Too Cute To Spook

Happy Halloween!!!

Halloween seems to be more and more fun for the kids and the adults as the years go by. Every year I feel like we are living out the scene from the movie Mr. Mom when the families are all dressed up and out trick or treating. This time of year always makes me thankful for our friends, neighbors and the community in which we live for allowing such a small town feeling to sweep over our lives for just one night.

This year, for the first time, I am sad to say there was really no theme for the three kiddos. Ally has come in to her own world of likes and dislikes...and unfortunately, that also means we’ve kinda left the princess thing behind us. She still loves dressing up, but now it’s more of a diva or pop start image than a princess. So, this year, Ally dressed up like Hannah Montana...complete with wig and sparkling shoes. Kelsey has wanted to be Bat Girl for months. Hayden was going to be Batman, but changed his mind to Mario from Super Mario Brothers. To pick up the slack, Asher picked up Kelsey’s sadness and offered to be Batman, but he changed his mind and ended up as Wolverine. So...to keep our little Bat Girl from melting down, Drew stepped up and filled in to save the day. As much as I pushed for the super hero theme, Ally wasn’t breaking, so we had a super hero duo and the teen pop idol. I’m thinking my years for themes have passed us. :( The kids had dinner together...pizza...before trick or treating...a tradition that we started years ago and seems to be the easiest thing for a busy night. After dinner and costume prep, we all met outside for our cul-de-sac picture with everyone dressed up and then we were off. There were two distinctive groups this year...the older kids (Ally, Kelsey, Hannah, Hayden, Addison, Molly, Madison, Logan, Sydney, Jack, Ben, Ayanna, Treyvon and Asher) who ran from house to house and the younger kids (Drew, Caroline and Max) who were carted around in strollers and wagons from house to house. We scoured the neighborhood for 2 solid hours grabbing all kinds of candy loot and by the end the kids were exhausted. We came home, dumped all the candy on the floor while we watched The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, and had a few pieces of our candy while watching our favorite holiday show. The kids had school the next day, so we quickly got them showered and off to bed in hopes that the next day wouldn’t be a difficult start. Thankfully, Tuesday was an election day, so we had a day to catch up if we were dragging.

Check out the Shutterfly site for all the Halloween fun and pictures.

http://therealjacksonfive.shutterfly.com

You'll Be Missed...

It's a sad day for the Jackson family today. Grandpa John lost his battle with cancer and left this world this afternoon. His stay in Hospice was longer than most. And, mom and dad Jackson were there with him. And while we're sad to see him leave us, we know he is in a better place with no more pain.

We love you Grandpa John!! We will miss you!! Be good in Heaven...don't go grabbing all the pretty girls!!!

Darby Rose Photography - Fall 2010 Edition

October...the month for fall pictures with Darby Rose Photography. As always, Mrs. Darby does not disappoint. Here are a selection of the fabulous pictures we had taken at Barrington Hall in Roswell, Georgia. Head to the Shutterfly site for the full set of pictures. And, if you are in the Atlanta area, be sure to check out her website for information on how you can set up your own appointment for family pictures. She books up quickly in the fall and spring, so get in early. You’ll be very pleased you did. :)

http://www.darbyrosephotography.com

http://therealjacksonfive.shutterfly.com

See You at the Patch...

We took the annual trip to Burt’s Farm again this year...it’s certainly become something the girls expect and look forward to every fall. And this year’s trip did not disappoint. We got up bright and early on a beautiful fall morning, loaded up the car with a packed lunch and extra clothes and headed up in to the mountains for Burt’s. BY the time we got there, plenty of people were already filling the parking lot. We started off with the hayride around the farm. Afterwards, we took some time to play hide and seek in the HUGE pumpkins. And then, we had to get to work and find our pumpkin. Each of the kids got to pick their own this year for the big pumpkin carving contest coming up on the 29th. And then, they each got a little one for their room. By the time we were done, the back of our car looked like a small pumpkin patch. After we finished at Burt’s, we headed across the street to Amicalola Falls State Park for some lunch and time on the playground. Drew spent most of his time going up the stairs and down the slide. After playing and lunch, we took a walk and let the kids run up an down the hiking trails for a few minutes. And after that, we were ready to head home. Here are a few of the pics from our day, but there are tons more on the Shutterfly site. The kids were so cooperative for pictures, that we got lots of good ones.

http://therealjacksonfive.shutterfly.com

Boosterthon Fun Run

For the past 2 years, Holly Springs has done a fun run as their yearly fundraiser for the school. The girls try to get pledges and raise money for each lap they run. The lap is 1/16 of a mile and when it is all said an done, they run about 35 laps...which is over 2 miles in about 45 minutes. The fun run is held on a Friday and parents and visitors are welcome to come and cheer on their students. So, this year I took the whole group and headed out to HSE for the big event. Grandpa Jackson showed up a few minutes in to the run to cheer on his girls. They were very excited to see we had come to cheer them on with signs and lots of high fives. Asher and Madison ran a few laps with the girls and we all had a great time raising money for the school. Check out all the pictures on the Shutterfly site when you get a chance.

http://therealjacksonfive.shutterfly.com

Drew's First Haircut

Drew's first haircut was quite the success. We headed out on a Friday night to a small hair place called Sports Clips for boys and men. There are life size cut outs of famous sports figures. The place itself is designed and painted to look like a stadium. There are flat screen TV's at every angle and all of them are playing Sports Center or some sort of classic sporting event. Drew sat very calmly in mommy's lap the entire time. And after watching the nice lady cut off his hair, it was surprising how long it really was. His haircut is much shorter than I care for it at the moment. But, to even it all out, we went short for this first cut. Hopefully it will grow back evenly and we can find a cute way to style it so that he looks like a little boy and not little Bo. Enjoy the pictures!!

Before...


During...



And after...

Kindergarten Field Trip

Today, Kelsey and Bo headed to the North Georgia Mountains for a day with the Kindergarteners at Burt's Pumpkin Farm. Bo was excited to be one of the chosen few who could go on the field trip and Kelsey was happy to have her daddy with her. While they were there, the kids took a hayride and learned about how pumpkin seeds turn in to pumpkins that we can pick in the fall. They took a tour of the farm and ended their morning picking out their own pumpkin to bring home. After the busy morning, they headed across the street to Amicalola Falls for some time on the playground and lunch. And then it was time to head home. Visit the Shutterfly share site for all the pictures. Here are a few to get you started.

PS - The little girl in the pictures with Kelsey is Annabelle...a friend from school and Kelsey's partner on the field trip.
http://therealjacksonfive.shutterfly.com