In our little town every fall there are some things that just kick up that little town feeling a notch.  Always in conjunction with fire safety week our Volunteer, yes you read that right, Volunteer fire department host fire truck rides for the kids in the community.  All these great guys and their spouses and kids come together to teach all the children about fire safety.  They open the doors wide on the fire house and invite everyone in.  No one is turned away and all through town you can hear the laughter mixed with the sirens of the fire trucks as they drive up and down the streets of town giving rides to the kids and their families.  These are men and women who already worked a full day but are still willing to give up their evening for the kids.  Not to mention that these same brave men drop every thing when the call goes out that there is a fire in the community to help put it out for next to no compensation.   They do it because it is the right thing to do and because they have a strong sense of responsibility to our community.  

As is tradition we attended the fire truck rides.  This was Rozalin’s first time but Cooper of course has done the ride several times.  He was excited and a little nervous.

We look forward to many more years of fire truck rides in our future.  And a great big thanks to these great men who volunteer their time for the rides and to help protect our community.

Anne

This year Cooper is attending Pre-K which is a cross between kindergarten and preschool.  So far he is loving it. 

So this was his serious picture.

And the crazy picture. 

Then a serious picture with his best friend Logan.

And a crazy picture.

I hope that he continues to enjoy school.

Anne

I also made a few products for a boutique that my aunt runs during a women’s conference. 

Sunglass/Eyeglass cases.  Perfect to protect your eye wear in your purse, beach bag, gym bag or your car’s console.  I always have one in my purse and one in the console of my car. 

Extra small zipped pouches.  There are lots of ways to use these zipped pouches: keep your ear buds in them to keep them from being tangled in the bottom of your purse or gym bag; coin purse; use to manage gift cards and store loyalty cards; throw your debit card and id in for a night on the town.  The possibilities are endless. 

I also whipped up some kitchen towels in black, red and white color scheme to go with the them and color pallet of the conference. 

Finally some daisy tea towels. 

I am thrilled to have my shop up and running and am working on new products everyday.  Please feel free to check in anytime to see new listings.  If you need anything special let me know I am happy to work up a custom product to meet your needs. 

You can follow me on Facebook at: www.facebook.com/IcingOnFabric.  I will post shop updates there also. 

Please check it out and let me know what you think!

Sincerely,

Anne

Rozalin seems to think that all of Coopers farm toys are ride on toys and the hay wagon was no exception. 

Cooper was very accommodating and pushed the tractor around to give her a little ride.

He however lost interest before Rozalin did.  She would have ridden in the tractor all day.

I am thrilled that he is such a good big brother to his little sister and as far as she is concerned he is the greatest ever.

I made this outfit for Rozalin to wear and we decked the house out in pink.  We had balloons, tissue puffs, lanterns and garlands. 

Cooper even got into the spirit of the party.  He picked out his own outfit because he wanted to look “good” for the party.

As is typically the case Rozalin received way more than she required but she loved it all.  In the picture above Rozalin is opening a quilt that I made for her.  The front is scrap fabric from different projects in her room along with chennille and the back is minky fabric because she loves minky fabric. 

Rozalin had her own “smash” that was chocolate with pink icing. It was a miniature version of the big cake that I made for everyone else to eat.  Cooper was happy to give her tips on how best to dig into her cake.  She just wasn’t to sure about it. 

She got a spoon and lost some of her fear. 

Look at the control she has over that spoon.  Apparently to teach her to use utensils I should have her practice with chocolate cake.

Digging in for another bite.

At this point I was so glad that I had decided she could eat cake in just a diaper.  She went straight into the batch and then fresh jammies.  It was a fantastic first birthday for our little girl. 

Scott and Grandpa Bob began the process with Cooper watching on. 

Cooper got a spoon and helped dig out the “yucky” insides.  He did not like touching the insides of the pumpkin. 

Grandpa Bob put the finishing touches on the insides of the pumpkin, and then Cooper inspected it to make sure it looked good.

Rozalin even tried to get in on the fun. 

We tried to set Rozalin in the pumpkin, but she did not like it.

Grandpa Bob with both Rozalin and Cooper creating the face of the Jack O Lantern.

Scott ran the knife while Cooper supervised.

Rozalin decided at this point that she was no longer interested in the Jack O Lantern and took off to explore.

This pictures I have a feeling will sum up my kids child hood.  I think their expressions say it all.

Rozalin decided to enjoy the ride and practice her paddy cake while Cooper just grinned.

Finally the Jack O Lantern is all done.  Grandpa Bob even got into the details and added eye brows for the Jack O Lantern.

Cooper then took the regular pumpkins on a ride.  Not nearly as fun as Rozalin but fun none the less.

Finally it was dark out and after Cooper’s bath he got to go outside and help Mommy light his Jack O Lantern on fire.  It was a tradition we continued until Halloween.

Four adults and six kids aged four and under take on the pumpkin patch. 

The big kids getting measured.  It is amazing how much they have grown.  The first year we went the boys were 1 year old and Macy was seven weeks old. 

There are tons of things for the kids to do at the pumpkin patch. 

Logan, Macy and Christy tried out the big slide.

Cooper just wanted to play in the sand box.

Rozalin and Becca hanging out in the stroller.

Little miss Emily taking a nap.

Jumping

This little one is so photogenic.  I swear I did not take a bad picture of Macy.

Cooper and Logan working together as a team.

Becca and Macy riding the bull.

Rozalin and Cooper roping.

Cooper and Logan milking the cow while Macy looks on.

Little miss Becca.

Trying to get a group shot is near impossible.

Every year we take the kids picture around this truck.  This year it was all decked out in K-State. 

We had a great trip to the pumpkin patch and everyone including the adults were wore out by the end of the day.

Anne

Headed to the pumpkin patch.  Two vehicle, six kids (oldest one age 4 youngest one 7 weeks), four adults, what could go wrong.

Cooper took a four hour nap when we arrived home from the pumpkin patch and then woke at 10 pm wanting supper and to play.  I finally got him to bed about 1 am.

Cooper and Grandpa Bob carving his very first jack 0’ lantern.

Rozalin trying to get my cell phone.

The Jack o’ Lantern all lit up.

Rozalin playing in the pots and pans.

Cooper eating a late night supper of a cheese roll, following a long day helping Uncle Andy cut corn.

Cooper helping out in Grandma’s office.

Feel free to follow me on Instagram.

Anne

They posed next to the cooler for me to take there picture.

Then I peeked inside, to find their prize, a baby frog they had found in the yard.

I was informed that they were going to catch a whole bunch of frogs so they could sell them.  What ever happened to a lemonade stand?

At this point Levi had bailed on the frog project to talk to Rozalin who I had set down on the porch and Cooper was headed in that direction.  Lucas was steady on his care of the frog and their potential business however.

One movement from Lucas and Cooper freaked out.  He wasn’t going to touch that frog.

Finally frog back in cooler, Lucas, put aside all thoughts of selling frogs and decided to chat it up with Rozalin.

Yes that is Rozalin sitting up like a big girl next to the mound of beach towels I used to cover the mums to protect them from freeze.  She was not impressed with the frog. 

No need to worry the kids returned the frog to the wild.

Anne