boo

Happy Halloween!!

It will be an interesting day for sure. 2 of us already have sinus infections, and the 3rd (me) is fighting it tooth and nail. We've tried to take it easy this week, stay close to home and get lots of rest. But there's no rest for the weary! So much to do! House projects are in full swing and today we have to paint the entire upstairs (well, Roger will do the hard labor and Emma and I will supervise and keep ourselves busy). Then we have a neighborhood Halloween happy hour, followed by trick-or-treating with Morgan & Tommy!

Emma can't wait for that part. We've been practicing our trick or treat and she is VERY excited about wearing her costume. Luckily, Parker is just as enthusiastic - he'll make a great Hansl. :)

Happy Halloween from Hansl & Gretl!

hugs & pumpkins

Two posts in one week!

Yesterday, we visited Cox Farms in Virginia with my best friends Elizabeth and Mary Kate! Can I tell you how special it is to be able to see my girls any time I want?! We've been apart for many years, and so we like to get together now as often as our schedules allow. Mary Kate and Elizabeth waited patiently for us to arrive after some icky traffic.

Emma and Charlotte were having the time of their lives. I don't think they stopped smiling the entire time. We ladies commented that we could have sat and watched them play all day. :)

I'm sure you'll see from the photos how great our day was. It's absolutely gorgeous here - fall is blooming, and I've waited a LONG time to enjoy these colors and the cooler air. Oh Happy Fall!

Oh yes! I almost forgot to mention that you'll notice my fancy shmancy watermark. What do you think?

Emma calls down to Charlotte: "Hey Charlotte! I'll help you up!"


Squeals and giggles all around...

Ring a round the rosy.....

pocket full of posies...

ashes...ashes...we all....fall...

...DOWN!


Emma and Charlotte perfecting their sorority "lean-in" during snack time:


Taking turns pulling each other in the flower carts..



sliding down the slide together..


Then it was time to do a little shopping. Emma wanted to buy some "baby pumpkins"

and Charlotte wanted some delicious kettle corn. When Elizabeth asked her how she was going to pay for it, she said, "mommy give me money!" So here she is with mommy's wallet :)



Then it was time for more hay time!

LOTS of hugs and kisses this day. I am so excited about their friendship. I'm thinking summer Europe backpacking trip in 2018?? :)

Finally...we have handsome AJ, who was perfectly content to watch the action enthusiastically. I would have gotten a bunch of awesome shots of AJ and his sister, but in my haste I didn't realize that my auto focus accidentally switched to manual focus during his series (slaps forehead). I'm so sorry, AJ! We'll get you next time I promise!! :)

Catalina!

I still have photos from July to post (and yes, I realize it's October!) but I did want to post a slideshow from our trip to Catalina before we left San Diego. We had never been and I am SO glad we went! Our fantastic neighbors Chris & Jean invited us to go and we had a blast (we miss you guys!!)

Catalina Island was once the weekend destination belonging to the Wrigley family (as in Wrigley gum!) The island was entirely theirs and slowly, it came to be knowns as a playground for the rich & famous in Southern California during the first part of the century. People would take a ferry to the island, to dance the night away at the penthouse casino. In the 80's, the family sold off a large portion of the island to the local government as a tourist destination and the island exploded.

There are SO many fun things to do there - snorkeling, hiking, shopping, beaching and just enjoying the Mediterranean-like setting. I wish we'd had more time, because I definitely would have gone back again!