Zoo Boo

(Elli's cat, Matt's spider, and Ashlan's wolf)

We celebrated Halloween at the zoo this year! Our local zoo puts on what's called "Zoo Boo", and you can go trick or treating throughout the zoo. The girls loved it, and we got to share it with some furry friends too!


Hermione and Gabriella with their skeleton friend:



The lions were out:



The polar bear was obviously very into the Halloween festivities:




We also had a "trunk or treat" at our church:




Brian Wilson stopped by to visit the party (Go Giants!!):





I had a girlfriend's Halloween party I was invited to as well....we were asked to dress up representing an "era" of the past....I just couldn't pass up dressing as a portrayal of my youth...oh, the 80's....(makes me cringe when I look at it because it's so opposite the real me!) :):



And to top it off...Ashlan was able to wear her costume to ice-skating practice:



Happy Halloween!

For Those We Love

I'm sure it is no secret that I have a lot to catch up on here on the blog! Life has been FULL....which is how I like it....but I want to sit and breathe and remember, so you're going to get a wonderful variety of posts today! I was looking at these pictures the other day, and realized I had never posted about them.

We ran in the Susan G. Komen "Race for the Cure" last June in Buffalo, in honor of my dear friend, Amy. It is a memory most sweet to us, and it was sincerely an honor to share it with her and so many others that we love. It stirred the heart...seeing so many women stand together, having fought or still fighting....


Our family, decked out in pink and sporting "Team Hulse" bandanas:




The queenly quad (Ashlan, Afton, Elli, Ella):




The whole team at the finish line:




I love you Amy dear!:

A Day on Diagon Alley

Ashlan has read and LOVED the Harry Potter series...thus it has taken over our home! :) She chose Harry Potter as her birthday theme this year, and we had fun livin' it up.

The witches casting a spell:



Hogwarts cake:



Matt played the role of the wand maker very well, carefully choosing the "perfect" wand for each girl. He had carved the wands and stained them (He's so cute!):




Making potions:




Throw in decorating spell books, a Horcrux Hunt, and Bernie Botts Every Flavored Beans and you've lived a day in the life of Harry Potter (or Hermione in this case)! We love our Ashlan and her love of reading!

Summer Lovin'

The Summer seemed to come and go in the blink of an eye! Here's a sample of the fun we had.....

A trip to Maryland to visit cousins, including an outing to the National Zoo, and a day at the temple for moms and dads:








Elli had her gymnastics show:




A family night in Pittsburgh at a San Francisco Giants game...go Giants! World Series Champions! All decked out in orange and black:






A trip West to visit family....5 weeks in Utah and California....we saw every member on both sides of our families! What a blessing!

A family reunion at Park City:








Time at home in California:




Back to UT- hiking Brighton with the Gruwell clan:






Then it was back to PA and reality.....the first day of school:



School's in full swing and we're loving the gorgeous Fall that comes with living in the Northeast. Lots of Fall Festivities to come!

Under The Sea

Elli just celebrated her 6th birthday, and she wanted a mermaid party! We had a day full of underwater adventure!

Sea stars, shells, and treasures decorated every inch!




Fish pond cups (served for lunch with shell pasta sprinkled with "sand")




Banana Octopus craft



And....of course....a Mermaid cake



We love you sweet Elli!

Ice, Ice, Baby

Our darling Ashlan decided to try ice-skating this year. She did really well, and best of all, she loved it! Here's a peek at her end-of-the-year show:





They skated to the "Stray Cat Strut". Ashlan is 2nd to the end in both of these pictures.






Aunt Meg was here to see it! Yeah!




And Elli cheered her on....




We're so proud of you Ashlan!!