Trick-or-Treat!

We enjoyed a festive Halloween weekend, full of activity! It all began Thursday night at the Squadron Spooktacular! The flight rooms were decorated haunted house-style with tons of candy for the kiddos. Will wasn't in the best mood for the group picture, but I thought this shot was hysterical. I think the poor guy got a little too toasty in his monkey suit.
Friday night was the squadron's adult costume party. We kept it simple and resurrected our previous costumes for Tropical "Paradise." We wore these to our first Halloween party with the 50th, but since that was so long ago, no one knew otherwise. Here we are as the Strikin' "Snake-eyes."

And again with our "Check Six" pose...

Everyone looked great at the party! Here were some of the other costumed-couples!

Trick-or-treating on base took place Saturday night, and a neighborhood family hosted a fun family barbeque beforehand. I decided to make these creepy cupcakes, because I kept seeing them everywhere and thought they looked neat.

I think they turned out pretty cool! I followed the instructions here, and they were so super easy. I think they might become an annual tradition. Will loved the spiders!

The kids had a great time running around in their costumes, and the weather finally had a slight chill in the air. Will enjoyed seeing all the dressed up puppy dogs like this mini-poodle.

However, he was not as excited to see some of the grown-up costumes. The Security Forces (ahem, Pumpkin Patrol) guys came around with this gorilla, who very much approved of Will's costume choice... even though the feeling wasn't mutual.

One more group picture before the candy craze begins! Then, we took Will to a few neighbors' homes before heading back home.

He was one worn-out little monkey! But we soon discovered the most fun thing to do on Halloween...

... is to pass out candy! HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Personalize funny videos and birthday eCards at JibJab!

Goldfish

Only the coolest snack ever.

A Few Random Firsts: Part I

Not your traditional milestones, but all signs this little boy is growing up...
First Happy Meal. Those french fries definitely put a smile on his face.

First big boy sneakers. Will thinks he's hot stuff in these shoes, and still insists on putting them on first thing every morning.

First trip to Stamey's. Like any good Southern boy, he loves his barbeque and hushpuppies!

First football toss with Daddy. Nothing beats a good game of catch... except maybe rolling the ball back and forth.

WGHS Class of 2000 Reunion Weekend

Yep, that's me in the gold rectangle. Hard to believe that 10 years ago I was an eager high school graduate! Life has changed so much since then (as it tends to), but being a part of this class shaped so much of life, I knew I wouldn't miss the opportunity to reunite with old friends. By most standards, we were small, even in our area, with about 180 students in our graduating class. However, this made us a pretty tight-knit group, especially when you consider that most us had been together since kindergarten. Oh sure, our middle and high school years were fraught with typical school-age drama, but through it all, we cheered each other on and supported one another even through our differences... dorky or cool, artsy or athlete. If I could put my finger on what I think what made our class special, it was that just about everyone felt like they belonged.

So to begin a whirlwind weekend, on Friday we hopped on a plane and arrived just in time to enjoy a quick barbeque dinner at Stamey's, before making a "bee-line" over to the homecoming football game. We tried our best to cheer on the Fighting Hornets, but unfortunately the team is having a pretty rough season.

But, just being in the stadium brought back so many memories! Shannon and I were reminiscing about our respective flag team and pom-squad rountines. Ha... those were the days!

And it was so much fun to see the first-wave of classmates, and even some little ones it tow! It certainly felt surreal, but any anxiety we'd had quickly melted away and we spent the rest of the crisp, chilly evening catching up and sharing memories.

Kate joined us at the game, and afterwards the three of us just couldn't resist a tasty post-game treat! Apparently I was pretty wound up, because I downed 3, yes 3!!!! original glazed doughnuts. I don't know what came over me. *blush*

Saturday afternoon we met up with our classmates and families at a local park for a picnic lunch. It was so much fun to see everyone's little ones and even more classmates! Will thoroughly enjoyed himself, too. I was so busy chatting and chasing him, though, that I did a horrible job taking pictures. Thankfully, more camera-conscious folks posted some pics on Facebook.

The Saturday evening event took place on the rooftop of downtown Greensboro club. It was so much fun to get dressed up and live-it-up with old friends. The organizers did a great job of making the entire weekend fun, and the final event was no exception.

