The Halloween Season

This year, Halloween wasn't just a day. It was a season. The holiday approached slowly, and I filled my days planning costumes, decorating with scarecrows and fall decor, visiting orchards and pumpkin patches.

The last week, however, has been a WHIRLWIND of activity. It has been quite some time since I have found myself so busy, often having that sinking feeling that I was forgetting something. Along with the Halloween festivities, also in the mix were doctor's appointments, birthday parties, and school fundraisers.

I could go on and ON about how crazy our week has been, but I think a little "picture walk", as they call it in Kindergarten, would be more fun for you and me BOTH!

Here we go!

First up: A sneak-peak at our Halloween theme this year:

The FABULOUS Queen Amidala:

Darth Vader, complete with realistic breathing sound machine, as requested:

C3-PO, who never wore a mask, not even on a bribe:

Yoda, the wise one:

And Princess Leia with Luke the Jedi:


Event #1: The Annual Tillier Halloween Party, where children HUGELY outnumbered the adults...






Event #2: Grandpa Steve's Birthday and Hayride




Event 3: Grandma and Grandpa treated us to a costume party at their Elk's Club



Event #4: Emerson's Kindergarten Halloween Party


Event #5: Owen's First Grade Halloween Party


Event #6: Greyson's Montessori Halloween Family Party


Let's throw in some Alayna spam right here-she LOVES practicing her walking skills. Any day now she's gonna go solo!


Event #7: A costume party with Alice and The Mad Hatter, who won second place!



Event #8: Halloween Brunch, celebrating my sister's birthday




Event #9: Halloween night, beginning with our yearly tradition of visiting Great-Grandma Lois before trick-or-treating





The Princess Darby and Yoda needed a break!


We sure did get our money's worth out of the Halloween costumes this year! I can honestly say that I've NEVER dressed up so much for this holiday before IN MY LIFE. I think the whole family enjoyed our STAR WARS theme this year...

I guess we did have a few minor glitches: Greyson wasn't going to put on that C3-PO mask for ANY reason, Alayna couldn't quite scoot in her Yoda costume, Owen's light saber wasn't the glowing beacon of light he had envisioned, a screaming fit ensued every night while scrubbing Queen Amidala's make-up off of Emerson's face, Jason couldn't exactly maneuver his cell phone out of Luke's pants in a sightly fashion, and my Princess Leia wig was SO itchy. SERIOUSLY.

But those aren't the things we'll remember about this Halloween season. We'll remember what you're supposed to remember: costume parties with friends and family, a hayride on a crisp afternoon, helping to blow out birthday candles (sometimes even before a wish was made!), awesome costumes, and TONS of candy.

I think there's only ONE thing left to say...

MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU.

Daily Scene

Owen: Mom, Grandma Lois is so old, she was born before the world had color.


How many of YOU can say you know someone who is NINETY-FIVE years old?

A Nature Walk

I love this time of year.

Cool, crisp mornings. Clear, blue skies. Crunchy leaves in every shade of red, orange and yellow. Friday night football. Scarecrows, pumpkins and squash. Warm apple cider by a crackling fire. Fresh baked donuts, straight from the orchard.

There is a moment, just after dropping the last kid at school, and just before I start MY day, when there is silence. I find myself saying, I love this time of year.

THIS time of year doesn't mean fall. Or winter. Or spring. Or summer. I love ALL of the seasons. Just when I think I've decided, Yep. THIS is the season I love the most, I remember all of the things I love about every other season and then I'm reminded there is NO WAY I could choose a favorite. That's the beauty of Michigan. We get a little bit of everything here. Sure, the winters can be long, but they just make spring THAT much more appealing. And yes, summers are unpredictable, often changing from scorchingly hot and humid to blustery and rainy in a matter of hours, but there is always the promise of a FABULOUS fall to make everything better.

There is a place near here when you can get back to nature, no matter the season, and drink it all in. It's a nature preserve where you're sure to forget all of your worries, if only for a little while. The kids run free, exploring and discovering.



There is always something new to see-from frogs in the pond, to hollow trees, to deer, who almost seem to enjoy playing hide and seek.






No one is ever bored, no one ever argues, and no one ever asks, Is it time to go home yet?


And you always leave with a peaceful feeling, knowing that THIS, this time spent together as a family, is what it's really all about.

10-10-10

Have you ever heard the term "Compound Presentation"? If you have, you're cringing right now. If you haven't, let me explain where I first heard that term.

On October 10, 2007, I was scheduled for an induction to deliver my third child. The induction started much like my previous two inductions and I was pretty calm, knowing that in a few short hours I'd be holding my little one. We had decided not to find out the sex of this baby, and we were very excited to know who this baby was. After gettting my epidural, my labor progressed very rapidly, and soon I was at 9.5 centimeters-almost there! My doc came running in, expecting to pretty much just catch the baby as it came flying out. After all, that's exactly what happened with the first two. Like clockwork: Epidural. Rapid dilation. Hold the baby in until the doc arrives. Doc arrives. Three pushes. Brand-new baby.

