"Howl" a ween

We got to attend the annual Howl-a-ween in town with our dog friends Roxanne and Kona.  This was HILARIOUS!  The dogs and owners dress up and they have doggie treats, paw painting, photo sessions and prizes for best dressed and such.  Then they have a parade that walks from the Starbucks shopping center to under the Gondola and back.  I had about 15 minutes to dress up my kiddos.  I found a lady bug hand-me-down costume and we made Nate into a gansta.  Not what I would normally choose for him, but it was easy. :)  

My little gansta and his lady(bug)

So you can see the back

With Goldilocks and the 3 bears

Dog cotton candy

The parade getting ready to cross the street

The group in front of the gondola (My kids with Bonnie are on the far right)

Buddies

Mug shots

There can only be one person who took crayon to the walls.  Guilty as charged.

Hanging on to summer

Ok, I've got some catch up to happen here.  Some of these things may be out of order, but bear with me.

With our last few days of 60-70 degree temps we decided to have some fun at the beach.  Sandy children makes me think of summer.

Smoothie King

I have a bible study in Carson City that I go to on Thursday mornings and then normally have to run a couple errands before heading up the hill.  That means we are getting back to the house around naptime and the kids are normally hungry and tired.  My wonderful husband had lunch all ready for us when we got home today.  Mac n cheese and smoothies.  The smoothie was different than normal, but still delicious.  Joe had me guess what all he put in it.  I don't think I even came close.

Here were the ingredients for "Joe's Smoothie":

Banana
Strawberries
Frozen mixed fruit
1% milk
Apple cider
Celery
Bell pepper
Grapefruit seed extract
Cookies and cream ice cream

Amazingly, it really was delicious!  Thanks Joseph for being such a stellar cook for us!

Gettin' out

This time of year in Tahoe is truly glorious!  The aspen are turning, there is a chill in the air, but the snow has not hit yet.  We lived it up while G and G were here and took a couple little hikes, played tennis, went to watch the sunset and explored Hope Valley and the Grover Hot Springs.  I'll let the pictures tell the story.

Walking out to Cave Rock

True beauty

The Dalton Gang

Big smiles

Glorious

A short walk among the Aspen grove

The kids hugging

Enjoying the views

My 'rents with their only (currently) born grandchildren

Making a picnic lunch

Our views from lunch

Soaking in the hot mineral water

Fearless Chloe did this over and over again

Jumping in together

"Come on lets go to the park!"

 "No, you must hold my hand Little Independent!"

Me and my dad

I would have loved to sit here for awhile

On the "playground"

Wresting in the beautiful grass

 The 'hippie' bathroom in the library

Tired kiddos and adults on the way home

Four whole days!

My parents had planned on visiting my cousin up in Bend, OR while they were here.  My mom had the brillant idea of taking the kiddos with them so they could play with their second cousins and Joe and I could have a little break.  It was such a HUGE blessing!  I deep cleaned my house the first day they left and it actually stayed clean for the next couple days! Joe and I had some wonderful time together and Grammie and Gramps got some special time with their grand-children.  Win win!

My cousin and her family live on a farm outside of Bend and the kids had a blast playing with their cousins and watching the cows and chickens.  And Nate got a haircut! :)

Joe and I just sat around and drank all day missing our children.  Just kidding!  We went out for ice cream shakes one night, mixed drinks the next and had a wonderful coffee date using our free drink coupons from Starbucks as well.  If you are going to get a venti drink, you've gotta have the time to sit and enjoy it!

 The big thing that we accomplished was biking all the way around Lake Tahoe one day.  We were pumped and excited and ready for it in spirit, but not really in body.  I guess next time I ride 74 miles, I might actually train for it.  I'm sorry there are no pictures of the beautiful views from all around the lake... we (read: I) were just too tired to stop and take a photo... and that is saying a lot for me and Joe!  But we made it with only a few tears shed.  ;)

Looking back on this post I realize that there are a lot of exclamation points!!  But it truly was something to be excited about.  Thank you heaps and heaps Grammie and Gramps for blessing us in this tremendous way!

Apple Hill Visit

We made our annual trek down to Apple Hill to visit all the orchards and pumpkin patches while Grammie and Gramps were here.  It was a beautiful day and we hit up about 5 farms.  We enjoyed apple donuts, apple fritters, apple turnovers and some apple cider tasting!  The kids also had a blast in the hay maze and playing in the pumpkins.

Check out the photos to get a feel for it.

My precious pumpkins

I think she may have decided to eat dirt

Cutie patooties

"Wine tasting" with my Momma :)

Our sweet ride

Ride 'em cowboy/girl

Enjoying some fresh fried deliciousness

Superman

"Me too" child

Family photo

Sweet babies that are not so little anymore

Group shot with G and G

Cheese!

Doing some manual labor

Having a blast in the maze

Chloe too

Mommy had to get in on the action

They did great!

Grammie watching from outside

Interesting scarecrow here

My handsome man at the end of the day