'Rents Dinner Par-tay

Now that Mom and Dad's friends Kipp and Kylie

have moved back to Missouri from New Zealand,

along with friends Julia and John,

they've been getting together every other month for an

adults-only dinner party.

The first one was at KKO's house

and lasted into the wee hours of the morning

(1am?  or was it 2am?)

This time it was at our house.

(We were safely at Grandma Phyllis's)

There weren't a lot of pictures,

but be assured,

the loaded mashed potatoes were a hit

as was the horseradish encrusted beef tenderloin. 

And what party is complete without

flame throwers?

The pumpkin creme brûlée was delish as well.

Can't wait for January's party...

Spooktacular

We came to the Spooktacular last year

with Grandma Janice while

Mom and Dad were in Boston.

This year, Grandma Phyllis came along for the fun!

We were all dressed up in our Halloween best

Jack took a bit of coaxing.

He didn't want to wear his costume.

He was worried everyone would be staring at him.

Are we doing this or what?

Waiting for our group to go...

Jack's still a bit unsure

It's a fun night.

It's basically a long walk through Powell Gardens

lit up by pumpkins and Christmas lights

and every few yards there is a storybook come to life--

Alice in Wonderland,

Harry Potter,

Power Rangers (or Vegetables),

Cinderella...

you get the picture.

We were a bit hesitant at first and hung in the back...

...but by the end,

Jack even joined in the show

and shot one of the Angry (or was it Irate?) Birds

at the 3 Little Pigs' houses.

To top it off,

there was popcorn,

hot chocolate,

and a hayride at the end.

Halloween season sure is fun!

Carolyn's Pumpkin Patch

Since Mom and Dad had to work,

Grandma Janice came with us to preschool today

for the pumpkin patch fieldtrip.

We put her right to work ready a book as a warm-up.

I think she's done this before.

We had a blast.

There was the bus ride (which is always a highlight),

animals to pet, 

lots of exhibits,

and of course, pumpkins to pick.

Here were a couple of Grandma's pictures of the day:

Look out for the goat!

I claim this mountain!

Mom's favorite:

We even snuck away from the group

and had a couple of pumpkin donuts!

We all thought they were the best pumpkin donuts we'd ever had.

Thanks, Grandma Janice!!!

We are already talking about next time!

U-S-A!!!

Dad got us tickets to the US vs Guatemala World Cup Qualifier Game.

We were BEYOND excited!!!

After the trolley ride to the stadium

(which was pretty exciting all by itself!)

we were excited to spend a bit of time trying out our own soccer skills.

Is a World Cup in my future?

We were amazed at how excited everyone was!

People were dress-up in their USA best--

from t-shirts to scarves

to superhero capes with masks

to full red-white-and-blue bodysuits.

Weston looked pretty good in his USA shirt and soccer hat.

Our seats were AWESOME--

right behind the goal!

We had to keep dodging balls during warm-ups

The soccer groupies,

the American Outlaws,

were in full strength!

Ready for kick-off!

U-S-A! U-S-A!

Guatemala scored the first goal pretty quickly.

We were disappointed.

It was fun to see how excited the Guatemalan fans were, though!

USA answered with 3 of their own goals.

I told Mom I hoped they'd score 4.

Does this picture look familiar?

I was on the big screen moments after Mom took this picture!

Guess the cameraman thought I looked pretty spirited too.

What game is complete without

funnel cake fries?

In case you can't make out the scoreboard,

USA beat Guatemala 3 to 1.

We were so excited to be there!

When do they come again?

Picnic in the hall

A nice breakfast spread of strawberries,

oranges, grapes, cucumbers, and spagetti.

In the hallway.

With our eagles.

Is there a better way to start the day?

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

We had a few celebrations for Daddy's 34th birthday.

A dinner at 75th Street Brewery,

some cake at home.

But ribs and cake and Grandma Phyllis and Papa Kim's was a great finale!

We were all anxious for cake...

And we all really liked helping spit,

I mean BLOW,

out the candles

Mmmmm, cake!

That's the stuff!

Mom was afraid I'd get cake and ice cream all over my clothes,

so I got a make-shift bib.

I decided I liked the cowboy look

and kept it on the rest of the night.

Happy birthday, Dad!

We love you!

Family Fun Nite with the Heinz Fam

When Mika called us out for some Saturday night bowling,

we couldn't refuse!

While we waited for our lane,

we played a little Ski-ball

And took a few cars for a spin

Finally, our lane was ready.

No one said it would be COSMIC bowling!!!

Mika and her prized pink ball

Jack gave Dad some pointers

And Mike gave Jack some pointers

Dad and I make a pretty great ramp bowling team

SPARE!

If the ball rolls through the middle of the pins,

does it count for a touchdown?

We had a LOT of fun!

Did I mention we won tickets playing in the arcade?

What better prize then plastic vampire teeth???

Thanks Heinz Family!

Jack's Marble A-Mazes

I have become quite the engineer with my marble maze.

I can build them around the furniture:

Or just really tall:

Or on furniture AND really tall:

I think I've found my calling

Beer and Tigers

Grandma and The Water Bear plan an MU football trip every year.

Mom reassured us it was ONLY big people.

Something about a lot of beer and frivolity.

The whole crew was there:

Wait, there's more:

It was suppose to be really cold,

but it turned out to be a great day for football.

Even if the Tigers did lose to Vandy.

There were chicken wings, dip, bar-b-q, pizza, cookies,

brownies, and lots of beer.

I don't know if they go for the food,

or the football!

Ready for "Hallo-wing"

Mums, hay bales,

pumpkins and gords...

We are excited for "Hallo-wing!"