But not this time.

It seemed this little baby had other plans. THIS baby decided that it would be quite interesting to try to enter this world facing UP, rather than down, which is MUCH more comfortable for mom. I spent the next two hours pushing and screaming and cursing in every position KNOWN TO MAN. Finally, it was time. I was told to push with everything I had.

And that's when it happened.

I heard THOSE words: Compound Presentation. If you've never heard those words, let me tell you, YOU DON'T WANT TO. You don't want to hear your nurse, who you FULLY trust, COMPLETELY PANIC and yell, "COMPOUND PRESENTATION" repeatedly while you are pushing a watermelon out of your hoo-ha.

All I can say is, I survived.

Greyson Stephen Martin made his appearance on October 10, 2007, arriving in STYLE. He came out SIDEWAYS. Can you picture that?!

Wait.

There's more.

The "Compound" part? That means TWO body parts come out at the same time. Greyson came out SIDEWAYS WITH HIS HAND NEXT TO HIS HEAD.

I'd just like to take a moment to THANK THE GOOD LORD that Greyson was not my first child, and that I had already pushed two other watermelons from my hoo-ha. Otherwise, things might not have been so PLEASANT.

Three years later, here we are. Today is Greyson's third birthday. He's shy and reserved and hilarious and down-right CRAZY, but I think I knew that was coming, given the unique way he entered this world. That was HIS way of sending me a small heads-up on what the future would hold.

I wouldn't change his birth, or his shyness or his craziness for anything in the world. If you ever need a laugh, head on over, because Greyson is ONE. FUNNY. DUDE.

BIRTHDAY 2007


BIRTHDAY 2008


BIRTHDAY 2009


BIRTHDAY 2010


Happy Birthday, Grey! I love you!

An Annual Event

This is a busy time of year. September brings not only the beginning of a new school year, but also a change in seasons. For me, that means getting used to three separate school schedules, enjoying some mommy and baby time with Alayna, digging harvest decorations out of their bins, and switching the dressers and closets from tank tops, shorts and sun dresses to sweaters, long pants, and jackets.

If you're not from Michigan, you might be able to get by with just one coat. But here? You need several. You need the "warm-by-day, chilly-by-night" jacket, the "all-day-wind-and-frost-at-night" jacket, the "it's-cold-but-I-don't-want-to-look-like-a-complete-idiot-in-my-winter-coat" jacket, and the "dude-I-am-FREEZING" coat. For this reason, closet space is in HIGH demand. So, we rotate clothes in and out as needed.

Sunday was a cool day, with the temperature hovering right around fifty degrees. That might sound cold to you, but that's how we Michiganders do fall. We also do fall at eighty degrees. YOU JUST NEVER KNOW. See? Isn't Michigan EXCITING?!

Anyway.

Between Jason's work schedule, birthday parties, and Halloween in the mix, our October is JAM-packed. So, we made concrete plans to head to the orchard, and Sunday was that day. The kids were very excited, and had been counting the days all week. We have a few orchards near here, but we headed back to my hometown of Flushing and visited Al-Mar Orchard. I like this place because it's small and never too busy, but they've got lots to do for the whole family. Aside from the orchard part of it, they also offer hayrides, playground toys, and a farm with everything from goats to chickens to turkeys to reindeer. Santa's reindeer, if you ask my kids. Are there any other kind?!










See Owen's hat? My grandma, Nanu, made me that hat back in college and I pull it out every year for Halloween. Owen swiped it for the day, and I was proud to share it with him.

And see Alayna with that goat? I cannot begin to tell you how much she loves animals. It is crazy. Dogs, cate, birds, squirrels, cows. She loves them all and when she sees or even just hears them, she makes the cutest high-pitched squeak noises, attempting to converse with them, I'm sure.

After visiting the animals, and then WASHING FURIOUSLY, we snagged some fresh cider and donuts and ate them right there on the spot. Cider and donuts fresh from the orchard? Totally on my BEST THINGS EVER list. I think Alayna agrees...


Then we headed over to pick out some pumpkins. We had been scoping out a few places around town, and finally settled on a little place out in the country. It is just a small family farm, but the pumpkins were BEAUTIFUL. And the best part? There was just a box, attached to the cart, where you drop your money when you've picked out your pumpkins. Total honor system. Just one of many reasons why we love our town.

The only rule we make when picking out pumpkins? YOU MUST BE ABLE TO LIFT AND CARRY YOUR OWN PUMPKIN. Simple enough. We're not lugging out pumpkins for our kids. They have to carry them. It makes the whole process pretty easy. No fighting over who gets which pumpkin. What made today EXTRA-special? Emerson got bored between the orchard and the pumpkin patch and made some artwork.

On. Her. Face. WITH MARKERS.


Good thing they were washable markers.

In the end, everyone left with the absolute best pumpkin they could choose. And they were happy.