halloween: the way it was meant to be...

*WARNING*
There are about a gazillion adorable photos in this here Halloween post. If you can't handle this kind of cuteness go find yourself something a little more mundane.

A couple of weeks ago we went and picked out a pumpkin. Ben thought that this one would be the best and we all agreed. He tested out several others before and this was the only one that felt right to him.

Last weekend our courtyard had a mini pumpkin decorating activity. Very fun. The boys thought the little pumpkins were absolutely wonderful and alternated between holding them, decorating them, and throwing them. It was a good time.

Ben and Daddy decorate a lil' pumpkin

Today, Halloween, we finally set about to the task of carving our carefully selected pumpkin. Ben made sure that it was the one that he had picked out by picking it up and making sure the feel was right. Sam kicked it a lot.

The boys and I started to get at the innards, but then the boys started hurling pumpkin entrails and I remembered what a messy job emptying a pumpkin was, so Zach took over the emptying and I handled the camera for a while.

Sam was quite a lot of help-sticking his ice cream spade in between handfuls of orange goop. Ben helped for a while too...


But then he decided that his talents would be best put to use by running in circles around the pumpkin as fast as he could.

After some input from Zach and I, and a few blunt knife jabs from Sam, the Jack-O-Lantern is complete! I liked it.

Then it was time to get our Diablitos ready for trick-or-treating. That's been Zach's nickname for them for a while now, and we thought, how appropriate. So, we whipped these capes and horns together last weekend and...

Voila!
Our little Devils!

I was worried that they wouldn't keep the capes on through the whole trick-or-treating experience, but they ran around and twirled in them all over the place.

Devil Ben

Devil Sam

We started off with a quick trip over to Todd and Betty's house, to get them warmed up to the whole process.

They started off slow, probably suspicious of why people were just handing out this candy just for walking up to their door.

But they picked it up really quickly. They even started putting their candy into the pillowcase after they picked it out. Well, most of it. Some of it got...lost.

Sam goes in for the kill.

They really got into it, especially Sam. He was running up to the doors! And all in all we made out very well. That's right folks! Two whole Reeses Peanut Butter Cups. Good times.

It was a great Halloween. We got to be out with the boys, who looked adorable and behaved wonderfully. We got to see our neighbors and chat, and get free candy. We were surrounded by other cute kids having fun and dressed up like pirates and fairies and ninjas. It was wonderful, really how Halloween was meant to be.

Earthquake!

We just had an earthquake! Seriously! at 8:04 PM.

Before you get worried, we are all completely fine and so is all of our stuff. And from the sound of it, no one was hurt at the epicenter, either. Good news. It was a 5.6 earthquake, which is "moderate." We were about 20 miles or so from San Jose so we had it pretty easy here.

So, this is how it went down, everything started slowly shaking and then got stronger and then just stopped. It only lasted about 5 seconds or so. We weren't even sure that it was an earthquake at first. We just thought that a big garbage truck was going by or something, but then as it got a little more intense and we thought, "hmm... this is odd." We actually asked each other, "Is this an earthquake?" A little scary for me but Zach was excited. I guess there are supposed to be several aftershocks in the next week or so, but they'll probably be smaller.

So, there you have it, our first earthquake! Craziness.

Sit Back and Enjoy the Show...

Sorry, but you'll have to pop your own popcorn.

The Great Pansy Massacre

It was really my fault. I thought that if I put the big planter box full of pansies on the ground in the sun for a while, there wouldn't be a problem. I just had to use the bathroom afterall. So, I ran upstairs, did my business, and came back down. I heard the boys laughing as I walked down the stairs and thought they were so sweet.

Then I saw the dirt.

The long trail of dirt leading all the way to the front door. From what I can gather, they had been throwing the dirt on each other and then Ben had come in and shaken it all off of himself.

Exhibit A - Sam pulling more dirt out of the container

Just in case some people are wondering if the boys really were involve, and maybe those pansies committed suicide, I give you People's exhibit A.

Exhibit B - Ben flees the scene of the crime

Does that look like the face of a repentant transgressor? No, it doesn't to me either. Though it is a very cute face, to be sure.

In the end I forgave them because I believe it was a mercy killing. The pansies were not doing well. Of course, part of the reason they were not doing well is because the boys had been pulling bits of dirt out of the pot since I got them planted. This is what had originally prompted me to get them up high.

I wonder if they've been planning this all along? Hmm...

Crafty Katie

What is one to do when one is in possession of a dingy, old frame but is short on moo-la?
One breaks out the glue.

I tore up some newspaper and just set to it with some Mod Podge. Glossy, of course.

I let it dry overnight.

Then set to it with some acrylics.
I was going to do it in black, but Zach convinced me to go with something bolder. And what, I ask you, is bolder than red? Hmm... maybe orange.

And now don't those Parisian women look happy? Of course they do! Not as happy as if they were in a custom Givenchy frame with french mat frame, maybe. But, if they had wanted that, they should have been bought at that yard sale by someone with more money.

Fous parisiens!

The Problem with Potlucks...

