Marvelous Meredith

Daughter

Sister

Grandchild

Niece

Friend

Cat Lover

Cousin

Kindergartner

Reader

Dancer

All About Allie

Daughter

Sister

Cousin

Niece

Grandchild

Third Grader

Student Council Member

Dancer

Book Bowl Participant

Mentor

The BEST Birthday Present Ever!

I have the BEST best friend in the whole world.


Way back at the beginning of summer, on my half birthday (June 30th), I got a package in the mail. It was a Rick Springfield Greatest Hits CD and a letter inviting me to see my teen idol in concert, in Iowa, in November!

It was a long wait but last Friday we headed south for the big weekend. Altmanville is a fun place to visit. Besides my BFF, Colleen, and her hubby, Tom...


...the Altman boys - Kale, Nash, and Dade - live there too. It's a crazy houseful of boys. The girls had fun playing the Wii, riding the 4-wheeler, and getting reacquainted with the kids they've known since they were all infants.

The bigger boys had their own fun too. It was football Saturday in Hawkeye country. It was exciting to see Jason watching the game with Tom, someone who loves the Hawkeyes as much as he does.

After the Hawkeyes won and we were permitted to walk away from the big screen TV, we drove to the Riverside Casino and Golf Resort in the tiny town of Riverside, Iowa (claim to fame...the future birthplace of Capt. James T. Kirk). The kids enjoyed a bit of swimming before we hit the buffet.


Enough about the kids and the husbands...now, back to the matter at hand...this was MY weekend and I was going to see RICK SPRINGFIELD!

It's amazing how some people have no clue who he is. He was my teen idol. I had his poster on my bedroom wall and watched him as Dr. Noah Drake on General Hospital. I listened to his cassette tapes, and my favorite song was (and still is) "Jessie's Girl". And FYI...he is NOT the one they call "The Boss".

He is now 61 years old!

SIXTY-ONE!

And while he doesn't look like this anymore...

...nor do I look like this (thank God). Although our hairstyles are oddly similar...creepy.

However, he does look pretty darn good for being a senior citizen.

But not as good as us!!!

Thank you, Colleen, for the best birthday present ever!

Scenes from Halloween

We had another fun Halloween this year and we owe it all to our wonderful neighborhood.

Allie wore her dance costume this year and Meredith planned on being a pirate princess. But at the last minute, she changed her mind and decided to wear her dance costume also.

Our neighbors planned a little pre-trick or treat luncheon in the hopes of filling the kids up with some wholesome food. And I think it worked. The girls didn't seem to eat quite as much candy throughout the evening.

Here is Allie with Mr. Stealth Commando...

and Meredith with Miss Butterfly at our neighbor's luncheon.

Once the rest of the gang arrived, we were ready to trick or treat.

Here is Mikayla (Liv's BFF) as a corpse bride, Olivia as a witch, Meredith, Allie, and Amelia as a cavegirl riding a dinosaur!


The kids barely had to leave the front yard to get their first treat.

This is our scary neighbor lady with her not so scary dog, Tucker, who is dressed as an elf!

Another perk to trick or treating in our neighborhood...people hand out treats for the parents as well. One house was even handing out little cupfulls of BBQ cocktail weenies with toothpicks.

No wonder Jason loves Halloween just as much as the kids!