The Orchard

I finally found the MIA sync cable...why it was hiding in the coat closet I'll never know. Anyway, On October 26th, I decided that it was a day for family fun. It's not easy to get everyone on the same page, Teenager would rather hand out with GirlFriend than his siblings, Husband is grumpy, I'm tired and the little ones are hell on wheels. Regardless, it was a family day and I didn't care if it got bloody...we were going to have fun. So, we went to the apple orchard. We were sort of disappointed that all the apples were either on the ground or in bins located at the front of the orchard where the store is. And when I say "all the apples", I mean ALL the apples. There was not a single apple to be found on the trees. Rather than head home, the offspring and I jumped in the bed of the truck and Husband drove us around the orchard for about 30 minutes. I know what you're thinking, driving around the orchard doesn't sound like fun. But it was, there are hills, winding roads and a beautiful lake. We had a blast. We took a little break at the lake to enjoy the scenery and stretch our (my) legs. I took advantage of everyone's good mood to snap a couple of pictures...
This first picture might actually make it in to the christmas cards, and for those of you who do not believe me...I have full intentions of actually sending out the cards this year. :D We'll see though. ;)

This is a picture by the lake. In hindsight, I wish I would have taken this picture from the top of one of the hills; you get the idea though.

After all the complaining and the "I don't wanna go" pleas for mercy...we had a wonderful time. It's not often...but it's quality versus quantity.

Halloween

Can you believe that Halloween is already here? Okay, so it's not here yet...but it will be tomorrow. I'd have to say that this is my least favorite holiday of the year. I love fall, the changing colors of the leaves, trips to the apple orchard, football; the list goes on and on. But I really dislike Halloween. The process of finding costumes for Bear and Princess without breaking the bank is quite an ordeal. And of course there's trick-or-treating. Taking my children out so they can go door to door asking for candy is not my idea of fun. It's time consuming and boring. Then there's the issue of pedophiles and child predators. Yes, the bottom feeders of society. In Maryland, violent and child sex predators were going to be ordered to hand signs on their doors that said, "NO CANDY AT THIS RESIDENCE". I guess some of these people felt that they were singled out or were having their constitutional rights infringed upon. I could rant about this all day long. Would those who are offended rather have a sign that says "CHILD SEX PREDATOR LIVES HERE"? Get over it, you are a convicted sexual predator. Put the damn sign on your door and deal with it. I know as a parent it's my job to protect my children...any assistance with that is greatly appreciated, even it's just a sign on the door that says "NO CANDY AT THIS RESIDENCE". I hate Halloween, I'd rather sever my arm at the elbow with a rusty spoon than take my children trick-or-treating. But since I'm fresh out of rusty spoons I'll put on my happy face and my walking shoes tomorrow and take my children out. Christmas decorations are another reason I can't stand Halloween. This year at the local Wal-Mart the Christmas decorations were out before the Halloween stuff! The Christmas music was piping throughout the store...people please. One holiday at a time. Can I just please drop $50 for Halloween costumes without having to worry about getting that oh-so-cute blue and silver snowman for my Christmas tree? Is that too much to ask? I'm sure the Valentine's Day stuff will be out on Saturday morning...