Halloween

Halloween itself was one long day of festivities. Ethan sadly was mostly done with his activities but Isaac and Miles got to party the whole day. Isaac's school let him show up in a costume and keep it on. They played games, decorated and ate cookies, and then Miles and I came back for the last half hour of the trunk-or-treat and school parade. Thankfully it was a beautiful day in the low 70's so outside activities worked great. Here he is (the green dragon) heading to the teacher's cars with his cute teacher Mary Poppins.

Can I say I love these teachers? I do! And even more since they didn't just pass out candy (which we got in abundance the rest of the day) and in fact gave out NO candy- just playdough, stickers, pencils, and little toys.

They even made little treat buckets for the kids so I didn't have to remember his pumpkin basket (which I didn't).

This is how Miles entertained himself while the other kids trunk-or-treated. He's the monkey by the way. I let him pick between Ethan's old costumes and he insisted on this one since it has a banana in the pocket.

And then we all went back around the front to watch the kids parade down the side.

So proud of his new pencil!

And this is how Miles entertained himself during the parade. No candy being thrown so no reason to watch the parade for this little guy.

After Isaac's school events were over we headed up to Taylor's work where they have a Halloween office-wide trick or treat and then a lunch for the whole staff and their families. Ethan missed out this year but we had a good time. Taylor is a spider web in case you can't tell. Dressing up in mostly mandatory at his office and unfortunately he's somewhat of a procrastinator. Normally this is fine since he just runs to a store and gets something, but this year Halloween was a Monday so Sunday night when he finally realized he needed a costume, he was a little out of luck. But he had this brilliant idea to cut up a sheet (luckily we have old ones) and add my giant spider to his head. It worked and he was very proud of his handiwork.

Then thankfully it was time for naps and picking up Ethan from school and then we headed out to do our neighborhood trick-or-treating. Here come Obi-Wan Ethan, Dragon Isaac, and Monkey Milo.

Sadly I forgot pictures of the actual trick-or-treating, the neighborhood costume parade and BBQ. So you just get the final picture with Taylor's parents when we trick-or-treated their house as a last stop.

Carving Pumpkins

One Halloween tradition I never let us miss is carving pumpkins. Taylor humors me because he actually enjoys doing intricate designs. Also, he enjoys grossing out our boys by making them dig the innards out. Isaac seriously shed a few tears before Taylor let him off the hook this year. Ethan has grown to love it.
Each of the boys picked a design and helped for a little bit before giving up and Taylor and I ended up finishing them. In fairness you can see Ethan laying on Taylor here and a few hours later he threw up and had a 24 hour flu bug.

Luckily they still wanted to be at least NEAR the carving action so they settled down in the toy room to read books together. So cute when Ethan reads to his brothers.

And here's the finished pumpkins. A ghost, a tombstone and tree, and a grim reaper.

Much scarier at night!

Afternoon at the Farm

I feel like this year I haven't really gotten out to do much with the kids. Not really a problem since they're busy with school and sports and life in general and actually very happy to be at home playing with each other, but I do think it's nice to celebrate the seasons and holidays. So one Friday when Taylor was out of town I decided we'd hunt down a farm/pumpkin patch experience for all of us.
The older boys got to ride ponies. Ethan was very excited especially since his was much bigger than Isaac's. But Isaac was completely oblivious to this and laughed his head off the whole time. Not sure why but it was apparently the funniest thing that he's done in quite some time.

And Miles got to watch. He's actually a smart 2 year old and has a healthy fear of animals bigger than him so he was happy to stay outside the fence- outside and at least 3 feet away from the fence and crouched down and hiding. Curious about what his brothers were doing but no WAY was he going anywhere close.

And then there were games, games, games! Nothing to the scale of pumpkin patches in DC, but beanbag tosses and obstacle courses and bowling and horseshoes and lots more.

And we got to check out the rest of the farm. Why is there a tiny sized jail on a farm???

And we couldn't leave without a horse and buggy ride. Apparently Miles considers this a safe enough distance from the horses.

Yep, a fun afternoon enjoying the fall weather and activities.

Ethan's Halloween Parade and Party

When I think back to my elementary school experience I have to admit that I remember a lot more from PE and art and recess than I do from actual class even though I know I spent much more time in class.
So even though I think some of the time in school could be better spent learning, I have to roll my eyes just a little and then smile big because Ethan is SO excited for these fun activities. And really in the end this is what he'll remember. And luckily he's learning everything he needs to along the way so what's a wasted day or two here or there.
Because Halloween was a Monday and the school didn't want the whole week to be tainted, they elected to move all Halloween festivities to the previous week. So on October 27th (there was no school Friday. Why???) we began celebrating Halloween. And didn't stop until it was actually Halloween. This was actually convenient because then I could be at all of Ethan's activities on Thursday and also all of Isaac's on Monday.
So Thursday Miles and I joined Ethan at school for their costume parade. Ethan wanted to be a Jedi last year and I balked at the prices. This year since I wasn't making any costumes and since Miles and Isaac were both excited to wear Ethan's old costumes (yeah for hand-me-downs they actually like and I don't have to pay for :) I decided he could buy a jedi costume and bizarrely it was half the price of last year so yeah! No mask or gun or light saber at school of course though.

