So. Much. Fun.

Happy Halloween! It's been such a great day @ the Roos house. This morning we started off with a Master Class for my students. We learned about Bach, played Bach Bingo, learned some cool rhythms, performed Halloween pieces, and finished off with treats.
Miss Courtney, playing Black Cat Boogie
Alexander's exciting rendition of the Star Wars Theme
This afternoon we all lounged on the couch and watched The Addams Family marathon {the kids had never seen it, and thought it was pretty strange}. Then off to Trunk or Treat!
Here's the spookiest thing that happened this Halloween: Alexander and his best friend both decided to be Ghost Rider {and they didn't even discuss it beforehand}! Seriously, these two are bruthas from anuthah muthah!

Courtney, sporting a cotton candy fu man chu. She was so happy to see her best friend! They are both so darling {and pink!}

One of our family traditions is going to Rawhide on Halloween night. They really deck it out & the workers are so into character, it's a little freaky. We asked the kids what they'd like for a treat, and they wanted sno cones! These kids must be from Arizona.

Courtney took this picture of Darren & I. Darren was Domo & I went a little Sarah Jessica Parker with a funky-feathered-witch-hat-headband. We ended our day with delish apple cider.

Fall Festival

It's official. I never, EVER, in my wildest dreams, ever thought I would enjoy a school fall festival, but this one was GREAT! It was actually like a real party with a DJ, disco ball:), pony rides, hay rides, games, a petting zoo & great food. Cutie pies! I was exhausted from organizing both of their classroom parties earlier in the day. They both have such great classes & fantastic teachers.
Xander Man insisted he was "too old" for the games & rides. This year for Halloween he wanted to be something scary. His perception of things has changed a lot lately--I'm not ready for him to be so grown up!
Excitement turned to horror and dismay when some hungry goats in the petting zoo backed Courtney into a corner.
"Momma! They're eating my costume!"
Indeed they were.

Cake Pops!

What do you get when you combine red velvet cake, cream cheese frosting, dark chocolate & sprinkles? Cake pops, of course! I've been wanting to make these Bakerella pops for ages, and finally found a willing accomplice. Thanks, Karen! Goodies for teachers
I forewarned Karen that I wasn't going to try anything fancy--sprinkles were good enough for me:) These are the ones she made.... super cute, huh? LOVE them! {Photos by Karen}

These Spiders Won't Bite Back

A few weeks ago, I was picking the kids up from school, and Courtney said, "Mom! Guess What? We have a pet tarantula named Escaper in our classroom!" The story is totally legit. I saw the creature at Parent/Teacher Conferences.

I saw an idea for spider lollipops online, and thought it would be the perfect craft for Courtney's Fall Party @ school. {And went to great lengths to get this black baking foil:} Just received word that Mr. Escaper bit the dust. I sure hope making this craft won't traumatize any children.

Cheers!

A few months ago, Darren helped write a submittal for the Construction Management Association of America (CMAA) focused on Mortenson's latest project, the Camelback Ranch Spring Training Facility.

Tonight he & a coworker were presented with the "Project of the Year" award at the CMAA awards banquet in Florida. Congratulations, babe! It represents many hours & lots of ingenuity.

{And now he knows what a $200 dinner tastes like:}

FHE Pumkin Carving

The aroma of fresh cut pumpkins... such a nice Autumn scent. We cranked some creepy tunes & went to work.

Roasted pumpkin seeds
For the first time, the kids picked out templates to carve their pumpkins. We found these here, on eHow. Actually, they were quite easy {although we did break out some scrapbook tools & a pocketknife}
Cute & Spooky!

Return of the Nap

Aahhh.... yes. After ages of having church from 2:00-5:00 p.m., {with meetings and choir before then} we finally got to switch to 9:00 a.m! Not that it bothered me before, but it sure was nice to take a Sunday afternoon nap today:)

In the Doghouse

For the last month, Darren has been mentoring a team of students from Carl Hayden High School in Phoenix. Their project focused on green building and implementing ideas for a "desert doghouse." Darren was impressed at the time & resourcefulness these students put into their project. The presentation/competition was held @ ASU.
While there, Alexander & I ventured over to the Music Building {affectionately referred to as the "Birthday Cake"}. I'm getting excited to go back to school...

Old is New

Today I made this fun project with Alexander's class. I found the idea here, on the Family Fun website. It's a wallet to keep lunch money, terrific tickets, or goodies in. The kids were so happy to make something cool out of their old recycled juice/milk cartons.
Alexander is already thinking of more uses so he can make more wallets!

As Promised...

Pics of baby Courtney. I could have sworn I had a CD of pics from her 1st photo shoot {by Natalie Wright, the Magnificent} but I guess I don't. Courtney @ 5 months {what did parents do before binkees?}
One hour old
Kennebunkport, Maine {this girl ALWAYS had her little pink tongue out}

Sweet newborn babe and puffy post-delivery Momma:)

PettiTutu

I am too much of a chicken to attempt a REAL pettiskirt {although I LOVE them}, so I improvised. Just made a tutu, then knotted a 6 x 6 inch piece of tulle at the end of each strand {so the edges are twice as full}. It's tough to see from the picture, but the tutu is white and the fluffy edges are baby pink. Anyone else making Halloween costumes?

