Halloween 2011

Halloween, as usual, was a success in our house! All three kids had Halloween parties at school, and got to wear their costumes at in their school parades.
These cupcakes were for Dannen's class... each had yellow bottoms and orange middles with whipped cream tops:) And candy corn, too!
Dannen LOVES his little school...All three in their Halloween best... Punky Brewster Kaylie, Bunny Makenzie & Fireman Dannen
Trick-or-Treating was lots if fun. Though it was pretty cold outside, all three had a great time. Dannen was more into it than both girls combined... I think they got a kick out of how funny he was acting all night!
Once the kids got in bed, Mommy and Daddy raided the stash of candy, and made our own "keep away" stash:)

Twister Mania House Party

I LOVE HouseParty.com!!! Hosting the Twister Mania party is the second one since joining the free online party site. When I received the package the other day, it was like Christmas for this Mama:) Everything is FREE and ours to keep!
Can't wait to host the party on November 5th. We're going to have lots of fun with the game, friends, and "twisted" food!

PuMpKiNs!!!

We spent a few hours, okay 4 HOURS, at Seymour United Methodist Church waiting and finally unloading 300 more pumpkins to their pumpkin patch. Our kids LOVED playing outside and helping everyone!

LOVE this season!!!These little guys were a favorite of Kaylie and Makenzie... they counted every single one!"EWWWW, MOMMY!!!" Dannen took off running lolLove when they act all loving to each other!Yes, that's Makenzie dancing in the pumpkin patch LOL
Eenie, Meenie, Minie, Moe...Darkness fell quickly and the temp dropped FAST!While waiting for this VERY late truck, our Pastor Darren treated everyone to pizza:)The light rain looked like snow:)All three kids got their hands on some pumpkins, helping everyone in line. SO proud of their hard work!The finished product was 300 added pumpkins... YAY!Great time with friends!!!

How Tacky is Too Tacky?

HAHAHA I can't stop laughing! Our girls and William went up to church for their Tacky Halloween Party. At first, they were NOT interested AT ALL to wear anything too miss-matched. But, once the layers kept coming and the giggles got louder, they were loving getting ready:) Both girls got lots of good comments from church members and friends!

Fashion Show/Dance Party

Kaylie and Makenzie were invited to their friend's Fashion Show/Dance birthday party. I was honored to be the photographer for the event! Lots of fun and smiles all day:)
I provided the make-up for each girl... Eye Shadow, Mascara, Blush & Lip Gloss (Thank you Mary Kay!)
Kilmeny and my girls have been really good friends ever since moving to Tennessee
Kaylie finally came out of her shell, and enjoyed dancing during the Fashion ShowMakenzie LOVED playing with the make-up! Kilmeny's mom helped with the mascaraKaylie was such a great subject for her friendMakenzie went crazy with the blush lolSuch divas...
Little magnets to each other lolAnd this picture is really for me... it's been YEARS since I've had a Root-beer float... YUMMMM!!!Who doesn't like make-up, music, friends and lots of fun?!? Thankful for the opportunity to photograph a great party and sweet little girl:)

Hair Cut # What?

Dannen has the fastest growing hair of the entire family! I honestly lost count, but am sure this is past the 10 mark for sure:P
I love that he knows what I'm doing and can listen to directions. No more having to bribe with lollipops or stickers. I turned on cartoons, sat him in a bar stool, and started cutting. He was very interested, asking lots of questions, talking about why his hair needed to be cut. Every time I cut Daddy's, he begs to have his cut, too!
I love how big his eyes look:)

Metcalf Bottoms Park

Kaylie's 3rd grade class took a field trip to Metcalf Bottoms Park in the Smoky Mountains. It was absolutely beautiful!!!
Kaylie and her classmates learned about different habitats. They broke up into small groups, having to pretend to be different animals. Then, they had to find the types of food, shelter, and water sources in the forest they could use to survive. My favorite was hearing Kaylie say, as a deer, that she could drink water from the water puddling on each leaf... such a smart cookie:)
This little Salamander was hiding under a log... leave it to my child to find it!
After hiking for what seemed like a mile, up and down a VERY steep hill, the kids had lunch. Afterward, it was time to learn about the soil. Give a bunch of 8 year olds the opportunity to dig in dirt and WATCH OUT! They had a blast finding bugs and rocks underground. Kaylie was fascinated with the different types of soil... they learned how to be Agronomists.This is the view from out pavilion... absolutely amazing!!!Even though it took just over an hour to get there, I found a back road that cut the trip down to 45 minutes. The scenery was well worth the drive:) Can't wait to take our family there for an all day adventure!

Spa Night

What does a Mary Kay Beauty Consultant do with her kids on a Friday night? Have a fun Spa Party, that's what! LOL I pulled out my Satin Hands treatment and got ready for some giggles and cute kiddo feet!
Kaylie and Makenzie were SUPER excited to play with more of my Mary Kay items:)
Of course, we couldn't forget Dannen... whom was more than excited to play around with water:P
Kaylie fReAkEd out when she used the scrub... all the grittiness was a bit much for her!
Makenzie couldn't stop laughing at how funny her feet felt:P
Ahhh, yes... Abbie got a bit curious, too!
Boots kept her distance quite well... more interested in smelling the packets of goodies:)
LOL William was mortified seeing this picture posted on Facebook... Dannen had to have cute feet, too:)
Ahhhh.... much better:)
Afterward, all three kids sat reading to each other... perfect:)
Can't wait for our next Mary Kay night... I'm thinking makeover... but Dannen might have to sit out for that one LOL Ooooh, maybe he can help "decorate" his sisters' faces:P

Home Depot Fun

We LOVE the Free Kids Workshop events at our local Home Depot. They have THE BEST crafts and entertainment! This month was all about the Fire Rescue Helicopter. Though Kaylie and Makenzie had a nice time and rocked, making their helicopters, this event was totally#1 for Dannen! He's becoming quite the little hammer pro:P
Hey, Mr. Cow... Look what I made!
Yes, they had to do a "pose for mommy" picture lol
If he could have reached, I believe he would have attempted to drive that fire truck all the way home to his room! He kept saying, "It's like my bed! I'm a big boy driver!" (He has a fire truck bed)Our really good friends met up for some friendly workshop fun. Kaylie and Gabe loved hanging out:P
Makenzie and Micah were best buddies for the event.
One of the BEST parts for our girls was when the Police Woman offered to let them sit in her patrol car! They were definitely nervous at first, but when she allowed them to sit in the front, they thought they were on top of the world!Of all days to forget my camera... Thank goodness my phone's camera rocks! I found a new editing technique that helped turn these into some of my favorite pics:) Dannen is going to have these blown up and in his room... now I just need to figure out an awesome way to display them! Check out my Photography Facebook Page for the rest!Once again, mondo points to Home Depot for helping us make more great memories!!!