The retirement

Well, we just returned from Bryan's dad's retirement in Ohio. Wow! Can you believe it...37 years?? It was a really fun time, seeing family that we hadn't seen in years, and of course it was a very neat occasion for us all. Bryan and his brother and sister gave Bruce a really nice plaque (shown above) with all of the airplanes that he's flown on it, as well as patches from all of his squadrons. It turned out really amazing! And it was just a great opportunity for them to express to him (and their mom) how thankful they are for their examples and for all everything they've done for them. It was a tear jerker, I tell you! The kids were pretty proud of their grandma and grandpa too. But of course the highlight for them was playing with the dogs!!

Deer hunting in Minnesota

I could have titled this post "Crazy long-underwear Kung Fu man," and claimed to have not known him, but the world really needs to know where my nutty boys get their nuttiness! Bryan just got home from deer hunting up in Minnesota, and he had a great time. He spent the week with his dad, his brother Scott (pictured above), his grandpa Carlson, and uncles Don, Ron, and John. Wow, those uncles all rhyme. Well anyway, they had a fantastic time. I was cold all week just thinking about Bryan up there with 8 degree temps (it was 80 degrees here), but evidently the cold didn't bother him at all. How could it with long underwear like that!!?? But really, it was just because they all had such a good time together. And honstly, probably sheer body heat kept them warm! Eight men sleeping in a 200 square foot hunting shack will do that!

Ella's Haircut

Ella is now the proud owner of a cute new bob haircut. I have always thought she would look darling with a bob, but I didn't want to give up the bows, braids, and buns! But, thanks to the fact that she has started refusing to let me do her hair up, and the fact that she has a giant chunk of missing hair (thank you KitchenAid!), I decided it was time. So we went to a fun kid's haircut place and chopped off about 4 inches. That's pretty significant for a 3 year old! She looks darling, too. And with the help of a couple of bobby pins, I can still do a bun for ballet. Yea!

The Halloween Video

Some of the craziest kids I've ever seen! The boy's Kung Fu is really a sight to behold. Never have I seen such skinny, flailing limbs in motion such as in the Carlson Kung Fu. Too bad Bryan didn't demonstrate some of his skills as well - he's taught the boys everything they know!

Halloween!

Halloween was a big hit this year, as always. I mean really...what is there not to like about Halloween?? Costumes, candy, and craziness - the recipe for a good time! So let me narrate through the pictures. First you may notice that Spencer and Tyler have two different costumes. Yes, and if you've already heard my rant on this subject then skip ahead. OK, so of course the kids aren't allowed to wear Halloween costumes to school, but the teachers really do want the kids to be able to dress up. So they have these big themed units, with the grand finale on Halloween. The first grade did a unit on Egypt - very fun - and it would be great if the students and parents could work together to make an Egyptian costume to wear to school on Halloween! What a fun idea! (Sarcasm, thick sarcasm) Of course Tyler doesn't want to be an Egyptian for his real costume (no, he'd prefer to be a Power Ranger for third year in a row - a different colored one, of course, requiring a new costume, of course)! The fourth grade has been working on a fascinating unit of mapping, culminating with a wonderful Pirate Treasure Map Day. And you guessed it...Pirate costumes for the fourth graders! Alright, enough with the sarcasm. The school is great, and their units really were neat, but I have to grrrrr just a little bit. :) None of the other pictures really need explanations - the girls were darling, the boys were ferocious, and they all got an obscene amount of candy. A great day all the way around! Stay tuned for the pre-trick or treating video...