Thanksgiving Break

It was GREAT to have five days off from work (until today when I had to go in and catch up). We had time to do lots of fun things like. . .

. . .ride the mule with Grandpa Harlan. Notice the six-year-old driver.
. . .scope out Grandpa's new cows. Here Owen is studying the red one in front so that he could go inside and draw him. . . . spend some time at the Rowley's house in Lebo hanging out and attempting to get some projects done with Sharla while the kids played. It was great--her boys are the same age, plus they had five cousins there too. (I should have cut my head off or actually gotten ready that morning)
. . . and go to the KSU game in Kansas City with some friends while the kids spent the day with Grandma Jean and Grandpa Harlan--a win/win for everyone!

We also had tons of AWESOME food and lots of good times at Aunt Nancy's on Thanksgiving Day (where was the camera? oh wait, I was eating the whole time). I hope Mom and Nancy live to be 150 so that I never have to be the one to cook a turkey, or make gravy, or . . .

Disney on Ice

On Friday Owen and I went with Michelle, Raly, and Connie to see Disney on Ice at the Expocenter in Topeka. The kids really enjoyed the show--and the adults liked it too. I haven't been to the Expocenter in YEARS! (not since WWF wrestling in elementary school :)

Owen was digging the cotton candy Aunt Michelle shared--YUCK!

Seat Shopping

We decided it was time for Miles to graduate to a booster seat, since we can't get him in the baby seat with his winter coat on. He's been talking about it all week, but when we got to the store, all he wanted was the "real big boy" one like Owen's. Sorry dude.

Pioneer Woman

Sharla ordered me this cookbook for my birthday and it came last week. I love it! If you follow her blog at all, this makes a great gift. It has lots of pictures, stories and good recipes. Now I just need to get an iron skillet it seems!

I Could Use a Snow Day!

Wildcat Weekend

Beautiful weather for the big game vs. KU on Saturday. We had a fantastic weekend with lots of friends and family (local and KC-ers) in town for the football and basketball game (on Sunday). Sorry the pictures aren't in any logical order.

The Dansel's little dude, Jackson, spent some time post-game playing football and soccer with Owen and Miles.
Miles and Owen were picked up roadside (by Ellen) since we didn't have tickets for them.
Criteria for baby-sitting for us: willing to be attacked, ability to take down 3 and 6 year old.
Lindsay and I enjoying our GREAT seats--such a fun day! It was her birthday, so we continued the festivities with dinner out.

Here I am crowd surfing after I jumped down into the student section :)
Great day for a big game.
The competition! (Yes, at the end of the day, they are still together :)

My Big Helper

Owen asked if he could give Miles his bath tonight--sure, why not? It's funny to hear him use the same lines we do, "Miles, where's your left foot?"

Manny

One of my students brought this freakishly big praying mantis (Manny) to school yesterday. It just hung out on his hand and arm. And. . . . Manny was ready for geometry again today!

Halloween

The kids trick-or-treated a little on Saturday, but mostly they (Owen) wanted to watch the KSU game. We spent most of the night hanging out watching football with the Butlers. We still had so much candy that I took most of it to school.

HUGE win!

Last night was the BIG Manhattan vs. Junction City game. MHS won on a last second touchdown pass--an exciting night to be an Indian!

It was senior night for fall sports. We also celebrated Halloween with bows and "war paint." Maybe you saw them on the sports section of the news last night--two different stations gave us some air time.

Yum!

If you are wondering if this is a trash bag full of crackers, etc. then you are right! A lady in class with me this past summer made this great stuff, so we made some to help out the PTO with teacher snacks during conferences. Now I just need to quit grabbing a handful every time I walk by! (Yes, that is grease on the sides of the bag. Low-cal right??)

Fall Party

We were on the list to bring treats for the fall party at Owen's school. I really don't like to cook, but I do like to make treats/favors. We made these mummies and bats (idea stolen from here) and added them to a goody bag that also had some semi-healthy snacks. I think they turned out cute, especially the mummies!

KSU Weekend

We had high hopes of taking both kids to the game on Saturday and then spending time with family and friends that were in town. We did those things, but in shifts--one or the other of the kids have either been sick, had a fever, had a cough, etc. since last Wednesday (minus a few bursts where we thought everyone was on the mend).

Since Adam took the "game shift" with Miles, I got to go out with fellow Lebo-ites for a while.
Having fun with Aunt Susan--more guy is in bed with a fever right now :( Seems like illness hits someone in our family every year at Halloween.

Trick-or-Treat Aggieville

Watching the parade with a bunch of friends. The kids liked all of the floats and loved giving high-fives to the college students.

Star Wars: Babo Fett (Mason), Jango Fett (Owen) and Anakin (Grant)
A very realistic-looking Chewy! He even sounded like Chewy! (Miles is the Darth Vader dude in front of Chewy)

Wednesday Night

We had to take Owen into the ER (similar to last year when he had trouble breathing, lots of wheezing, and he was scared). Several hundred dollars later (I'm sure the bills will be coming soon), he's much better. All of the doctors and patients wore masks to help prevent the spread of the flu. He stayed home on Thursday and was low key all day Friday (did make it to the parade), and now we're waiting to see if we should take him to the KSU football game.

Profile

I wonder what they are staring at. . .

Clifford

Owen and the other first graders at his school dressed as Clifford for their music program. It was a very cute show. All of the kids had a short individual part (where the spoke into the microphone) about something Clifford-related. Owen shared a line from a Clifford counting book. Notice the dog bone around his neck.

Happy Birthday Susan!

This weekend we celebrated Susan's 30th in KC. The kids had fun staying in a hotel and the adults had more fun out on the town!

1st stop: Piano Bar. Susan was a great sport, even though the singer did his best to embarrass her in front of a big crowd. He sang his special birthday song, she spun the wheel (and got ice dumped on her), and he concluded with the K-State fight song--even though the Cats weren't doing so hot at that point.
Life is a highway! View from the bus window as we cruised down I-35.
Me and the birthday girl.

Grandpa Harlan's House

Last weekend the kids and I went to my parents' house while Adam relived the college days with his old roommates (in KC).

Miles wore his new vest all day--even though it was warm enough to go without. Owen won't let me dress him in cute stuff anymore, so I have to take advantage of Miles' willingness.
"Driving" one of Grandpa's tractors.
The kids--and dogs--enjoyed running and jumping on the rows of hay bales.

Halloween Decor

The kids and I decorated the fireplace for Halloween last weekend. I'm not in love with our fireplace to begin with, so maybe I will leave this up all year.

I spray painted some branches to make black "trees"--I figured this was a good idea because A) it was much cheaper than buying them, and B) I can throw them away and avoid storing them. Note: the dogs have since ate 3 of these little pumpkins, so they've been moved.
I love these banners I've been seeing for holidays and birthdays. So easy and fast to make--just my style!