Thank You, IKEA!

Seriously the best kid's toy. Ever. My kids have played school, done their spelling lists, written letters, drawn pictures, made up games... for literally hours in the 1st week we've had it. {Plus, I think we've saved at least three trees... much less paper consumption going on around here!}

Spooky Banner

Ummm... anyone else craving some creative time? Our ward isn't having Super Saturday this year & I'm really wanting to learn or make something new. Glass etching? More hair bows? Sew an apron? Any fun ideas? This little project was so simple and took about an hour to make.

Happy Haunting!

Re-Trenching

We spent a small fortune & lots of time putting in a sprinkler system, lush grass & landscaping a few years ago. As you can see, our grass has all dried up {despite being fertilized, thatched, and watered daily} So we're trying again. More sprinklers, a different kind that will hopefully be able to sink into this Arizona dirt {I mean clay}. Think green thoughts!

P.S. This is our 300th post!

Stomp out Bullying!

That was the theme this week @ the kids' school. Each student wrote something they could do to help.

Courtney's statement was chosen from her class. It's difficult to hear, but this is what she said: "I can stomp out bullying by telling a teacher and saying 'Can you please stop.'"

On a side note, I've gotten a few questions about an answer she gave in Primary last Sunday... let me explain.

The teacher asked, "What are some of the rules you have in your house?" The typical answers were given, like, "No jumping on the bed," and "No running in the house." When it was Courtney's turn, she confidently said, "No squeezing the cat, because they have fragile little bones."

Here's the story behind that. A few days before, Courtney had asked why, when her cousin {in Idaho} squeezed their cat, it made a weird yowling sound. I told her that was the kitty's way of saying, "Ouch! That hurts!" because they have very fragile, little bones. That's the story:)

Courtney's Sad Song

Right before bedtime, Courtney came upstairs and told me she'd written a song {in the last 2 minutes}. I asked her to sing it to me. She held up her paper {lyrics} and used her music box as accompaniment. Here it is:

"I remember her.
She was a kitten.
I miss her.
She was my best friend.
She allways snugled in my arms.
She was gray and black.
I miss and love her."

"Love Song."

So sad and yet too precious! She said it was a pretend song about her toy kitten.

Hooray for Scouts!

It is soooo nice to have our scout program up and running again! It is such a fantastic program for boys this age. We seriously appreciate these awesome leaders {including Grandma Kathie!}for the time and energy they spend making it so great! Check out that uniform! He was so excited to get this Century of Scouting badge last pack meeting.

Somebody Please Stop Me...

I can't seem to stop making hairbows & clippies to match Courtney's school uniforms {as if I didn't make enough last year!}

Fabric, felt, flowers, tulle, ribbons and rhinestones-- I can't resist.

Paper Beware...

I've been on a quest to find the perfect paper trimmer for years. I've been using the old Fiskars grey & orange one for too long! My friend bought this intimidating, industrial size thing, and I laughed... until I tried it. LOVE it! Making Memories 12 x 12 trimmer. I waited for a 50% coupon {since it is a little pricey}, but it has a self-sharpening blade, so totally worth the investment. {No blade refills!}

Happy Birthday, Baby Girl!

Our sweet babe turned 6 today! We remember her pregnancy & birth like it was yesterday, and yet can't imagine life without our little Courtney. {Newborn pics to come later}Up first: Presents, of course! She told us, "All my wishes came true!" She played with her new toys & whiteboard most of the day.

We went to Rainforest Cafe & the mall for lunch. {forgot my camera, dang it!}

Sweet sis. She is on a homemade bean & cheese burrito kick lately. That's what she requested for dinner-- I know! No glam here:)
She asked me to make "a white kitty cake with a pink bow."
We love you, Courtney! We adore your oodles of spunk, your desire to learn about everything, your tender heart, your funny & honest personality. You are so beautiful and we are so blessed to have you in our family.

Hey, Cupcake!

I found this fabulously tall cupcake pan @ Michaels & couldn't wait to try it out. I felt so domestic spending half the day baking in the kitchen {but didn't fix dinner for my family, believe it or not--Taco Bell takeout to the rescue!} It just so happens that two of my friends had birthdays this week. Tried out a new cake recipe from Bakerella. Love her!
What giant cupcake would be complete without a fun card to go with it? {And a tall glass of milk!}

Politics

Alexander got his first taste of politics this past week. Monday he came home and told me he was running for school treasurer. {Is this last minute notice just a part of being 10?} He designed these posters & gave the most awesome speech. We are so proud of him! The incumbent won, so he was a sad boy {for about an hour}. We love you, XMan!

Boy Pages

While Darren was in Seattle, I got 15 scrapbook pages done! It's amazing what you can get accomplished when you don't have to fix dinner:) I need to retake these pictures. It was a little dark outside. Sorry. I scraplifted this from a sketch in Creating Keepsakes.
I loved that title so much, that I carried it over for this Easter page.
Been hoarding this Rusty Pickle paper for a year...

All right. So I had to slip a pink page in. Seriously, I am using Page Maps like crazy lately.