Halloween Kick-Off

Last night was the Gardner's Annual Halloween Dinner. We haven't been able to go to the previous two because of living in Flagstaff, but it was a lot of fun. Each family was in charge of bringing something to share. Here are some of the spooky dishes we devoured:

HAMBURGER MAN

MONSTER MOUTHS

SPIDER GUTS ----(really good chunky salsa)

-------------------- RICE CRISPY JACK-O-LANTERN

----------------- STRAWBERRY GHOSTS

AMAZING PUNCH -- it's hard to see, but the ice floating in the bowl was in the shape of a hand.

After dinner, Tom and Hope (Jeff's parents) had a treasure hunt for the kids. The prizes included Halloween socks, pencils, punch ball balloons, little foam guns, and some candy. They loved it!! Then onto the next activity...... Hide and Seek. Each person wore a glowstick on their wrist, all the lights were turned out, and the game began. Treyson didn't really enjoy being in complete darkness -- PLUS he was getting hungry. So instead of taking over one of the bedroom and eliminating hiding spots, I just took him out to the car to feed him.

It was a fun night. Thanks Grandma Hope and Grandpa Tom!!!

Patent Please

This has to be my all time favorite infant "toy". I used it at one time or another with all my boys.

(Infant Acetaminophen Bottle)

It's already made to be childproof. The container is the perfect size for small hands to hold. The top is just the right length and texture for abusive gnawing. But, here's the kicker ...... if they happen to spit-up in the midst of chewing on it, they just suck it right back down because of the bottle-like shape of the lid.

Love it!!

No video....sorry.

I know SO many of you are checking my blog every day waiting for a video of the amazing production I wrote about last post. Well, no one captured the magic. The photographer got quite a few shots during the song, but this is all I got:

(we threw on the wigs last minute to make it more enjoyable)

It was a beautiful wedding. The bride was gorgeous and Mark couldn't have been happier.

Welcome, Shanna, to our crazy Gardner family..... where building styrofoam-temples and playing games on the lawn with a giant parachute are just every day activities.

"HOLY EMBARRASSMENT BATMAN!"

Okay, so everone has seen "My Best Friends Wedding", right?

WRONG.

The pest control lady who came today, has NOT seen the movie. "So what?", you ask.

Well, it just so happens that my brother-in-law, Mark, is getting married tomorrow night. My sisters-in-law and I have been asked/assigned to perform the song at the very beginning of the film.

(Watch it here. )

Somehow I always end up getting the main part because they know I have no shame. If you've remembered or watched the song by now, you'd know that the main part in this little diddy is wearing a wedding dress. Yeah. So what does that mean? Well, it means Mark's fiance' won't be the only one dressed in white.

(Will this upset the bride? I guess we'll see.)

I wanted to make sure my dress still fit and had just finished zipping up the back when the doorbell rang.

(Ding-dong) "PEST CONTROL!"

Crossing my fingers!!

I never win ANYTHING..... I just don't have the luck. PLUS by posting this on my blog and telling you all how to sign up to win a free bag, I'm only decreasing MY chances of winning. But I've always been a sucker for contests and this post will get me 25 more entries.

Go to HandbagPlanet to sign up and win. Good luck! (--but not really)

Just.Plain.Wrong.

I'm sorry, I couldn't help myself. A friend back in Flagstaff gave me two sets of outfits before Treyson was born. A boy's and a girl's. I just HAD to see this outfit off the hanger and ON a baby. Poor Trey is never going to hear the end of this....

The shoes are SOOOO CUTE!! And I HAD to add the bow. Only because, without it, he just looked like Treyson in girly clothes ........ a cross-dresser, if you will.

Now, could I have given it to my new niece, Brooklyn, and had her model it for me? Sure. But would that have been as much fun? No. These are the adorable shoes she gave me with the little boys outfit.

Thanks again Juliette.

Another friend I have to thank publicly is Debbie. She is very crafty and loves making custom, one-of-a-kind things. I got this bedding set from her a while back but I didn't put it on our crib until we moved here for fear of Kai ruining it before Treyson's turn in the crib.

She also made my boys some Spiderman superhero capes. I know, I know, Spiderman doesn't have a cape. But they don't seem to notice or care. You can find more cute items, or ask her for custom items here, at her etsy shop.

Hello BLORLD !!

The title is a sad excuse for my made-up word meaning, "blog world". I've been out of our little planet here for a while because I've been trying to get out new place set up. We're renting a house in Mesa and pretty excited about it. The space fits us well. I'm still getting all the last details up but here's a view of our main room to the kitchen.

(The lighting is bad, but you get the idea)

We acquired this nice sectional from Jeff's sister's furniture store: CORTATE FURNITURE. I'm sure some of you have heard of it. Super good prices. Let me know if you'd like to know more about it.

My cousin Jen was in town for a few days from her travels and she, along with her mom, gave me some suggestions on what to do with the front room. She helped me pick out my rug and told me how to paint and glaze our particle board/laminate entertainment center. Jennica and her mom are both pretty crafty like that.

I think it turned out really cute!! I still need to add some brown, round knobs on those front doors. Adorable!

To see more of Jennica's style, click on my link to the side or see here .

On other news, Griffin started preschool. We really wanted to put him in Jeff's Aunt Glenda's Montessori School, but it was 20 minutes away and we have an elementary school just around the corner. I think next year we'll try for the Montessori Kindergarten. Here he is -- so excited with his humungo backpack.

We have a smaller one, but it's Lightning McQueen which he's been "over" for a while now. This Spiderman backpack was much more wanted.

Also!!! My brother, Kevin, got his mission call. He opened it tonight with family and friends close. Most of us had guessed at where he might be going. My cousin Isaac got it right. Australia Melbourne East. So fun, right!!! He doesn't leave until January though (?). Why so long, we're wondering. Jason (my other brother who just got home) is especially concerned about that time frame. Although Jason loves Kevin, he was kind of hoping for a 3-4 week departure date. (They're sharing a room right now.) Now Kevin can go out and look for a nice paying job and rack up some money to help pay for this fantastic opportunity. Right Kev?! We're going to miss him. But not yet.

-- Hanging up some curtains for my mom while balancing on a 2x4 .... nice! --

-- Loving Uncle Bean --

(I don't think it's the "bean" reason you guys are thinking about. You'll have to ask my nephew Lukas why Kevin got that name. Not that a two year old will have a very good reason.)