Pumpkin Fun/ New member of the family!

                      Meet Griffin, He's a 7 week old boxer who has stolen all of our hearts! I will work on getting the video of the girls getting him. I picked him up after work one day and put him in a box on the step and rang the doorbell. I ran and told the girls to get the door. They freaked! Eva screams "IT'S A PUPPY; CAN WE KEEP IT!" My most favorite time ever! The girls are still saying thanks for the surprise and that it was the best present ever.

         The girls are doing pretty well at sharing him and Griff tolerates them very well.

  He's doing very well on potty training; we keep a pretty close eye on him so that helps. The only negative thing is sleeping at night. We are kennel training him and he gets lonely at night so likes to cry. Lets just say I'm glad Ella has a queen size bed because both Evan and I have ended up in there. :O)

  We went to 1 more pumpkin patch to take a hayride and enjoy the beautiful day we were having.

           They both got their face painting; Ella became a puppy and Eva had hello kitty on her cheek.

   I missed out on the second half of the day because I had to work. They went golfing and had a great time golfing and driving the cart.

                                                 Cute pic of the 3 golfing buddies!

               The next day, while I was working; again, Evan took them to play baseball. We are trying to savior every last bit of nice weather.

                                               Can barely tell they are ready for the ball!

                                                      LOVE in the sunset!

      We took the girls to a Friday night high school football game, they loved being cheerleaders.

                       It is getting pretty cold here, we had the fire going one morning and it was lovely.

         I was able to go to the pumpkin patch so had to include evidence even though its a horrible pic, we were on a hayride.

                         It was bedtime, Griffin was already asleep (even though it looks like Eva's forcing him there, he was very comfortable) Daddy was reading a bedtime story.

 

                                        Corn maze fun; Ella and I beat Evan and Eva out; CHAMPIONS!

                             Evan ran the Columbus Marathon last weekend and did a wonderful job for not training as much as he should of. The girls were there to support him at mile 10 and met him at the finish line. We made him signs and waved as he ran the last 3 miles.

                                           We were so proud of him!


Well we have been staying busy with play dates, school, ballet, pumpkin patches, babysitters, and finally the best part a new puppy. We got him over the weekend and as hard as I thought it would be to do over again it is going wonderfully. I have a lot of help to take him out, feed him, and pet him. The only thing is waking up in the middle of the night. I'm hoping soon it will be over and Griffin will feel at home and comfortable. Our pictures kind of describe what we have been up too so there's not really a lot to say. We are looking forward to Halloween and pray the weather is nice! Stay tuned for those pics which I will post the next weekend. I have don't have to work ;O).

Camping/ pumpkin patch

                                                 Evan took the girls to a park for a picnic!

                                            A Cane's picnic; they thoroughly enjoyed it!

                                           Can't go to the park without playing some ball!

                       Took the girls to their 1st pumpkin patch of the year, and of course, had a blast!

 

                                           Ella loved this cutie guy!

                                      Can you spot the girls?

                                    We went camping in Kentucky and our 1st stop was a  Cavern Cave tour.

                                            All natural formations, pretty cool!

                                       Eva is helping set up the tent!

  Auntie decorated for the girls for Halloween, they loved them! We even got to bring them home and are now watching over our garden!

                                                Look it at our puppies!

                                 The best part of any fire: SMORES

                                         Leftover sparklers, they are fun in any season; thanks auntie and uncle

  Mommy and daddy kidnapped a turtle or became heroes and saved a turtle off the road whichever the girls got a new friend for the day.

           We donated our turtle to the Heritage center which also had other turtles. He was happy to be around other turtles!

                                                Kayak time!

                    The girls both took a ride and enjoyed it; mostly because it was so relaxing for them!

                                            We went up the river a little bit; not too far because we saw the worlds largest snake in the water prior to getting in. Actually, I missed it and then Evan showed me a picture it and there would have been no way in hell I would have got into that water.

                   Auntie also bought the girls fake nails so before we left we all put them on, and Eva was being spooky with them.

Eva on the way home; they were both so tired out! Camping was relaxing for us and tiring for them; perfect!

