Corn Maze

We had a blast at the Newberry Corn Maze.

There was a corn pitt:

There was an awesome hay ride where we got to feed the cows corn stalks:

A beautiful day (This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it! Ps 118:24):

What fun with family (cousins Molly, Clare, Tess and Aunt Mary with Meme and Papa):

Disney and Friends

The girls and I went on a girls trip to Disney.  We were joined by Deborah and Julia (22mo), Christine with Owen (6yr) and Cole (3yr).  It went remarkably well considering kids out numbered adults.  The good news was Adeline was completely potty trained this time.  Though I did have the Dora diapers on hand if an emergency happened while we were in line for a ride/show.  We were also introduced on the “fast pass” and found out that it is free.  Go figure.  

We saw a show, Dreams come true:

 

We saw a couple of parades :

We had so much fun in the Teacups, Cinderella’s Carosell (3 times), Peter Pan, Buzz Light Year, Bear show, Minnie’s house, Winnie the Poo’s ride, Bells story time, Dreams come true show, and 2 parades.  It sprinkled on us and the temperature was GREAT! October is a great time to visit.  Deborah and I stayed in Disney’s Pop Century hotel.  It was awesome.  9:30 at night we let the girls splash in the Kiddie pool.  The complex was amazing. We even saw some impressive fireworks from Magic Kingdom.  We got to be really late. The bus ride to the park was a good one.  It is a little stressful getting strollers and girls on a bus.  Thank goodness we had some strangers help us on one of the trips.  Being a FL resident brought us a good deal.  That or AAA.  I don’t remember which.  Also, no parking fees.  This resort is a “value” resort for Disney.  I think it was a very good deal. 

Shake it

During one of the parades there was dancing in the streets and Adeline and I joined in.  I got tired and she let me film her finishing it up!  You go girl!!!

Go Gators

So our friends The Douglas’ came to town for Disney and a Gator game.  This was Owen’s first time attending a game.  We cheered the Gators on to victory!!!  Fun fun fun!  While we were there Martha and Bill watched Adeline, Cole, and Essie.  It appears that Adeline and Cole are good buddies.  Thank to MnB for getting it on video!

Drain the fat?

In regards to browning ground beef I am just curious how folks drain the grease or fat from the beef when you are done and ready to move on to the next step. I remember growing up with a Crisco can you put it into. Though I don't recall how my Mom got it there. And likely it wasn't even a Crisco can.

My percieved problems:
Little grease: Maybe it is b/c I use lean (most of the time) that there isn't much and that is my problem. Some portion of the ground beef seems to fall out.. ugh, now I am wasteful. For sake of time I am not straining it out of the can or sometimes I pour over the trash can b/c there isn't much. That hasn't really gone well yet.
Going going gone: Or I feel it necessary to get every drop out... almost every drop.
I go at it with paper towels in the pan. It seems like too much of a waste to strain the meat or place the meat on paper towels. Though that may be the easiest I have found it doesn't seem to really get all of it. hmm
Safety: Hot grease and pouring into a little can seems tricky. Then do you clean the can out to recycle it??? someone green help me! I learned not to pour it down the drain for fear of clogging the pipes.
Time: I am always in a rush to get out of the kitchen. Just tell me what is quickest with optimal results. I am not aiming for perfection really.
Health: Anything is better than leaving it all in the pan. Though I have done this a time or so b/c I just didn't want to take the time, then I have guilt of passing to my family the worst possible kind of fat.

Please advise :)

Flying Heels AC and EC are up to it again

So much fun….

Esther has managed to walk in princess heels at 14 months.  Crazy stuff.  Some aren’t even walking yet!!!

Adeline loves to video.  Every now and then we can catch her on it too!  She loves flying from Daddy’s feet.

Christian pumpkin

Hmm… what to do about Halloween.  We are still up in the air about Santa.  How can I consider Halloween.  Then after Sonshine Day sent home this pumpkin devotion/prayer I got to looking around.  At the very bottom of this post is a really cool link to the history and thought on it for today. 

Pumpkin devotion:

Being a Christian is just like a pumpkin! Let me try to explain, I brought this pumpkin here to help me illustrate what I mean. (Proceed to carve the pumpkin.)
First, God picks you from the pumpkin patch and brings you in from the field. The Bible says He selects us out of the world. We are in the world, but no longer of the world.
He then washes all the "dirt" off the outside that we received from being around all the other pumpkins. All the outside influences of our former life must be cleaned up. Old things are passed away and all things are become new.
Then, He carefully removes all the "yucky stuff" called "sin" out from the inside. Look at this! Yuk! Sin will not have such internal power. He then changes us from the inside out by the Power of His Word. That's why it is important to go the church and learn about God's Word.
He carefully removes all those seeds of doubt, hate, greed, and fear. He replaces them with the seeds of faith, hope and love. After Jesus is invited inside, you begin to experience the changing power of God's love in your life.
Then He carves a new smiling face. Our countenance is changed by the power of His presence in our life. We then become so grateful. It can even show on our face!
Now we are going to light this candle inside. Look! This pumpkin now reflects the light from inside out. So too, when Jesus, who is called the Son of Light, lives inside of us, He shines through our life for all to see. We can let His light reflect through us to reveal His presence. "Let your light so shine before men that they may be able to see your good works and glorify your Father, who is in heaven."
So you see, we Christians are really like this pumpkin! We will never be the same with Jesus inside of us. We can say like this jack-o-lantern, "Thy presence, my light!"

You can also use this prayer in conjunction with it. You can also have them draw pictures of their pumpkin and share the gospel with their friends. We love to do this each year after the pumpkins have outlived their outdoor decorating potential.

{cut off top of pumpkin}
Lord, open my mind so I can learn new things about you.
{remove innards}
Remove the things in my life that don’t please you.
Forgive the wrong things I do and help me to forgive others.
{cut open eyes}
Open my eyes to see the beauty you’ve made in the world around me.
{cut out nose}
I’m sorry for the times I’ve turned my nose at the good food you provide.
{cut out mouth}
Let everything I say please You.
{light the candle}
Lord, help me show your light to others through the things I do. Amen

By: Liz Curtis Higgs

 

I also found this link that talks about Christians participating in Halloween festivities.  Where Did Halloween Come From? Can a Christian Celebrate It?

Then this one blogger, at Real Life, talks about not giving Satan credit for more power than he has.  That she was allowing Satan to steal joy from her girls by not allowing them to dress up as butterflies, etc.  Interesting thoughts.

Happy Birthday – a little late

Bryan’s wake up surprise:

A little party for Meme and Bryan:

So we almost didn’t get to eat the cake.  Essie almost pulled it into my lap.  Thank goodness I am still as quick as a cat.  We had just enjoyed a delicious Satchel’s dinner and then were about to enjoy an ice-cream cake.  Love you both so very much!

We love walking

5K with a stroller – no problem!  At least not when you are with friends.

fun with friends

The sunrise coming up while Adeline is making waffles with Meme.

Girls only club! 9 of us :) Here are the little beauties!!

Picnic lunch!

Always finding treasure.

We also had project time and made some fun memories with plaster and shells!

A little downer is that we took Essie to the emergent care and we think the overall diagnosis was sunscreen in the eyes and an ear infection. She has been snotty and teething - the perfect storm for ear infections. Praise God as He had her feeling pretty good by the end of the evening. Praying for a good nights sleep!