Dorothy, Captain Kirk, A Trick-or-Treater, A Scarecrow and A Wizard



P.K. was off work on Halloween this year which made it extra fun.  We had pot roast for dinner which for some reason has become our traditional Halloween dinner.  Then we all went out to trick-or-treat.

 

Dorothy with Toto

 





A Trick-or-Treater

 

 

Captain Kirk

 



A wizard with his favorite Trick-or-Treater

 



Serendipity

That is the title of the Mother Daughter Girl Scout camping weekend at Camp Meriweather.  Both girls and I went for the weekend.  It was so nice to get away with them.  Rachel was the only Cadette from our troop to attend.  It worked out well because Hannah was really more into doing things with her Brownie friends, so I had some quality time with Rachel.

Here Rachel and I are playing Nertz!  Rachel was so relaxed.  I think it was because her friends weren't around and she could just be herself.  Even her mom making silly faces didn't embarrass her.

The girls also got to make their own clay beads, try basket weaving, make survival bracelets and of course make smores.  One of their troop specific activities is doing Who-hair.  The girls take all kinds of hair ties, flowers and pipe cleaners and try to make the best Who-hair...think Dr. Seuss.  Rachel was so sweet with the younger Scouts.  She helped them fix their hair and then graciously let them fix her hair. 

My Favorite Girl Scouts

Rachel and Hannah had their Girl Scout Investiture ceremony tonight.  Rachel is beginning her ninth year as a Girl Scout and Hannah is beginning her fourth year.  One of the leaders who has a daughter in kindergarten this year also has a daughter a year younger than Rachel.  She came up to me and told me she had to do a double take when she saw Hannah because for a second she thought it was Rachel.

I think this might be Rachel's last year in Scouts as she is interested in other things.  It has been wonderful for her.  Scouting builds self-confidence and gives the girls opportunities to try things they might not otherwise get a chance to try like canoeing and horseback riding.

 

 

Want to Do Something?

Hannah came to my room and asked if I wanted to do something with her.  I asked her what she wanted to do.  She suggested coloring.  I really do like to color so she brought a coloring book and colored pencils.  After we colored for a while, she looked at my page and said, "You are a good colorer." 

Hannah's 9th Birthday

The month of September is one long party in this house.  We closed out the month with a celebration for Hannah. 

All three of my kids have had many, many, many themed birthday parties.  I love getting friends together and putting a cute spin on it.  We have done everything from Elmo to Dinosaurs to Dora to Snakes.  I love putting them together and having fun with them.  Now that the kids are older, they have their own ideas of what they want.  Earlier this month when Rachel had friends sleepover, she was horrified (Or was it mortified?) when I asked her if she wanted me to plan a craft for her friends to do.  I told her last year they painted shirts to which she replied, "Mom, that was twwwooo years ago."  In my defense I was thinking something slightly more sophisticated than popsicle stick picture frames.  Wouldn't teen girls love to make earrings?  Apparently, not. 

When Hannah and I were planning her party, she wanted her friends to sleepover.  Her circle of friends tend to be a bit high maintenance at sleepovers.  There is a lot of drama that the four of them have shared since kindergarten.  I had suggested that she could invite one friend and we would go out to eat at a restaurant of her choice and that friend could sleepover.  As the time approached, she let me know she wanted a party where her friends would DO. A. CRAFT.  How could I say, "No" when I just learned from recent experience that my years of entertaining her and her friends with glue and sequence are numbered.  We decided she could invite her crew plus one new friend from church for a party.  It would last from 4-7 and one girl was invited to sleepover.  Due to busy schedules, two of the other girls needed to sleepover.  All but one girl was spending the night.  I called the last girl's mother and explained what had happened and asked if her daughter could stay over for the festivities.

Hannah wanted Nacho Bar for dinner.

 

There was cake.  I waited until the last minute to pick up her requested cookie cake and the ones the store had ready weren't the best, so I opted for this flowerpot made out of cupcakes.  It was cute, but messy and not very good.  The next time I will stick with our traditional cookie cake.

 



 

We moved on to opening gifts.  One of her gifts was a movie she had asked for which may have strategically been planned as a party activity for later in the night.  Then the girls asked if we could go to the playground. 

 

 

They all climbed a tree.  I sat quietly letting them have fun and praying this would not result in any broken bones. 

 

Then we went back home to do the craft!!  Sadly, there are no pictures of that.

 

The girls didn't stay up too late.

 

Breakfast the next morning was Omelet Bar.  I really like the "bar" meals.  It allows the kids to make their own food which doubles as a party activity and everyone can choose what they like.

 

I put everything needed in bowls on the island and wrote each girl's name on a Ziploc with a Sharpie.  They cracked their eggs and had more fun than expected just whisking the eggs.  Then they added what they wanted in their omelets.  Everything was poured in their bag.  I labeled paper plates with their names and cooked the omelets.  This was easy and fun.

 

 

Now we get a party break until June.  







Hat Day

Aaron and Rachel were heading to the car for school this morning, when I see Aaron wearing this hat and Rachel slipping him a dollar.

 

"Why are you wearing that hat and why are you giving him a dollar?"  Every week there is a Spirit Day at the middle school.  This particular day was Hat Day.  The kids can wear any hat they want and they pay a dollar.  The money raised goes to a charity.

I think Rachel thought it would be fun to wear this hat, but she was a bit too concerned about what others might think.  Aaron doesn't care what people think and is always looking for a way to make money.  So many life lessons in those two sentences.

What it Takes to Make a Boat

Hannah had to do a project for her Target class.  The assignment was to choose a picture of herself by a body of water and explain any historical significance and how the waterway is used today.  She chose a picture we had taken in Beaufort, NC.  The pirate Blackbeard had a home in Beaufort and one of his ships was found there.  It is also home to Carrot Island where descendants of Spanish ponies live.  Part of the assignment was to present the project in a creative way.  Hannah decided to make a pirate ship.  Her photo was one side of the pirate flag and her report was on the other side of the flag.

We hot glued two file folders around an empty cardboard box.  Then she poked a hole and put in a wooden dowel.  We hot glued her flag to this.