Halloween 2011

So as some of you may or may not know, Boston was hit with a very rare and unusual snow storm over this past weekend. Yes, you heard me correct...snow. In my 31 years, I do not remember one single snow flake hitting the ground before Halloween. (But then again this is New England and anything is possible, right?)

So, due to the volume and the power outages in our area, our town has postponed Halloween/trick or treating until next weekend. So you will just have to wait a little bit longer to see what our Madore-ables dress up for this year.

However, here are past Halloweens of our Madore-ables

Samantha's first Halloween. A pumpkin by night, and a princess by day. The princess needed a nap before she could attend that evening's festivities.

Halloween 2008, I was very pregnant with Sarah (and exhausted). Samantha dressed up as Snow White that year, but of course, Mommy brain got the best of me, and I left our camera at home. I assure you, Samantha was the most beautiful princess you'd ever see.

Sarah's first Halloween! Sarah dressed up as a Pats cheerleader, and Sam had a million pig tails coming out of her head to resemble a spider. (That was a whole lot of fun taking those things out that night).
.

Halloween 2010 was a lot of fun. We only went to two streets because it was so chilly. Samantha dressed up as Minnie Mouse and Sarah was a cow girl.

Stay tuned for more Halloween adventures with the Madore-ables!

Five Things Friday

Five Things That Made Me Smile This Past Week:

1. Earlier this week, Samantha colored this beautiful picture at school. It's just a simple photocopy of a pumpkin and colored with crayons. Sam's coloring has really improved since the Summer. She's staying inside the lines and is very intent on using the "correct" colors for things.


2. Mother Nature has been very strange lately here in New England. A few weeks ago, we experienced a 80 degree Summer day. Last night, into this morning we experienced our first snow fall of the season!


3. I was informed at work last week that due to Halloween on Monday, we can all wear our pajamas instead of our usual uniforms.


4. After our camera mishap over the Summer, we finally were able to find a great deal on a replacement camera. It has arrived and we're having a great time testing it out :) We've also upgraded our insurance policy as a result and have learned our lesson: cameras and water parks just don't mix!


5. Loves impromptu visits. Earlier in the week, Jeremy's parents stopped by for a late dinner and my friend Rachael stopped by yesterday. Hooray!

Pumpkin Picking 2011

To continue our "Fall is here" theme, last Friday, Samantha's pre-school went to Ingaldsby Farm for field trip. Instead of apple picking like we did a few weeks ago, we went pumpkin picking and Sarah was able to join us this time.

There was a "walking tour", and on the way to find our pumpkins we picked some vegetables. Everyone was able to have a turn to pick a veggie.

Samantha picked an ear of corn.

Sarah was able to pick a carrot.

(She had to use two hands because the carrot refused to come out of the ground!)

Samantha was so proud of the pumpkins she picked. One for Sam and of course, one for Nanny.

Sarah kept holding her pumpkin very gently as if it was a baby.

Goodbye Summer...Hello Autumn!

Fall is here

Apples have arrived.

When life hands you apples.

You Make...

Applesauce!

Thank you Summer!

Dear Summer,

The Madore-ables and I have decided that we miss you a great deal. I know this is new England, and we may experience another 80 degree day just like we experienced a few weeks ago.


Thank you Summer for letting us go to Lawrence Airport to watch all the airplanes take off and land.

Thank you Summer for all the days you let us run around outside to play hide and seek in the yard.

Thank you Summer for helping the dandelions grow in our yard so that we can blow the little seeds and watch them float away to plant new seeds for next Summer.

And last but certainly not least, thank you Summer for letting us play endless hours out in our driveway with sidewalk chalk and rack up many miles on our bicycles. Summer, you were very good to us this year and we thank you for all the good and happy memories.

Love always,

The Madore-ables

Oh The Funny Things Kids Will Say

Last week, Jeremy took the girls out on a car ride while I was at work. On their drive, Jeremy passed a police car that was pulled over on the side of the road.

During the car ride, Samantha was keeping herself entertained by spelling out words and street signs that she saw along the way. Sarah also thought she would give it a go at spelling too.

"B-O-P-E...that spells police man!"

Five Things Friday

Five Things That Happened This Week That Made Me Smile:

1. The church that my Mom attends is having their church fair this coming weekend. During this past week, I took a peek at some of the goodies that were donated for one of the tables. We managed to pick up some next to brand new board games (in protective tins) for the girls, and I picked up a new purse for myself for just a dollar. All together about a $100 worth of things, all for $11.00. Not too shabby!


2. While I'm working nights now, Jeremy has been having Slumber Parties (a.k.a "movie night") with the girls. The girls are really enjoying spending time with Daddy, and from what I've heard, they're sitting still watching the movies too!


3. I filled up my gas tank last week, and not only did I spend less than $3.50 a gallon but with the amount of driving I'm doing lately, I still have just a hair under a full tank. Woo hoo!


4. A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of chaperoning Samantha's class for apple picking. Today, I get to do it again only this time Sarah gets to come with us! Sarah is very excited to come be with Sam's class for the morning.


5. I'm happy to say that Jeremy has solved our camera problem and our "third child" has arrived safely as of yesterday. We have certainly learned our lesson: cameras and water rides just don't mix...no matter how much you cover the camera up in the bag.

Oh The Funny Things Kids Will Say

Sarah, like her big sister, has been taking an active interest in telling time. Samantha has been looking at analog clocks and Sarah is able to read digital clocks. So when I asked Sarah the other morning what time the clock said, without hesitation she blurted out:

"MOMMY! It's B-o'clock!"

