The Freaks Come Out at Night!

Ah that time of year again. We are starting to get quite a collection of costumes. I wore this one 5 years ago after changing my mind. I have a geisha girl costume but with a cold coming on I didn't want to deal with the white face and having to constantly wipe my nose. I found George a new costume, after being a pirate and a scarecrow this year he was Julius Caesar and he thought it was extremely comfortable.

My little Miss AnnaBelle Farrar was a flower garden gnome. Bless her heart, she hasn't had much sleep lately because of an eye tooth coming in and she looked like she was ready to go to bed when I put her costume on around 4:30. She went to a couple of houses but soon tired out so Nathan and I trudged onward.

Nathan has so many costumes and he changed his mind several times over the week but when it came down to the decision he stayed true to his form and was Spiderman. He loves that costume because he has an obsession with muscles right now. He even lifts little hand weights in his room to pump up his arms. And he is dedicated to doing it at least once a day. He has moved up to the 3 lb weights now!

So another Halloween has come and gone and Nathan boasted that he had a good time the entire trip back to Wakefield. AnnaBelle fell asleep before we even left the city to head home and once we got here she was more than ready to end this freaky, strange day!

A Warm Day in October

Thursday was the perfect afternoon for a getaway. The temps were in the 80's and a southerly breeze was blowing.

We headed for the ravine. A washout between the cotton and soybeans where the children found a new hangout. George found it and took them there a few days ago and Nathan has been begging to go back.

AnnaBelle said the dirt here was the best on the farm and comes in chunky sizes!

Nathan brought his sword so he could fight off the bad guys should they appear. I am really diggin' on the boots! He has almost grown out of them, but alas his Grandma Jessie has bought him a pair for Christmas.

Even Miss Ellie joined in on the fun. She kept up with us until it was time to go and then jumped on the golf cart.

There is so much to explore on the farm, each day is a new adventure to these two. With the cooler weather we can venture into the woods.

This spot is now a favorite and when we head around the farm on the golf cart they both beg to go to the ravine!

Wow, my little girl is growing up and trying to talk more each day. It's amusing to hear the words that come out of that little mouth and I believe she will be more of a talker than Nathan and that is saying ALOT!

I used a warp brush on the background of this pic. That is a sundial he is leaning against and heavier than you can imagine.

We met my father's new girlfriend with a dinner at the Parsons Hotel. It was a wonderful evening. Nathan thought the cheese on the tray was American and when he realized it was cheddar he wanted to grab a napkin so he could spit it out!

Thursday Stuff

Mr. Scarecrow Pumpkin head sure is scary looking lit up when coming up the lane....BOO!

AnnaBelle and her remora, Weasel. He lost is left eye somehow poking it into who knows what, but he has adapted and loves to follow us around the farm.

Ellie could chase imaginary squirrels all day long. I'll holler to her that one has gone up the tree and she goes ballistic. Jumping up and down, running to the tree and chewing the bark off of it.

The soybeans are drying out and will soon be harvested. I'm hoping that they will plant a winter wheat once they are finished.

Little Miss AB Farrar and dirt go together like peanut butter and jelly and just as messy if you allow free reign. The garden is cranking with the broccoli, cabbages, lettuce and kale looking so beautiful. And we are picking butter beans slowly. They are hanging everywhere but haven't filled out yet because of the cooler weather. But these warm sunny days help speed things up, some.

Gone are the Dreary, Windy, Rainy Days (For a While)

We had an extremely cold and rainy past week. It started Tuesday and it didn't let up until today. So what did we do with our time inside? George made a delicious pot of homemade soup from everything produced from the garden. I made an apple cake that all of us devoured each day. We made halloween decorations to put in the windows. We face painted daily, pumpkins, bats, and the Decepticon logo. And I put red dots all over AnnaBelle's face to look like the measles!

We watched movies, played games and I sat in terror in front of the tv watching the events of the balloon boy, and now to find out it was a hoax. How could you put your children in a position like that? Well it's good to know that little Falcon might have a conscience after all when he puked on live television!

And yes, the Robin Hood costume came from Aunt Mary. What a wonderful job she did on it. Thanks again Aunt Mary! He was so excited to get a package and it was filled with so many halloween goodies for sister and himself.

Today we were able to get out and enjoy the sunshine. We all needed it desperately! I worked in the garden picking snaps while AnnaBelle napped and Nathan came down and entertained me for a while.

After AnnaBelle woke up we decided to take the mini-truck to the back of the farm and pick up walnuts. We gathered quite a few from one tree and still have more to pick up. It's just the first step in a long process of producing the end product. But this year, it's well worth it!

A Saturday Evening in October

AnnaBelle has a strong affection for our bed. She loves to wallow around in the covers and jump into the pillows. But the sweetest thing she does in when George wakes up before me and gets her up. Once she has had her bottle he opens the gate so she can come back to the bedroom. She whispers baby talk as she climbs the stairs to the bed and once she is up there she gently crawls towards me and plants a good morning kiss on my face. It's so wonderful to be loved!!

