The (unhappiest) Little Dragon

Please don't let the picture below fool you. Britton HATED his costume. Originally, I had planned to take my little dragon by the office and show him off to all the ladies. Later, we would go trick-or-treating with Britton being carted around by Daddy in his snazzy little red wagon. Unfortunately, our boy had entirely different plans...the first being to get out of that costume as quickly as possible!!! We were able to snap a few pictures before Britton went into a total meltdown. I know my poor baby is cutting more teeth and just wasn't feeling up to be parading around anymore in that warm, fuzzy costume.

So much for trick-or-treating this year:( We settled for dinner out instead...with my little dragon perched on my knee throughout the entire meal. A high chair was not going to cut it this time around. Between Bubba having to cut my steak because I only had one hand free while the other was constantly snatching silverware, napkins, and butter out of my child's paw, and Britton screaming incessantly, it was about the most unpleasant meal I've had out in a long time ever. Luckily, our little dragon was so worn out after the fiasco that was dinner that he fell asleep in the car, and we put him to bed extra early. Well, we have plenty of years for trick-or-treating ahead of us, so we'll just call this year a bust and hope for better luck next year.

Our Littlest Pumpkin

Yesterday afternoon I dressed up Britton and attempted a Halloween photo shoot with the little pumpkin that his Daddy carved for him. It's a miracle we even got him dressed and semi-cooperative because he was so FUSSY all day. Luckily, I got some pretty cute shots before it was time for another meltdown.

We started shooting outside, but it was getting chilly with the sun setting, so we moved inside...



It was a battle of wills keeping that stem out of our boy's mouth



Our "Toy Story" pumpkin bunch turned out so cute!!! Bubba worked very hard on Woody and Buzz Lightyear while I whipped up several batches of toasted pumpkin seeds (okay, I did let one batch burn because I was preoccupied watching the Falcon's game, but the other batch of Sweet n' Spicy pumpkins seeds were super yummy!!!). I learned quickly that I did not have the patience for the intricate knife work that the pumpkins required and quickly retreated inside after about an hour 5 minutes. I'm so proud of our my husband's pumpkins:)

Wednesday Randomosity

My hubby had to be up super early for an appointment this morning, so he went to bed very early last night leaving poor little insomniac me to entertain myself. Luckily, I had rented several movies that afternoon and had a grand time watching a marathon of hilarious flicks. It's a good thing my Bubba is a heavy sleeper because I burst out laughing more than a few times. Yes, the movies were a little crass and sometimes offensive, but they were H-I-L-A-R-I-O-U-S!!!!!

Confession: I LOVE MY CHIROPRACTOR!!! Okay, not in the romantic way, of course, but in the "you are a total life saver and make everything all better" kind of love. I have suffered from back problems on and off for years. I had back surgery in 2001 and that made everything feel a lot better for almost a decade. My back even felt great while I was pregnant which is a rare occurence for people with any kind of previous back problems. Unfortunately, once Britton became a roly poly ball of energy, and I was constantly bending and lifting him the back pain returned. Luckily, I met my Chiropractor (Cue: the sounds of harps playing and angels singing). This man is seriously a miracle worker. One visit to his office with a single adjustment and I go from the intense kind of pain that makes you want to limp around and whimper to dancing down the aisles of Target. I just can't believe it took me 30 something years to meet this man. I'm actually heading there this afternoon for an adjustment:)

I'm taking a pumpkin carving class on Friday. I have visions of being the Michaelangelo of the pumpkin carving world....this remains yet to be seen. I'll definitely share pictures of my creations once I have mastered the craft. Let's just hope I don't cut off a finger. I have not had the best luck with sharp knives in the past. I managed to slice my finger open, and earn myself a trip to the ER within the first 10 minutes of the knife skills lesson during my 1st culinary arts class in college. Embarrassing!!!

Speaking of pumpkins and decorations....I finally got around to decorating the back hall for Autumn. It doesn't scream Halloween, so I think it can carry us all the way till Thanksgiving. I bought everything from Michael's except for the candle pillars that I got from Target and spray painted gold. I think the whole "tablescape" is rather festive:)

Full Moon Farm

Saturday afternoon we decided to take advantage of the beautiful fall weather and headed to Full Moon Farm for a day of family fun. My sweet husband was even willing to leave his perch in front of the televison and miss the entire second half of the Georgia game...now that's dedication to family;) Full Moon Farm is located in Oxford, AL and has tons of activities for kids all ages. 

The central attraction of the farm is a corn maze which was designed by one of the world's leading designers in corn mazes and features a labyrinth in the shape of the Statue of Liberty.



(Picture borrowed from Full Moon Website)

 It was definitely a family affair with my parents and two year old niece, Emily, tagging along. Emily pulled Granddaddy around from activity to activity. She got to feed a goat in the little petting zoo, played in the corn kernel box, and ambled her way over the tire climb. She discovered her favorite activity of the day was the Bounce House which was nearly impossible to get her out of (cue: total MELTDOWN when we made her climb out).