Carrot Salad
(I added too much garlic)

We were invited to two different potlucks this weekend. It was loads of fun, but they were both a little spur of the moment. So, I had to scrape together some recipes and make sure that we still had ingredients for this weeks meals.

It occurred to me, while cutting two pounds of potatoes and slathering them with layers of shallots and leeks, that there are some distinct problems with potlucks. First of all, how much food do you make? This isn't always a problem if know how many people will be there, but you don't always, and this was my case. So, I decided to make two smallish dishes for the first potluck.

Potatoes Lyonesse
(Mutali said she really liked these, but I forgot to season each layer)

The second problem is that you are basically putting your culinary reputation on the line by showing up with anything at a potluck. If the dish is awful, you will be forced to make The Walk of Shame; when one has to pick up there dish and admit to the world that, "yes, I made this casserole/salad/dessert and no one ate it because it was awful." Then you pack it up and take it home, to sit in the fridge until you finally are brave enough to peak under the lid. If you are smart you'll just dump it in the bushes on your way out, because, ya know, it really was awful.

Fiesta Tomatoes + Carrots
(These went over pretty well. I mean, I liked 'em)

Another distinct problem is when your food is really, really good. Doesn't sound like a problem? Well, it isn't unless you have someone praising your food to the skies (note: this is not something I am too familiar with) while another person's food, who is sitting right there of course, goes completely unnoticed (note: I am much more familiar with this). Of course, this is one of those happy problems when it happens, but it is still a little awkward.

But, even with these potential problems, we had a fun time at both of them. We met several people from our neighborhood and ward and had lots of delicious food and good conversation, which is what it's really about. Not about the social and culinary insecurities one might be presented with.

And anyway, my food did well, so I'm not worried.

The Cool Bookshelf

We needed a place to put all the new books I got for school. Katie thinks I buy too many, but 23 books is not too many. Bringing about three times that number home from the library, yeah, that was a lot. (I still stand by the idea that there is no such thing as too many books. That's like having too much sugar--no such thing.) Anyway, after filling the little shelf space we had, I decided to build a new book shelf.


Ben watched, and then they decided to help Daddy. Let me tell you, they were more help than you could imagine. I mean, without them I never would have known that so many used nails could fit in one mouth.

As you see, I finished. I call it the cool bookshelf. If you want one, they are only $1000 each. But I could give you a family rate if you mention this blog. (In case it is illegal to sell things on the blog, I'm not. It was just a joke. I don't think anyone would pay that much anyway. (If you really want to pay that much, we'll call it a donation ;) ))

Dumpster Diving for Geraniums

Growing up, everywhere but California, geraniums were the nice little flowers with that funny smell that Mom planted. I believe this is the case for most gardens. Not here, baby! Geraniums are crazy-mega-monster plants! Taking over feet and feet of ground with their tubular reaching selves! There are several of these massive, more scary than pretty style geraniums around our house.

Of course, as Tai said once, "You just have to look at things there to make them grow." And apparently, with geraniums, you don't even have to be looking.

And yet it was still quite surprising when we found our local dumpster full of geranium cuttings the other day. I guess they decided a certain geranium needed to be cut back, probably to serve as a warning for neighboring plants, and consequently: Free Geraniums!

When I first saw the little flower peeking out of the dumpster I was hoping some over-stressed student had decided that they couldn't handle the responsibility of a plant and threw it out, some magnificent pot and all. Alas. But I did do some research and found out how to work with geranium cuttings. Though there was some conflicting advice. Some said to cut them long, others to cut them short. I went with my gut and cut several of each to see which turn out better. It isn't a very specific gut.

So, now I have four tiny pots of hot geraniums.
They look quite nice don't they? Of course, they are basically just stuck in the dirt. But maybe they put out some lil' roots.

I'll close my eyes for a second.

Scholars in Training

I noticed a silence one day (silence is not a good thing, believe you me) and was following a trail of toys, socks and shoes up the stairs. Upon the landing, what should I find, but this...



Ben is reading a the Vox Spanish Micro-Dictionary (or as he would probably told you, Diccionario Micro Lengua Espanola), while Sam, slightly more conservative, is brushing up his vocabulary with the Oxford English Minidictionary.

Readers! In our family! How could this have happened?

My Lil' Herb Garden

I bought these the other day from our local garden commune (of course we have a local garden commune, silly.) I haven't repotted them as yet, because I need to get some pots for them. English Lavender
I was looking around online and I realized that the reason the lavender seeds I planted never successfully grew is because lavender doesn't grow well from seeds, they do better from cuttings. Seems like a bit of a lazy plant to me.

Greek Oregano
This smells so very, very good!

Italian Parsley
Apparently this is harder to grow than the curly lettuce, but I really don't garnish, so we'll stick with this.

So, I'm going to plant them sometime this week after I get some pots and soil. I'll keep you posted. I'm also thinking about getting some Saffron Crocus to grow our own saffron. Hurrah for paella!

This is the life...

I believe Ben wanted more of Sam's noodles and that is why he is pulling his shirt like that. But I could be wrong. Both of these bowls have broken since this picture by the way. What? We were feeding the boys out of glass bowls? Yes. And now aren't our faces red. They just seemed so sturdy!