I ordered a rug for her on overstock.com and it arrived three days after I placed the internet order. It's nice to know her feet will be warm this winter. I'm pleased with the colors and AnnaBelle approved by smiling and rolling all over it.

Though we have had some warm days lately you can feel Fall in the air and the cooler weather isn't far behind. My favorite season with all the vibrant colors of the leaves, and the opportunity to wear sweatshirts again! We'll see how much longer I'll hang out clothes with the cooler weather approaching. I might have to break down and use the dryer.

This sits in the back of our yard. It dates back to the 1780's. It's the original house on the property. It's a one room house with a winding staircase that leads to an upstairs loft. So much history behind that door. We plan on restoring it and renovating as much as we can so the kids can have a hangout when they get older.

They have started combining the cotton around the farm. The growth of the cotton plant has always fascinated me. Once they have done a field so much cotton is still left on the husk and ground. It seems such a waste to me, but who am I to question. I use what I find as snow filler in my Christmas Village on my piano at Christmas time.

Of Earaches, Chest Colds and Healing

This was the calm before the storm, well maybe two days before the hell of a child with an earache and URI, her first to be exact.

These pictures were taken the day before we went to the ER. It was rather warm that day and she had been inside for the past two so I let her walk down the lane and play on the porch with her brother. Her eyes are already starting to look weak in the picture above.

Nathan has had a chest cold for about a week, but luckily his ears are fine. When I told him Friday afternoon we had to go to the ER because I thought AnnaBelle might have an ear infection he was extremely sympathetic. Telling me that he knows she must be hurting bad.

We arrived at the ER around 2 in the afternoon and it was packed. We found some seats and I gave Nathan my Ipod and he watched a Spongebob movie while I paced the floor with AnnaBelle in my arms. I was so proud of Nathan behaving because we had to wait almost 2 hrs to be seen. I had given her some sweet oil before we left and it eased her pain. Now she was running around as if she wasn't even sick. I felt like an overprotective Mom but that quickly vanished when we finally got back there and saw the Dr. who confirmed my diagnosis. She said her ear was flaming red so they put some drops in it and gave me a prescription for amoxicillin and we were off. She slept restless that night but she is so much better now.

Back to running around the house driving me crazy, I let her go out briefly today while I picked snaps.

Happenings at Woodland

Another eye catching sunset at Woodland. The soybeans are starting to change color and dry out and soon they will be harvesting them.

We sent my Mom (Nanny) some balloons the other day. Nathan always wants to make sure his Nanny has some balloons in heaven and with a southwesterly wind they took off high in the sky towards the northeast.

My buddy, Cowboy McGregor paid a visit this week. He has been working the cattle ranch in Texas and was glad to have a break and tell us about his adventures. Seems he has had to deal with some bad guys out there in the Lone Star state that needed to be locked up and luckily he had some handcuffs to put them in after they stumbled upon his campfire. That Cowboy McGregor lives such an exciting life.

Our Fall garden is rolling along. I picked a half a bushel of snaps today while George picked enough butterbeans for a dinner or two. There are alot hanging on the vine that have yet to fill out, and there are blooms everywhere. These marigolds were some of the biggest that I have ever seen and the zinnias continue to bloom in an array of colors.

I caught him peeking around the corner when I pulled out the camera. He has learned so much in the short amount of time he has been in school. He seems to love the history lessons the most and will come home and tell us about the Liberty Bell, Mt. Rushmore and he knows every President on it, along with our current President and the Capitol. His teacher is such an asset to the church preschool where we send him.

One More Day Till FRIDAY!!!

Ah the finished product. The half bushel of snaps I picked below are now canned and stocked in the pantry. I was able to get 10 quarts and there was enough left over for dinner that night.

I am so glad we decided to plant another row of snaps in the Fall garden. These were the first picking and they are so tender. They will go into winter soups and will also grace the table for dinners. With the ones I put up in July I have 20 quarts in the pantry.

AnnaBelle came around the corner with this on after she rummaged through Nathan's room. I think she makes a cute cowgirl!

The trip to Great Wolf was wonderful but next time we will stay an extra day. Nathan posed for this shot on the bridge before we boarded the ferry.

AnnaBelle was in heaven. She and Nathan had so much fun at the waterpark. Great Wolf Lodge is a spectacular place to spend some quality family time. They cater to the young kids with puppet and magic shows and the waterpark, well lets just say even the adults were having fun going down the numerous slides. And the lifeguards are on constant watch. I felt very secure allowing Nathan to walk around to different areas of the park. He had a life preserver on so that was one less worry and I couldn't believe he went down the big slides with me and his Aunt Mary. If it wasn't for her grabbing him at the last minute, I don't think he would have gone down. We walked up the massive amount of stairs but once I caught my breath at the top and got situated in the tube with Nathan, the joy of watching him scream with delight on our way down was worth every penny.