Britton and Emily got to take their very first hay ride, and they absolutely loved it:) Mommy enjoyed herself, too.

The fellas took the kids on the Pumpkin Express Train while Mommy and Grandma decided to just sit back and watch.

Emily was a little timid about the huge bouncy/climbwall/slide thing so she encouraged her Uncle Bubba to accompany her through the obstacle which he was more than happy to oblige.

I wonder who was having more fun?!?

We got a a lot of pictures of Britton at his first pumpkin patch experience. He was such an angel during the whole day, and obviously loved being in the sunshine with the cool Autumn breeze in his hair.

A trip to Full Moon Farms is definitely a tradition that we will continue for years to come. The only problem was that by the time the kids were tired and ready for dinner, Bubba and I had not had a chance to go through the corn maze:(



 Luckily, we were able to take full advantage of the free babysitting and headed back to the farm after the kidlets went to bed. We decided to tackle the corn maze in the dark which in my opinion made it spookier and more challenging. Just when I thought we were never going to make our way out, and Bubba was surely going to have to carry me piggyback while we aimlessly wandered in the dark, we finally found the exit....lucky Bubba!!! We then joined a dear old friend of mine who just so happens to be the co-owner of Full Moon and his sweet wife around the fire pit for a marshmallow roast and s'more making...yum!!! Then Bubba and the rest of the guys enjoyed the bouncy slides until it was time to go home. A place like Full Moon reminds us that we all remain kids at heart:)





I Put a Spell on You...

For as long as I can remember I have loved watching scary movies. The hubby and I will watch the occassional horror movie throughout the year, but once October hits it's like Fright Fest every night. Not to mention Bubba has our TV tuned to either Syfy's 31 Days of Halloween or the Family Channel's 13 Nights of Halloween (obviously, more kid friendly programming) most evenings. It's been a tradition for us since we began dating to have a few Horror/Thriller movie marathons throughout the month. We pop popcorn, gather up our favorite "movie candy" (Twizzlers for me, Peanut M&Ms for Bubba), and blow up the air mattress so we can spend the entire night in the den in front of "Big Bessie"...yep, our television has a name, and it is rightly deserved;) We can easily watch 4 scary movies back-to-back until the wee hours of the morning. In honor of our family traditon and the Halloween season, I'm going to give you a list of some of my all-time favorite scary movies (in no particular order), so that you too can cuddle up just a little closer to your honey and escape into a spooky flick.

• The Shining
• Psycho
• The Exorcist
• Halloween
• Nightmare on Elm Street (I only liked the 1st one)
• Scream
• The Sixth Sense
• The Ring
• The Blair Witch Project
• Poltergeist
• The Others
• Saw
• Amityville Horror
• The Watcher in the Woods (starring the great Bette Davis and one of the 1st scary movies I ever saw)
• Stir of Echos
• Seven
• When a Stranger Calls
• Paranormal Activity
• Misery
• The Last House on the Left
• The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
• Candyman
• Pet Semetary
• The Descent
• Open Water
• The Omen

* I'm sure I have left tons of classic horror movies off this list, but these are just a few of my favorites. Each movie stayed emblazoned in my mind long after the credits had rolled and a few have even caused the lights to be left on for bed or my husband to escort me to the bathroom lest I be left all alone;)

Fall Traditions

Long before having Britton I dreamed of all the activities and fun things I would do with my future children. Of course, everyday that I spend with Britton is special, but having a child has made the holidays all the more important. I remember all the wonderful traditions that my parents created for my sister and me, and I would love to carry on many of those with Britton. However, times change and families grow, so it's up to me to start new traditions for my little family. Fall is my favorite season of the year!!!  Even though Baby Britton is still very young, there is never a better time for us to start traditions for him that will endure for years to come and create lifelong memories.

A few of our traditions for the Fall season:

• Take a drive through the mountains to see the beautiful Autumn leaves and have a picnic. We love Dahlonega, GA, Mentone, AL or Mt. Cheaha which are the perfect distance for a day trip.

• Visit a local pumpkin patch/ corn maze for a family day of fun and plenty of punkin' patch pictures
• Carve pumpkins together...making sure to save the seeds for a batch of spiced toasted pumpkin seeds for snacking
• Watch It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
• A horror moviethon for Mommy and Daddy...Britton can join us when he's much older
• Decorating the house from top to bottom

• Picking out costumes (I got Britton's costume last week, and it is CUTE!!! I'll save that surprise for another post)
• Making a scarecrow for the front yard
• A bowl of candy corn on the counter (I just discovered two new flavors yesterday: Brach's Caramel Apple Corn and Caramel Corn)

•  Playing Halloween themed music around the house and in the car. Here is a great link for a list of songs to download to your ipod or to make your own mix CD
•  Halloween themed PJs, socks, etc. (and bibs for now)
• A trip to the drive-in movie theater at the first hint of cool weather...lift the hatchback of the SUV, bring plenty of blankets, and cuddle up together while munching on popcorn and candy