~Carved~

I was up to my eyeballs in things to do all weekend (the house was overflowing with teenage boys and even a visiting friend from Belgium), so I was unable to respond directly, but Thank You all for your hurrahs and encouragements on my last post. It was much appreciated- and yes, the cake was delicious, thank goodness! :)

After all the birthday and visitor hoopala, we ended last weekend with some pumpkin carving. I have to say I'm not big on Halloween (for lots of reasons), but I do enjoy pumpkin carving now that the boys are old enough to do it for themselves AND help clean up afterwards (I do not enjoy the aftermath . . .)

The Husband's creation
I think he looks like Frankenstein :)

The Youngest's:
that is suppose to be a cigarette sticking out of it's mouth (no idea) and if you look closely you'll see he wrote 'karen' on it's side- a reference to the movie 'The Watcher in the Woods'- a family favorite

The Oldest's pumpkin:
I was guessing Picasso, but he says it has to do with an anime show he watches

My cat'o lantern
(I was too tired to think of anything more creative)

Twister decided Cat o'Lantern made a good companion- no fleas

Anyway- our creations found their way to the front porch and tonight I will light them up to greet anyone who may come to the door.

I also have these darling tattoos I found at Target to hand out. I picked these up a month ago- I prefer to not hand out candy simply because having it around the house is dangerous for me and my lack of control where sweets are concerned.

  In fact, I already have quite the stash of chocolate of my own- all the way from Belgium, courtesy of our Belgium visitor. I think this may be the first year I will not be raiding the kids' trick or treat loot!!

1:57 PM - By Unknown 0

~It's That Time of Year Again~

 We had our last cookout of the season . . .

and finalized everything needed for back to school . . .

And then today the backpacks went on and new shoes were tied . . .

The boys were marched outside for their annual torture picture taking . . .
The Youngest went for silly.

The Oldest went for the modeling look. "Hey Ladies, check out this action . . ."

And then, because I'm really cruel, they had to pose with each other.
Don't they look thrilled?

Ah . . . much better. I think.

And off they went . . . and I am dancing jigs around the house!! ;)

The Youngest started seventh grade today . . . and his brother is now a ninth grader. Yes indeed, high school is upon us! Trying to soak it all in . . . wondering where time went and HOW DID I GET THIS OLD?! I remember my own freshmen year like yesterday (actually, better than yesterday. I really can't recall yesterday too well). Crazy stuff . . .

I would normally be way more emotional than I am on this first day of school, but it's also that time of year for the germs- and they seem to have gotten to me extra early this September! So I'm way too tired fighting some bug to make any more of it than it is. And that's probably a good thing. 

So lots of this today . . .

And tea, too . . .

And then it's early to bed for this mama.
Here's to hoping this is all the illness it's gonna be this month!

Happy September!

5:39 PM - By Unknown 0

~Puttering in Port Orchard~

The Youngest and I spent last Tuesday/Wednesday 2 1/2 hours North in Port Orchard, WA visiting with old friends.

It was a lovely visit- not lasting nearly long enough of course, but isn't that how those kind of visits go? Never enough time to catch up with everything.

Tuesday evening was beautiful and warm. All six of us packed ourselves like sardines in my friend's car and off we went . . .

She took us to the prettiest little beach/park about 20 mins from Port Orchard. You could see downtown Seattle across the water, far off to the Northeast. And surprisingly enough, the water there was so clear that you could actually see to the bottom- unheard of in the Puget Sound! Not that you would want to swim in it mind you . . . as you can see there's all sorts of icky floaty things in there. Not to mention the huge drainpipe right next to the dock that had a sign announcing toxic runoff!

So as swimming was out of the question the boys took to digging for treasure . . .

and lo and behold, treasure was actually found! From that big 'ol hole above two salt-stained quarters emerged! Very exciting stuff to find buried treasure!

Once the sun went down we headed back to Port Orchard and cartons of icecream. :)
In the picture below you can just make out the Seattle skyline off to the left. The sun had it all light up in shades of orange and lavender and it was absolutely breathtaking! I tried to capture it all, but my camera phone just couldn't do it justice.

