Trick or Treat

Our family Halloween began with carving pumpkins. We had four this year - three that I purchased at the pumpkin patch and one that was given to Caleb at preschool.

I scooped out all the insides and let Caleb play with the lids.  They were like nature's little puzzles for this child of mine.

 

Caleb pretended to help.  As a side note, pumpkins have been his favorite thing this entire month. He has very own tiny little pumpkin that he places strategically around the house and then hunts down later.

 

 

And then we got into our bumblebee costume - a $10 purchase from Sam's Club.

And we headed out to the Cresset Halloween festival. Caleb loved jumping in the bounce house and sliding down the giant inflatable slide.

 

Then we came home to light the jack'o'lanterns and welcome tons of trick or treaters.

Happy Halloween everybody!

Satisfying my inner cowgirl

Misty and I went to the Carrie Underwood concert at the Greensboro Coliseum on Friday night. Sons of Sylvia and Billy Currington opened the show. Sons of Sylvia is a new band that sings a duet with Carrie on her new album, Play On. Misty and I missed that part of the show, but we did get to see them perform the duet once Carrie was on stage.

After Sons of Sylvia performed we got to see Billy Currington, who is just cute as pie with his curly hair and down-to-earth style. Plus he has a voice that makes me melt. After hearing him perform live I went immediately to buy his new album, Enjoy Yourself.

Then came Carrie in all her glory. She is an exceptional performer. And the rumors are true...she hits every single note. I am so excited that I got to see her live.

 

 

 

 

 

 

To top off an excellent night, Carrie announced that 36 cents of every ticket purchased for her tour is going to Save the Children. What a generous idea! I am all too impressed by the country artist, who played every song I wanted to hear during her show.

A Cuban Pig Roast

Every year my cousins graciously host a Cuban Pig Roast at the Allendale Barn in Kingsport, Tennessee.  Family and friends - both local and out of state - are invited to join in on the festivities, which include boatloads of appetizers, unlimited alcohol, the unveiling of a pig that has been roasted all day, more food, more desserts, and live music, all at a gorgeous location. This year we also happened to be celebrating two very special birthdays, which resulted in even more cake than usual.

 

The scenery is gorgeous - rolling hills, fall leaves, quaint bridges, a large pond, and of course, Allendale Mansion and Barn.

 

 

Hubby and Caleb just happened to be dressed alike. The puffy vest that Caleb is wearing was a gift from his Aunt Kathy - and it just so happens to be one of my favorites.

Did I mention that Caleb gives the best hugs on Earth? The sweetness of these hugs is magnified when he is kept up past his bedtime. His Mimi especially is a fan of them.

And here is the unveiling of the pig. After a bit of alcohol has set in, we all realize how hungry we are and we gather round the roasting pig for about 10 minutes of salivating and staring.

 Then a group of manly men sit around a table dissecting the pig limb to limb.

 And the rest of us sit around watching in awe. Unless of course a cute little boy catches our attention.

After a hefty meal, we continue to enjoy one another's company while my Uncle Sam takes a saw to the pig's final organs. He claims that the brain and tongue are the tastiest parts of the pig. According to my hubby, a pig brain when prepared correctly tastes like paté. I think I'll just stick to the basics.

Autumn hits my favorite farm

My Tia Irene and Uncle Sam live on the most beautiful farm in Jonesborough, Tennessee. I have posted about it before here on my blog, as it is a really big part of my life. I spent practically every major holiday there from my early childhood days until today. Hubby and I even got married there.

This past weekend the family gathered in Jonesborough for a pig roast, about which I'll post in the coming days. The following photos show some of those gorgeous fall colors that I so adore. I finally timed a visit to Tennessee just right and was able to capture fall on film.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Walk this way

Many family members have been gently asking for an updated video of Caleb walking, since the first video featured just a few tiny steps. Here he is in all his glory. Enjoy!

My sweet pumpkin pie

Two weekends ago Caleb and I spent a gorgeous Saturday morning with our friend Pam at a local pumpkin patch (Scott's Trees and Pumpkins) off of Highway 54 in Durham. Our plan was to unleash Caleb and allow his curiosity and energy to run wild amongst the pumpkins while we snapped photos. Instead, he just kind of sat there in awe of the giant orange monstrosities.
Here are some of the photos I was able to get:

 

 

 

 

This final one was taken by Pam, who is always phenomenal at capturing these random little moments that I can't thank her enough for. You can see some of her other work on her website.

Eno River in October

I enjoyed a brief little hike at the Eno River this afternoon with the Triangle Photography meetup group. We joined up just before 4 pm and most of the group stayed well into evening. I left by 5, as I had dared to bring Caleb along sans my helpful hubby. It requires a great deal of strategy to act as both photographer and single mom with 13-month-old in tow.
Either way, the day was gorgeous and Caleb was well behaved.