I love templates.

Seriously. Digital templates have saved my life. I have a million event type photos I have needed to get stories down before I forget...and I finished both sides of this tonight while the kids built Lego sets and colored. Good grief, these photos are from September of 2006. That feels like a lifetime ago. Now, I can take that little bit of information and put it in the little recycle garbage can in my head. - And now have room for other important things....like whose socks are whose and other mom stuff. ;)

Not too much to update here. We are incredibly boring, and yet somehow keeping really busy.

10 more days! 10 more days! 10 more days!!!

Darth Vader, Garden Fairy and Luke Skywalker

Well the rain left early, in time for the street to dry up and kids to go trick or treating. However - it was FREEZING. It was 50 degrees, but with the breeze it felt much colder. Megan was freezing and put her wings on and took her coat off long enough for a quick photo. It's too bad because the wings are huge and cute. The boys have sweats on underneath their costumes. I sure wish I would have thought of a black turtleneck for Trevor's costume.

I wish I would have gotten more photos but I wasn't feeling it this year. - and it was too cold. I did manage to handle the whole night by myself since Mike still isn't back yet. Megan went out with a friend of hers, and the boys kept going around with a big group of friends that they know. It all worked out, but I felt kind of bad not being out there with them. Who knows, they might be at the age that it only adds to the fun to not have mom or dad hanging back while they run house to house.

I still can't get used to trick or treating hours here in Kentucky. It is from 6 - 8. At 7:59 the doorbell stops ringing. There are some die hards that are out sitting in their driveways with fire pits and bowls of candy, but I am happily tucked inside with the heat on.

It rained all last night. I'm not sure what is in store for today. I'm still crossing my fingers!

Happy Halloween! - costume photos later.

Matthew's pumpkin is on the left. That is a total "no mommy involved" job. He cut the top, scooped out the inside, cut the entire face and ears by himself. I think he did a pretty good job!

(click on image to enlarge)

The middle is Trevor's and the one of the far right is Megan's. - with minimal parental help. ;)

Black barns

I hope to get a picture of our completed pumpkins later when the sun goes down. That is if they don't blow away. It is so windy out today! Something big is on it's way and it's threatening RAIN on Halloween. WHAT?!

(click on photo to make it bigger)

I was talking to my sister awhile ago and somehow I started telling her about the black barns. There may be a farm or something with several barns of different colors, but most places seem to always have one black barn. I knew about why most old barns are red.... it was based on using the cheapest material possible to paint them at the time, which was leaded red paint. Personally, I'm glad that now even though there probably is not any lead in the paint... that they are still traditionally red. There is nothing prettier than a bright red barn.

I also learned most dairy barns are white to denote cleanliness and sanitation. Cleanliness...okay. Mucky cow poop. Ew. - But from what I've noticed, this theory in barn colors seems to be true based on the farms near me and on the way to Louisville or Lexington.

(Who knew there was so much to know about barns.)

So the answer to the black barns in Kentucky or any other tobacco growing state: Historically the barns that are black weren't actually "painted" ... they were covered with creosote. The barns are covered with it for two reasons (usually)... to keep the termites and other wood-eating critters away from them -- thereby making them last a lot longer, and (2) ... to make the interior of the barn much hotter to cure tobacco leaves.

Megan and I stopped to get this picture on our way home today. It just makes me so happy that I get to pass stuff like this on my daily drives to do errands. These scenic roads make me happy. I must be a farm girl at heart... except for the fact that I've gotten quite girly and don't like mud, or poop, or chickens, or asthmatic inducing barn dust, harvesting big fields or raising my own food. I like to think that meat comes in rectangular styrofoam from a refrigerated section of the grocery store. - Hey, but I still appreciate a beautiful farm, long fences, rolling hills, patchwork quilts of different crops, hard working farmers who do a job that personally I couldn't do, and cool barns.

PUMPKINS!!

Should I really be letting Matthew wield a knife at a pumpkin? Mike will remember..... he's always had a thing for knives. Remember Uncle Don? haha.

My plan was to start doing one pumpkin per day so that it wouldn't become overwhelming. Sure... but as soon as you get one started, the rest have to do theirs too. Megan and I were out front working on hers (with the turtles) before the boys got home from school. They get out an hour later than her so I thought it would work out perfect. - Until they saw us out there as soon as they got off the bus.

At least this year I wasn't the only scooper. Usually everybody is so grossed out that I have to do the gut scooping.

We still aren't totally done with one of them, so I will post pictures in the next day or two of the finished pumpkins. I did have extra help this year when I thought for sure I was losing my kids who had friends stop by and they ended up playing tag with them in the front yard. Two boys from down the street (11 & 13) helped me finish the carving. The pumpkins became a neighborhood project!

