Trick or treat

Six little ladies all ready for fun...

Paige couldn't make it to the first house without tripping. I had to bustle up her dress again.

These are the littlest ones happily stomping through leaves six inches deep. Rossford is a great town and the perfect place to trick or treat. This is one of the favorite "spooky house's" we visit every year.

The Halloween after party included Pizza. Usually chili but some traditions are made to be broken... movies for the girls and Wii for the grownups. I loved it. Frisbee, archery, sword fights. All this fun playing against some of my favorite people... Adam, Eileen, and Laura. Really way to much fun. I almost took Paige's head off while sword fighting with Adam. Adam got to win so he was happy. The girls ended up watching the adults for their entertainment. Apparently we were more fun to watch than their movie. John stayed the resposible non Wii playing adult just to make sure we actually left at a reasonable hour. So glad I don't have a Wii I might not ever get anything done in the real world.

Stranahan treats and chior concerts...

I love these girls. Two of them are of course mine. Courtney and Shayla are an always welcome addition to the Rapplings. Kate and Courtney had fun going back to their "old school" to trick or treat such grown up sixth graders. Sydney and Shayla were ready for some serious candy. Paige was refusing to be photographed. This was the best one I took of her all night.Amazing costume right? Terri Davenport, all around amazing artist and scrapbooking super star, made this for her son, Josh???, hope I got that right... today. I could only see half of his costume and had to ask what he was. He looked at me like I had lost my whole mind. Well maybe I had. Plus I've never played Wii before. Being the true child of a scrapbooking mom, he stopped and even smiled for the camera! The amazing Mr. and Mrs. Rethman and beautiful Mya and Stella. Sydney has officially decided that he's not freaky anymore even though he is a boy teacher.

Kate's first concert for music. She can't be in chior until 7th grade. Everyone was allowed to wear their halloween costume's. Great concert! No really it was. Kate may not know it but she has a great teacher who can actually get this wide assortment of sixth graders to sound good. Look I caught paige snuggling on Kate while they watched the 7th and 8th grade chiors perform. So sweet!

Sunshine changes my perspective...

Sweet what sunshine can do for a day.

Charlene it's pink you want one right?

My neighbors... well no neighbors in residence now, it's for rent... not the tree, the house... anyway beautiful tree isn't it?This is the most beautiful tree on my street every fall. It changes late and holds on to it's leaves as long as possible wouldn't you know that the next day it rained and they all came down.

Foggy morning at the gardens...

Some children don't like foggy damp mornings but not Paige. She couldn't wait to go to the Gardens. She saw Mr. Matt and Miss Olga drive away and asked if she could play till they came back? Heck yes. Fog is fun for photographers.

Paige and Olga chasing the geese away from the Pioneer Garden. Paige and Olga had fun when they made all the geese fly away. What's better than watching kindred spirits chasing winged creatures out of a garden. Later at home Paige announced in thru one of her "happy songs," I love Olga... Olga is awesome... I love Olga... Olga is fun." Sometimes the Minx is cute.

Paige having a good time singing while she works. She sings when she' happy. Today's lyrics were..."I'm raking at the garden...I'm raking for my berries... I'm raking at the garden... I have my own bucket I'm a big girl." We were raking pine needles to put on the blueberry patch and Olga did get her a small bucket to fill on her own. Paige was queen of the world.Miss Judy and her partner in crime for the holidays. She made chocolate lollipops and Paige was in heaven. The teeth worried her until Miss Judy showed her how they came out and weren't real. Minx did try to talk me into buying her some cool teeth for her halloween. Not likely Paige, definitely not.

Melly, Paige wants to know if you have a friend to drive in your car with you? What can you come up with for your sassy red convertible and Thanksgiving I wonder?

Trunk or Treat...

Pouring rain will not deter small children from Trunk or Treat!Games, fun, food, and grown ups dressed in great costumes and free candy. What more could a Rappling ask for?

My favorite was watching the girls eat cookies off of a string without touching it. Hilarious!

Fall...

Today I worked outside. Usually the end of October means chilly days and even chillier nights. These are the sights I enjoyed today while painting my table. My beautiful sweet shrub bush. The blue blue sky.Beautiful day.

Cameron and test scores...

This is Cameron. He's a great little guy who comes over every morning to wait for the bus while his mom goes to work. He's moving this weekend so we're all very sad. How can you not love his sweet face?

Glass pumpkins being sold at Meant to Bead/ART on Central. I love them! Kate surprised me with test scores from Math. I thought they were percentages! Nice right? Then I actually read the rest of the paper.

Riddles...

I've have a Little Golden Book of Riddles, simply titled "The Riddle Book," for a long, long time... I remember buying at the Woodville Mall where we used to go and have lunch at a department store where Aunt Bonnie or maybe Aunt Pearl , I can't remember...mom I could use some clarification here... and that it was $1.50. These are the quirky things that I can recall from my childhood. Well my brothers loved this book. Daniel used to go around telling the jokes like he was a stand up comedian. Adam couldn't stop giggling and yes he was a way beyond cute curly headed, blue eyed, little giggler. Years later Kathryn too loved this book. She and Daniel have a lot of the same quirky talents, example being able to remember and qoute a movie, television show, or commercial back to you after one viewing. She would laugh and laugh when I'd read it to her. Then try out her new found jokes on unsuspecting friends and family.

