Fall and Halloween 2011

We have been having a great fall in Colorado complete with beautiful fall colors on the trees, a late October snow storm that buried us...for a day...and Halloween!
We went to the same pumpkin patch that we visited last year, Munson Farms, but Sabrina decided this year that she hates pumpkin patches. She was in a great mood leading up to arriving there and was fine as soon as we left, but she thought the whole thing was kind of scary this year. We captured a few funny shots of just how grumpy she was that day, but unfortunately none as perfect as we got last year with her overalls and pig tails. At least she loved the squash, apples, corn and sweet potatoes that we bought there.
Earlier this week we were blanketed with 6-8 inches of heavy fall snow in Boulder. We kept Sabrina home a little late that morning so we could all go play in the snow. She needs better mittens for snow man making, but other than that, we had a lot of fun. She really wanted to help Daddy shovel the walk too, so since I'm going to be no help with shoveling this year, the bigger I get, we might just have to get her a little shovel so she can help out.
Sabrina's Great Aunt Deed was key to our Halloween plan when we couldn't find a plain, nude pair of toddler PJs for her Sumo Wrestler costume. In a last minute sewing whirl, she made the perfect costume for Sabrina. All that was left for us to do was give her a sumo diaper made of electrical tape and put her hair in a top knot. To complete the family theme, Brent found an inflatable sumo costume and I wore a silk bathrobe I purchased on our honeymoon in Vietnam and went as their supportive geisha. We went to Brent's office party (with his officemate, Natalie, who had Celia and Della with her...what a treat!), and then to a party at Sabrina's school, The Cottage. We're going to try trick or treating tomorrow evening in our neighborhood. She's got "trick or treat" down pretty well, though we don't think she has any idea what it means yet!

Songs Songs and More Songs

Sabrina is a pro at nursery rhyme medleys these days. Once she gets going, it can be a good 20-30 minutes of constant chatter before she stops to think. She did this on a hike the other day and we had people laughing behind us because they couldn't believe how long she was singing and how many different songs she went through. Favorites include ABCs, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, The Wheels on the Bus (all verses!), Bumble Bee, Tomorrow (from Annie)...and many others! She was in a good performing mood the other morning (while we shot the Big Sister video) and went on a tear with some of her favorite songs. Here are a couple of clips of her funny, hyper-speed singing style. Sometimes she gets going so fast she drops words. I wonder where she gets her fast talking from? hmmm...

Big Sister!

Sabrina is going to be a big sister in April! Brent and I are excited to announce our newest family member, due to the world around April 22, 2012. I am happily into my second trimester this week and relieved to have heard a good, strong heartbeat today around 150 beats per minute. We still can't imagine another human being ending up quite as cute as Sabrina, but we can't wait to meet this little person (affectionately known as "Gnocchi" thus far) and to see what the next Little Halsey brings to the world.

As you can see in the video, Sabrina "kind of" gets it. She says that it's going to be a boy "Little Brudder" and then a girl "Little Shister" and then she says "I'm a boy" these days...so...who knows, really? Gender to be revealed in April!

We can't wait to continue the adventures!

Happy (cold!) Birthday to Molly

We have been having such a beautiful fall here in Colorado that we thought of a perfect birthday plan - a train ride in the mountains! So a week before my birthday, we bought tickets for the Historic Georgetown train. Both Sabrina and Celia love trains, the weather has been gorgeous, so why not? Well...we woke up the morning of the 8th to snow flurries in Boulder and freezing temperatures. Oh well, we bought tickets, let's go for it. Then as we got near Georgetown, trucks started pulling off the highway to put their chains on...hmmm...and by the time we got there, there was about 6 inches of snow on the ground, blowing wind, and it was 28 degrees. ZOIKS! Thankfully we were mostly prepared with extra clothes, hats, gloves, and blankets for all of us so we weathered the storm and went for the ride. Natalie, Erin, Celia and Della get maximum credit for being such great sports! We had very little complaining and lots of laughing. You can't go wrong with that. If the girls happen to remember this day, they'll certainly have some strong words for their crazy parents, but we all survived to tell the tale! And we got some nice photos out of the excursion. What a funny trip!