Halloween

We had a fun and busy day this Halloween. We woke up early and went to play ultimate frisbee with some friends. Mike had a great time because he made some awesome plays. When he got home, this was waiting for the birthday boy:

Emma and I went to get some last minute things from the store and she got second place in a costume contest. She won some huge decorated cookies that she shared with the neighborhood kids.
The cookie winnings. Can you guess what she is?

We had pizza and homemade ice cream for the birthday dinner (part 2). It was nice to be outside and to be able to picnic in our own backyard.

Picnicking on the lawn for the birthday dinner with pizza and stuff.

Who needs to save up for a hammock when you've got daddy?

"Eatin' my pizza in my own personal hammock."

We had homemade rocky road ice cream for his "cake." I couldn't do all the candles because it would have all melted in about 2 seconds with all that flame.

We went trunk or treating at the church and hit a few neighbors on the way home.

Have you guessed it . . .?

A jellyfish!

What an angel!


Because she needed more sugar.

Enjoying the walking since she can't really eat most of the candy.

Loving on the candy while waiting for the next trick-or-treater.

Emma liked giving out candy as much as she liked getting it. After all the sugar and excitement, she was perfectly calm. (Yeah right)


What she did while she was waiting for the people to come.

The Halloween Build Up

Halloween is Mike's birthday as well as being Halloween so there is always extra pressure to make it fun for the girls while not neglecting my wonderful, hottie husband. Mike kind of got a two day affair. We did his big birthday dinner on Friday, and did the "cake" and a more relaxed dinner on Saturday. Here's the run down:

Wednesday: A Sad Story

This year, the Halloween spirits had it in for me. We had quite the fiasco with Anya's costume which ended in red carpet, red striped legs, and red brand new pants. Here is my little story: Having a cute little red head is a lot of fun so I thought I would do a costume befitting the hair. I decided to make a Raggedy Ann outfit. While I was making the apron I made a cut in the wrong place and had to completely redo it. Then, I had a hard time finding tights that would fit her so I decided to make my own. I colored red stripes on a pair of white tights with red permanent marker, it not only took forever, it also was the end of my Halloween fun. On Wednesday I finished and let her try the costume on. She crawled around and played with Emma (who picked her up wearing her brand new khaki pants for school - this will matter later in the story). After about 15 minutes I noticed a huge red spot on the carpet where Anya had been sitting and playing. Further investigation concluded that Anya's tights had bled all over the carpet, Anya's legs, and Emma's pants. Who knew that permanent marker would bleed that much? Certainly not me. Mike stepped in and got most of the pen out of the carpet, I soaked Emma's pants and got most of it out, and Anya had red striped legs for a couple of days. We decided to change her costume and after going to 5 different stores to find something at the last minute, she ended up being pretty cute.

Thursday: Carving Pumpkins

Relaxing while mommy and Emma scoop out the seeds.

Friday: Big Birthday Dinner & School Harvest Festival

We did a makeshift cake for Friday because the real treat was Saturday.


Dancing with a friend from school. She didn't wear her hat for most of the night because she was too busy running around and having fun.

Riding a horse. We live in farm country here.

Phoenix Zoo 2008 & 2009

Yes, this is covering two zoo trips a year apart. If it makes you feel better, as it does me, you can pretend they were the same trip because they happened at the same time of the year and both trips were with the Kings.
How hilarious! After uploading the pictures, I realized I am even wearing the same shirt and so is Anya. What a coincidence!

Enjoying the tradition of kettle corn at the zoo and waiting for the elephant show to start.

Cutie pie.

Emma, Sam, and Sabrina. Kristi says they don't like to take pictures, but they sure had fun taking these. : )

Lunch anyone?

By far the coolest part about the Phoenix Zoo is the monkey house. You get to walk into the cage and the monkeys are jumping around in the trees next to you and over your heads. If you wanted to get kicked out, you could literally reach out and grab one. It is a really cool experience.

This monkey was about 2 feet away from us in a tree right by the roped walkway.

Aren't they cute?

The lizard in the bushes that ended up being a lot more exciting than the animals in the cages. My favorite moment was watching Mike try to catch it. "Try" being the key word in that sentence.

Watching the Warthogs play a game of "tag."

My three favorite people.

Sweet Moments

Mike so lovingly let me sleep in last weekend and I came down stairs and saw this:Emma was reading Anya a story. Sigh, the heart melts. Here are some other cute moments in our crazy Chipman life.

Emma and Anya dancing in the kitchen.

The Mariners (BOOO) hat.

Emma still sleeping in crazy positions. For the whole story see here. I guess this is another sneak peak.

Chillin' like a villain

Um, I'm not sure but I don't think that's how the puzzles are supposed to work.

Ponderings

Emma got bullied at school today in a rather inappropriate way. She didn't tell me about it, I found out from her teacher when she called to explain. When I asked Emma why she didn't tell me, she said she forgot and after hearing the story, I was very proud of her for the way she responded to it. But now I wonder was there enough justice? I find myself warring between two sides, the teacher and child lover in me says, they were only kindergartners, they don't understand. The mom in me is snarling and saying, the punishment should be much more severe than getting talked to and only getting a warning. I find my self thinking, (in a very cliche way) what would Jesus do? I realize, I don't know right now, He too understands that there is both justice and mercy. Justice or mercy? Someday maybe I will understand how there can be both.