Halloween

With Drew's costume craze, it's no wonder he was a big fan of halloween this year! He's been talking for months about what costume to wear. He has so many good options that he really had a hard time deciding. I thought Jack Sparrow was going to win (it was also my favorite) but he decided on "Spider Man with muscles," probably because it was new to the collection. A few minutes before heading out to trick or treat he tried to switch to the Green Lantern but I put a stop to the madness! David was a precious little pirate! The Watson's joined us again this year and the three kids had a great time trick or treating. I couldn't believe how quickly we moved through the neighborhood this year! We have an obscene amount of candy. When it was all over the boys asked when it would be halloween again?!? I responded that thankfully it would be a whole year.

Carving pumpkins with Daddy. I wish I would have gotten a picture of the finished products, they were quite good! We also caved and got some outdoor decorations this year. After taking the boys on a tour of the neighborhood one night, Drew sweetly asked why we didn't have anything spooky at our house like so many of our neighbors. We didn't get a five foot black cat with a moving head or a RIP tombstone with a skeleton in the bushes but did hang a big spider web from our porch and added a bat too. The boys seemed pleased :)
"Me help" turned into David going back and forth to the kitchen getting more tools. Here he is with two scoopers he thought George may need. He wasn't happy with how long it was taking to carve his pumpkin, hense the fake smile.

I got the boys pirate earrings and although they wore them around the house quite a bit, they weren't worn on actual Halloween. Spider Man doesn't wear an earring and David decided it hurt his ear.

Puss in Boots! Sweet Mae Mae took Drew and Whitley to see the movie and Drew was only home about two minutes before coming out in this get-up. I thought it was pretty darn good considering what he had to work with!

George and I went to a halloween party at Cristie and Tom's the weekend before halloween. We dressed as vampires so had lots of scary makeup on. Drew was very impressed and wanted to do the same. He made me promise to give him a scary face in the morning and as you can see, he didn't forget and I kept my promise. David wanted to get in on the action too of course and loved saying "me scuwey" as he checked himself out in the mirror.

Halloween! It was rainy and cold but it didn't put a damper on the excitement!

David's ready.

So is Spiderman. He was kind of glad it rained because then his spider rainboots became the perfect accessory!

Drew rocked the Spiderman poses all night long!

A Royal Fair

After going to the Renaissance Festival in Minnesota with my parents, Cristie and I knew we wanted to go to one here and take the kids. Luckily, the Carolina Renaissance Festival takes place every October and November so we didn't have to look far to find one! The Watson's and us packed in the van and drove to the festival outside of Charlotte on a beautiful Sunday. The kids were darling in their medieval costumes. It was a fun day. I took a ton of pictures although the quality isn't very good. It was very sunny and my camera must have been on the wrong setting because there is quite a glare. Sorry!

Look at those cuties! They are ready to go!
Drew and Whitley with a duchess at the entry gates.

Drew watching a jousting competition.

Whitley too!The kids enjoyed the human-propelled rides. Pretty neat!

Settling in for a show.

The kids got be knighted by the king and queen! It was very exciting for them and precious to watch! Whitley went first. She had to give her name which the queen then announced, step upon the the stage, and then kneel before the King, who knighted her. Each child was given a wooden medallion.

Drew's up! He took it so seriously!

A skip in his step after :)

Sweet little David was in line and said he wanted to do it. The duchess said I could stay with him but when we went up the step he grabbed me and ran back to the benches where George was sitting. When we asked him what was the matter, he replied, "Me go myself!" I snuck back up and asked if he could try again. They were glad to announce his name once more and my darling little guy walked up and did a great job! I have to say that everyone watching oohed and aahed and when we passed by those folks later in the day they smiled and winked at him. He was popular!

They used a rose instead of a sword for David.

Everyone loves a turkey leg! The one in MN was so good and I was excited to get one here! Yum!

David helps polish it off!

Drew wanted to do everything they had, including the rock wall! He didn't get very far but good for him for wanting to try.

What's next?

