Savvy Dad

Our Savvy Dad... Our church hosted a Savvy Dads Conference this weekend, presented by Dr. Ken R. Canfield, Ph.D., author of a variety of effective fathering books. The Friday evening session was for couples (moms and dads), where we met Dr. Canfield. He gave an amazing presentation of how family history impacts family dynamics, processing marital interactions, and developing a strategy to complement and support each other as moms and dads.

The Saturday session was for Dads only and was based on Dr. Canfield's book, "They Call Me Dad". Dads left the conference with strategies to incorporate in a fathering plan to strengthen their fathering skills. It was a phenomenal conference!

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These pictures of the boys were taken on Sunday before church.

Now for the silly picture......

While Chad was at the conference on Saturday, the boys thought it would be cool to put on a celebration or party for their dad. We ran to the Dollar Tree for some balloons and streamers, and the boys got busy and decorated the house!

A party would not be complete without cupcakes.

Just look at all the fun two boys can have with balloons.......

They decided to pop them after the party.....

We had beautiful weather this weekend. After the conference and party on Saturday, we walked the beach. I was disappointed that I left my camera in the car.....Bradley decided he wanted to go swimming ---- in his clothes!! Burrrrrrr -- the water was cold. It was great to get out in the warm weather (60 degrees) this weekend.

I hope everyone has a great week!

Halloween in Lake Geneva

Bradley's Jack-o-lantern: Carter's Jack-o-lantern....Yuck - it looks scary!

The boys are all ready to do some trick-or-treating for the first time in Lake Geneva. It was a cold Halloween, which can sometimes defeat the purpose of your "dressing up". Carter is ready to go as "Indiana Jones" and Bradley, for some reason, woke up that morning and decided to be a "Knight" (the same costume from last year's Halloween), rather than "Indiana Jones".

Carter and Bradley's friend, Spencer, who lives next door, joined us along with his mom, Angel. We had a good time going from house to house, walking quickly to stay warm!

The scary trick-or-treaters....

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

HOPE EVERYONE ENJOYED THE EXTRA HOUR OF SLEEP! :-)

Pumpkin Carving

The boys and I have Thursday and Friday off this week. Our school district has teacher's convention, but teachers are not required to attend. The boys had fun carving their pumpkins. Carter especially enjoyed pulling out the "guts", as he calls it.

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Carter also had a Halloween cubscout pack meeting tonight. The kids were able to dress up in Halloween costumes. Carter went as a pirate and Bradley went as Spiderman. They walked on a spooky trail and roasted S'mores around the campfire.

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Happy Carving!!

Pumpkin Patch with Cousins

We had a blast on our annual Pumpkin Patch adventure last weekend with the Klimie cousins.

Bradley was finding the most unusual gourds......

The Klimie crew.......

Abby loaned us her awesome "puppy purse" so that Toby could stroll along with us at the pumpkin patch. Toby loved joining us on our fun.

The Klimie cousins.....

Bradley taking a break on the $14 pumpkins.....

The cousins: Andrew, Austin, Abby, Carter & Bradley....

Mr. Toby peeking out.....

"It's either this or stay home with Sophie and Jack"...................

A pumpkin with hemorrhoids...

This was crazy -- trying to get these boys and a dog all looking at the camera at the same time....

The corn maze......

Thanks, cousins, for all the fun. Can't wait to do it again next year......

After the pumpkin patch, we headed to Independence and Grandpa Ed joined us for supper. He was happy to see the boys! We also had cake for Grandpa's 97th birthday this month!

We went to Aunt Lou & Uncle Louis' house for supper Tuesday night. Leah and Erik were also there as Leah and Aunt Lou were attending a Women's Retreat together, along with Betsy. The boys loved all the cubby holes in Aunt Lou's house. They also hit a few balls around with Erik in the backyard. We had a nice time at their house.

Little Erik is the cutest little boy ever!!! I just loved his smile and his own little language. He is adorable!

The boys loved playing with Erik.

Now for the silly picture......

Thanks for a great time and a yummy supper!

Have a good weekend everyone!

Happy Birthday Shana

Happy Birthday Auntie Shana! Shana celebrated her birthday on October 9. If you are wondering, she shared with me that it was her 25th birthday! :-)
Love, The Dorwin's

Happy Anniversary Paul & Tara...

Paul & Tara shared their first anniversary together on October 11! Happy Anniversary!!

Love, The Dorwin's

Weekend Visits

We had a nice trip in Northern Wisconsin last weekend visiting family and friends. We left Lake Geneva Friday afternoon after work & school. We stayed at Grandma Deb and Grandpa Ken's house Friday night. The boys had fun playing and running around after our 4-hour drive. The next morning, we baked bread, as it was day #10 on my Amish Friendship Bread, and we left for Durand. Chad was scheduled to meet the individual who was planning to buy his semi.

We visited at Grandma LaNita and Grandpa Bill's house Saturday afternoon. Uncle Paul and Shadow were also there. Carter had fun playing on Grandpa's trailer outside, and Bradley helped himself to the toys in the house. We also stopped at our old house to pick the pumpkins and the many gourds in the garden. The new owners were doing some painting. We were able to see the new wood floors that were placed in the kitchen and dining area. It looked very nice.

We then went to our good friends, The Zenner's, in Eau Galle. The kids had a blast playing with each other. They were so happy to see each other (I think just as happy as I was to see them).

On Sunday, we stopped in at Paul & Tara's house. We were able to see little Alaina and give Evan, Autumn & Paige their birthday presents. Chad and Carter went up to the shop for some visiting.

Here are some pictures of our weekend fun.....

Bradley, Carter, Luke, Alexis & baby Ryan (The Zenner's)

Chad and baby Ryan.....

Playing with Evan and Autumn......

Carter was able to play with Dylan, Paige & Cruz on Sunday. He was happy to see all his cousins.
Bradley, Carter holding little Alaina, Evan & Autumn.....

When we returned home Sunday night, the boys were extremely happy to see that their Halloween costumes had arrived. Their Indiana Jones hat and whip were waiting for them at the front door. Now all we need to find is an old, worn-out leather coat and maybe a satchel bag. We thought Goodwill might be a good place to look.

Carter wanted to share with all of you the gourds that he planted himself in the garden. He brought home a great big garbage bag full of gourds and Indian corn. He, very nicely, spread them around the deck to display them for our Halloween decor.

Carter saved all the seeds from last year's gourds that he then had planted in our garden. He did a great job growing these awesome gourds.......

I would like to say our trip home was uneventful, but we were actually hit in the back end from the vehicle behind us. We got off I94, as it was starting to get backed-up. I think we were on Hwy 51 when a bunch of tractors were in front of us and the line of cars slowed down. The vehicle behind us rammed us in the back. Thankfully, we were all o.k......just a little shooken up. The individual's car was in tough shape, but our Impala handled the collision well (Good choice of a car, Jamie). We were able to drive away after the accident report. The other person, however, had to get towed and her mom showed up to take her home. We all thanked the good Lord for keeping us safe!!!

Thanks everyone for a great weekend.

God Bless!! Have a great week.