October Photos....

I haven't felt like blogging lately.... or sharing stories....  I had uploaded photos a few weeks back and had intended to share them with everyone... but in the meantime our sweet dog, Tug took a turn for the worse.  I am heartbroken to tell you that we had to put Tug to sleep.   We are all so sad and the house feels strange without his constant presence.  Thank you to everyone who has shared such kind words with me and our family during this time. 

Here are a few of the photos I had planned to share earlier in the month......  Gabby dusting.  Housework seems futile with this little one following me around and dumping things in my freshly vacuumed path.  Being the smart Mama that I am.... I decided to give her a dust cloth so she could be of some assistance.  She thought it was the greatest idea.  It kept her busy and her hands were unable to dump toys while dusting.

Honestly, can dusting really put this type of smile on your face?

Woohoo... soccer season is coming to an end.... no more chasing Gabby while trying to watch the kids play...she is making a break for the forest...

Yes... this cutie can be a troublemaker....

Looking like such a little girl....

Trying to get a photo of the 2 of us together....

Halloween is a big deal around here.... we have been counting down days since Oct. 1.  The decorations have been out, the costumes have been bought, and I've been busy starting some Halloween cookies.  The kids can hardly contain their excitement for tomorrow night!

As you can see..... we have been infested with mice.... time to call for an exterminator.....

I will quickly explain this photo.... This is a shot of my kids "heat-hogging."  Growing up in the Gerwatowski house was a little like living in Antarctica from Oct.-through April.  I fondly remember getting up in the morning.... only to go lie on the heating duct to try and capture some warmth and melt the icicles from my nose and toes.  My technique involved lying or sitting on the vent.... not standing on it.  My kids have adapted and perfected their own "heat-hogging" techniques... but I must say... the Herdoiza house is far from Antarctica... more like crisp, cool, Michigan.

Nicholas is sharing his secret techniques with Gabby....

That brings us to Mo's Halloween party..... unfortunately I didn't take many photos... I was too busy checking out all the costumes and laughing.  Here are the Herdoiza's... we have a dinosaur, Dorothy with Toto in the basket, a neon pink witch, a happy pirate, and a graduate, class of 2010.  I'm wearing Nicholas' kindergarten graduation hat.  That is frightening that my brain is the size of a kindergartner's!

Frightening and ferocious, cousin, T-Rex dinosaurs!

The devil is stunning and sparkly as usual.... the lobster speaks for itself... ADORABLE... and Brad...well... who would have thought that he could look sooooo fantastic as a long haired brunette!

Zoro and his princess bride... to think this costume party was dreamt up so that Mo Mo could wear her wedding gown for a second time....

Little Red Riding Hood and the scary wolf dressed in Grandma's clothing...

The only photo I captured of the siblings together.... I hope I get some better ones tomorrow night

The scariest characters.... giving poor Dorthoy a fright!  They sound like someone she knows..... but they are just so gosh, darn, UGLY!

Are you telling me it was these two who were hiding behind those ugly masks???? 

Hilarious!  This is the only photo I have of the vampire attacking the witch.  Watch out Mom!

Finally.... Amanda was yelling up from the basement... Mom.... Mom.... come quick.... take a picture of my masterpiece...you should put it on the blog.   I couldn't wait to see what she had made....we have lots of elaborate arts and craft supplies in the basement... This is what I found... on the dry erase board.... her masterpiece that I needed to urgently share with all of you... The Dot!

I hope to be back soon with more pictures of fall and trick or treating.

My Homework

So I have been taking my photoshop class on Monday nights...... and here is some of my homework..... it came out pretty cool..... I'm happy with the collage now that I worked through my frustrations.....

Apples, Apples, and More Apples

A few weekends ago we decided to go apple picking.  It is a fall tradition at our house and we couldn't wait for donuts, cider, and of course lots of apples.  Here are a few photos from the day.....  I was trying to capture everyone on the hay ride.....

 Nicholas posing with his first, freshly picked apple of the day

 Gabby quickly got the hang of it.  She was picking apples off the tree, but especially loved picking up the ones that had fallen on the ground.  She really liked it if they were mushy and brown and disgusting.  She was so quick, I spent most of my time trying to keep them out of her mouth.

 Now that is a proper apple specimen. 

 Gabby quickly learned to throw the apples in the bags.  She was quite a little helper.

 Gabriella loved eating the apples.  Once I let her go for it.... I couldn't pry the apple from her mouth or her sticky little hands!

 Amanda was a pro looking for the "best" apple ever,  It looks like all her experience paid off.

 See what I mean when I said I couldn't pry the apple away from her.  She loved it!

 Posing with Steve, the apple is firmly attached to her mouth.....

 So Cute even if the faces are a little overexposed... I haven't tried to fix any of the pictures yet.

 An armful of apples...

 Trying to get the kids to cooperate......

 Gabby came up for air before chomping another bite.....

 And finally............ Tuesday evening, just before catechism there was going to be a short prayer service outside church in honor of St. Francis of Assisi.  Monseigneur Bass was going to give a blessing to the animals of the parish.  I thought this was a great opportunity for Tug.  He could use all the blessings he can get.  I don't know what I was thinking.  Here we are in a parking lot.... surrounded by lots of dogs, birds, cats, and fish, and I'm trying to control this 75 lb dog.  He is going nuts.  Tug is so happy to see the other animals,  He was out-of-control, and he was yanking me all around.  I had to put Amanda in charge of Gabby because I couldn't handle it all.  Gabby was sitting in the middle of the street curious about the chaos.  I finally got smart and had to pretty much sit on Tug to get him to settle down.  After a very short prayer, Tug got sprinkled with the holy water.... just like we do in church.  That is when the director of religious ed. came around and took our picture.  She sent me this photo the other day and I just LOVED it.  Look how happy Tug looks.  He is totally in his element. 

On a final note.... Steve brought Tug into the specialist on Tuesday and finally some good news..... it looks like he is responding to this other chemo protocol.  Unfortunately the first round was unsuccessful and 90% of the dogs respond to it.  The treatment we are trying now is more aggressive and seems to be working.  His tumors have shrunk in size and were much less palpable.  In the meantime, Tug is acting great.... more like his old self.... crazy and yanking and hyper.  We are so thankful he is doing better!  Well I'm off to bed....