swing your partner round & round

A potluck meal with friends and family with a side of square dancing was a great way to spend our Saturday night. This was our 13th year with Mr. Arnold calling our square dance at the farm. Of course we can't forget the very competitive nail driving contest. All in all a great night!

We started off the night dancing with the kids, some enjoyed it more than others.
Finn

knox was very unsure

kase

Reese

the parents are always more enjoyable to watch than the kids

myles, jack & jaye

reese, addison & rorey

1 year olds to well whatever age love taking a swing at the nail driving contest. We begin with the kids, then the girls competing then the boys. For a champion the girl winner and the boy winner compete at the end.

The championship round came down to Leandra and Bro. Dave
Wendy and Lea were the final 2 girls but Lea showed her up

My grandmother joined in this year!







joey created a hay fort for the boys and they loved it!!!


It is kind of ironic that it was a square dance & I did not capture one picture of anyone square dancing. I was too busy dancing myself!

The square dance is now a fall tradition, and has become one of my favorites. I just need to practice driving nails til next year.

The birthday on the Pier

A Sunny, slightly windy Fall Sunday afternoon was the perfect setting for my Dad's birthday lunch. To make his day a little more special, we enjoyed our lunch on a pier that he helped build behind our house. We admire my Dad and have been blessed with an amazing father. We loved spending the day honoring him on his birthday. Of course he said, " don't make it a big deal, do something easy, keep it small," the same comments we hear every year and of course, we did not listen. His birthday is worth making a big deal. He loves social gatherings and being surrounded by people so of course we invited our families and spent his day like he likes, surrounded by people.

Papa and his 2 boys

we used quilt toppers for our table cloths, and mismatched cloth napkins, and napkin rings to add even more color

the warm sun got to Knox and he couldn't withhold his nap any longer

NeNe didn't want Kase to sit alone since Knox was asleep so she joined him at the little table

Considering the pier is relatively narrow there was not lots of room to get up and roam around. Which actually created a really nice cozy feel. It also encouraged people to stay in their seats and visit just a little longer.

Dad said no presents and of course no one followed that rule either

It isn't a birthday if Aunt Suz doesn't get a singing birthday card, we have all come to expect them. She was enjoying dancing to the tune of this one.

The birthday on the Pier was a success, it actually has become one of my favorite dinner spots and we hope to celebrate more fun occasions there as well. We love you Dad and hope you had a wonderful birthday!

A Kooky Spooky Halloween

After 25 nights of a "Word World A Kooky Spooky Halloween" Halloween finally arrived and the boys halloween DVDs can be put away until next year (thank goodness). After watching Word World celebrate Halloween over and over the boys felt the need to get as much out of Halloween as they could so we carved pumpkins, sat by bonfires, rode hayrides, wore costumes and tried to capture every ounce of Halloween we could, and had a great time doing it.

Our Superhero family loved hanging out with the other villians, chickens,happy meals and road signs at The Jewells Halloween party. Kase was proud to be Batman with Clark Kent as a dad, Catwoman as a mom and Robin as a brother. What more could a 3 year old want?

Everybody had such fun and creative costumes!

Nothing says Halloween
like a freezing hayride, and of course a few spooks to scare the kids along the way.

To put us in the halloween spirit April shared ghost stories by the fire. She also managed to scare all the kids into their parents bed that night.

Knox decided to drop Robin and be "raffe" at Trunk or Treat. He found a cute little scarecrow along with way.

What happened to the days when you used the cheap plastic carving tools that break over and over? Scotty decided to get fancy this year, and I have to say it does speed up the process. Who knew a skill saw could be so handy?

Wendy stuck with the traditional way.

We even took Halloween to the tub. The boys took their bath in the dark and let glow sticks light up the water. Mac shared this tip with me and they loved it!! Of course they want to make this a nightly thing.

My little cowboy and I matched at the first grade party. Right before we left the house he decided he should be a cowboy instead of Batman. I scrambled around to find something. We couldn't find his holster which he wasn't thrilled about but he was still a pretty cute cowboy.

We went trick or treating and found some pretty cute spooks along with way.

Even Macon was ready for Halloween in his clown costume.

I am never ready to see an end to a fun Holiday. But the good thing about Halloween is that Thanksgiving and Christmas are right around the corner!