And I think to myself.....what a wonderful world.

Hello friends!

Thank-you to those who sent me private messages asking if I was okay! How sweet of you. We are all doing fine and sometime soon I will share with you the details of the ER visit. (It was actually quite an exciting visit, if that makes sense??!) But for now, I have lots of fun Halloween weekend updates!

On Friday, I had the day off. A MUCH needed break! I was on day 10 of straight insanity and I needed some time to "do nothing". Emersyn and I made plans to hang out all day, until I realized that Kathy (her daycare hero) wanted her little goblins in for a Halloween picture. Off we went around naptime---just in time for Kathy to get a picture and put Emersyn down for nap while I went and ran errands.

(I think Emersyn missed having her grandmas here to spoil her to pieces. She grabbed this suitcase, which was mine as a little girl, and told me she was going to see "Gamma Chick". (Long story, but we call my mom Chicken. Hence, "Gamma Chick")Sometimes it is so hard to explain to a 2-year old that Gamma lives in another state, a day's drive away.


Saturday we spent prepping for the big Halloween bash that was hosted by my friend Leslie! Leslie and I worked at Perkins together back in the high school days. We lost touch, and only recently did we reconnect, and realize that we now live 45 minutes apart! Crazy that we both grew up 8 hours away and are now so close. Leslie is pregnant with their 5th child, and she is such a wonderful and kind person. Her family put on one heck of a party for the kids. Emersyn just LOVED it. Every minute of it!

They had their shop complete with food, decorations, a hay maze, and 7 stations---cookie decorating, musical chairs, ring toss, bobbing for apples, face painting, eyeball toss, and one more that I can't think of right now.

Our little bumblebee was so adorable! Her costume was perfect and she undoubtedly loved the compliments she got on her "cute dress". By tonight, she would say "cute dress" and turn around and show everyone her bumblebee wings before they even had a chance to acknowledge it themselves. Modesty, my child. Modesty!




I just love this picture! As you can see, Emersyn was THRILLED that she bounced the eye ball in the cup! She made it on her 2nd try with no help from dad. She was so proud of herself! It was suggested to me that one day she will dominate Beer Pong. Help me! I suppose I have that one coming!

I wasn't sure she would want to bob for apples. I was wrong! After watching a few others do it, she jumped right up for her turn, and came out a winner.


She came home one tired out bumblebee and couldn't stop talking about how fun the party was. It made my heart smile.

She slept in until 9 AM today! We had a low-key day. Emersyn helped daddy carve pumpkins. She was enamored by the fact that there were seeds inside the pumpkins.

Good job, daddy!


I also attempted my first pot of knoepfla ("neff-luh") soup today. Unless you live in Minnesota, North Dakota, or South Dakota, you probably don't know what that is. It's German. My hubby grew up in the hub of German settlers, and though I did not, it was a staple at our local cafe. I'm not sure how to describe it, but it has potatoes, celery, onion, and knoepflas, which are balls of dough that are comparable to dumplings. In its original form, the base is chicken broth and good ol' fashioned cream. In this kitchen, the base was chicken broth with 2% milk. (I refuse to use anything heavier than that as I clearly cannot afford the calories, blah!) My mother in law can make a mean batch of knoepfla soup, and so I was a little nervous to have my attempt compared to her perfection.

Whether he was just being polite or not, Travis said it was very good! I was a little pleased with myself as well. Yummmy. I think anyone who has had knoepfla soup can vouche for how GOOD it is! (Next time, I am adding carrots)


After nap, Buzz was ready to trick-or-treat! She has been rehearsing for this for weeks! She could hardly wait to get out the door.



Her little feet went 100 beats/minute and she needed a boost towards the end of the 2nd block.

After our block was done, we packed up and went to see Kathy, her 2nd mom and daycare provider. Kathy is truly a savior. She is beyond wonderful with the kids and I am so thankful we found her. Emersyn just adores her.



She deemed the night a complete success.


After the sugar rush was over, our little bumblebee snuggled in bed and was out within seconds.

I love wonderful weekends like this where I can see my little precious having the time of her life!

How was your Halloween weekend?