Whitley got a cup of ice cream. We laughed because the boys didn't leave her side for a second, begging like a couple of puppies! She sweetly shared with everyone.

I loved the tree-man!

Another ride.

Family pic.

There is some form of entertainment every step of the way. This guy was playing dead. They asked Drew to check and make sure so Drewby tapped him with his new ax. You can't fool Drew though. I asked him if the guy was okay and he said, "they said he wasn't alive Mama but I saw him move a little bit."

Go Daddy Go! Go Mama Go!

George and I both had races this month. George did an international distance triathlon in Myrtle Beach on October 8th. He did great despite being sick. The location was very pretty and the weather was great! We had fun cheering him on! I did a 1/2 marathon in Durham on October 16th. I did well, finishing in 1:34:52. I placed 3rd in my age group and I'm super excited about my award! It was another beautiful day and the boys were so sweet to cheer me on the whole way! I was impressed by how quickly they moved around the course, catching me at miles 2, 5, 6 and 11. It was great to see their smiling faces!

George on the run in Myrtle Beach.
Our cheering party!

Cristie helped me make the posters :)

Proud of Daddy!

Post race with my boys. The poster David is holding reads "My Mommy is faster than yours." Talk about pressure! With my running partner and friend, Camille. She finished 2nd in our age group.

Birthday Fun!

Early October was filled with lots of birthday fun around here! Whitley and I both had birthdays and there was definitely lots of celebration! It started off with a tea for Whitley at the Carolina Inn hosted my Mae Mae. Wow, what a treat! We had a great girls day chatting, eating, enjoying delicious tea and celebrating Whitley's special day. The following weekend we all went to Myrtle Beach, along with CC & Day, and had birthday parties for Whit and I. Good times! The only thing better than cake is two cakes! Drew traveled to the beach early with CC and Day Day (David got to do it last time and we have to keep it fair!). He, Whitley, Cristie and Mom decorated the house, mailbox and door for my birthday. Drew and Whitley were proud of their work (Cristie too!) Judy had a nice dinner and cake for my birthday Friday night. On Saturday afternoon we celebrated Whitley's 4th birthday. She is really into Cars 2 so we had a Lightening McQueen birthday party. We also squeezed in lots of other fun that weekend including two great trips to the beach (it was a perfect 80 degrees!), a triathlon for George (more to come on that in another post), a trip to Ride Makerz for cars for the kiddos and lots of fun family time. It was an awesome weekend and I was so very happy to spend it with everyone. Cristie did a great blog from the weekend with much better pictures than mine, check it out if you can. http://whitleygrace.blogspot.com/2011/10/beach-birthday-weekend.html

Tea with Melanie, Cristie, Whitley, Mae Mae and Judy Watson - Whitley's Grandma and another Judy :)
Happy birthday Whitley!

A special treat for the Grands. Me-Ma took the kids to Ride Makerz to make cars! It was a big hit! Poor David is pictured without pants. His pants were soaked when we arrived at the store and although I had three extra shirts in the car, I didn't have any spare pants. Honey badger doesn't care! For those of you that don't know it, yes, we refer to David as a honey badger and have been for months. The nickname is full of love, promise :) Happy kids showing off their new cars with Me-Ma!

Dad and daughters :) Bummed I don't have a photo with CC and Me-Ma.

Getting ready to start another game of Simon Says with Day Day. We all love this game when we get together. We just laugh and laugh! Dad makes it pretty tricky, even for the adults!

Darling little helpers.

Just ridiculous! David absolutely LOVES cake! He talks about cake all of the time, he even randomly brings up his Elmo cake from two months ago. He climbed on Judy's dining room table to get to the cake prior to dessert. When we moved it to her bar, we caught him climbing the stools to get to it again. Relentless!

"More cake!"

I was spoiled with gifts! Pandora charms from the Watson's, Judy, George and the boys!

Corduroy Toms from Mom and Dad! And a charm too.

Sweet Whitley getting ready for her McQueen party!

Drew enjoying the party favors.

We were prepared this go round! CC on standby for cleanup and no shirt for David.