Spooky Night!

Trick or Treat!

Look out, it's a werewolf and a ... princess?

She's still unsure about that mask!

Princess Jasmine

She couldn't believe I actually put makeup on her, real makeup!! She ran back upstairs to me and said, "Mom, they didn't even recognize me!"

Ready to go spookin'! That mask still freaks me out!

After trick or treatin' in the scariest neighborhood ever and laughing at Tyler getting spooked himself in a haunted garage, we headed over to Grandma and "Bumpa" LaPerle's for apple pie, donuts and cider.

The highlight for Maddie was seeing Lucy, their dog, dressed up in a skirt! She thinks Lucy is hers!

Preschool Fall Concert

Tonight Madeline had her Fall concert at preschool! The songs were sooo cute and she was a little ham!

Here's a video of one of the songs, "Shake Your Bushy Tail".

(She was so tired and kept doing her own thing. Like I said, a little ham!)

I think she kept having wardrobe malfunctions with her poncho!

Holding her favorite toys, (baby dolls, of course!)

After the program they all got to decorate a little pumpkin.

Tyler was such a great big brother to help her!

Fun at the Pumpkin Farm, again!

What do you do when your middle schooler gets home at 11:45 a.m. everyday (for parent/teacher conferences)?? Go the the pumpkin farm, again! Actually a different one -- this one had a pumpkin cannon! It's so cool how they launch the pumpkin way out over the field and into the river beyond. Tyler loved it!

Maddie didn't though, so Tyler covered her ears for her.

We took lots of pictures!

Tyler took this one! (nice job, bud!)

Some were fun . . .

. . . and some, "Mom, we're so done with pictures!"

But then we found the tube slide . . . and that made it fun!

Of course they wanted lots of pictures then!

How tall are you?

5' 2"! You'd better stop growing or you'll be taller than mom!

Maddie's 3 1/2 feet!

Okay, one more picture -- riding the tractor.

Thanks, kids for letting mom take more pictures. I know you had fun too!

I Hate Scales

What is it about scales? I don't even own one. If I want to know I can use the one at Jeff's parents. Well, these are just my ramblings, but I've been going to the gym now consistently (4 days a week) for 6 weeks in a row, without missing!! That's huge for me, to stay consistent. I tried being consistent with it 3 years ago, but just kept missing for this and that, until I just wasn't going anymore. But now is my time -- I have the time because Maddie's preschool is right by the gym and I'd have to drive past it to go home, so I might as well go there. So to not start out with goals too lofty, I decided not to weigh myself in the beginning, (because I already know my starting point, thanks to Maddie not wanting to get on the scale at her well-check and the only way to determine her weight was to hold her on the scale and then subtract mine, how cruel!), but to watch the loss in inches. I've been good with that plan these past 6 weeks. Not checking the scale, but seeing things fit a little better. Well today, while waiting in between sets on the machines, there was the scale, right in front of me, so I thought, what the heck I'll see how things look (and no, I'm not going to share!) Well that was a mistake! That's why I don't like scales. I've been feeling so much better and stronger now and my clothes are looser, but to see no change on the scale, well that's discouraging! Anyway, I'm not going to check again for a long time. I'll just keep up with my consistency and good workouts and hopefully see more gradual changes as time goes by.

p.s. Did I mention I love Zumba? Well I know I have said plenty about it, but I do love it! Riva, our instructor added all new music and routines yesterday and I think my favorites are the charleston and merengue! It's so fun!

Pumpkin Farm Fun

Today we took the kids and two of their friends, Katie and Alex, to our favorite pumpkin farm. They had a blast jumping from hay bales, swimming in corn and stuffing their shirts to become fat in the corn, running through the hay maze and looking for that perfect pumpkin!

This huge pumpkin face really is carved!

After searching and searching, they found their pumpkins!




Tyler swimming in the corn pit.

Can you believe this? I would have had lots more pictures of all the kids doing this, but my camera died and I kept missing the shots with the cell phone.

This is Katie stuffed with corn . . . sick and wrong, right? Maybe a preview of what she'll look like as a mom. Funny that Maddie didn't want to do it - she didn't like the feel of the corn in her shirt, but she didn't mind helping Katie stuff hers.

We had a fun day! (Thanks Jeff for being the camera man!)

"Ditch the Workout, Join the Party!"

I love Zumba! I've started going to the gym again finally and have been taking a Zumba class. Zumba is the most popular exercise class at the gym where Latin music pulses from the stereo as 40 women jump, shimmy and sway to the beat. It's getting fit while dancing which I love, especially Latin dancing that many of my native companions on my mission tried to teach me!

What is Zumba?? It's a fitness program inspired by Latin music and dance moves such as the Cha-Cha, Merengue, Salsa, Mambo, Flamenco, etc. I was looking it up on the website and read that "Zumba Fitness was created in the mid-90’s by Colombian native Alberto “Beto” Perez, a celebrity fitness trainer and choreographer for International pop superstars. Inspired by the traditional cumbia, salsa, samba and merengue music he grew up with, Beto paired his favorite pulsating Latin rhythms with the red-hot international dance steps his clients loved and Zumba Fitness (Spanish slang for “to move fast and have fun”) was born! I've added some pictures that I liked from the website. (Note: these pictures are not of me or from our gym!):

Now Zumba has turned exercise into a party! It’s a good stress reliever. You can be having the worst day ... and after you’ve done an hour of Zumba you just feel great!

Don't take me wrong, it's not easy, especially for me! I am literally dripping when I walk out of there to go pick up Maddie from preschool. They probally think I've been in a sauna or something! But it's a great workout. They say:

WITH THIS WORKOUT, YOU WILL...

*Get energized
*Melt, "shimmy" the pounds away
*Burn 300-800 calories per class
*Learn Latin dance moves

*Build confidence
*Get results
*Improve your body with movement (mentally & physically)
*Dance your stress away

*Spice up your body

So...It's MY time NOW!

If you haven't tried it, it's FUN!