Halloween

We had another good Halloween this year.  Rachel and the kids carved our Jack-o-Lanterns - all Doctor who Themed.  First is the Tardis.  The tools she was using became dull and broke as Rachel was carving this one so she was disappointed with the level of detail she was able to achieve but I think it looks great.    

TARDIS - Time and Relative Dimension in Space

Asher's choice was the crack in Amy Pond's wall.

The crack in Amy Pond's wall
 

And finally the weeping angel pumpkin. 

Don't blink. Don't even blink.

Asher was the 10th Doctor (David Tennant) for his costume, complete with the correct sonic screwdriver. 

And Chiara was Puss N' Boots. 

 

And our house was extra busy Halloween night as the Tooth Fairy came by to leave a purple pegasus My Little Pony for Chiara's first lost tooth!

Hiking at Walnut Creek Park

Saturday/Sunday the kids spent with Lisa Diane and Joey while we celebrated our 13th anniversary.  They went for a hike at the park, taking Ela and Lisa Diane got some cute pictures:

Note Chiara's monkey socks

Puppies

The puppies are nearly 4 months old and growing quickly.  Both will weigh 10 pounds soon and they are going in next week for a set of very special surgeries.  They are very fun little pets and like to play boisterously with Annie and then sleep hard.   We're enjoying them tremendously.

Chiara and Stormy

Celtic Music Festival

Saturday we went to the Celtic Music Festival.  It was a pretty hot day but we got out there shortly after lunch and walked around to see the vendors and listen to the music.  The kids both got excited and wanted to stay in the jail for a while:

We let each child choose one ride and they both chose the "roller coaster". Neither one wanted to do the jousting challenge but they each rode the dragon once and the horse once.  Asher was excited that when he rode the horse, the woman taking money and helping the kids onto the horse called him "Sir Knight." 

Chiara racing on the dragon

Sir Knight

Asher on the dragon

Chiara getting settled on the dragon

Pure Joy

Sir Knight with the Jousting stick (which he declined)

 

Chiara on the horse (with the jousting stick)

Shuttle Endeavor

One of the advantages of working downtown and so near the Capitol is that sometimes you see something you wouldn't see elsewhere.  This week the space shuttle Endeavor made its farewell tour on the way to the California Science Center.  This was the view from my window at work.  The top picture is mine (sorry to say that I haven't learned how to use the zoom on my new phone yet). The bottom picture was taken by a co-worker standing next to me but clearly he understood how to use the zoom on his phone. 

Puppies!

After losing our beloved Lucy a few months ago, it has just been a matter of time until we got another dog.  Then Rachel's mom's Affenpinscher had puppies and voila, we decided to take both of them.  It's a big change going from 2 40+ pound dogs to dogs that weigh under 5 pounds right now and won't be larger than 20 pounds when full grown.  It's also a big change to have puppies again with all that entails (potty training, soft food, shots, trips to the vet, picking up shoes and bags and books and toys off the floor all the time). 

Without further ado I present our two puppies:  Luke Groundwalker and Stormageddon: The Dog Lord of All (Stormy for short). 

Luke attacks the bone

Stormy does not want to be disturbed

Both puppies napping with Rachel

Get it, Luke!

Whacking the Jabberwocky

Last weekend we went to a birthday party the day after we got home from the beach.  The party was a Alice in Wonderland/costume party.  Having just gotten home from the beach we mustered the following costumes: Rachel = fairy wings and fairy dust in her hair.  Debra = England shirt and Mad Hatter hat. Asher = The cat in the hat (modified for summer meaning black shorts rather than black sweat pants). Chiara = lady bug. 

We had a lot of fun at the party and the kids got to whack the jabberwocky piñata (2 turns each because Asher was the cut-off for the "little kids" before the "big kids" killed it). 

Family Vacation in Port Aransas

Last week we went on vacation in Port Aransas.  We had not been in 3 years mainly due to financial considerations. Originally we hoped for a trip with the Serrins sibling group and children but everyone is busy with camps and jobs and travel so only part of that group could come.  We did an online search and found a nice property a few blocks from the beach. 

We all arrived on Wednesday and met some close friends of Mitzi's who were vacationing nearby.  Then Thursday it rained and stormed - not ideal weather for a trip to the beach.  In the morning, we went to walk around on the main strip and let the kids get souvenirs.  One of the shops in Port Aransas has a huge shark in front that everyone always goes in and through and takes pictures.  Asher, Chiara, Alissa, and her friend, Danielle, posed before going to choose souvenirs and boogie boards. 

The kids were also good sports about posing in various face-cut out signs around the island. 

We filled water balloons and played catch (getting farther and farther apart with each catch) until we ran out of balloons. 

Chiara liked getting to pose in all three of the cut-outs in this board and it was low enough that she could reach all the spots. 

One of Chiara's souvenirs was this springy flashy guy. 

The weather turned more clear on Thursday but still cool (75 out) and then got hot and stayed hot and beautiful for the remainder of our trip. 

Our last night in town we ate at our favorite restaurant on the island - Shells.  We asked the waitress to take a quick picture. 

"On the way" home on Saturday we stopped at the Texas State Aquarium in Corpus Christi.  This dolphin is fine - just playful and apparently he likes swimming upside down.