Here's his whole class with Senora Foulke as I have no idea what. Look how fabulous her room is though. So much to learn, so much going on!

And since I've gone overboard on volunteering I couldn't resist helping with the party. I made up a quick Halloween Spanish Bingo game with words like Dulce and Morcielago (candy and bat) and gave them all M&M's for markers. Then we played and played and switched groups and generally made a mess of the classroom and had a great time.

I jumped up for a second to snap a few of the other activities. Here they're making some kind of a necklace.

And of course no Halloween party is complete without dry ice in a cauldron.

And a matching game.

And somewhere else they were making clay fingers and the another one was wrapping themselves as mummies using toilet paper (not sure which crazy mom thought that wouldn't be chaos and very messy).

All in all a very fun morning- Miles came along and was generally crabby but since he was strapped into his stroller and the room was pretty loud it didn't matter.

A bit of craziness but fun to be a part of all of it!

To the Zoo

This fabulous summery weather we've been having was just too good to pass up and since we've kind of overdone the scooter-walk-to-the-park adventure too much (not to mention now that Miles has his own scooter it's a major tantrum if we don't bring it and a really LONG SLOW walk if we do) so we opted to enjoy the weather walking around the zoo. Normally I wouldn't even have posted such a mundane trip, but really how can I pass up these 3 cute boys in awe at every window.

Can I just say how nice it was no not bring a stroller along and just walk/run (they get a little over-excited to see the next animal) the whole zoo together. So nice to see these brothers who truly enjoy each other's company.
And since we were having such a great time we couldn't pass up a quick ride around the zoo on the train.

Silly Milo

This child has a personality that just doesn't stop. He's my shopping buddy since I try to get it all done while Ethan and Isaac are at school. He's a good sport most of the time and the rest of the time... he makes the best of a boring situation as you can see. He seriously insisted on wearing his sunglasses and hood throughout the store and then when Target was just too boring to bear any longer, he announced "seepy", pulled his legs in, turned himself and sprawled out in the basket. And he stayed that way. Totally happy.
Fine with me!

Morning Presents

Taylor's family's tradition of opening Birthday presents in the morning actually worked out well this year. Taylor and his parents were all flying out in the afternoon to go watch his sister Barbara play in her semi-pro rugby quarter finals (and Utah play Pittsburgh) so morning presents was the perfect answer.
This one is a Taylor clone- minus the hair and eye color (and a few bottom teeth)

Okay so my wrapping job was a bit pathetic, but Miles was with me when I bought his presents so he already knew what he was getting, and I decided presents that were instantly ready for playing were better than an easily wrappable box. And I'm cheap so blankets did the job!

Miles is in love with the neighbors big trampoline (tam-po-ween) so he was in love with this too. See Isaac on the sidelines just waiting for his turn to swoop in?

Luckily Grandma Tina was in town (keep up the October Wade family weddings- she's been here for all of Miles' birthday so far!) and brought along Miles' present. Miles is fully convinced he is just as big as both Ethan and Isaac and has been trying to ride their scooters for a while now.

See Grandma Tina? It's better to deliver presents in person- then you get the hugs as payment!

Isaac is totally thrilled to have the trampoline all to himself (at least while Ethan is still in the shower and getting ready for school and Miles is on his scooter).

And since the weather has been so fabulous Miles got to take his scooter outside on his birthday.

Caramel Apples

So my mom and her sisters should really start their own wedding reception business. They certainly have the expertise and experience after putting on receptions for at least 20+ of my cousins. They're pros. So when my aunt called up my mom and asked if they could figure out how to make the fancy Rocky Mountain Chocolate caramel dipped/decorated apples that sell for $10 a pop, my mom said sure, she'd figure it out. And of course she did. After a few tries, she found the perfect recipe and these apples really are to die for. So here's the recipe. Enjoy! Cause we sure have been!

