Pumpkin Patch!

Traditionally, we take the kids to Books Family Farm's pumpkin patch, but this year that farm closed it's doors, so we had to search for the perfect pumpkin elsewhere. T.J. Farms had a little pumkin patch this year, so we decided to try it out. We loved their little wagons and their barn store, bounce house, hay ride and farm animals made this the perfect fall place to visit! We'll be back to T.J. Farms to hunt for the perfect pumpkin again next year, I'm sure!

Taylor, Owen & James in the wagon.

Owen & Charli in the bounce house. This was an unlimited bounce house, our kids bounced for at least 30 minutes! What fun!

Owen loved the miniture donkeys, cow, horse, and goats!

Charli, Taylor & James with the horse.

Paige & Charli in the pumpkin patch.

Kids on wagons!

Chad & Luke talking football while pulling the kids & pumpkins.

Thumbs-up for the perfect pumpkin!

Owen was not so happy for this cute group shot...

Charli on her pumpkin.

Owen found a pumpkin seat too!

Owen & Charli, read for a wagon ride!

After T.J. Farms, we went back to the Kennedy's house to carve our pumpkins!

Owen decided to pain his pumpkin.


Taylor did not want to help me pull the pumpkin-guts out...


My PIRATE pumpkin. Aarrrrghhhh!!!

Brooke's cute strawberry-shaped jack-o-lantern.

James, of course, loved Luke's Transformers jack-o-lantern the best...

Jason's Academy Graduation

Jason graduated for him Correctional Officer's Academy this week with top honors. He's been attending the academy in Yuba City (about an hours away from our house) for the past 5-weeks. He was assigned duty as Class Sergeant, the second highest rank in the class. He was in-charge of all of the class discipline and leadership. He also won an academic award for being ranked #3 in the class for G.P.A., which he was actually disappointed with! He'd been ranked #1 for most of the academy and ended up missing getting the #1 slot by 0.2 of a percent. We were still proud of him!

The awards Jason we most proud to get were the two he was nominated for by his classmates. Jason was voted "Best in Class" for his overall academic and physical performance as well as his leadership abilities. The second award his classmates nominated him for was for leadership. His classmates chose him as, "someone with good ethics and judgement skills, the ability to stay calm in a stressful situation, a true leader and the one person everyone would choose to work beside them." It was a big honor to win these awards!

Currently, Jason is attending another academy at Yuba College that will make him an official Peace Officer and enable him to be able to carry a firearm while on the job (although they do not carry firearms in the jail). In this academy, he has been chosen as the Class Platoon Leader, the #1 rank in the class. We are so proud of all Jason's accomplishments, and we know so many good things are to come of his career!

Soccer!

This week, soccer ended for this year. James and Charli love going to soccer so much, they are going to miss Coach Lori and the other kids! We're looking into signing them up for a youth league in our area soon so they can continue playing.

Owen loves going, even though he can't be in the class until he's potty-trained. He plays in the field and on the playground while the big kids do soccer. He's learned to kick so well just from watching them play!
A big kick from James! SCORE!

Jumping-Jacks!

James' 1st Dentist Appointment

My big boy had his very first dental exam! I was so proud of him, he did such a great job! He loved visiting Dr. Crabtree and having his teeth cleaned. James' favorite part was riding up and down in the chair, but he also giggled through having his teeth cleaned and he loved the strawberry flavor of the polish. He was so cooperative, he even sat and smiled while they took x-rays of his teeth! He keeps asking if he can go back soon, he really was impressed with all the equipment and meeting all the new people in the office. Who knew, a 4-year-old who LOVES the dentist?!?! Getting examined by Dr. Crabtree
Loot! New toothbrush & gear

Getting ready for his cleaning with the hygenist

Pandora- My Favorite Music Site!

If you haven't checked out Pandora yet, you are missing out on something amazing! This FREE internet radio site is run by the Music Genome Project and can be found at www.pandora.com. Sign up for a free account, enter the names of a few of your favorite musical artists or songs, and just like magic, Pandora will start playing all of your favorite songs! Someone did hours and hours of research and analysis to catalog music so that similar qualities can be identified and only music based on what you enter will be played. Thanks to the Music Genome Project you can enjoy unlimited free music, and it is likely you will enjoy just about every song that plays!

Oktoberfest

Owen enjoyed a cold drink of.....

fresh-pressed apple juice (not beer!)

at Oktoberfest in Sierra City.

Bille Park

Bille Park is one of our favorite places to spend the day.

A beautiful fall afternoon,

swings,

slides,

and two very happy boys.

A BLAST from the past!

When I was 13 years old, my two favorite things to do were to hang out with my friends and to listen to the New Kids on the Block. I LOVED this band, as a matter of fact, I was a little obsessed. After listening to thier music, covering my room with their images, and daydreaming constantly about this band with all the "Right Stuff" my dreams came true- my friends and I got to actually go to a live New Kids on the Block concert in San Jose!! The year was 1990...

The day after I turned 31 years old, a group of my best friends and I made a pilgrimage to Arco Arena to relive our teen fantasy. It had been 18 years and so much had changed, yet here I was, screaming like a teenager over a group of 40 year-old men bouncing around on stage to a set of very familiar tunes. We screamed and sang along until our throats were sore and our voices were gone. We stayed through both encores ("Step By Step" was the first, followed by the grand finale: "Hangin' Tough"). The show ended around midnight, a very late hour for all of us these days. On Friday, back in our regular adult lives and jobs, we were all dragging, but I think each of us had a little glimmer in our eyes for days following the concert. There's just nothing like having you breath taken away by a beloved boy band for the first time in almost two decades.

Joey *sigh* McIntyre.... still so dreamy after all these years!!