Early afternoon the next day, we said our good-byes and (missing them already) went on our way. I knew the Youngest was pretty down, so I decided that we'd venture into the little downtown area of Port Orchard before heading home. It's such a charming little spot, with antique stores all over, a cafe, various places to eat and a candy/toy shop.
Before setting off to explore, I insisted on a photo opp with the totem pole . . . that (below) is what I got.

But that frown turned upside down once we entered the antique mall. If there is one thing the Youngest loves to do, it's antiquing with mom. And he's actually a pleasure to go with . . . patient as I look at everything and realistic about our tiny budget. He even tries to affirm my delight over whatever I happen to be excited over at any given moment. I only hope that one day he finds a wife who will appreciate this amazing trait in a man! ;)

And as far as me getting excited, there were many many moments to do so in this antique mall! On sight I fell head over heels for this little skunk family. What is it about skunks that just make them so cute?! Or is it just me?

Loved all the blue and white china . . . 

                                and these vintage towels!! 
Oh, my- I could have happily taken every single one home!

A few close-ups of the embroidery . . .

love these pansies!

A pretty painting and some pewter . . .

and lovely old dresses!

I think this one (below) would be just right for a summer picnic on a rolling lawn, complete with a view :)

About this time I put away my camera phone after the many odd looks from the elderly men who were perusing alongside me. The Youngest also asked (politely) if I planned on taking pictures of every item in the antique store... Uh, no- maybe just most of them. ;)

So we moved on from there and then the Youngest found his 'treasure' . . .

Now I have to back up a tiny bit and just mention that this boy has (of late) two dreams in life . . . one is to be a famous violinist someday and the other is to have a taxidermy business on the side. 
Where he comes up with this stuff I don't know, but if you knew him you you'd shake your head and say, "yep- makes sense."

And so, it wasn't too surprising that he was able to spot way up on top of a dusty shelf a half decrepit stuffed badger . . . it was behind me when his eyes lit upon it, and once I turned around and actually saw it- (nasty barred teeth and all)- I admit I was startled enough to make a small yelping noise, which only made the critter all the more irresistible to him- (what is it with the boys out there who think freaking out their mothers is great sport?!)

And then, of all things, he begged me to reach up and get the filthy, shedding thing down for him to hold. I actually had to take deep breathes and avert my eyes to handle that thing. Ugh . . . I have never had a need to know what badger fur feels like. Especially when covered in an inch of dust.

But this just made that boy's day. He petted it and poked it and enjoyed seeing the area in it's belly where incisions had been made.
All I can say is Thank You God, that it was so far out of our price range that I didn't even have to say no to bringing him home.

And I am also grateful that the deer head he later found was in fact mounted to the wall. 

After the antique mall, we finished up our jaunt with a trip to the candy shop which proved to be a hardship in decision-making for him. I thought this 'seagull plop' was rather amusing, but he eventually decided on some fudge in the end. I chose coffee from the nearby cafe. And then we hit the freeway home.

Oh! And I did end up bringing home one little treasure to remember it all by . . . this little blue and white plate charmed me and was easy to say yes to for under 3 dollars.

I think it fits in perfectly with my other blue and whites, don't you think? :)

And now, ever since we've been home it's been full speed ahead into the back-to-school craziness. Schedule pick-ups, a mile-high stack of paperwork to fill out, new student orientation, cross country sign-ups, supply and shoe shopping, etc, etc. If you have (or had) school age kids you know all about it. And it wasn't any easier when I was homeschooling either . . . just a different kind of crazy! So if I'm not back for awhile, you'll know where I am . . . ;)

2:19 PM - By Unknown 0

~Concert Master~

The Youngest had his final Orchestra Concert this past week. 

We were very proud of him for not only being chosen to be 'Concert Master' for his orchestra, but also for being voted "Most Inspirational" by his peers.

Love this goof. 
He was excited over the award but a little thrown off by the rose. He immediately began thinking of female friends to pawn it off on, but then he got it right . . .

he gave it to me! ;)

5:30 PM - By Unknown 0