State Park- Fall

Jake, Jayden and I went to the state park to play in the leaves and on the beach.  Jake found a cool fort by the water and wanted to live there forever.  There weren't as many leaves as I thought there'd be, but it was still pretty.  Jonathan didn't want to come (boohoo).

Halloween Costumes

Our school had Bingo night where the kids could wear their costumes.  I took some pix while they were all dressed up.  Jayden ended up changing into last year's costume  because her Dorothy one was "too itchy."  Jonathan is a Duke Blue Devil fan, FYI.  He got the shirt and the wig in Durham this summer.  Believe it or not, Jake managed to eat an entire bag of popcorn with his mask on.  There are no eye holes, and he's wearing glowing glasses underneath the mask, so don't ask me how he managed to play Bingo!!!  He insisted on a spooky costume.  All the others were far too "babyish" for him.  Ugh- one of the drawbacks of having a brother 5 years older than you is that you grow up faster!  Jayden ended up winning a PlayDoh set and Jake some Halloween Oreos at Bingo.  Jonathan was so close!

Seahawk Girl

Even though they're "stinkin' it up" this season, Jayden still watches (some) of the games with me!  Here she is in her "boy clothes," as she calls them.  They used to be Jake's.

A Few More Toothless Pix

OK, yes... so I get a little carried away w/the toothless pix.  But... is he adorable or WHAT!!!

Buddies

Jake and Jayden get along pretty well.  Jake's usually very helpful and caring towards her.  Only recently have I noticed him getting a bit frustrated with her at times.  She can be rather "high maintenance"- so I can't say that I blame him!  The other pix is of Jake with his best friend Tyson. And then of course- Jake with a snake.  This one got loose in the house, so was just banished from the house and is heading out for the bushes.  Jake really has a knack with reptiles.  A bunch of kids will go out to the "rocks" after school (by the playground) and Jake will be the only one to catch lizards, snakes, etc...  He really is kind of famous around here!!  Of course, it helps that last year he pulled down half the rock-wall around the school.  This did not go over well with our grumpy custodian (nor with me, who hadn't realized what he had been doing- but I knew it was innocent).   Jake got in big trouble-  there were tears, moans, and more tears.  But then he fixed it up and now is careful to put boulders back after he lifts them!  Now if only he cared as much about his school work as his beloved reptiles...

Cub Scout Camp Out

Jake and I had our Cub Scout camp-out this weekend.  It was all day Sat. through Sun. afternoon.  It felt like we were there for days!!!  The best part was watching Jake have so much fun.  The worst part for me was the sleeping part- or shall I say the "no- sleeping" part.  On Sat. they had a "stampede"- different stations for the boys to do.  Jake and a friend Ryan did archery, box making (wood shop), bb guns, and fishing together.  We spent some time with our den, did a skit in front of the pack, played German Spotlight, and did more fishing on Sun. (today).  The lake is stocked and it's usually easy to catch a fish there, but no luck today... Poor Jake!  He still said the fishing was his favorite part of the entire camp-out.  He got trout eggs from the inside of some other kid's dead fish.  He has them in a jar in our bathroom and plans to sell them for $5 a piece.  Interested?!!  At one point he was holding a fish eyeball that popped out of someone else's fish.  Ugh-  I made him soak in the tub for 20 minutes when we came home- and use a bar of soap.  We did get a bite at one point, but the line snapped.  Oh well.  Then we came home and cleaned for hours.  I'm actually surprised I'm still awake! *I'll add pix at school-it's 100 times faster-