The Orchard Team Huddle

This should have been with the Halloween pictures but since I forgot, I will start with our trip to the Witch Festival at Gardner Village.  We love going on the witch scavenger hunt!  Trying to get all of these kids to look the same way is tough! Douglas was REALLY wanting a hoodie once the weather changed.  Not knowing which one he would prefer I texted him this pic.  What a great way to shop!  He opted for the black one and has pretty much worn it everyday since.  I've done the same with shoes and other clothing items.  It saves on the exchanges! Since I have this nice pic of Douglas up I will mention how he NEVER, EVER stops talking about driving, and cars and what kind of car he is going to get, and driving... and cars.  We opted for private driver's ed.  He just finished his classes and has 2 more drives to complete.  He will be done next Tuesday and then the agonizing (for ALL of us, believe me!) 14 day wait begins!  ...

...listening for days to Stockton be SO super excited to go bowling instead of participating in the "lame" costume parade at the Elementary School.  It's a rite of passage he has been looking forward to for quite some time.  He took his own money to buy pizza for his group to share. ...serving nachos to the 6th grade.  As we waited for the last class to rotate in, Mason zonked on my lap. ...visiting the grandmas.  Grandma's just love little dressed up grand kids more than anyone.  Little dressed up grand kids love their grandmas. Grandma Lee, beautiful Sarah "Belle", and Mason the pirate. Grandma Orchard and grumpy Mason the pirate. ...lunch with my sister.  I don't know why but Halloween makes me want to go out to lunch.  It feels like kind of a free-for-all day.  We ended up at Famous Dave's.  YUM! ...wanting homemade sugar cookies but stopping at Schmidt's Bakery to buy a few instead.  See, a total free-for-all! ...fro...

Last weekend we took a little road trip to Vegas so Douglas could play some baseball. He personally had a great tournament and his team did really well.  They made it to the semi-final game where they got their pants kicked by a team from Minnesota.  Who knew?  Push bunt.  You can see the ball just on the right edge of the picture. Trying to make it home. Douglas calls this his "chubby" picture.  Something was going on with his jersey as he ran and I captured a perfect view of what he will look like with a gut!  Too funny:). We pretty much rocked this game! The fields were so great.  Each one was at a park with nice bleachers, bathrooms and lots for the kiddos to do.  Mason was happy as could be!  He played with whomever showed up. Mason got his shirt wet so he figured he would just take it off for a few hours.  I am also a little embarrassed to say that he dropped his pants and peed right here i...

Nine years ago my dad got this super fun idea to have a giant pumpkin growing contest with all of the grandkids.  In the spring each child gets to choose a plant to take home and nurture.  On the first Sunday of October we haul our pumpkins to Grandma and Grandpa's house for the official weigh in.  The first year we managed to grow a 70 pound pumpkin. 2003 Some years are better than others.  We have tried several spots in the yard but have settled in on the northwest corner where they have the most space to branch out.  There is always a cash prize for the winner as well as smaller cash prizes for the 8 runner's up.  It seems like different kids win each year so that has been fun. 2007  This year our pumpkins started off great. Sometime mid-summer the vines all died and we were left with the pumpkins we had to that point.  Mason didn't even have a pumpkin but he didn't really care.  He thought they all belonged to him and he got what ...

We did some fun things over the past few months. DAYS OF 47 RODEO Mason was mesmerized.  He pretty much sat in this position the entire night! LAGOON  One Friday morning my parents called and said they were paying for all of the grand kids to go to Lagoon.  We packed up the cooler and met up with Emily, Kelly and Mom and Dad.  It was such a fun day being with the cousins and Grandma and Grandpa! Wilson and Stockton Mason and Jordan Don't Stockton and Wilson looked scared to death?  They should be! The fountains were a big hit! I thought this was a cool pic!  I love the expression on Mason's face. This picture pretty much sums up Mason's enthusiasm for Lagoon.  He loved it! I only had my phone camera with me.  Not the best pic but left to right, Andrew, Grandpa Murry, Parker, Jordan, Grandma Lee with Sarah on her lap, Emily with Bridger on her lap. My train car was a little less crowded!  Mason picking h...