Sadly, we are expected to get rain on Halloween. I can't say I've ever seen rain on Halloween. If it does, that sure will be strange. I'm crossing my fingers that it rains later in the evening, even though the storm is supposed to come in tomorrow. Maybe we'll get a couple hour break. *crossing fingers.*

more photos below. Now, I'm off to find tights so Megan can wear her costume to school tomorrow.

pumpkins continued -

Matthew wants a Death Star pumpkin. I wonder if I could do that? It is cool though isn't it?

It's coming! Halloween!

Plus, two weeks - 4 days. For real this time. :)

Boys.

You think I like the Gap? LOL. Believe it or not, the stuff in all the photos lately is all from the real store even and not the outlet. I think I may have a bit of a problem. In fairness, that red jacket Matthew is wearing was once Trevor's. And someday that orange Tshirt will be Matthew's too!

So...

I'm waiting for the Ambien to kick in. I seem to be headed towards another bout of insomnia. I'm also feeling kind of melancholy tonight. Tonight was supposed to be the night I was going to the airport to pick Mike up to come home, but things have been delayed once again. :*(

But tonight it hit me as I was sitting there after the kids had gone to sleep, and I was putting together a Lego set that Matthew had picked out earlier tonight at Target. The last of the birthdays are over for the year. I always feel in August for Trevor's birthday that there are still more left...so I don't think about it much, and feel like his gets extra attention. Unless it's on the first day of school like it was last year. Even this year it was in the first week of school, and that alone brings it's own kind of crazy.

Then when when October hits it's like a race to the finish. There is literally a birthday every week, and then Halloween to top it all off. It was just like a heavy sigh tonight. I think it almost goes by so fast that I don't feel like I really had a chance to let them sink in. I want to remember every detail, and make sure each one feels special. This was also kind of a weird one for Megan since I was so sick on her birthday that she ended up taking care of me.

So in a way, I'm sad that it's all over until June (Mike's birthday) but also glad that October has been busy enough to go by quickly so we can start the countdown for him coming home again. I hope that the next few weeks go by fast.

Peace out. I think the ambien is working. ;)

Start the Star Wars music.....A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away....... you were born.

Another birthday this month! Matthew.... is SEVEN. For some reason he's stuck in my head forever as being under 5 years old. I don't know why. Even throughout the last year I would catch myself and look at him and ask, "You're SIX?" I guess he can't be in 1st or 2nd grade and still be five, but there's something about the youngest. I always felt like he helped to halt time. As long as one of my babies was under 5, it felt like time wasn't going by as fast as it really was.

So here he is. Seven years old: In second grade, has friends that he has made on his own and not organized playdates because of me, he runs down the street by himself to one of his friend's houses after school, and comes back when they are done.

He likes to try his independence by his stubbornness to listen sometimes... but it's not always a bad thing. He has an idea in his mind of the way things should be done and he's going to try it. He is fearless. But, that's also the way he is learning and I guarantee you this is one tough little boy who doesn't' take crap from anybody. His teachers in each grade from kindergarten on up have said that he'll get into a fight, but he is never one to start it. He will certainly share, but if you take away something he is playing with.... there are consequences! He's never been in trouble because of this, the teachers have always said that he's just doing what he should be. This boy is a leader. Not a follower. Which frustrating as it can be when he is a child, will be a great quality when he's a man.

This independence is also in small things like the desire to make his own sandwiches and cereal.

He loves Star Wars. Oh my gosh.... he even walks around humming the theme or Darth Vader's theme. (I bought him a musical birthday card that I'm sure I will regret, but I can't wait to see him open it and have it play!) He loves Legos (Yep...all of them, but especially Star Wars ones.) Even if it's a regular Lego City set.... it still has a Stormtrooper or somebody in it.

His favorite word right now is "awesome." but the way it is said makes me laugh. It's totally with

a surfer dude sound to it. Now I think he's been to a beach probably 10 times in his life, but you'd think he was born and raised in SoCal. Everything from a good belch to something cool is

"awesome!!!"

These photos were taken at the crack of dawn while it was still dark out. Hence the orange glow of the lighting and bed head. New Lego Agents:

New Lego Space Police:

I caved and gave him one of his presents the night before. It was a Star Wars Lego set. At first I told him he could have the people out of it and then he had to go to bed, but then I ended up putting the ship together. I've gotten good at following the directions.... lol.

Now I'm off to buy cupcakes for the classroom, and then later he has asked about going to Cici's Pizza for dinner. (Of all places... but it's HIS pick.)

Happy birthday Matthew!