Pumpkins

We had a very full Sunday. Gene decided to make fresh bread, caldo verde, and Portuguese sweet bread, he helped carve jack-o'-lanterns with the boys, he played outside with them and he set up the rest of our Halloween decorations. To be fair, he had been traveling all week so he wanted to be uber-involved this weekend -- and he was!

My baker!

Boys and sweet breads. Gene cut the recipe down and made some shortcuts and they worked. Delicious sweet bread!

Texas is so warm in October that we always wait til the weekend before Halloween to carve our pumpkins. We made the mistake of carving them early one year and they rotted on us. So Sunday was designated as pumpkin-carving day. Gene is my master pumpkin-carver.

The boys are not afraid to dig in there to get out all the innards.

This is the pumpkin Will picked out at the pumpkin patch in Kingwood. It is completely lopsided and has scratches (they look like scars) all over the front. It is a perfectly spooky jack-o'-lantern!

Getting ready to carve Henry's pumpkin.

Gooey! We always save the seeds to roast later.

Henry's finished pumpkin has two different eyes and a rhombus nose. 

My two cuties.

We can't carve pumpkins without taking a few pics outside the front door with them.

I love this picture because it shows just how much these boys love their daddy!

And just for kicks, here are pumpkin pics from years past:

2010

2011

and 2012 

After we carved our pumpkins, we finally set out our outdoor decorations. We have an inflatable this year. Check out Weezie -- she was freaked out!

We ended the day with chalk and bubble fun in the backyard.

And now we are really ready for Halloween! 

A Day in Kingwood

The boys and I spent all day Sunday in Kingwood. It was a gorgeous day to be outside and Kingwood is just a beautiful part of Houston.

We started the morning at the Pumpkin Patch at Good Shepherd Episcopal Church, just up the road from my parents' house.  

We found a friendly scarecrow

and lots and lots of pumpkins.  

This may be my favorite picture from the whole day.  

After the pumpkin patch, Henry and I played at the park while Will read Harry Potter. This little boy never tells me to stop taking his picture, which is good because I need lots and lots of practice!

We went for a walk down the trails

and found a tree stump covered in popcorn. The squirrels were having quite a feast.

After lunch, we all headed outside for some fresh air. Will usually doesn't like me to take his picture, but I managed to sneak in a few shots. 

I also captured Henry and Gramma having a conversation about the Halloween decorations across the street. 

We had a great day and are so glad Gramma and Grampa are back in Texas!

Pumpkins, Art and Will's Library

It is fall and we are still obsessed with pumpkins at our house! Henry's class "planted" seeds in an old jack-o'-lantern and set it in an empty spot near the school to grow. We'll see what happens.

Henry drew this pumpkin family last week and labeled everyone. Dad is the biggest pumpkin and Weezie is the smallest. Henry is bigger than Will because he's tired of being the littlest. All the grandparents are represented too.

Meanwhile, Will has been busy doing art at school. They made handprint turkeys and wrote about a special Thanksgiving guest for their latest published hallway work. If you're wondering who Will would like to invite to Thanksgiving dinner, it's Bad Kitty from the book series.

Willl also went to Hands-on Art last week. They learned all about John James Audubon and made their very own bird art using oil pastels and water colors.

Will painted a robin!

When Gramma and Grampa came back from Maine, they brought back a huge box full of chapter books they had picked up at a garage sale. Will was so excited!  He immediately sorted the books and set up his very own library. Can you see the labeled tags between the series of books? He also wrote down his library rules.

And because he is so thrilled about his library, he's even been writing notes reminding us that we can check out library books.

I've got Junie B., First Grader: Aloha-ha-ha! on request and can't wait to read it!