Aaron and I both had a great time, especially since we both knew people! And we had a blast on the dance floor with everyone, too. Here I am with Kelli and Shannon and Aaron's with their husbands, Jason and John.

And I especially loved hanging out with my lifelong girlfriends Anna, Elena, and Amanda. I'm so glad they all came!

We're so happy we made the trip, as did others from D.C., NYC, L.A. and even Japan! And we definitely hope to see everyone back in 2020!

Country Pumpkins

Nothing says fall like a visit to the pumpin patch! For three years now, we've loved going to Country Pumpkins in Caledonia, not only for the great pumpkins, but for all of the fun family activities they offer.
The pumpkin harvest was smaller this year because of the drought, but there was still plently to pick from. I especially love the white Cinderella pumpkins!

Will wasn't too sure about the straw maze... he only took a few step inside. It was pretty dark in there.

But he did love the corn-filled sandbox, and the trucks that were in it!

Mom and I were modeling our newly embellished shirts. We had spent that afternoon making fabric rosettes!

Dad was pretty excited about picking some cotton. :)We had so much fun...

we're pretty sure we'll be back to visit a few more times before the month is over.

In fact, Farmer Will has already been back once, this time heading straight for the little tractors. Maybe next year his little feet will reach the pedals!

Happy, happy Fall!

Samantha & Tyler's Wedding Day

Everything about the wedding day was beautiful. The weather. The colors. The flowers. The family and friends. All morning while getting ready, Samantha was calm, cool, and collected, which allowed us all to relax and enjoy everything, basking in the excitement.

The ceremony was simple and sweet, officiated by my grandparents' old pastor, who we knew as children when we'd attend VBS during our summer visits. He's a Kemmerer actually, but not by relation, if you can believe it!

Will was a gem during the ceremony, content to sit in my dad's lap on the second row. He was mesmerized by the string quartet. Afterward, he had the run of the place, making several rounds around the property during the reception, so I'm told. Also, I didn't realize this at the time of picking out his cute little suspenders, but in the context of the wedding locale, he looked just like a little Amish boy. Several people asked if he had a straw hat, too?!

I love this picture of all the cousins. I heart my family!

Their September 19th wedding date actually turned out to be fairly significant, as it's also Grandma & Pappy's anniversary, and our great-great-grandparents anniversary, too. Not only that, but it's exactly 57 years between each of them!

Quick family pic before the reception begins.... above, Kate and I are practicing our toast.

The reception was lovely and so much fun! Kate and I put our heads together to make a toast that ended with a nod to the fact that Samantha and Tyler are both professional photographers.

Our blessing for how we "pictured" their life together was...

May your relationship develop with more frequent exposure.

May you maintain your perspective, focus on the highlights rather than the negatives,

and carefully filter advice from in-laws.

May you zoom in on your love for each other, and may your family portrait...

be enlarged.

It was a big hit! Then we danced the night away... at least until Kate bumped her head on the dance floor when she tried to get Uncle Archie to swing her through his legs. It seemed like a good idea at the time.

She's totally fine, and we can all laugh about it now... right?!! Great memories. Here's to the new Mr. & Mrs. Tyler Barrick!

Amish Country

On Saturday afternoon there was a lull in wedding festivities, so we joined up with Grandma and Pappy and my dad's sister's family and headed into Amish country. We enjoyed a home-cooked meal at the Plain & Fancy before taking a buggy ride. Will enjoyed spending time with Hannah (my youngest cousin), and she was so helpful and sweet with him.
Here's the Kemmerer gang ready to go for a ride!

We waited around a little longer for one of the big covered wagons, so we could all ride together.

Ben and Hannah set up front with the driver, and Will was very entertained by watching the horses.

It was the perfect time of year to take in the beautiful Pennsylvania countryside.

So quiet and peaceful. I'll have to admit, I find the Amish lifestyle pretty fascinating having visited Lancaster, PA quite a few times in my life when we'd be visiting family nearby. But just in the capacity of a curious observer...

I'll keep my electricity, running water, and washer and dryer, thank you very much! Though it does make for a charming picture.