Downtown Santa Fe and the Casita

The second day in Santa Fe was spent downtown.  The downtown area is great, it is full of galleries and shops filled with work by local artisans.  We started the day at the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum.  There was a large selection of her work which we enjoyed looking at and seeing how her work changed over the years.  Next we headed to a small photography gallery and store which was having an Ansel Adams exhibit.  John and I both love his work so that was a lot of fun to see. 
Then it was time for some lunch.  We headed to a spot recommended by a friend of ours.  It was tucked inside this group of shops and I don't think we otherwise would have ever noticed it but it was packed with the local Santa Fe crowd.  The food was authentic and delicious.  After that it was a short walk to St. Francis Cathedral.  The church was stunning and my favorite part was the old part of the church done in the southwest style hundreds of years ago. 

The Cathedral Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi

 The casitas at The Four Seasons

The beautiful sunset

Our lovely kiva fireplace

After our day of sightseeing we decided to head a little north and look at a hotel also recommended by our friend.  The Four Seasons Resort was beautiful and we liked that it was out of town so we could enjoy the natural surroundings.  The staff was beyond accommodating and we were happy we decided to give up our hotel in town to find this gem.  We were able to get some great views of the sunset and enjoy a fire on our patio and then later in our room.  What a wonderful day! 

Santa Fe- first day

John and I took a little getaway to Santa Fe, New Mexico.  It was a nice break from the everyday routines and some needed alone time.  Santa Fe is a great city and we really enjoyed it.  Most of the first day was spent traveling.  We opted for a later flight so we could fly directly.  John's ears usually don't do well on planes so one less landing and take off really appealed to him and I am not a fan of sitting around in waiting in airports so it was good for me too.  We did get to try some authentic New Mexican food though our first night in Santa Fe.  We ordered chips and salsas as our appetizer.  You read that right, three salsas, came with the chips.  They all had very distinct flavors and were fun to try.  The green chili sauce was my favorite. 
The meals there you can get with either red chili sauce or green chili sauce.  John opted for the green sauce which came in a medium, hot and extra hot.  He likes spicy food so he thought hot would be what he wanted.  Let me say the look on his face as he took his first bite was priceless.  Hot in New Mexico is a bit hotter than we are used to in the midwest.  He ate his meal but said he would be ordering medium for the remainder of the trip. 
The place we went to serves breakfast twenty-four hours also.  Earlier in the week we had watched an episode of Diners, Drive-ins and Dives in Santa Fe.  On of the dishes they featured were blue corn pancakes with pine nuts.  So, that is what I had for dinner.  They were good and a nice change from the traditional pancake although I don't think I will be switching my pancake preferences any time soon.   
After dinner we drove downtown to the plaza, which is like the town square with restaurants, galleries, stores, etc.  One of the things I liked about Santa Fe is that a majority of the buildings are built in the southwest style and even bridges and overpasses were painted with southwestern style artwork.  The square and many other places in town were lit up for Christmas.  But, instead of traditional Christmas lights they had lights that were designed to look like luminaries.  They were really beautiful and kept with the feel of the town.  It was a nice way to end our day. 

This is a building with the luminary lights on top of it.

My Little Monkey

My little monkey made her first trip across the monkey bars a few weeks ago!  She has had the strength for a while but being up that high and letting go of a rung at a time has intimidated her.  Once she set her mind to getting across though there was no stopping her.  I love the look of determination on her face! 

Old Time Christmas

The weekend after Halloween we headed down to southern Missouri.  Friday night we spent in Springfield.  We picked up Sam's friend Lucas and met Dana and Hannah for dinner at Newk's.  Then I took the boys back to Lucas' house for a sleepover.  We really miss seeing Lucas and his family and it was nice to catch up on what all they have been doing and the boys enjoyed time together just hanging out and playing.  The rest of us stayed at the Lowe's house and enjoyed more time visiting with them.  

Saturday morning John went hunting and the kids and I headed down to Branson.  Saturday was the start of Old Time Christmas at Silver Dollar City.  The kids always enjoy seeing the lights and parade and we had not made it down there all summer.  The weather was wonderful which was good and bad.  It made the day nice but it also made the lines long.  We are limited in what we can ride with only one adult but we had a good time on the rides we rode.  I think everyone's favorite of the day was Thunderation which we must have been on five times.  The nice thing about it was that the line was always short.  The parade and all of the lights made a great end to the evening. 