 

 

We had a fantastic week; our friend from college that Evan played BB came to visit on Tuesday evening. Friday night we took the girls to a pumpkin patch and the weekend was spend in Kentucky camping with aunt Becky and uncle David. Another plus was that I didn't have to work any overnights! But back to reality this week, I have 2! We left Saturday morning and arrived 3.5 hours later at Cavern Caves. We took a cave tour and learned a lot a bout bats/caves. We then made it to our campground (in the middle of nowhere-no cell reception/internet) and the girls were happy to run. There were playgrounds/swings throughout the campground and plenty of dogs to pet. :o) We were in a perfect location; next to the bathroom and across the street from the park. The girls just told us where they were going and we could always see them. It feels amazing to have 2 independent little girls. We enjoyed the cool evenings with a fire and had light shows with sparklers, LED head lamps, and glow sticks. But the girls were ready for bed by 8 and fell right to sleep in the camper, they got to sleep in the warmth while Evan and I slept in the tent. Uncle David let me borrow his mummy sack that kept me plenty warm so it worked out just fine! We had a great time and were happy to still have warm days and beautiful scenery to enjoy. Thanks auntie and uncle for letting us borrow a lot and driving farther than us to meet us for the weekend. We all had a great time!

 

Ella's favorite part of the weekend: 4 little dogs chased our car off someone's property!

Eva's favorite part: Eva loved playing outside all day at the park and playing with turtles.

Fall Fun

  It was puppy week so, of course, we had to wear our new puppy shirts from grandma Mary! Thanks grandma.

   Hey everybody, you need to try these super easy, kind of healthy taste of fall. They are by far my most favorite thing in the world.
Pumpkin Poppers
Ingredients
1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 egg
3/4 cup pumpkin (about 1/2 of can)
1/2 milk
PREHEAT oven to 350 degrees.
SPRAY two 24 cup mini muffin pans with non-stick cooking spray.
COMBINE, flour, baking powder, salt and spices together in a medium bowl.
WHISK oil, brown sugar, egg, vanilla, pumpkin and milk in a large bowl.
ADD dry ingredients to wet and mix until just combined.
FILL each mini muffin cup about 3/4 way full with batter. TIP: Use a small spring ice cream scoop for  precise measuring and uniform poppers.
BAKE for 10 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.
COOL slightly on wire rack.
Popper Coating

1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
2/3 cup sugar
1 TBSP cinnamon (adjust more or less to your liking)
COMBINE sugar and cinnamon together in a small bowl.
MELT butter in the microwave until melted.
BRUSH melted butter (lightly) onto warm poppers with a pastry brush, one or two at a time.  Lightly drizzle with butter if you do not have a pastry brush.
IMMEDIATELY roll each popper in cinnamon sugar.
STORE in an airtight container (if you have any left!)
*TIP: I have found that it is best to brush the poppers with butter when they are still warm, rather than letting the poppers cool completely.   If completely cooled, the butter doesn’t soak in as well and the cinnamon sugar starts to “goop”  after a couple hours.  Though, still tasty, “goop” doesn’t look pretty!!!
Makes 46-48 poppers.
http://sweettastingsbyjen.com/pumpkin-poppers/

  I had a girls night out last week with my friend Melissa on left and Val on the right. We went to a live show of Burlesque. It was definitely entertaining and was so much fun!

                                                                   Eva's school pics!

                      This is how my baby sleep every night, LOVE HER! There is nothing like watching sleeping kids!


The weeks are flying by, we are keeping busy and enjoying the fall weather and fun. Evan is still working despite the government shut down and he has begun to work from home again so life is going great for him. I continue to work a little less than I have been, I get burned out quickly with my 2 little crazies. The girls enjoyed the apple orchard last Sunday and are both enjoying school thus far. Ella's favorite part of school is her new best friend Claire and Eva's is the singing/dancing they do. Eva loves everything about school and I love to hear about her day each day. The girls are still praying and wishing for a real puppy but our house search continues with no idea of what/where/when we want it. Time will tell I guess, we are happy now and are looking forward to a camping trip this weekend with Auntie Becky and Uncle David; one last one before the season ends.