Christmas Shopping Update

Okay.  Some folks were wondering how the big shopping trip went yesterday, so I thought I'd give a quick update.  Here it goes...we bought nothing.  Yep.  Apparently that's what happens when you go shopping with no list! 

We did a TON of looking though.  And to be honest, the time flew.  In my mind I was thinking that we all day to shop, but in reality it was only a few hours.  By the time I got off work and ate lunch, we only had time to hit a couple of stores before it was time to head home in order to get Jonathan off the bus.  It just didn't seem like enough time to go hog wild like I wanted to. 

It also didn't help that my husband and I were on different pages.  I was ready to grab things and put them on layaway so that we would be forced to budget the extra spending.  He, on the other hand, was in the mood to "shop for ideas."  Is that a man's way of saying he doesn't want to spend a lot of money? 

Anyway, Legos will definitely be under the Christmas tree this year.  First, we have to decide which line we think our Kindergartner will dig.  Star Wars?   Harry Potter?  Creator?  City?  There are so many stinking choices!  And they are not cheap!  I'm liking this house though.  It turns into three different houses. 

Since he likes doll houses, but not the dolls so much, I thought this would be a good idea.  Daddy is leaning more towards this though:

A pillow pet will probably be purchased too.  Since Jonathan's birthday is also on Christmas I always try to get him a special book, which I give to him right before he goes to bed Christmas night, so I know that is on the list too. 

As for what we found for the baby?!  I fell in love with this Little Tikes walk behind toy that turns into a ride on toy.  I think it is so cute and we'll get more bang for our buck!

So that is how things went yesterday.  By the time Christmas actually rolls around, however, the things my kids are unwrapping could be things I haven't thought of yet.  And most definitely haven't PURCHASED yet!

The Pumpkins Are Carved On The Porch With Care

The Watson porch is officially ready for trick or treaters!  Remember me saying something about buying almost 20 pumpkins this year?  Well, the family set up shop in the unfinished part of our basement last night, because it was too cold and windy to work outside, and finished carving them.  We started a couple of days ago when it was still warm enough to work outside.  Now, not all of them were carved, some were left alone and some of them now have a little flare.  Here's what we came up with!

Any time Jonathan can get his hands on glitter, he is one happy camper. He had a ball doing this one!

We found this neat pumpkin carving set for the whopping price of $1 that had tools to perfectly shape triangles and circles.  Jonathan came up with this idea.

My husband's mad-talented freestyle skills with a monogrammed pumpkin!

And again with this "cute" pumpkin recreated from a Halloween card Jonathan got from Great Grandma Lorraine.

This would be my idea from the stencils I found on Country Living's website. 

This one is from Country Living as well.  I just had to do this one!  Too cool!

And my husband, Jon, came up with this creation.  Again with the crazy freestyle skills!

Throwback Thursday!

Last night as I was working on my blog, I threw a CD of  Freddy Fender into my computer and started jamming and typing away.  So, today, I pay homage to Mr. Texas Tornado himself.  Enjoy!

Christmas Shopping Without A Clue

My husband and I are going Christmas shopping tomorrow.  He has the day off from work, so we thought it would be the perfect opportunity to get some of Jonathan's shopping done while he is still in school.  The only problem is that I have no idea what to buy him.  I heard that gasp!  First of all, what kind of mother am I that I don't know what to get my own kid?  Secondly, how could I go shopping, for Christmas gifts mind you, without any clue as to what to buy?  I'm supposed to be an over-achieving-stay-at-home-work-part-time-mommy blogger who has all of her ducks in a row!  Yeah, right. 

Here's the problem...my son's age.  I didn't realize that 5 (although he'll turn 6 on Christmas Day) would be such a difficult age.  He's too big for the ride on toys and the playhouses that he still thinks are cool.  He's also matured past a lot of toys that I would prefer to buy him, but can no longer get away with.  I also think that he is too young for most of the toys that are marketed to his age group. 

First of all, we are a video game free household.  That takes a whole lot of ideas off the table doesn't it?  No Wii, DS, DSi, or Leapster will be purchased for our little guy.  I'm not opposed to ever buying video games, but I am simply not ready to open that can of worms yet.

If we buy one more dinosaur I'm pretty sure we could open our own museum.  We could possibly open a zoo as well, because Jonathan also cannot resist any type of animal.  Stuffed, plastic, cardboard, or feathered, we've got em.  We also have plenty of matchbox cars, puzzles, and games.  Although the small stuff is not exactly what I am concerned about.  I don't have the "IT" present idea.  I usually know exactly what his "big" present is going to be by now and have usually already saved for it or have been scouting for the best price on the Internet. 

So, tomorrow, the dearest husband and I plan to take on Toys R Us, Kmart, and Target with no list, no plan, and no ideas.  In the meantime, I am certainly open to suggestions!

