooding back.  tomorrow will be bittersweet, but definitely more sweet than bitter.  there is no job better in the world than being a full-time, stay at home mother to my two children.

october 29

i looked outside tonight, and the sky was on fire!  i grabbed my camera and ran out the door to capture this...

october 28

thankfully kevin is working from cincinnati this coming week so he can take part in all of the halloween festivities, starting with a cousins' halloween party this afternoon.  all of the kids were so adorable in their costumes, and stella's hand-made dragon costume was unbelievable!  my sister is amazingly talented!!  the kids had the best time together, and aunt heather had some hilarious halloween surprises in store.  the kids had a mummy contest where we wrapped them in toilet paper from head-to-toe, and then they tore it all off.  it was crazy, out-of-control, messy and hilarious!  we could not stop laughing.

october 27

this morning we had stella over while heather and danny went to the doctor for their implantation appointment.  praying that is works and all goes perfectly this time around.  the kids had a fun day together.  this evening we carved big pumpkins to get ready for halloween!  as usual, kevin and i did all the work while the kids supervised!  happy kids, happy pumpkins, happy parents :)

october 26

fridays have taken on a whole new level of fun because kevin typically flies in on the red-eye and arrives home first thing in the morning while we are still in bed.  it is a tough schedule for kevin, but it allows us to be together as a family for 2-3 days, and that's important to both of us.  this morning we made cinnamon rolls for daddy and walked brooke to the bus stop.  kevin and gavin put on their matching batman shirts and had a fun morning goofing around.  super hero powers unite!

october 25

today i got out my "real" camera and practiced with different sources and direction of light.  the kids cooperated for about 2 minutes, but it was just long enough to get some good shots of them.