Thanksgiving

I know I've been a bad blogger and I'm sorry! I got all caught up in holiday chaos and busyness and took on extra hours at work, so this blog fell on the back burner. Since it has been a while since Thanksgiving I'll just share a few photos and call it good. I wasn't really feeling very "photog-ish" so I don't have any really good pics, but there are some fun ones! We had a nice, laid-back meal at Alan and Beverley's apartment and played with the kids, it was a lot of fun.

Happy Number 12 Sierra!

Well, she finally made it to 12. That's one step closer to being a teenager and Sierra couldn't be more excited! We started the day early with a big breakfast and presents from Grandma (Ugg-style boots) and her little sister (a monkey shirt!), then it was off to school in her new outfit. After lunch, I picked her up and we went to the day spa for brow waxing and a manicure. Back home, we found that Grandpa Barnum and Grandma Gloria had sent a beautiful, illustrated copy of the complete works of Jane Austen. Later, Uncle Alan stopped by with a gift of a pair of Converse sneakers with SKULLS! on them. Unfortunately, Aunt Bev and the kids were sick, so we didn't get to see them. After that we went to Sweet Tomatoes for dinner where Sierra made herself a ginormous ice cream sundae. Sierra wasn't ready for her birthday to be over yet, so we took the birthday money she got from Grandma Barnum, Grandpa Matt and Grandma Linda, and me, and we went to Justice to pick out more new clothes! I think it's safe to say that her birthday was a success!

School Pictures

The girls got their school pictures back today. I think they turned out pretty well, don't you? This is the first year they've offered digital copies and I'm so glad I paid the extra money for them because it makes it so easy to share them with all of you!

Halloween!

The girls had a great time on Halloween! Alan and Bev told us that their church was having a Harvest Party that night so we decided to do that instead of trick or treating. (Since Skye can't have most of the candy she gets, it's not much fun for her.) The party was great! When we first got there we saw Uncle Alan, Aunt Beverley, Connor and Dana. Connor was so cute dressed as Anakin Skywalker and Dana was a fuzzy pink butterfly (I think). The little ones got tired quickly so they left soon after that, but my girls had enough energy to power a small town! Sierra had a great time going around to all the games and loading up on loot, while Skye (my little daredevil) went down the giant inflatable slide and...are you ready for this? Rode a mechanical bull!!! I got a video of it, so I might post it later...she stuck on like a burr! They had a great petting zoo with a Patagonian Cavy and a giant tortoise, and we went on our second hay ride of the week (we love hay rides almost as much as we love ferries!). There were so many things to do that we didn't come close to doing it all...I guess that's a sign of a good party. When it was all over, my little pirate princesses had bags of candy, armfuls (is that a word?) of silly inflatable toys, and tired feet. A successful evening all around!

The Pumpkin Patch

On our way out of church on Sunday, we couldn't believe how beautiful the weather was! The sun was shining brightly in a deep blue sky, and the air was cool and crisp with a faint smell of wood smoke. Weather that perfect had to be taken advantage of, so we decided to visit Lee Farm. Lee Farm is a 120 acre plot down the road from where we used to live in Tualatin. (local history sidenote: the Lee in Lee Farm is none other than Lee Martinazzi) It's a working farm that has berries in the summer, pumpkins and corn in the fall, and Christmas trees in winter. In the weeks leading up to Halloween they have a mini fair set up on the property with all kinds of fun things to do! We had a great time running through the Hay Maze, ducking through secret passages and going down the giant slide. Skye held baby chicks, and fed a llama and some goats. We went on a hayride around about 40 acres of the farm and learned about the uses of different kinds of pumpkins. We saw Golden Lab puppies, miniature horses, pigs, calves, rabbits, and the aforementioned chicks, llamas and goats. We picked out some carving pumpkins and some gourds, and on the way out grabbed some kettle corn, fresh pressed cider, and the most delicious fresh, homemade apple cider doughnuts, YUM!

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Love you all!