After Silver Dollar City we met John at a hotel in Branson where we had a late dinner and slept well from our busy days.  The next morning we hit the outlet mall for a few good deals.  Sam got a new pair of tennis shoes, which must be his third pair this year.  Every time I turn around his feet just keep getting bigger.  He now wears shoes that are bigger than mine!  That kid is getting expensive.  

After the outlet mall we headed back to Springfield where we met the Lowe's at Lambert's.  There is nothing better than their southern comfort food!  It was also nice to have more time with family.  After stuffing our bellies and a short trip back to Kevin and Dana's we headed home.  It was a busy and enjoyable weekend! 

Lovely Landscape

When we moved into our house we knew we wanted to do something with the landscape.  It was pretty sparse and did not have a lot of interest.  The thing that bothered John the most though was the yard.  John is a lawn guy and the back yard was no way up to his standard.  We have had bad yards before and he has spent so much time trying to make them look nice.  He decided this time he would just get new sod in the back so he could work more on maintenance than starting from scratch.  I will say the results are awesome! 
We were kind of thinking more along the lines of trees and grass with some nice plants but our landscaper went beyond that.  He added a great paver patio some awesome rock walls and a nice berm that really adds to our yard.  We have large windows on the back of our house and now we can smile when we look outside instead of dreading the work that needed to be done.  

Before:  This is the back and part of the side of our house, unfortunately I don't have an after of the same angle.  The new rock wall below is where the old castle retaining wall was.

 After

Before:  Basically the view off our back deck 

 After view off the back deck.  It actually looks like a yard instead of a field and the castle rock from above was reused to make a little garden spot to grow things next spring and summer.

Before:  This is taken from the deck but what you used to see out our large living room window.

After:  Our new berm with trees that will grow and give us privacy from that other house. 

 Our new rock wall and paver patio

 The rest are changes to the front of the house and one more up close of the patio! Everyone will need to come and see the changes.  

Treat Time!

Our Halloween did not get off to the best start.  Ella had been home the day before with some sort of stomach bug.  I thought she was doing better but right before school she was sick again.  The poor thing was so upset to miss her first Halloween party at school.   I was supposed to attend and help with games.  So, I had Sam wait with her in the car that morning while I took things into her class so they would have what they needed for the party.  The kids in her class were so cute asking about Ella and if she would be able to trick or treat that night.  I told them I didn't know it would depend on how she felt.  
Luckily, the sickness did not last and by trick or treat time she was feeling well and ready to go.  
Sam was a lego man for Halloween.  When I found directions for the costume on line I knew this was going to take some serious time and effort.  So, I simplified the costume from the original but it was still pretty labor intensive.  Luckily, John was willing to do a lot of the work too.  There is no way that my mind, which lacks any spacial sense, could have got the trapezoid shaped body to work.  We worked hard though and I think the costume turned out great!  It was a little tricky for Sam since seeing down was hard, and neighbors usually had steps to ascend to get candy but he was proud of the costume.  
Ella wanted to be an Olympic gymnast.  We made her costume too but I will tell you that it was super easy compared to Sam's.  If I include the time searching and shopping for the materials I still do not think it took us over two hours to make.  Ella enjoyed helping me to make the gold medal and I think it turned out super cute!  

They both enjoyed trick or treating in our new neighborhood.  Lots of kids were out and about and they got to see a lot of their friends from school.  They also returned with a serious amount of candy.  Plus, I overbought not knowing how many kids would come to our house.  So much for eating healthy before the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays.  

Jack o' Lantern Time

Time to make the jack o' lanterns!  As per our custom the last few years, John and Sam worked on his pumpkin and Ella and I worked on hers.  Ella wanted Ariel, but the only pattern I could find on line did not fit her pumpkin.  So, she decided we would make a spider and his web and save Ariel for next year.  Here is to hoping we remember to buy a long skinny pumpkin come next October.  The spider and his web turned out to be a lot more difficult than I had planned but I think it turned out okay. 

Sam picked out an even more intricate design.  A spooky, haunted house.  John worked on that pumpkin for a long time.  I think Sam later wished he would have picked something a little easier so he could have done more of the carving himself.  We will see if he remembers that next year also.  Overall we had a good time and the jack o' lanterns turned out pretty well I think.  

