The rain came down, but the party went on!

I woke up this morning to two little kids in my bed and pouring rain outside the window.  The rain was predicted, but sharing my bed with Abbey and Landen for part of the night, was not.  Something about bad dreams, and it's funny that if one comes into our bed, the other one is sure to follow.  Thanks goodness Layne is still in a crib because a king-size bed is really not built for 5!

We all rolled over and took bets as to whether or not Abbey's final soccer game scheduled for 12:30 this afternoon would go on.  An email confirmed that they would play!  I was sure they wouldn't send out 7 year old girls in the mud and rain, but when it's the last day of the season, they do!

It was windy and chilly, but the rain stopped just long enough for these girls to play.  The game was a dogfight, and we didn't come out on top, but the girls played hard and finished with smiles all around.

The girls and Coach Tom agreed that they finished up just a little too clean, so they found themselves a mudhole and 9 little girls wrestled their coach to the ground!

We brushed off as much mud as we could and piled into the cars just as another downpour hit.  Perfect timing.  Off to our season finale pizza party!

It was such a fun team!  We will miss the Electric Orcas and their mean soccer game!

We had pizza and we had cake!  Homemade from my kitchen!  It was an undertaking and sometimes I wonder why I offer to make these things in the first place.  Like at 11pm last night when I ran out of powdered sugar and that big square cake had only been dirty-iced!  Or when the moist-delicious corners were cracking apart!  Luckily, an early trip to Walmart and a few pounds more of buttercream did the trick!  Not perfection, but I think it was a fun addition to our party!  And the girls loved cutting into that soccer ball!

Kindergarten Thanksgiving

There are close to 30 little squirrelly kindergarteners in Ms. B's class in room 221.  I know most of their names because I get to go in, every other Tuesday, to help with centers.  Maybe half of them know my name.  Most of them just know me as Landen's mom.  I love these times to be a part of the classroom.  I get to color and paste and read to these little people and be with Landen and I get a close look at what he's learning and how he's doing!

Today, these little squirrelly kindergarteners were all lined up, wearing their best-behavior faces, and singing about turkeys and Thanksgiving while almost 60 parents beamed with pride!  They are so cute as they concentrate on the words and the hand motions and then break concentration for just a second to look up and make eye contact with mom and dad!  I have to admit that part of me is beaming with pride and another part of me is crossing my fingers that Landen stays still and makes it through the whole performance.  He has a bad history.  In preschool last year, he glued himself to my leg, turned on the tears, and refused to go up and sing.  Both performances.  In the primary program at church, he goes up happily, then makes a racket through the whole hour-long sacrament meeting.  Our last program was just last month.  I couldn't decide whether to crawl under the pew and hide or run to the front and pull him off the stand.  I think the combination of him jumping up and down, whacking the girl behind him, making funny faces, and then pulling his shirt collar over his head, for the entire program, just got a little embarrassing!

I'm proud to report that he did great today!  He sat still, sang, smiled, and raised his day-of-the-week sign at the perfect times!  Kindergarten has done wonders for this boy!  We finished off the afternoon with a popcorn turkey and plate of Thanksgiving treats outside.

Sights

It's good to live in San Clemente.  If you hit the pier on a Saturday morning, you have gone on a little vacation.  If you hit the beach trail and run 9 miles, the vacation ends abruptly.  But, the sights are beautiful.

Future Soccer Star

She'll play soccer one day.  She'll run up and down the field in her soccer jersey and cleats as her mom and dad cheer her on from the sidelines.  Just a few short years away.  In the meantime, she does have a few things figured out.  It's just as fun to bounce the ball and throw the ball and carry the ball as it is to kick it.  It's much easier to score a goal coming in from the back.  And, there's a handy hole in the net that makes it a sure thing.  It's fun to play and it's fun to watch.  But even if you don't participate in either way, a cute smile is sure to get you a gatorade and a snack when the whistle ends the game.   

Trunk or Treat

After the shoot-out on our doorstep, we took these little cowboys and their trick-or-treat bags for some candy at the Trunk-or-Treat.  

Woody and Jesse

Layne wasn't thrilled about getting up from her nap and getting thrown into the car, but when she saw the candy, she was one happy camper.

Layne dressed as the rag doll (from Toy Story 3) and Royal sporting his authentic 1980's flannel

Abbey met up with another cowgirl...

Abbey and Delaney

After dark, the trunks popped open, and the trick-or-treat stampede began!

peeking at her candy                        collecting candy                               sorting candy   

Everyone got to sample a few treats from their bags.  

          maybe more than a few!

And then, it was time to head inside.

Goodnight spooks and monsters and pumpkins and cowboys.

Spooky Treats

have some cookies draped in spider webs

or some haunted brownie bites

for a more substantial bite, choose eyeball taco salad

with a few mummy dogs on the side

wash it all down with a glass of magic potion

and ensure a house full of happy little halloweenies