Gingerbread Train

It's that time of year when we put together a gingerbread house.  This year we did a train instead of a house.  We divided up into groups of two for each car.  I was with Isabelle, Lara was with Eliora, and Zi and Eliza were together.

Here is the finished product.

Isabelle was just happy to be there.

Eliora built up her own private stockpile of candy.  Somehow, I don't think most of it ever made it on the train.

It's ok to lick your fingers as long as you don't lick the candy right?

Hmm... What should I eat next?

I think she's looking for candy to put on the train...

 Nope!

Eliora was quite pleased with the progress Lara was making with their train car.

Isabelle was eating every piece of candy she could get her hands on.

It's hard to believe, but I actually got a little creative.

The candy consumption increased as work neared completion on the train.

Lara put together the finishing touches.

Halloween Pictures

Zi could only have a costume from the neck up for her party at school so Lara painted her face to look like a fish bowl.  She thought it was pretty cool that the fish would hide when her eyes were open.

Isabelle with makeup.

We took the girls to a community Halloween party this year held at the High School.  They were collecting food donations for a local charity.  They had several carnival games setup for the kids.

Eliza as a fairy.

Eliora, Eliza and Isabelle.

Eliora as a princess.  She seems to be deciding if she wants to have her picture taken.

 She is still unsure but is attempting to cooperate.

Zi as a fairy.  She was going to be Scooby-Do until she saw the glitter makeup that her sisters were wearing.  It usually works the other way around with the younger ones changing their mind to follow suit with their older sister, but I guess when it comes to glitter makeup you have to make an exception.

Isabelle as a fairy.  Dad thwarted her escape so she reluctantly consented to a photo.

The girls anxiously awaiting the arrival of Mom and Dad so they can go to the community Halloween party.

The next day we took the girls with us to a service opportunity we heard about at church.  We got to stack tree branches.  They are going to burn them next year and plant new trees.  They still had their name tags on when the following pictures were taken later that day.

Eliora eating her finger along with the apple.

Zi making sure none of the carmel in the bag went to waste.

Eliza picking the apple apart piece by piece.  I guess this way she can more effectively savor every bite.

At the end of the day we went to our ward's Trunk-or-Treat party at the church.

Eliza as a witch.

Eliora as a princess.

Zi as Scooby-Do.

Eliora as a fairy.  She wore the hair for a few minutes before discarding it.

Zucchini

Steps to make kids like Zucchini:
1. Let them watch Ratatouille and then beg you to make Ratatouille as a special treat!
2. Listen to them whine all through dinner when they realize that ratatouille is basically zucchini casserole. BUT promise them Super Yummy Brownies if they finish what's on their plates.
3. Serve Brownies and listen the them rave about how Yummy they are! Half way through eating brownies show kids that the brownies are in fact full of Zucchini!!
4. Get a few good laughs out of their looks of shock and disgust when they realize you're telling the truth.
5. Listen to the kids ask you to please use all future zucchini to make brownies, NOT ratatouille.

At least they can say they like Zucchini ;) Well sort of....:)

The Girls

Isabelle Walking

Zi, Eliza, and Eliora singing

Zi's 6th Birthday

Mermaids from Grandpa and Grandma.
Cash Register she has been asking for since Christmas.
Zi has been spending a lot of time this summer reading. She has also recently decided she really likes Scooby Doo. As we were checking out some yard sales she just kept finding Scooby Doo books on her reading level, so she got a whole back full for a couple bucks! She has loved reading them.
We got a recipe for Ice Cream cake the other day and Zi has been very anxious to try it. It was so easy to make that Eliora did most of it with a little help from Mom.

Camping at St. Croix Bluffs

We spent a few days camping at the St. Croix Bluffs Regional Park. It is fairly close by. We all had a good time.

Here are some pictures: