The Big Night

So the Big Night came and went...our house all decked out in spooky spiders (thanks again, Uncle Roger!)...and our artsy pumpkins on display...Jeff Gordon ready to go? Check.

Ariel, ready to go? Check. Thug Daddy, ready to go?? Check.

Cinderella? Cinderella? "My crown fall off...again...Mama!" Check.

Noses wiped and costumes stuffed with warm underclothes...it's 50-degrees, Mama...the warmest Halloween in Reno history! Doesn't matter...we don't want to go back if you're cold...we're Riggsbys and we're headin' out into the night to collect as much candy as we can from the neighbors...only to re-distribute it later in one giant candy shuffle...but that's another story.

Final shot of our pumpy-kins lighting up the night...

And we're back...after walking only about two blocks and listening to the following complaints -

• My dress is stuck...
• My (cough) hands (cough) are (cough) cold (cough)
• My bag is heavy
• When are we getting to our house
• Don't we have enough candy at home
• I just want to see the Butterfly House
• (cough) I (cough) am (cough) cold
• I got a rock
• When are we getting to our house
• I'm done (cough)

We ended up at our house saying "Trick or Treat" to a surprised Maka who gallantly handed candy out to approximately 60 kids. Thank you, Maka!

Thug Daddy insisted on wearing his Dog Walking A.M. outfit...and look at the grins at the loot!

The kids all grabbed a lollypop...the grown-ups...chocolate! How tastes change between generations, eh?

The Rock. Bella, having freshly watched "It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown" proclaimed after every house..."I got a rock" after Alex and Kata exclaimed their treats..."I got a Kit-Kat"..."I got two Smarties"...."I got a rock."

Wishing you all a rock every now and then...so you can appreciate the real treats in life...Happy Halloween, all!!

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Things That Go Bump in the Night

Oh, the festivities are coming to a boiling point...first, Kata's End of Season Soccer Party...one more time, "Go Ponies!"...who knew you could stuff 30 people in Round Table Pizza's party room??

Then we made our Haunted Gingerbread House just for fun...look like a House of Wax, eh? Lots of sugar results in kiddlettes staying up until 10:30. Hmmm...memo to me, maybe we should start these projects in mid-afternoon instead of after dinner.

And here come...our 2007 Jack-o-Laterns!!! Alex wanted a spider...bless him...in theory it was the easiest to carve...but took the longest....

Winnie the Pooh for Mama...I've always loved him...easy going Pooh...

Kata picked Ariel, of course....

Bella went with Cinderella...no surprise there, I suppose...she's been obsessed. "Bella, what is our favorite animal?"..."Cinderella."

Here they are...there are a few more...a Jeff Gordon "24"...and a Roo...but in the wee hours of almost twilight...I just couldn't snap more pictures! Wishing you a hauntingly good night!

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Double the Season Ending Fun

Oh boy, our first season of double the practices, double the pre-game frenzy of tying cleats and packing snacks, double the game time and double the exhaustion for both Ken and myself is now done. But, the truth is it was also double the fun. Don't tell the kids. We can't let them think that all the work we do is actually fun??! Okay, they know already...yeah, yeah.

Here's Alex (number 7) actually kicking the ball and getting into it. Our shy, reserved, don't-like-physical contact dude gave it his all in his last game.


And there is the Dudemeister on the left with his best buddy, Ryan, running in the foreground. And the official in red shorts. Poor kid he officiated most of Alex's games. Go Blue Legged Lions! See what third graders come up with when they get to choose the name of the team?? Sure it's hard to say and cheer...but hey, the loved it!



A double-header for Bella. We had an extra uniform so Bella suited up and warmed the bench. When Ken asked one of the other kids if they were ready to go in, Bella replied, "Dada, I ready go in!" Poor darling...another 2 years seems like a lifetime to her...wait, it is a lifetime to her.


And above, there's Kata kicking the ball under Coach Kyle's instructions. She listened to Coach Kyle as opposed to Coach Daddy. And then below is a great action shot, if I do say so myself. Kata's (number 5) actually in the lead with the ball dribbling it down the field...you go, girl...and your Ponies team! Woo-hoo! It's over!!

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Radiohead

Djedo and Baka came to visit...and oh, what fun we had! My dad, the original Geek Extraordinaire, was joined by budding Geek Alex in completing a boy scout project...they built a radio! And it does work! Alex spent all last night listening to the ESPN feed of the World Series game through an earpiece...he kept calling out the play by play...annoying Ken slightly because the radio was a few seconds ahead of the HD channel...I guess I should add Go Sox! but y'all know that even though I grew up in Mass., I really don't care about baseball...now hockey, is another matter but that's another blog entry.

