Howl-O-Ween

Look at these magnificent pumkins that we worked on all day today with Gram. The kids and I roasted the seeds later in the week and they were delicious! Emma wanted to make a moth pumpkin, Alex a haunted house and Owen a happy face. These are the pumpkins that they picked out at Tate Farms two days before Inde was born. We had a fun warmish night trick-or-treating in the trailer pulled by the truck on the mountain with friends.

How to Go Into Labor

Mom, I think I might have found a more sure fire way than spaghetti dinners, chocolate cake and a movie with a toddler on your lap that has to potty to get a labor going. Although by all accounts not as relaxing or delicious as your method, this one apparently works within a day or so. Proceed thus: Find a warm day, take three children (your own or someone else's) to a pumpkin picking farm. Make sure you walk in the hay maze, supervise all the corn bin jumping and go on the hayride--did i mention this has to be very bumpy, as in every rut you expect your water to break--out to get your pumpkins from the field. Yes, you will get asked a sickening amount of times, if you "are stealing a pumpkin under that shirt, ma'am?" smile or offend the commentator, your choice....Make sure each of the three children picks the largest pumpkin they can feasibly carry or not carry as the case may be. Head back to play and eat pinto bean soup around the barnyard. Right as you are planning to leave have the eldest child with the largest pumpkin careen out of the hay loft to hurt their tummy to where they not only can't carry their pumpkin to the car, they can hardly walk. Exit the pumpkin patch with pumpkins in wheelbarrow, child crawling, and waddle to your car. If you are smart you will realize that while the wheelbarrow was a great savior to get those pumpkins out the door, the wheelbarrow does not lift the pumpkins into your car. Find a friendly soul wandering the parking lot to lift those pumpkins for you. Knowing in hindsight how quickly Inde was born, I am oh so thankful she didn't decide to join us at tate farms, I guess she didn't want to be Inde Tate Bothwell, she was waiting for just the right moment to fall into our lives......in the rain...

Muscadine Jelly

We received some muscadines that we couldn't eat all of, so we decided to try and make muscadine jelly.........I had high hopes of giving some jelly away as gifts, we made mint jelly last year and it was delicious. The jelly went fine until we added the optional part of the recipe of pureeing some of the skins and adding them. As it hardened it just got TOO thick. Trying to get it out of the jar was like some sort of edible spackle that had hardened. It was the consistency of slightly melted jolly ranchers! Fun nonetheless, and now we know not to add the skins, except in extreme moderation. The muscadine innards are such a lovely color green....

Inde Raine Bothwell

We give a joyous welcome to our daughter and sister, Inde Raine Bothwell! Inde was born late Thursday night at home surrounded by her dad, mom, brothers and sisters and close family. We are enjoying a babymoon soaking up her beauty, wonder, noises, sweet smells and most of all her SHINE. We love you Inde, welcome to this world!

Alex Reaches Cloud Nine

Our baby is nine! We had an amazing time celebrating Alex's birth with him this year. He wanted to have a full party at home with all things flying. We had paper airplanes to fly, parachutes to drop, coke geysers that flopped for some reason. Alex and I were pretty proud of the nifty invitation we created on paper airplanes he folded. Along with me as the paper mache maker and candy stuffer and Gram as the decorater, Alex created a kicking pinata that was a helicopter. It was the highlight of the party, as when it was Alex's turn he was blindfolded and missed the pinata and instead pounded a birdhouse that was nailed to the tree to the ground (video)! When he saw what he had felled he just laughed and laughed. A big thanks to Daddy and everyone who helped get the tree house safely completed to use by party time, it was enjoyed....and the FOURT as the kids named it in honor of the Fourth soul we are waiting on will be loved and explored for many years of enjoyment....We had gingerbread cake with homemade whipped cream, regular and GF, pizza, regular and GF, We partied all afternoon and on into the night with a bonfire Kurt built for all. It was nice to celebrate before our new family member joins us, even if it was before Alex's real birthday, he didn't want to be interrupted by a mom in labor! I most enjoyed the night two nights after the party when Alex Emma and I slept on the air mattress in the treehouse. It was nice to lay there talking with them as the stars came out and play "i spy" with the shapes the trees made against the midnight blue sky. I made it out there all night before the bathroom called my very pregnant body inside at sunrise.....it was a beautiful sunrise, thanks bladder! It seems like both yesterday that Alex was born as well as a lifetime ago, in that it seems as if he has always been here leading us on into adventure. Happy Birthday to my Sweet Boy, you put me on Cloud Nine everyday.....Love, Mom (photos)