Time for Jack-O-Lanterns

I have made it a family tradition for my family to carve pumpkins. Anyone who wants to join in is free too. Aunt Jenn was a good sport as always and joined in the fun this year. It is getting more fun as the years go by and our kids grow. Zoey carved most of hers by herself this year and Noah helped me carve most of his. It was just a lot of fun, and of course Jay and I had our own creations to make too. It was time consuming but we all really enjoyed it. I also very much appreciated my husbands compliment in telling me what a good mom I am in making sure that our family does this kind of neat stuff together. It was very nice of him and I am glad that he participates in my activities because it wouldn't be the same without him.

Drawing out ideas.

Yay Aunt Jenn for being and awesome Auntie!

Daddy showing Zoey what to do.

Nothing is as fun as pumpkin carving!

Carving all on her own.

Mommy helping accident prone Noah.

Trying it on his own.

Zoey's finished creation. She had a very clear vision from the beginning of what hers was going to look like. She drew it out on paper first to make sure Daddy knew just what to draw on the pumpkin.

Aunt Jenn's finished work. (And it didn't take her long at all to come up with what she was going to do. :) We love the star eyes.

Noah's finished pumpkin. He picked the shapes for his. Gutting the pumpkin was like an eternity to him. He just couldn't wait to get to using the knife.

Jay is obviously very happy with his creation...

The picture is blurry but we thought it was funny. I wasn't looking my best last night so I showed off my pumpkin a different way.

All of our finished products. We really did have a lot of fun and I think all our jack-o-lanterns turned out fabulous! Happy Halloween! (Isn't great that the table cloth says that?)

Just For Fun

Tucson has finally been blessed with some beautiful cool weather, so the kids and I have been taking advantage of it and spending more time outdoors. I love fall/winter and I hope warmer weather doesn't come back too much until next summer. (I hate my camera though. I try to be thankful that I have one at all but I really hate mine. I need a new one. Hopefully one that will take better pictures. The lighting is always all crappy. Anyway, just had to throw that complaint in there.)

Riding bikes. Maybe this year for Christmas Santa will bring them real bikes.

So sad that Mommy is taking his picture.

He musters up a smile for me.

Being silly just like he always is.

To the Zoo We Went

Wednesday was a beautiful day so we took advantage of it. The kids haven't been to the zoo in a long time and they loved it. All the animals were out and active and exciting. It was a perfect day at the zoo.

Fun little area for some pictures. The zoo was decorated pretty fun for Halloween.

Scary dead pirates. Our poor boy is such a chicken. I am surprised we got this picture because he didn't want to stand anywhere near them. Daddy was nice and stood by him though.

The classic picture on the elephant. Doesn't everyone have one of these from Reid Park Zoo?!

A big bird with a nasty looking head. I told Jay it looks like a burn victim. Is that mean? Sometimes I just gotta say what I'm thinking.

Giraffes are one of my favorites. This guy was funny. He was so insistent on getting this one certain branch. Sadly he didn't succeed but it was certainly entertaining to watch.

He was so close. Very exciting for the kids.

Pretty cool lizard. I am good to look as long as it can't get me.

The Gibbons were DEFINITELY the hit of the day. We stood and watched them for a good 15-20 minutes. They were quite the performers swinging all over the place and howling away. It was great fun.

Noah's "I don't want you take my picture" face. Zoey is always ready to perform though. Thanks Zoey!

The otters are my favorite! I just think they are so cute and I love to see them run around and play in the water.

Thank you mister otter for standing still long enough for me to snap a picture. I appreciate the pose and you looking right at the camera too. Your the best otter!

The best part of the day, being with my family. I love my little family and I am so grateful for the opportunities we have to spend time together doing fun things. How cute are they?! I love them!

Halloween Favorites From When My Babies Still Looked Like Babies