Trick-or-Treat!

Happy Halloween from the Lewis clan. Dylan is the cutest shaggy dog and Ella is the sweetest Princess Jasmine.


We had so much fun at our church trunk-or-treat, the kids can't believe that Halloween isn't over yet and they get to go get more candy!

Cookies & the Economy

With the economic turmoil in the world right now, I often wonder how it will impact my kids' lives. Will they grow up a little more industrious than their mom, knowing how to sew or garden? Will they be better at saving? Will they make things last longer and not be as quick to throw things away? How will it change their lives? Or will there be totally new jobs come out of this? I see a lot of good things that could come in their lives as a result of this economic shift, not doom and gloom! For example, their generation may see less debt and lower obesity rates out of necessity!

Well, one thing is for sure, they will NEVER know grandma's pink and white animal circus cookies.... ha ha! It's TRUE, they company went bankrupt. Read about it here.
Maybe it's time to come up with a famous cookie recipe for my kids to sell? There seems to be a shortage of pink and white ones now!

And while I'm on the topic of their futures, my kids spontaneously told me what they want to be when they grow up during dinner time. Dylan wants to fly airplanes, of course... but Ella wants to be a mom and drive a van and drink yucky juice (ugh, yes, she has caught me lately drinking some diet coke again... GUILTY!) I thought it was sweet though that she'd want to be me. When I asked her what mom does, she says "moms scribble on the computer and says no more movies!" Well, I guess I'm scribbling now! Guilty again!

Kudos to Cooper!

I rarely get too political on here, but I have a new FAVORITE news special I must share. It's by none other than Anderson Cooper on CNN. His segment, 10 Most Wanted: Culprits of the Collapse, is so refreshing because it's a BIG break from the elections. Instead, it takes a look at the financial leaders and companies who led us into this economic mess! Check it out, it's a great feature updated every night!

Pumpkin Patches

We have had our fair share of pumpkin patches this year: from a baseball park pumpkin festival to a couple of pumpkin farms.
The biggest hit this year for the kids has been the hay mazes. They love crawling through the tight spaces and finding their way out.

Jasmine Birthday

Ella is in love with princess Jasmine! So, she picked that theme for her birthday. It was NOT easy to find Jasmine stuff since she hasn't had a new movie out in a long time. Not even eBay had Jasmine birthday items. I even called the Disney store and they told me they don't usually get requests for much Jasmine stuff. Well, that is Ella's favorite so we had to get very creative. For her party, we had magic carpets, Genie (her dad) granted the girls their wishes, a chocolate fountain (since Jasmine sits by her castle fountain), a stuffed Tiger for Raja and a stuffed monkey for Abu. One of the girl's wishes was to play hide-and-seek with Raja. They got to play musical magic carpets and duck duck goose with their carpets. Eric and I pulled it off, but it really was tricky. Next year, let's hope she falls for a princess who has more stuff out in the stores.

Ella loved every second of her birthday. She got to bring mini pink cupcakes to her school. She named all her new dolls and stuffed dogs things such as "Buttercup, Rose Bud and Nellie." She expects us to keep track of all their names and gets frustrated when we forget! She loves her new baby Belle and tells us she is Mama Belle. She even got her brother to wear some of the Jasmine party jewelry! Her excitement was just too contagious! She is entertaining every day, not just on her birthday. We look forward to more giggles throughout the next year with her!