Princess-oween

Anybody surprised that all three grand-girls chose to be princesses for Halloween? 
  Steampunk pumpkins from Osh. Love them!

Leanne was the only baby grand we got to see in person for trick-or-treating. 
She wasn't sure what was going on, but was willing to get dressed up, grab her candy bucket and head out the door with mom and Poppop. 
  
She came back with a bucket full of treasure and a big smile on her face.
Addy was Princess Elsa - from a new Disney movie that's coming out November-ish - 
  
and got to wear her costume for Boo At The Zoo and for trick-or-treating.
  
Since Addy never wears a coat if she can help it, I'm thinking it was a tad chilly in Loveland tonight . . . 

Glittery Princess Leia 
 
was accompanied on her rounds by Mary and Daddy, dressed in their best Dia de los Muertos finery.

 

And last up, Chris was kind enough to send me a picture of Naia and Jasmine in their Halloween duds. No princesses here!

 
Happy Halloween, y'all!  
Hubby's new Halloween decoration. I don't get the attraction but Pop really likes Smelt Ratface.

Black Thumb, Green Thumb

It's been awhile since I've had any plants in the house. Between my black thumb and the dust created by hubby's remodeling projects, the poor things are pretty much doomed from the get-go. But I read an article about the health benefits of having oxygen-creators in homes, so off we went to Osh for a few victims specimens. 
  
I knew I wanted a ficus - they're hearty enough to stand a fighting chance of surviving here - and Marie (who just happens to be the gardening manager at Osh) also talked me into a braided money tree. 
 
Myth/legend/feng shui aside, it's a pretty little tree, and I love the twisty, braided trunk.
 
Leia and I each got an African Violet. 
 
Thanks to self-watering pots 

and my MIL's careful instruction many years ago when she had her amazing, award-winning violets,  
 
I'm fairly confident in my ability to keep these alive.
 
Temporarily, anyway. Sigh. Just to be on the safe side, I let Leia do most of the planting, hoping her thumb is greener than mine.


I also fell hard for these indoor daisies (and the pretty pot.) Love the colors,
 
plus they are tall enough to let Leia play 'now you see me, now you don't'.
 
An 'air plant' - Tillandsia - for the kitchen, 

  

and some gerbera daisys and chrysanthemums for the yard rounded out today's haul.

 
I'm hoping my plant mojo has improved, but even if these plants don't make it, Leia and I had a great time playing in the dirt. And making memories with my Monkey is the most important thing of all.

P.S. Leia decided the plants need a little something more. She brought in rocks from the front yard, decorated each one individually, then placed the rock with "its" plant. She had very definite opinions about which rock went with which plant.

Looks like Egyptian hieroglyphics to me.

Want to guess what Leia's favorite thing to write is, after her own name, of course?
ADDY! 

Wedding Weekend, Day 2

Our first wedding of the weekend was at Los Willows in Fallbrook. 
 
Gorgeous venue, with large green lawns, 
 
outdoor bar, a pond with walking paths 
 
and flowers everywhere.

Addy and Leia had plenty of room to burn off energy while waiting for the ceremony to begin, and had even more fun once cousin Anna joined them.
  
The wedding was beautiful, very traditional and elegant. The little girls thought the bride was a princess come-to-life and followed her everywhere, staying as close as they could get. 
 
And who knew that Leanne was such a dancing fool? 
 
She walked in the door, kicked off her shoes and boogied to every song. Definitely the life of the party!
 
It was great to have most of the family 
 
together for the evening.
 
And the weekend was only beginning . . . .