Not only is it Halloween.....

...but it's also Talledega weekend! Last week (while Lewis was TRYING to study for his step 2 board exam) we had a "2 trip to Lowe's" toilet problem. Luckily for us they had Jimmie Johnson's car there and it was pretty sweet! It was sort of a "you know you live in Alabama when" moment. (we have lots of those)


We had a great time at Trunk or Treat. Our primary really goes all out and it was lots of fun to play at the carnival and to go car to car getting candy. The kids were all animals (A-kangaroo, B-alligator, C-giraffe) and I was the "Jones Family Zoo Vet". Lewis was a party pooper ("I dressed up last year") but someone thought he was a skater. It was so funny.

(thanks Gma Dee for the costumes!)
(but what giraffe costume has no neck?!!?!)

Now if it will just stop raining for once so we can get some loot tonight!

6 years

Last night was our church trunk or treat. I let some friends borrow our Flintstones costumes from 6 years ago. How has it been 6 years?
us:
them:

(don't they look great?)

(thanks Sumer for the pictures!)

Let the raking begin...

Soccer!

Soccer is back in season. It has been for a while, but I haven't been able to take pictures of Brooks yet because I have been coaching. Y0u see, "we"felt like it would be good to volunteer tocoach this season since Lewis is in med. school and it is supposed to be super easy 4th year. Unfortunately, "we" didn't realize that he would be on pediatric plastic surgery in Oct. and they have grand rounds on Tuesday nights which means Lewis couldn't be there to coach soccer. But it's all good now because he will be there for the last few games! So, in between trying to "coach" 4 and 5 year olds, keeping A from trying to take over, and trying to keep Cate happy in her stroller and off the soggy swampy grass, it was a bit crazy and I didn't get many pictures. Here's what I do have so far:



Cate enjoys soccer too.





P. S. As I have been typing this I have secretly been spying on a house in my neighborhood because no one has lived in it for a long time and there are some people who are in there doing who knows what. At first they were just snooping around and trying to get in, but then they busted in. They aren't the people who lived there before and they taped a note to the storm door. I can't wait to go read it when they leave. In the past 11 years 5 different families have lived there and they have all ended up getting divorced. Maybe it's haunted or something..... Who doesn't love a little neighborhood drama?

Pumpkin Patch

Lewis had the day off Saturday so we decided to make a trip to the pumpkin patch even though it was cloudy, dreary, and cold. (it's ok now because the sun has decided to make an appearance today)
We took a hay ride out to the pumpkins that someone had so carefully placed in the big field (oh how I miss real pumpkin patches in Connecticut). (side note--I sat ON the hay and didn't even rub my eyes off thanks to Claritin! Oh how I love you Claritin! I no longer have to live in an allergy haze or a benedryl haze!) Have I told you how much I love baby legs in leggings?

And we posed because that's what we do. But come on, is the "pumpkin sheriff" the lollipop guild's sister or something?
We played in the hay maze. Again, not one itchy eye here!

We rode ponies too. They said it was fun, but look at their faces.
And posed on the huge pumpkins. Isn't that green one amazing?


And just to remind us that we live in the south, we got to see a dance group of little girls do a dance and sign language to "Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so."
And one more reminder: (click on picture to enlarge for better viewing)
On the way home we stopped at the farmer's market and got some really cool pumpkins. I just need to figure out where to put them all.

Lewis picked up some muscadines. Have you ever tried them? They are a fruit grown here in the south. You don't eat the skin and they are sort of like big grapes. Interesting. Next I might try okra or collard greens, get excited!

Sage

We're missing our little Sagie poo and wanted to write a little post to remember her. She escaped from our backyard (one of her many talents) earlier this week and was hit by a car on the interstate near our house.
We found her this summer while we were driving home from our Utah vacation. She was all alone in the rain in the middle of nowhere at a rest area in Wyoming. I mean MIDDLE OF NOWHERE. There was a sign that said "mama sage" at the rest area and she quickly became known as Sage. I let her climb in the car with the assumption that we would find a vet or somewhere to drop her as soon as we saw one. Lewis, however, felt that she had to come home with us to "make sure she got a good family". Even though we only had her for 4 months, we are still so sad that she is gone. She was really good with the kids and put up with them pulling her ears, laying on her, putting blankets on her, etc. without ever snapping at them. She would run laps around the backyard all day long yapping her head off and now the trails in the backyard make us smile remembering her. She was so smart and was housetrained after only one accident. Lewis taught her to sit, lay, roll over, shake, and stand. He also leash trained her and even took her for runs on occasion. Georgia is lost without her little leader and partner in crime. We are all sad that she is gone, but we're sure she's running laps in doggie heaven with Moose!

2nd Annual OMFS pumpkin carving extravaganza

Last night we had a bunch of the OMFS residents over to carve pumpkins. We had a great turnout and lots of great food.
Surgeons take their carving very seriously.



Next year we will have a contest with an actual winner and prize so get your game faces on.

Beware

because Cate just learned that noses have holes!

I think she may have touched his brains.

School Picture Day

I couldn't stand that picture of the mismatched shoes any more!!!! How embarrassing.

I never buy school pictures because they are never cute and they always cost approximately one million dollars for the smallest package. The one exception was when we lived in Conn. because our preschool got the best school photographer. I know they take pictures in WH, so if you live there you're super duper in the trooper lucky (one of B's sayings). Anyway, picture day came a couple of weeks ago and my kids weren't cooperating, but here are some of the pictures I got. Aren't they getting so big? (well, except for the tiny peanut baby)

When did Brooks go from toddler to preschooler? Where are those cheeks I loved?
Cate didn't get school pictures, but I think this is why at 15 months she still isn't walking and has no desire to start. She comes up to whoever is in the room and begs to be picked up. Most of the time I can't resist. She's so cute and so light that I don't mind holding her.
BUT this is what she looks like when you can't or won't pick her up. SO SAD!!! All 18 lbs. 9 oz. of her just plain old loses it.
She has it pretty rough.