American Idol

Sarah loves to sing.

She has no fear and will just sing anytime and anywhere.

Especially Train's, "Hey, Soul Sister"

Samantha Gets Funky With Chalk

Samantha gets very creative with her sidewalk chalk drawings

Sometimes she creates brightly colored shoes with her chalk people

Sometimes she creates brightly colored clothes for her little people.

And other times, she channels her 1970's Funky side with George Clinton from Parliament

Editor's Note: for those who have NO idea what I'm talking about, George Clinton is from the group Pariament who brought out the song, "We Want the Funk". George is known for his crazy colored hair.

Five Things Friday

Five Things That Happened This Past Week That Made Me Smile...

1. My new job is going extremely well. We're very fortunate that not only can my job accommodate for my hours, but we don't have to put the Madore-ables into daycare. My Mom is able to watch the girls for an hour or so from the time I leave until the time Jeremy comes home. My hours are increasing little by little, so I'm really excited to see the end result next payday ; )



2. Samantha's teacher confided in me this past week. She pulled me aside and told me that Samantha told her the sweetest and dearest thing. Apparently last week during circle time during class, Samantha very quietly raised her hand. When she was called on by the teacher, Samantha very matter of factly told her, "I just love you!"



3. Earlier this week, while Samantha was in school, I decided to take Sarah to one of the nearby Panera Bread locations. While we were at the bakery/pastry area I asked Sarah if she wanted something to eat. She just looked around and nothing seemed yummy to her. However, when I went over to the cash register to pay for my order, Sarah saw fresh fruit cups and announced that's what she would like and reached for one. So proud of my little monkey...bypassing the sweets and going for the healthy goodies. That's my girl!



4. Samantha is really going all out with writing her letters and sounding words out. She's writing her full first name and last name as well. On that note, Sarah is writing the letters "H" and "I" on command. She's trying really hard to keep up with her big sister!



5. Sarah has been just a wealth of words and sentences these days. She gets SO excited when it's time to go pick up Samantha at preschool. Once we're in the car to go home, Sarah asks Sam, "How was school Sammy? What did you do? What did you have for snack?" She may forget 5 minutes afterwards, but it's sweet to see Sarah taking an active interest in her big sister's activities!

Oh The Cute Things Kids Will Say

Recently, Samantha and I were having a conversation about heaven at the breakfast table. I thought it was pretty deep to have this talk so early in the morning, but Samantha just kept firing off question after question in between bites of Rice Krispies.

She asked me questions like, "How do you get to heaven?" and "Will I go to heaven someday?" and "Does everybody go to the same heaven?"

Then, we got into some deeper questions...

"Mommy, how does God know when we're ready to go to heaven?" and "Mommy, when I go to heaven someday, will you come visit me?"

Oh my dear Samantha. I am amazed at the fact that you're trying to grasp the concept of heaven. I love the fact that you're wanting to learn things that are so awesome and so amazing and so out of our realm. I love the fact that you're only 4 years old and are thinking of things. I hope that someday we will all be together in heaven.

I Heart Faces

I heart faces.

More specifically our Madore-ables.

People have different ways of coping with things.

Some people pray.

Some people go out for a walk or a drive to clear their head.

Some people write an email to blow off steam.

If I'm having a bad day, I can just look at these faces and I'm reminded that it's not so bad.

Five Things Friday

Five Things That Happened This Past Week That Made Me Smile

1. Jeremy ordered a 70-200 mm lens for our camera earlier in the week, and it's set to arrive via UPS this afternoon. I cannot begin to tell you how excited I am. This is something that's been on our camera "wish list" for awhile, so we're very excited for it to come today.




2. Working at night has made me appreciate the nights I have off. I had last night and scheduled to have tonight off as well so I was able to stay at home and actually eat a nice hot meal (which was VERY yummy Mom). I miss reading the girls stories and saying prayers at nighttime.




3. Sarah surprises me when music comes on the radio. Just this morning Lady Antebellum was playing. I just happened to be in the other room, and Sarah wanted to be sure I knew that the song was on playing. So, Sarah yelled out "Mommy! Antebello!". I have such a thoughtful girl :)




4. I know it's still a month away, but Jeremy and I are already making plans for Thanksgiving and Sarah's birthday. We're not trying to rush the season here, but weekends seem to book up very quickly these days. I absolutely love this time of year.




5. On the other hand, Summer has left us, and Fall has arrived. Pretty soon, it's going to be too cold to go out to play. So, we just found out that this coming weekend, it's supposed to be sunny, warm and 80 degrees out. We're not quite ready to let go of Summer yet. Go figure. It's October in New England and we're having unusual weather? Unheard of!

Samantha's First Field Trip

This past Friday, Samantha had her first field trip with her pre-school class to Smolak Farms in North Andover. The weather was absolutely perfect for a Fall, apple picking day. I was fortunate to help chaperone the event. We both had a great time.

Both Samantha and I were escorted by Smolak's finest hayride, and we were able to pick 5 apples each. Samantha really had a great time. After we picked apples, we went to the barn for apple cider and donuts. After we finished, we went over to the playground area. Samantha was so excited because her best friend Kae was able to come too.

On the hayride: Samantha's hand on my knee. She never moved it.

Look Mommy!

So many apples, so little time.

How many apples do we pick Samantha?

5!

Apple picking is hard work! Taking a cider break.

Samantha and her BFF Kae