House Decs, Homecoming and Cousins!

Sarah, Dana and Hannah at Tiger Plaza

It had been a long time since we had seen the Lowes and we were excited they were coming up for a visit.  They came up Friday afternoon to spend the weekend and enjoy the Mizzou Homecoming festivities.  The kids were off school Friday so they arrived early and I went with them to lunch.  Then I took Dana, Hannah, and Sarah on a tour of campus.  Hannah is considering attending Mizzou so we did a little campus tour, it would be so great to have her close to us again and have another MU graduate in the family! 

We returned home and the kids and John got home from school and work.  It was nice to sit around and catch up on everything while the younger kids played.  They had a huge nerf gun war and I am still finding bullets under furniture and in closets.  

Then it was time to head to house decorations.  House decs are a Mizzou Homecoming tradition and the kids love going!  We stopped first to visit some friends of the Lowes and load up on Shakespeare's pizza.  Then it was time to walk to greek town.  I think everyone liked seeing all the decorations and the kids enjoyed the skits.  The theme was homecoming through the ages and it was fun to hear the slang thrown in from the different decades and to listen to the music they chose.  We didn't see them all since the weather was cold but we saw plenty to get the experience.  

Saturday was the homecoming game.  It was an eleven o'clock game which didn't leave a lot of time for tailgating so we decided to head in just an hour before game time.  After snagging about the last two parking spots we walked to the stadium.  We made a quick stop to visit the Lowe's friends and John and I dreamed of having a tailgating spot in their lot someday. 

The game ended well for the Tigers with our first SEC victory!  Then it was back to our house for a big meal and more family time.  It was a busy but great weekend!  

Chicken BBQ

 Ella showing off her face painting

 Sam putting for prizes

 Ella wanted to eat dinner in her classroom.  That was fine with me since it was nice and quiet and away from the busy cafeteria.

Ella and Sam's new school hosts a chicken bbq as there big fundraiser for the year.  They have been putting this on for over fifty years.  They build bar-b-que pits on the side of the school and grill a ton of chicken.  The dinner even has a drive through where people around town stop by to get their food.  I will say the food was well priced and delicious!  
Of course the bar-b-que also has many other activities along with it.  There are carnival games for the kids which they enjoyed doing.  There is a silent auction and a live auction as well.  While it was mostly adults at the live auction Sam was sitting in the second row taking it all in, he must be his Papa's boy.  He even told the principal what a great job the auctioneer did and how he thought he was even better than the guy on Storage Wars.  That kid cracks me up sometimes.  
It was a fun evening for the kids and a great way to earn some money for their school.  

Chalk Drawings

Ella and Sam decided one night that they were going to make drawings of each other with sidewalk chalk.  They really worked hard on their projects and I think the results prove that.  They were outside for a long time and called me out to see the final products.  I thought they were definitely worth documenting.  

MIZZOU Madness and Catching up with Friends

Well, at the risk of sounding like a KU fan, I am ready for basketball season.  Mizzou kicked off their basketball season with Mizzou Madness on Friday night.  I took Ella and Sam to watch the men's and women's teams scrimmage, to watch some skills competitions and to see the big highlight which was the dunk contest.  The basketball was a lot of fun to watch.  We are getting two season tickets this year and splitting up the games as a family.  It should be a lot of fun cheering on what promises to be a good season for our Tigers!  Sam is already choosing the games he wants to attend.  I think our football season has us down in the dumps.  
One of Sam's good friends from Springfield, who were also our old neighbors, came up for the weekend and his family joined us to watch the basketball.  Sam was so excited to see his friend Andre.  It was nice to see everyone and catch up on what has been going on in their lives.  

 Ella and Sam waiting for Mizzou Madness

 Pressey getting ready to dunk (unfortunately I didn't catch anyone while they actually dunked)

 Sam and Andre at Mizzou Madness

 Jason took the boys down on the court to do the Wobble after the event

The kids hanging out on the columns

The next day we met the Murrays for some pizza at Shakespeare's and then headed over to the quad to show the boys the columns.  They had fun climbing them and just chasing each other around the quad for probably forty-five minutes.  It was a nice time just watching them run and laugh like they used to around the neighborhood. There is nothing better than kids just running and having fun!