Guitar Bidding Ends Today

Your chance to bid on a guitar once owned and played by Keith Urban comes to an end today.  It's part of Nash-2-O, an online auction aimed at helping Nashville flood victims.  Guitars once played by Vince Gill and Brad Paisley are also up for bid.  That would make one heck of a Christmas gift! 

While you can bid on one of Keith Urban's guitars, it seems as if he has been doing some bidding of his own.  Urban lost a large portion of the guitars he had in storage due to the floods this past May in Nashville so he has been restocking by bidding on eBay.  During the bidding process, Urban has kept his identity a secret, but once he's made a purchase, he clues the owner in that it's him.

Keith told an ABC reporter that he knows that it is hard to put and item up for bid and that most artists are a little hestitant to let go of a guitar or amp and want to know where it winds up.  That's why, he says, that he tells the seller when he's purchased a particular item.  He says that way the orginal owner knows that it is going to someone who will use it properly and that it will be appreciated.

A lot of those newly purchased guitars were used to record Urban's new album, which is due in stores and online on November 16th.  I can't wait!

Here are some of the items (and their owners) that are up for bid!

Vince Gill

Brad Paisley

Keith Urban

A Pumpkin Fantasy

Some people love pumpkins so much that they fantasy about them.  Others love pumpkins so much that they create their own Pumpkin Fantasyland!  That is exactly what a local farming family has done smack dab in the heart of cornfield country in Ligonier, Indiana.

Jason Becker's grandfather founded Fashion Farms back in 1959.  It started out as a cattle farm, but when a big storm destroyed the family business, the family decided to focus on building a greenhouse.  Pumpkins, hayrides, corn mazes, and a restaurant were added and they found themselves with a modern day-old fashioned good time! 

There is a theme to Pumpkin Fantasyland at Fashion Farms every year and this year the theme is "Memories Through Songs."  For the low price of $2 per person, with the baby being free, my family and I toured the museum-like pumpkin palace--otherwise known as a barn.   

I was in heaven the moment I stepped inside and saw this:

That's right.  That's Dolly Parton made out of pumpkins!  I knew I was in the right place!  The artistry put into these displays was really quite fascinating.  Jonathan loved seeing Bert and Ernie, Dora and Diego, and the cast of Wizard of Oz come to life in pumpkin form.  We were all really impressed with the Madagascar cast.  You have never seen a giraffe until you have seen one with its face painted on a gourd!  It was so realistic!   

Can you believe they even painted the faces of all our presidents on pumpkins?  Amazing!

Ever wonder what the Beverly Hillbillies would look like as a pumpkin family?  Wonder no more, my friends!

This was really a great and inexpensive time!  The hayride was only $1.50 per person and all of the mazes were $1--done on the honor system of sticking your bill into a milk jug.  We went late on Friday afternoon and were done in time to head over to the restaurant for dinner.  We were impressed yet again.  The hamburgers were so good!  Jonathan enjoyed his smiley fries and I enjoyed my regular ones!  Oh, and throw in some pumpkin cookies and you can call it good! 

We also enjoyed our ride through the country!  To me, there is nothing like fall and the country!  We really did see some amazing pumpkins, but I think these were by far the cutest...

Fall Color Tour

Last week we had such beautiful weather and I was really getting into the spirit of fall.  Every day on my way home from work, I pass this barn on the highway that is surrounded by wonderfully vibrant leaves.  I have been admiring it for the last couple of weeks.  Although, I do tend to admire it without the leaves in place, because I am a sucker for barns.  Something just feels good down in my soul when I see a field with a beautiful barn.  I think it's because it reminds me of my grandfather.  He was a farmer and I have so many great memories as a child going to visit him and playing on the farm. 

Seeing this barn surrounded by such autumn splendor gave me the idea to take the kids on our own fall color tour.  So, one day when Jonathan got home from school, we set out on our adventure into the country--not far from home actually.  I took the camera along and decided to snap some photos so that we could later scrapbook about our trip. 

First, I took a picture of the tree in our front yard to mark the starting point of our tour.  Then we were off in search of more treetop changes and were on the lookout for any barns that caught our fancy. 

                              

The highlight of the tour was finding a farmer working in his field.  Jonathan got a kick out of watching the big combine work its way through the cornfield and spit out the stalks on the other side.  Tyler was even fascinated by the big machine that I am sure he had never seen before. 

I even handed over the camera so that Jonathan could capture his own memories.  He really likes it whenever I let him loose with the camera. 

We had such a peaceful and calming time.  Usually the kids are fussy in the car or wondering where and when we are going to get somewhere, but on this particular day we had no where to go or no specific destination.  We simply rolled the windows down and let nature take hold of us.