Happy Halloween 2012!

What a fantastic Halloween! We found the 'good' block in our neighborhood for trick or treating this year. And by 'good,' I mean it had all of the following: pate, alcoholic beverages for the parents, a cotton candy machine for the kids, an Obama sighting (Malia, not Barack), and people who take their yard decorations very, very seriously.

Margot gathered candy with a pack of her friends and never lost steam. She really has grown up quite a bit. The weather was perfect: chilly but not freezing.

Here are some photos from the day:

Margot and Portia, in costume.

Margot and her cowgirl pal at the school parade.

(Seriously, cotton candy!?! Way to set the bar against the measly peanut M&M!)

2012 Pumpkins

Behold, the 2012 Ruland pumpkins! Mine is the one in the middle. Margot's is on the right.

Zombie Apocalypse

Margot and her friend Leah, showing their vampire teeth at today's Fall Festival.

Tomorrow is our annual pumpkin carving contest...stay tuned!

Natitude

Last night we were fortunate enough to have tickets to see the Nationals play the Cardinals in game 5 of the division playoffs. Margot was generally excited to go to the game. She's not a baseball lover (let's face it, I'm the only baseball fan in the family) but she liked the idea of staying up late and eating treats at the stadium.

We arrived and everyone was in great spirits.

And the game was off to a great start! The Nats took an early lead and I felt confident we would be part of Washington baseball history.

And then that lead started disappearing. One run here. Two runs there. But then the Nats got an insurance run in the eighth inning. I was so sure that they'd win and I could show Margot how awesome baseball is when you're a winner. By the eighth inning, by the way, she was miserable. She was cold, and exhausted, and crabby. She wanted to go home. There was zero chance I was going to miss the end of the game. I told her about how exciting it would be to watch all the players pile onto each other when they won the game and moved onto the league playoffs. I told her how fun the Metro ride back would be - like a party! This was going to unite Washington! She'd be part of history!

And then they blew it. And I wanted to cry. And she was left wondering what all the fuss is about.

I hope I haven't ruined her chances to ever truly love baseball. There's always next year.

Mice Taters

If you know me, you know that crafts are not one of my interests. Margot, like many little girls, adores them. She'll happily cut pictures out of magazines, bead endless lengths of string for necklaces and bracelets, or paint ceramic figures. Not me.

But tonight when we struggled in the front door after work/school, Margot had an idea that we make a recipe from her cookbook: Mice Taters. My tired brain wanted to say no, but my heart (and mouth) said yes. So, together, we made these little guys as a side dish to pork chops, applesauce, and steamed broccoli. They're twice-baked potatoes with veggie faces. And guess what - it was actually fun!

Pumpkin Pickin'

Well, so these pumpkins were already picked and all we needed to do was select a few. The three of us picked out pumpkins for the carving contest that will take place at the end of the month. It was a lovely fall day and we were headed to West Virginia for an overnight with friends Leigh and Craig. It's definitely nicer to get pumpkins at a roadside stand in Western Maryland than at Home Depot.

Off the Block

Margot joined a swim team this fall and will continue until next summer. So far she loves it, and looks forward to the twice a week practices with her friend Lucille. I'm always impressed that the girls can swim laps for the better part of an hour and still have energy afterwards.

They are learning how to get into the pool from the starting block for an upcoming swim meet. This wasn't Margot's best start, but it gives you an idea.