RoyalMom

A friend knit up this awesome cape and Xander is using it to channel Batman today. After watching Batman Begins he gathered this costume and built a bat cave fort. Sweetness!

Knit cape by Jennie
Commercially knit hat
Mask by construction paper, markers and yarn scrap
Sword by Tinker Toys
Xander...made by Zoe and Jason;)

"I am Robin"

Xander and Simon have been very excited about the paper mask-making the last few days.

Jason hand-sketched a lot of Super Heros but today printed out the complicated Transformer masks on card stock. For now, this is their chosen Halloween costumes. haha!

Busy day playing at the park with friends and then our first bowling class!

All three boys really love bowling so this was a fun class! The two older boys are officially in the class and Simon, being too young to sign up for it, bowled his own games in another lane.

Xander very excited about his technique....

Fortunately, Jason was able to come and cheer Isaac and Xander on while I managed Simon's game in the next lane...

Isaac, already asking about how he can get his own ball and shoes...to which we suggested he wait until he stops growing every five minutes;)

Simon, taking turns with his friend Emma.

Tomorrow is Xander's clay class, which he LOVES. I mean counting-down-the-days kind of love.

This is so much fun to find classes they love. I got burned a couple years ago when I signed them up for classes and they wanted to quit all of them after the first class. Classes THEY chose! I decided maybe they just weren't ready for that kind of thing, quit the classes and we let it be for two years.

Easing back in with two classes and so far, so good! yay!!!!

Xander's bear mask from last week...

His favorite foods, waiting to be glazed next week...

Usually we do the maze and leave the pumpkins but this year the kids have shown more interest in the Halloween festivities.

They wanted pumpkins to carve and Xander has decorated the front window with paper crafts:) We have made Pumpkin milkshakes and I'm planning some pumpkin muffins later this week. And, of course, we'll make up a batch of cookie cutter cookies to decorate...always a hit activity with every holiday.

Simon navigates through traffic to return the wagon. There were a lot of people today due to school field trips. Our little Bergeman School field trip was fun!

The kids asked about voodoo dolls and how they work. After a conversation on the subject, we thought it might be cool to make some...

One old pillow case, a paper template and some markers...

everyone made their own doll replicant...

I started to sew....thank goodness mine first because I messed up and ripped it nearly in half. (My side is killing me now!)

Jason takes over the sewing because I get frustrated with the machine, and I take over the stuffing:)

Xander had Isaac move his doll's arm up to see if it would control his real arm. Surprisingly, it did not work! oh well...

He then tucked the dolls into a blanket and I asked if he suddenly felt cozy all over. He agreed he did! MAGIC!

UPDATE.....

Apparently we were supposed to place a personal memento of each person within the doll to "charge" it with our energy.

When I told the kids we forgot to include a lock of hair and that was the reason they didn't work, they weren't going to let us half-ass it. They all ran upstairs and I hear them cutting their hair.

Jason ripped back a small opening a stuffed the hair into each doll.

The best part was when they tested it out. Xander, the most superstitious about the whole thing, watched nervously as Jason prepared to poke the seam ripper into the back of his doll. At the moment he poked the doll, he used his other hand to poke Xander in the back. muwahahahahahaha!

Remember those cute little bears I made this summer?

Xander wanted me to make him a bear out of a specific yarn in my stash. A BULKY yarn. This is what happens when you knit up the same pattern in a bulky yarn...

It's big! Meet Mr. Bear...

It was a fabulous "me" weekend at a Hood River B&B for a knitting retreat. And I have to say, knitters are a very cool bunch. Such a relaxed, personable group of women.

Not a whole lot to the itinerary, just an open-ended couple of days in a fabulous setting with plenty of cozy sofas for knitting and chatting. Lots of laughter, lots of fun!

The back deck...

The view off the back deck...

I made a little progress on my current sweater project. Hopefully I'll get it finished quick before baby comes because I will NOT be able to focus on this lace pattern with a newborn. I could barely manage some of it while chatting with everyone at the retreat. :)

with a little side of cuteness...

...and not happy:(

I blocked it (dampened and rolled water out in a towel, then let dry flat on the table) and it is huge now. And it doesn't sit up on my shoulders comfortably. It hangs off very sloppy.

The sleeves are supposed to be 3/4 length and they were, straight off the needles. Now they are full length.

I have some leftover yarn. Maybe I can pick up some rows at the neck to at least tighten that up a bit. Sigh...

I added a few rows to the neckline and it sits at a much better place now. I also noticed the sleeves have shrunk back up quite a bit??!! Strange.

It is still a bit big and sloppy but it will work great as a wrap for nursing baby and feeling cozy around the house this winter...as I'd hoped.

A lot of loot for one block...