Super Obsession

It's no secret that we're into superheroes around here.  Besides the fact that Sarah and Will have alter-egos (Lightning Girl and Lightning Boy), they enjoy all things 

Ninjago, Batman, and Captain America. 

Will was Iron Man for Halloween, and totally nailed the character.

Notice, if you will, Mike's costume: Clark Kent.  

Up until recently, Superman was the one superhero the kids were staunchly uninterested in.  And then we visited Metropolis, Illinois. 

On our way back from a super-fun Fall Break trip to St. Louis, 

we stopped over in Metropolis to check out the scene and the swag. 

Oh, and the 20 ft. tall Superman statue in Court Square.

While Will was adding to his rock collection, Sarah got into true super character, 

gamely striking a pose with me and the Man of Steel.

Next up was the souvenir shop.  This proved to be overpriced and underwhelming (my kids wanted to buy an old Happy Meal toy for $3), but there were lots of photo ops outside.

My faves were the Daily Planet sign, the phone booth, and the Supergirl cutout.  I know we got a picture of Sarah as Supergirl, but I can't find it anywhere. 

I did snap a quick one of my own little Man of Steel getting ready to change into his super suit. 

Since our little stopover and watching old Superman movies, the littles have gained a certain appreciation for him.  Their favorite part is when Super Kid's space-pod crash-lands in the Kents' farm, and the little guy lifts the car all by himself. 

So, if you ever find yourself on the road from Nashville to St. Louis, stop over in Metropolis for some cheesy photos and $25 t-shirts!

Turkey Photo Booth Swag 2.0

We've got 9 days to go until one of my favorite holidays of the season.

Last year around this time, I was contemplating my contribution to the family Thanksgiving festivities in the form of silly photo props.  

 

This year, with a baby on the way and school winding down, I'm mulling over just how many naps I can take in five days. 

We're staying local for the big day, but I still wanted to get some fun pictures with beaks and wattles.  But, when I was pulling out the swag from last year, I noticed it looked a little worse for the wear.  

What to do?

Make some more!

And, when I remade the templates, I added in some more fun stuff.  

So, the new swag also includes a turkey drumstick, pilgrim collar, 

and Native American headdress.   

Just click on the links below the pictures to print them, and enjoy!

Turkey Day Template

Turkey Day Template1

Turkey Day Template 2

Turkey Day Template3

Your materials can be pretty much anything you have on hand.  I used felt and foam for the props themselves, and bamboo skewers for the sticks.  If you have cardstock, that would work just fine for the hats, beaks, and accessories, while paper straws might be cute for the sticks.

1. Just cut these little templates out,

2. Trace them onto cardstock, felt, or foam:

3. Cut, 

4. Hot glue,
5. and get silly!

Brown 5.0

We have some big news to share, so I thought I'd let the kiddos tell you.

Sigh.

So, yes, I'm pregnant with #3, and Will is being promoted to the role of big brother, as of mid-March.  We're all very excited, and Will checks my belly button a few times a day to see if it's popped out like a turkey thermometer. "No DING! yet, Mommy," he says, scratching his head 
and giving my tummy a thoughtful pat.

At least I've kept my 100% wrong baby-gender prediction streak intact.  We were all calling this little drumstick a girl, dreaming up girl names, and anticipating a shift in the balance of power to those of us of the x-chromosomal persuasion, 
when the ultrasound tech announced 

that our little ninja was a boy!  

The littles were not disappointed at all, but I was a tad bit anxious.  See, Will got the only two boy names we could ever agree on.  In an effort to avoid a  catastrophe of George Forman-esque proportions, we polled the prospective siblings for suitable monikers for this little nugget.  

So, without further ado, I give you:

 

Mittens Jack-Jack John Smith Brown.

It's going to be a challenge for monogramming purposes, but I bet there won't be anybody else in class with a name like THAT.

Leafy Fun

Sorry to leave you hangin' (hehe), but this fall has been crazy.  Anyway, since I'm averaging about 1 post per month, this might be it for November.  

But I hope not.   

Today, we had just enough energy, gorgeous golden leaves, and daylight after school to play in the leaves, so that's just what we did.  Every year the kids look forward to jumping in a big ol' pile of freshly-raked goodness, but this fall has been so busy and rainy 

that we hadn't had time until today.

 It's amazing how a pile of leaves rates just about as much enthusiasm as Disney World. 

Sarah recreated one half of American Gothic.

 And Will rolled around and begged to be buried in the leaves again and again.

 These faces.

Sis can always get a smile out of Mr. Intense.