Happy Halloween

We had a great Halloween weekend. We started out Saturday by going to Boo at the Zoo. Every year the Zoo decorates for Halloween then opens up for trick-or-treating. At first when I tried to get Nathan in his costume he had a complete tantrum and even tried to rip off his chaps while I was putting them on. Some how I managed to force him into the rest of the outfit and once he realized he was being given candy he was much happier about the whole thing. It is always great going to the zoo for this because of the cooler weather the animals are a lot more active. Nathan really enjoyed the Lion as she was pacing and growling. Of course half way to the zoo I realized I forgot my camera, so all I have are some fuzzy shots with my phone.

Sunday Evening we finally got around to carving our pumpkins. Nathan was very interested in helping out, but no matter what I said he was not willing to actually stick his arm down inside and scoop out some of the guts.

Friday night we headed over to the Salem area Trunk-or-Treat. Luckily I was able to leave work early so we could actually make it there when it started at 5:30. When I got home I told Nathan we were going trick-or-treating and he quickly handed me his costume because he knew that he needed to wear the costume to get treats. What a difference from Saturday.

 After the Trunk-or-Treat we headed to Fatcats(the local theater) for some more trick-or-treating. They have local business set up inside to hand out candy to the kids.

 My friend's kids were thing one and thing two. She made the costumes herself and they turned out awesome!
                                               Thing 2 fast asleep.

                                       Thing 1 and Nathan waiting their turn for some candy.

When we got home we finally had the chance to get Chief all dressed up as Nathan's horse. We got to the Trunk or treat a little to late to be able to take the time to get everything on just right. Really Chief is such a great patient dog. He wasn't happy about the whole thing but just sat there through it all. Nathan on the other hand thought it was great and once Chief decided to lay down he really wanted to get on the saddle, silly boy!

Dave and I spent the rest of the evening laughing about this picture. Seriously his face expresses it all.

Quick update

 I recently was able to get some pictures that a friend took of Nathan at the State Fair. I had forgotten to put the charged battery back into my camera. We went to the Fair labor day weekend and had a great time enjoying fair food, checking out the animals, and exploring the barns. Before we left we decided to let Nathan ride one of the carnival rides. This boat ride was the only one I could find that would allow a child his size to go on by himself. He had a great time!

A few weekend ago we were able to go with some friends to a cabin in Lava Hot springs and we had a great time soaking in the hot pools.

A few months ago a group of friends decided to start a once weekly "joyschool" so we have been enjoying  going to school and learning about the alphabet. Last week was the letter F and the mom in charge planned a visit to the local fire station. It was kind of a rough day for me because Nathan was overly tired from fighting naps and bed timed for 3 days that he was having melt downs about everything. He did really love being inside of the fire truck though and was all smiles until he had to come out.

 Here the Kids are suppose to be practicing Stop, Drop, and Roll, and of course Nathan kept insisting that I get on the ground like everyone else and then proceeded to climb on me. He thought it was time to wrestle with mom.

RECIPE SHARE

I have a difficult time finding really great recipes that everyone in my home will eat. For those of you who don't know I live with the worlds pickiest eater. Of course Dave does not think he is picky he "just knows what he likes" which happens to only be small number of items. Because of that I have been limited to only a handful of dinner ideas the past 5 years. I eventually get sick of the same items all of the time and actually have taken a few dinner items of the list just because we are so sick of them. And there are a few dinners that Dave really likes that I don't really care for but I make them because everyone else seems to love it. So I am always looking for new recipes that both Dave and I will love.
I have a few criteria for a really great recipe. First it must be something that Dave will eat because what is the point of cooking dinner if I am the only one that eats it. Second it must be quick and easy to make. The last thing I want to be doing is spending more than an hour making something to eat. The only exception is when I want something like tri-tip or game hens for Sunday dinner.

The last few months we have tried out several new recipes and have found a few that both of us really like, yeah! One is Cameo's Baked Ziti. I made it with hamburger and vodka sauce, yum! Nathan really liked this one and may have even eaten more of it then me. I think next time I will try it with spicy sausage. Thanks Cameo! I don't have the recipe easily available at the moment so if you want a copy just let me know.
The Next one I call Cafe Rio Chicken and thanks to my MIL I was introduced to this gem a few months ago. It is now my favorite recipe and We all love it!! It is so easy and stress free. All that I do is place a couple chicken breast in the crock-pot and pour some zesty Italian dressing over it and then let it cook on low all day. This works out really great for the days that I work because by the time I get home dinner is ready. For our small family I usually put two small chicken breast with half a bottle of dressing. This usually makes so much we still have some left over for lunch the next day. Since I am usually gone for 10 hrs on work days I have just been putting the chicken in frozen and it stills turns out great. When it is done I shred the chicken and then serve it on tortilla shells with what every toppings I want. I have been using white corn tortilla shells, and for toppings I usually have shredded cheese, sour cream, and avocados/guacamole. but really you can put on what ever "taco" toppings your family enjoys.
The other recipe we both have really been enjoying has been modified from a baked shell pasta dinner. Thanks to Kerri we have been enjoying it as grilled chicken sandwiches.
   1 package cream cheese
   1 cup grated parmesan or asiago cheese
   3 tbls pesto
   2 cups shredded chicken
   2 cloves garlic minced
  salt and pepper to taste
 I cooked the chicken with the garlic and season it with the salt and pepper  I then shredded the chicken and put it all including the garlic into a mixing bowl. than I mix all the other ingredients in. then you can either use it as filling for stuffed shells or I use as a spread and some bread of our choice, top it with a slice of provolone cheese and grill on stove until ready to eat. It makes so much that I was able to make it for lunch all week, yum!

Do you have any recipes that are a big hit in your home?

Columbia

Friday we headed to Columbia historic state park. The shops are all set up like it was during the gold rush and even the shop keepers dress in clothes from the time period. We had originally had hoped to ride the stage coach, but for some reason it was closed that Friday. Instead we explored the town, ate lunch and then did a little gold panning. It was fun to try and find gold, even Nathan liked trying it out. Afterwards we stopped in one of the shops for some ice cream and tried of some of the local sarsaparilla soda, yummy!

                                                 Aidan bowling.

                                                Checking out the chickens.

                                             Getting a lesson on how to pan for Gold.

                                                

                                        The kids sure had fun just playing in the water.

                                      Grandma with all of the boys, too cute!

That afternoon we just relaxed and prepared to head home the next morning. We played some monopoly with Adam and somehow I actually won the game both times that we played during the week.

The next morning we spent cleaning the cabin and headed for home just after 10:00am. Dave and I decided that we wanted to drive all the way home in one day.  We stopped in Nevada to visit with Dave's Grandma Griffith before headed home. We didn't end up getting home until 3am Sunday Morning, boy were we tired by then. Not so sure that was a great idea, but it was nice to be able to sit at home all day Sunday before having to go back to work on Monday.