Tae Kwon Do

Lydia participated in the Martial Arts after-school program. There were 50 kids and there was homework on focus, respect, and discipline.

After just 4 classes, they got to go to the Sorce studio and have a graduation ceremony to show the parents what they learned. This is the position that you know you are doing right if it hurts! 

At the end, they got to break a board!

Way to Go! This is a moment to remember!

Fall in Love with Abby

 Abigail's 4K class invited parents to come in to the class for "Fall in Love with Books."

They sang their cute "I'm a Nut" and "5 Little Pumpkins" songs.

We did a craft together.

And then we had a little time to read our favorite books. It's always nice to spend time with Abigail in her classroom!

We've also been enjoying the beautiful fall weather and raking leaves.

Filled the barrel!

 On Nov. 17th, it was 68 degrees, so we declared it a beach day!

Date Night and S.T.A.R. Puppy

Another year of the Father/Daughter dance at the high school.

Lydia feels special and loves the quality time she gets with her Daddy, but next year Daddy can have one girl on each arm!

Rio graduated the Puppy Start Right 6-week class and passed his AKC S.T.A.R. puppy test!

Halloween Weekend

Candy! Parties! Dress Up! Goo!

That can only mean one thing...It's Halloween Weekend! (and it started on Thursday with no school on Friday)

Gotta get ready by carving our jack-o-lanterns!

Goofy gooey fun!

Now aglow!

Making ghost cupcakes, our own way...

The girls got to have a jack-o-lantern pizza when Aaliyah and Violet came over for a sleepover. After that, no haunted bedtime stories, just Abigail reading to Violet (I love when she 'reads' to us) and Ben reading in the playroom.

 We finally got our hands on a fishing pole (thanks Stacy!). The fish must have been too scared (and cold) to bite, but the girls' first fishing experience on the lake was enjoyable! 

 Ready-Set-Fill your cup with candy corn!

Fall Fest at church had games and hayrides.

Hay Ride was breezy but we got to see alpacas!

 Trunk or Treat: Lydia as the gingerbread puppet hands out the candy!

Oak Creek had trick-or-treating on the 31st. We saw lots of neighborhood friends (Marissa, Danielle, Elizabeth) and familiar haunted houses.

Lots of fun was had on the weekend of parties, candy, and dress up.

2016 Halloween Costumes

Lydia Abigail Halloween Drama! Dressing up for all our Halloween events over the weekend was an ordeal. (Who knew Abigail was concerned about being prettier than Lydia?!) I'm kicking myself for passing up two identical costume dresses that could have had them go as Twins. It would have been too perfect: fair, innately themed, fitting to their bond, easy to wear! But, like I said, we didn't do that. We chose candy-themed costumes that were uncomfortable, so they found alternate clothing to avoid wearing what we picked out, but in the end they wore them. Consequently, I have a slew of costume pictures to show for the ordeal that was 'Halloween 2016:'

Princesses

Ballerina & Pop Star

 And I'm going to throw this one in there...

Mummy

Princess Ballerinas alongside Mummy-to-be and Doctor

Doc McStuffins

And what we agreed upon 3 weeks ago...

Candy Corn Witch & Smarties :)

Pulley Weekend!

Dan, Kaitlyn, Will, Aubrey, Grandma & Grandpa came up for a visit this weekend!

On Saturday we went to the Zoo Spooktacular. The weather ended up being nice.

  The kids dressed up and there was a lot to see besides the animals.

 We enjoyed spending time and playing together! Aubrey is a precious little baby doll whom Abigail loves to dote on. Will gives the best hugs and can say 'Abigail' and 'Rio' quite clearly.

When the little ones hold hands or hug, 'it's so cute, it's scary!'

Fall Drive & Scenic Towers

Basilica at Holy Hill, Hubertus, WI

This picture captures the tip of the tall tower but distorts the scale.

Ah, yes. Down in front of it, you can't capture it all. Reminds me of Notre Dame. In fact, I dug out my old picture from 2009:

Haha, I couldn't get it all in so I decided to just go with the top!

 The total climb in the Notre Dame Cathedral (which we did) was 387 steps. The basilica scenic tower was 178 steps, but the basilica itself is on top of a hill and once you reach the top you get a breathtaking panorama of the Kettle Moraine area.

It was fun to take the kids on the climb and all see the sights!

It was windy, but there were corners where the wind couldn't reach.

 Walking down the the narrow stairs in the tower to lunch.

 Rio joined us for lunch.

We followed the Kettle Moraine Scenic Route to Parnell Tower, Plymouth, WI

This tower was just a stair climb, but Stacy, Sarah, Matt, Gma Linda and children met us there, and all the brave little children made it to the top!

at first of three platforms

the view

The trail had some structures to play in.

Someone found a really big stick; I'm not sure who had it first.

Abigail made a leaf bouquet.