Our Pumpkin Carving Championship

My family started a wonderful tradition three years ago. For the past 3 years we go to my parents house for a Pumpkin Carving Championship. Each family gets to enter a pumpkin or pumpkins for the title of Pumpkin Carving Champion. No one shares what they are going to do...it is a big secret and surprise. The first year there was not a winner because we were all beginners. Last year Pops won with his award winning Veggie Pumpkin. This year we all got super creative for the title. In fact we all started researching and designing the pumpkins weeks in advance. So without further ado here are the pumpkin carving pictures. See if you can pick the winner.

Getting down to business....Pops Starting the Carve
Rachel and Matt were very ambitious with 3 pumpkins
Kevin with a little help from Z getting started

Dad moved over to the counter to be secretive and to have more room. Our beautiful pumpkin seed makers Aunt Kelli and Jacinda

Kevin and Hil working on our "surprise" pumpkinPops & Grammy's pumpkin: I love you to the Moon & Back.
* This is sweet. Mom & Dad started saying this to Jason & Jacinda when they were babies. Now they say it to the boys when ever we leave their house. Dad thought it would make a perfect pumpkin.

Rachel & Matt's pumpkins: McCain* Palin trio pumpkins...talk about hard work!

John McCain: Political McCain Palin Slogan & Sarah PalinRatatouille by Kevin and Hi
And the winner is....

And the winner of the Third Annual Peacock Pumpkin Carve is Ratatouille ....Kevin & Hilary. We won! We are so excited. The best part was we all had a fun time together and a great evening of memories. Can't wait to see what everyone comes up with next year!

Extended Family Shopping Trip

This weekend Zachary and I celebrated fall with my aunts & cousins (Kim this is you too!) on the Peacock side. We have been planning on a girls day full of shopping, chatting, and eating since Mid-August. It was a fun-filled day.

The group photo is of all of us at the Fall Festival.
Back Row: Zachary, Me, Aunt Sharon, Mom, Aunt Mary, Kathy
Front Row: Rachel, Elliott, Lisa, Kim, & Natalie
Kim was super sweet to give Z a ride when he wanted a break from the stroller. He loved it!

I'll have to explain a couple of photos. First my Aunt Sharon was telling us all about a clip she wanted to see on The Today Show...it was about middle-aged women that take care of "reborn" baby dolls. To read more about this obsession with baby dolls click here. I found a website that tells more about it. We were all saying how crazy that was when low and behold a women pushing a stroller of 3 babies walks by. We all stopped to look at what we thought were "triplets" when we discovered they were reborn baby dolls. Crack me up! Fortunately, the lady pushing the stroller was trying to sell them. It was hilarious. Aunt Mary, my mom, and Aunt Sharon all had to hold these fake babies. Of course, I had to pull out my camera and snap a shot.

Aunt Sharon with baby girl Addison, Aunt Mary with little boy, and mom with baby girl Lucy

Aunt Mary with baby boy
Mom with a premie

Overall we had a great time together. We are already planning to make this an annual trip. Of course next time we hope that Aunt Lou can make the trip down and that some of my cousins that could not make it would be able to.

Peacock girls luncheon

Peacock Girls Luncheon
In the Photo (Left to Right): Lauren, Kathy, Donna, Lisa, Natalie, Rachel, Aunt Mary, and Me




Yesterday was a wonderful day. My sister and I got together with my Aunt Mary, my cousins Lisa, Donna, Kathy, Natalie, and Lauren. After my uncle Charlie passed away suddenly, we realized that we do not spend enough time together as a family. So we decided to get together for lunch, shopping, and girl time. We had a lot of fun. We went to Sandstone Gardens in Joplin and enjoyed a nice lunch in their bistro. Unfortunately, my mom was out of town at my aunts funeral in Pennsylvania, my Aunt Sharon was unable to come down, and my Aunt Lou was in St. Louis. We all decided that we would just have to do it again when everyone could be there.