On a side note, these actually are two pictures. I didn't just go edit crazy or thought they would look artistic that way. Ben was tugging on Sam long enough for me to get shots of both of them. Hmmm... I probably should have intervened. Hm.

Lemon Tree, Very Pretty!

Yesterday I walked out the front door to throw out some trash and what to my wondering eye should appear but a tiny, little lemon tree! I was in shock for a moment. It had an adorable little bow on it and was just sitting there looking happy. I read the note, which was from Zach's cousin, September. We had eaten dinner at their house on Sunday and I had mentioned in passing that I had always wanted a lemon tree and especially now that we were in California. Voilà! She said she had been at the nursery and spotted it. Isn't that absolutely so sweet! I just couldn't get over it.


I flitted around it all afternoon, wiping the leaves and lemons to clean up some water spots. The boys woke up from their naps and I showed it to them and they smiled and pointed and ran to touch it. It will be difficult to keep them from pulling the "balls" off the tree. I had to hold their hands and let them stroke the lemons and say, "gentle, gentle" but Ben still tried to twist one off. It had a lovely citrus-y scent when he did.

I scanned the internet and my gardening books for some tips on how to take care of this beautiful little tree and not kill it. Because here is the confession. Though I have spent many years of my life pouring over gardening books, catalogs, websites, and individual gardens, I have never really had one myself. I helped my Mom plant tulips, daffodils, dusty miller and geraniums growing up and with general success. But it was always temporary, such is the life of the Air Force, and we couldn't do any serious gardening. And truth be told, I've killed several plants. Mostly these were throughout college when I'd get the bug for some soil and roots. But the only one that is still alive is Don Juan: The Sexy, Seductive Philodendron, who simply refused to die. Unfortunately, we accidentally left him with Carina before the move. And there he remains. Alas.

So, keep your fingers crossed for me and give me a big ol' green thumbs up. And I'll try to keep everything alive and growing and keep the boys away from them. But not too far, that's how gardeners are born after all.

Lil' Riley Quin!

Here's the newest member of our extended family. Isn't she absolutely adorable! I think it will be nice for Grammie and Grampie to have another little girl to dote on and buy pretty pink things for. Congrats to Carina on a wonderful job!

a wee bit o' the Irish for ya...

During a particularly trying day with the boys ("No! Get off of the table! No, stay off the table") I decided it was time to bring in some good luck charms. So I nailed my horseshoe above the door (I mainly subscribe to the prongs up philosophy, but there is a little one with the prongs down, just to be safe.) I also placed one of my four leaf clovers on the kitchen windowsill. And I threw in some Grimes Cove shells for good measure. I actually have five there right now (I found another shell and added it to the line up after this picture) but I think I probably like the four better. Here's another photo I took of the five shells. Which one do you think is better?


So, hopefully the luck will start pouring in, and maybe, just maybe the boys will stay off the table.

If You're Going to San Fransisco...

Forget the flowers and just try and spend more time there. On Saturday we went with the ward up the Alameda, which is across the bay from the San Fransisco. We got into the city and you could feel all the energy of the piers and the markets and the people and it was really wonderful. I thought, nevermind the ferry, let's just stay here! But, we went with the ferry plan anyway and it was a lot of fun.
The boys were so amazed with the wake of the boat, which is why they are looking at that and not the camera. The ferry ride only took about twenty minutes and then when we got off everyone just scattered in different directions. I guess we were expecting more of an event, but that apparently wasn't part of the plan, so we just headed along the path by the bay.

It was a nice walk, though it ended up being a lot longer than we thought, so when we got to the "shops" we decided to just head back to the ferry and let the boys run around a little. But then I realized that I had dropped my sweatshirt somewhere along the path and ran back to get it. I thought Zach had stayed with the boys. What he actually did was follow me. When I found the sweatshirt, a mere five minutes back the path, I cut through back to where I thought Zach and the boys were. Zach didn't see this because it is a windy path. This was the beginning of a 45 minute search of me freaking out, having no idea where he went, realizing that he had probably followed me down the path and could now be anywhere, worrying we were going to miss the ferry and have to spend a fortune to get back across, worrying that they had been hit by a bus and taken to the hospital, starting to cry, trying to talk myself out of crying, seeing the guy on the bicycle twice, having the eleven year old boy stop me to tell me about his lemonade stand, yelling out "ZACH!" all around, asking people if they had seen a man with two strollers (and as to you, Mr. I-can't-even-stop-for-two-seconds-to-answer-your-question; you suck. Everyone else, thank you.) Finally, I just headed back to the ferry. On the way there I saw Zach running towards me and I started to ran toward him. We collapsed into each others arms. Very dramatic. "Where were you!?!" It seems he had had a similar experience, except mostly on the path. It was awful. Everything went wrong. The ferry had been waiting for us and people started clapping when we got on. It probably would have funny if the previous forty-five minutes wasn't so hellish. So, thanks to Joni and Aaron for watching the boys while Zach came looking for me. Thanks to the good ferry people for not leaving us. And thanks to Zach, for running to meet me.