No more screaming Santa photos!

Molly absolutely adores Santa Claus!!

She keeps talking about how he's going to come down the chimney, and can't open any presents until Santa comes...When we asked her if she wanted to take an adventure to go see Santa she nearly exploded...it's almost too cute to stand.

While we were waiting for the pictures to develop, Gabe decided $1.50 was absolutely worth every penny for a carousel ride.

Historic Homes Parlor Tour 2010

The Berry House is a c.1895 Italianate, and has never been on the tour before. We were excited to be the first homeowners to open her up to the public, and happily received rave reviews for all our hard work.

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The view from just inside the front door

Looking up the staircase
Closeup of mantle

Living room looking into family room

Family room

The built-in in the family room (we converted it from a formal dining room...)

Molly's elephant reading her favorite christmas book

More family room

Gabe's wall of accomplishments in the office

View from the kitchen door

Kitchen

Dining room

My grandmother's china & family silver

Mom & Dad loaned us some of their kerosene lanterns, and they absolutely were the perfect touch on this 1900 cabinet we found in the basement.

Molly's table

Our newly finished bathroom. Gabe's mom made the curtains & shower curtain after I couldn't find what I wanted available in the stores. ( I got more compliments on them than I can count...I think I owe her more flowers!)

The guestroom

The back hallway.

(Ask Gabe what he thinks of the black coathooks next time you see him.)

The aftermath. We were so tired we sat on the floor and ate our lunch basket.

Our lunch basket provided by the Historic Committee. It was superb.

Miss Molly is 2!!

(Ok, ok...Molly turned 2 a week and a half ago...and yes I'm just now getting around to the pictures. What, you expect more of me?)

What can we say...

We like Halloween.

Maybe a bit too much.

Once again, we got a tad carried away with carving pumpkins.

Only 10 this year. I think we're getting better.
And finally (finally!!) we got a picture of the house to turn out.
Cats, bats, fog, spooky music...

...and the witch that ties it all together.

(A closer view of the front porch.)

We literally stop traffic with our decorations. It's kinda weird, but kinda cool that we're the best decroated house in the neighborhood.

Trick or Treat!!

Although this is Molly's 2nd Halloween, last year didn't really count. This year, however, was a HUGE hit!

We made the mistake of telling her she got to "wear ladybug" after dinner, so she barely ate. Then she wouldn't hold still to get dressed. When we finally made it out the door she was so excited she was practically running. Of the 4 houses we went to, she walked right in the front door at 3 of them.

At every group of kids we passed, Molly would say "I'm a ladybug!!" and try to join their group...
...yet the novelty of the evening wore off quickly. Gabe thinks this one should be entitled "Is it over yet?"

But after a couple of candy bars (it is Halloween afterall), she decided she really like other people trick-or-treating at her house.

Pumpkin Patch 2010

Despite all our reassurances, Molly was not convinced this was going to be a fun experience. It was raining. It was windy. It was cold. We wouldn't let her ride in the wagon. She was pissed about the whole darn thing...

So Daddy took her to find her own pumpkin...
...and she started warming up to the whole idea.
Then she discovered the puddles.Whee!!

Uh-oh...

Splash!

Good thing we took the family photo before she found the puddles!

Mom had enough forethought to bring along an extra set of pants. She did not, however, plan for a swimming lesson. Thank goodness for car heaters, and Molly loooved the naked ride home!