And here are the kids with Baka. My mom and I shopped, cooked, cleaned and in general caught up with our girlie gossip. It was wonderful to have them visit for a good long while. The kids just relished every moment of grandparental spoilage. I am certain that a huge amount of unconditional love is good for both sides of the generational equation!

Roger also stopped by and it was so good to see him (although by some miracle no pictures were taken)...Bella's never met him but she took immediately to him shouting "Uncle Woger!" at every opportunity she could. All of us loved seeing him and chatting again...even though he and I sit on the opposite sides of the political fence...it's always good to have a sparring buddy! We can hardly wait until he stops by again.

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Crisp Autumn Outings

Kata got to go on her First Field Trip Ever! It was to Ferrari Farms here in Reno for a pumpkin patch experience with her preschool. She wore her Hannah Montana hair clip...don't ask...it's an obsession...and as you can tell she's taken her Mama's love of accessorizing to a new level.

So a hay ride, a pumpkin (that she named Marigold) and a few fun games later...there was a hot chocolate date with Mama at Starbucks...ah, a nice fall afternoon...wishing all of you crisp autumn outings!

And for those of you who keep asking for pics of Becks...here he is...fresh from the groomer...sporting an appopriately themed scarf...that's my puppy (see above comment re: ability to accessorize)...isn't he the sweetest??

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The Howling

Alex's Cub Scout Pack had their annual Halloween themed meeting last night. All the boys dressed up in their costumes, with both Alex and Jarryn sporting their Jeff Gordon best!




They also had to bring a carved pumpkin to the meeting. Alex wanted his to be a howling wolf...er, aren't the boys supposed to carve their own?? Of course, the howling wolf needed Mama's intervention...so amongst the cute little pumpkins stood our pumpkin smacking of "parental assistance!" And yes, that's Kata inspecting her brother's pumpkin and beaming with pride that ours had the little pumpkin light in it.


Then the boys all played a game where they had to put string beneath their costumes and then down the next scout until their den was all tied up with string. It's one of those Scout games that you just had to be there for but it does promote teamwork for what its worth. They all seemed to get the biggest kick out of it and the noise and commotion level only added to the hurried frenzy as the dens all rushed to be the first to complete the task. For the record, Alex's den was second...pretty good considering they got a bit of a head start...see, we're not the only ones using "assistance" to complete these scout tasks??? Really!


And here it is in all it's glory...The Howling...it won "The Most Spirited" pumpkin award. Alex was thrilled. I was tired. And Ken was happy that he got to sample roasted pumpkin seeds before Halloween. Now just think of how the other five pumpkins we got at Bishop's Pumpkin Farm will turn out??!??

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It's Pumpkin Pickin' Time

Last weekend, we went back to Bishop's Pumpkin Farm. Oooooh, what fun we had...first the apple cider in pumpkin bottles...love those pumpkin noses!

Then we went on to the Pig Races! With Mother Goose as MC...those were super fun...our section's pig, Christina Hamalera, came in last...And I kept having thoughts of fresh bacon!

Then it was on to Coyote Mountain and the big slides there...Alex and Kata didn't get to go last year so they were rarin' to go this year...and they spent a lot of time enjoying the slides. Kata perfected the no hands posture so she could go faster...look for her on the NASCAR circuit in years to come!

Jail with Mama...it could be worse...they could be going grocery shopping with me!!! A chore all of us dislike with great intensity.

Running around at the Fort...Ken's and my goal was to get them good and tired for the ride back to Reno. Goal achieved.

The three story treehouse...with slides and lookouts for all!

Going down the slide with Daddy!!!

On the Pumpkin Train...Bella kept repeating "I love trains!"...another thing she has in common with Alex! Alex and Kata wanted to ride in the Cattle Car.

Then it was time for a hayride to the pumpkin fields to pick this year's batch of pumpkins.

Ken was determined to walk out further so we can get to a Not-Picked-Over group...

Alex carried his own pumpkin all the way back to the wagon...such a Big Kid, eh?

Bella found one right away...and held onto it...repeating over and over again (2 year old logic pattern)..."I found my pumpkin!"

And here we are, waiting for the hay ride back to the measuring stations...5 pumpkins for 2007...I know what you're thinking...good luck with the carving!!! Thank goodness for those pattern booklets!! Until next year...pumpkin pickin' time if over.

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