Monday night Sydney found it on the bookshelf and brought it to me to read...we read every night. The memories just seeing the cover brought back made me happy. I love to hear my girls laugh. I needed to tell Kate to zip it. She kept trying to tell the punch lines before Sydney got a chance to think about the joke. Here were the Sydney's top three favorites.

When is a farmer mean?
When he pulls the ears off the corn.

What happens to ducks that fly upside down?

They quack up.

What do you call a crate full of ducks?

A box of quackers.

I hope they made you smile as much as they made Sydney smile!

Some Sunday...

I awoke to a firey hot little girl climbing into bed with me. She has come down with the Pox... ChickenPox to all non-Rapplings. I asked her how she got them and she is quite sure that the marker she drew on her tummy with yesterday is the cause of all of her Pox. Never fear that didn't stop Paige for coloring on herself today. Kate and John stayed home with Paige. Sydney and I snuck off to church. Paige was mad that she couldn't go play with her friends and she promised not to "color any Pox" on them. She does make me laugh that one.
Church was uplifting. Great Sacrament meeting talks, my Sunday School class was as usual fun...I am the teacher you know? L. Miller your Relief Society Lesson was rockin good. My turn next week! Took Esther home from church and noticed the beautiful foliage. Esther loves the red trees they make her especially happy.
One of my favorite places to visit are the Toledo Memorial Gardens in Sylvania. I grew up taking vacations that were arranged around stopping at cemetaries to conduct genealogy research so I've always found them peaceful welcoming places. We visit there to see Gavin. Usually we all go together as a family. Today it was just Sydney and I on our little adventure. I had to stop because the cemetary is stunningly beautiful in the fall and I didn't want to miss a chance of capturing the fall leaves against cerulean blue sky. Sydney had lots of questions about this little brother she never met and can't remember she was only one at the time. It was nice to talk with her one on one. Her perspective is completely different from Kate's who vividly remembers the loss of her baby brother. This all reminded me of this article Candice had sent to me long ago that gave me a small measure of comfort and understanding. I never thought I would feel peace sitting in the cemetary but today I did. I'm thankful for the opportunity I had to have this trial. Gavin made me a better person. I've become a more compassionate friend. I have increased in faith and hope. So today I am thankful for this little boy that I was able to carry for five months and hold for a few minutes. For him and from him I've learned many things and for that I will be eternally grateful.

Sweetest Day...

Thanks to Uncle Jim for making another Sweetest Day, well sweet. If you're one of Uncle Jim's favorite girls you receive roses on Sweetest Day. It's tradition. I had forgotten the day when he magically appeared with not only roses for me, but a single rose for each of the girls. Paige promptly popped the rose of it's stem. Then demanded I glue it back on. Sounds like Paige right? Here's our sweetest day happiness. We love you too Uncle Jim.

Mushrooms...

So I've got this thing for mushrooms. I love them they are fun...you know fungi. Come on Kate you knew I was going to go there. Anyway I can be found on the ground doing portraits of my newest discoveries way, way to often. John doesn't even ask anymore. Paige after much stress on my part has learned to wait until I'm done before she will either pick or stomp all over my formerly cute mushrooms. "Mom are you ready?" This is Paige's creation, she started lining up pine cones and then announced that this was her piano. Cute little thing. Then she wanted to know where the pine nuts were. Really I've only bought those with her ONE time and now she's taking pine cones apart to find them.

Gust Brothers Farm...

This is what fall is about... pumpkins, bunnies and Red Cow. I was introduced to Gust Brothers before we had any girlies and my friend Kelly let me tag along with her and her adorable Quincy to get pumpkins. So a few, maybe not so few, more like thirteen years later we're still there every October. Always hard to choose just one. Kate pounced on hers quickly. Then Sydney had to find one for the same price that was BIGGER than Kate's. Paige wanted a baby pumpkin so six dollars and fifty cents later the girls had pumpkins.

Always love the sunny days at the pumpkin patch....brings out the ladybugs.

I relenquished the camera and John was able to take a couple of shots before I felt compelled to take it back. Before squirrels the Rapplings wanted bunnies. They love holding the bunnies in the bunny hutch. Kate tried to convince me to take the one eared black bunny, which Sydney is snuggling, home to match our three legged black cat...nice try sister, you get an A for effort. Apparently this little guy was feeling brave. He hopped right up to Miss Paige. All I could think was please, please don't let her kill the bunny.Look at this...

Paige does have a sweet and gentle side...

maybe that bunny knows something I don't.Sydney thought the feed trough looked like a great place to play.

Red Cow and this years calf. My girls love this cow.View through the barn doors.

The color of straw in the warm autumn sun makes me happy.

That was the end of our pumpkin picking adventures. Much more pumpkin fun to come....we will have to carve them you know.