In a large pot combine 2 cups sugar and 1 1/4 cups light corn syrup (if you like a darker caramel, use brown sugar instead of white). Stir and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Boil for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add 1 cup heavy cream and bring back to a boil, stirring constantly. Add another 1 cup of cream, bring to a boil then add 1 more cup of cream (3 cups in all). Continue to cook, stirring constantly until caramel reaches the 'soft-ball' stage (235-240 degrees on a candy thermometer) or when mixture can be molded with fingers into a soft ball when dropped into a bowl of ice cold water. This whole process takes about 30-45 minutes.If making caramel candy, pour the mixture into a lightly buttered 9x13 pan and allow to cool. When cool cut into desired size pieces and wrap. Candy keeps well in the refrigerator or freezer.For caramel apples: Prepare apples before making the caramel by inserting a stick into the top of the apple (I use Granny Smith), then dip in boiling water for 15-20 seconds to remove wax that has been added by grocery stores. If you get your apples from an orchard you do not have to do this step. Place apples on paper towels and allow to dry before dipping. Once the caramel is ready, transfer it to a 1 1/2 quart crock pot or a fondue pot set on low - this makes for easier dipping. Allow the caramel to cool for about 5 minutes. Dip apples.If making White Chocolate over Caramel apples, dip the apples and allow the to set (in the refrigerator is best), then dip in melted white chocolate. Immediately sprinkle with a brown sugar/cinnamon mixture.For most other apples, add toppings (toffee pieces, M&M's, nuts, etc.) right after dipping in caramel and before it sets. Once cool, drizzle milk or dark chocolate over the whole apple.This recipe makes 12-15 apples, depending on size. If you are only making a few apples, you can dip those, then drop 1/2 cup of the remaining caramel on an 8x8 inch sheet of parchment. Once cool stack the sheets, put in a gallon zip bag and store in fridge. You can then make more apples by placing a caramel circle over an apple and using your hands, gentle press it evenly around a prepared apple. Add toppings as above.Turtles - Place 3-4 pecans for each turtle on parchment paper. Drop a teaspoon of caramel over the pecans. Do this for all the turtles you are making, then go back and drop another teaspoon or tablespoon (depending on how big you want the candy) over the whole piece. Once cool dip in milk or dark chocolate.Pretzels - Dip large pretzel rods into caramel, place on parchment paper and allow to cool. Then, dip in white or dark chocolate. You can also add chopped nuts at this time, if desired. Once chocolate is set, drizzle different colors of melted chocolate (red, green, white for Christmas, etc.) over the pretzels.

Miles' Birthday Dinner

There was some debate this year as to what to do for Miles' 2nd birthday. I didn't really think he needed a friend party but a family dinner party would be nice. Unfortunately all of Taylor's family, including himself, was going to be out of town. We almost did nothing but since I took my cake class this summer I wanted to make a cake with fondant and I didn't want him to be the 3rd child who gets twinkies with candles for a birthday cake (not that he would have noticed or minded :) And since my mother and grandparents were all in town, we have a small-ish dinner party.
Complete with bringing grandma-great a basketball hoop and telling her to "hoed it".

Yep, we're all about the self-celebration in this house!

So here's the cake. Miles has been IN LOVE with "a-panes" since we visited Hill AFB this summer. It helps that the Salt Lake airport is close to town and we see planes almost every day while we're driving around.

Can I just say that I LOVE fondant! So easy! Miles is currently standing by my computer chair while I type and pointing at the screen and saying "birf-day cake, a-pane". It truly is just like playdough. Cookie cutter for the letters/numbers/clouds/airplanes and that's about it. I did learn a few things. I will take a tiered cake class before I attempt a 2 layer cake again, and I will make sure to bake the cakes in the morning so I can decorate during nap time. It was kind of a nightmare to keep the fondant out of Miles' mouth while I was working. At one point he grabbed a large piece of chocolate fondant and ran away with it in his hand and mouth. It may have looked like a large, um, ahem, you get the point.

And once I added the toy airplanes on toothpicks, he just couldn't leave the cake alone.

Even when I tried covering it he got his hand caught with in the proverbial cookie jar.

Until finally it was time to actually eat the cake. Notice how several of the airplanes have disappeared. And that can't all be blamed on Miles either. Apparently toys on a cake are too hard for little boys to resist.

So the picture didn't turn out very pretty but I have to tell you about this cake. It's just a normal chocolate box cake but instead of adding oil like the box says, you substitute in pureed black beans. Seriously, you just throw the beans and liquid in a blender and then trade out the exact amount of oil for beans. And it makes the cake more moist than you can believe- plus a little protein and fiber. You can't taste the difference and it was REALLY GOOD! I used regular whipped cream for the filling and it was divine. Didn't even need the ice cream.

Miles gave his full approval! That's his this-cake-is-too-good-to-stop-for-a-picture smile.

Ethan and Isaac made a great pair. Ethan ate his cake and Isaac ate his ice cream- and then they traded bowls and finished each others.

Too good to let any crumbs fall out of our mouths.

And we couldn't forget one picture with grandpa-great who also loves airplanes!