Chocolate Tasting, Dinosaurs & the Boat House

Last night mom & dad threw a chocolate tasting party at Kakao chocolate here in St. Louis. We had wine and appetizers before hand and then the owner of Kakao did a tasting for us, explaining how the chocolates are made, what some of the terms are and a little history. It was delicious. My favorites of the night were the Autumn Bark and the Earl Grey truffles (yes, the tea)!








Today we had the most beautiful weather! It was 80' outside in November! JP was off getting one more round of golf in before the weather turns and Isabelle, Darcy, Sheila and I took advantage of the gorgeous weather. First we went to the Boathouse and took a paddle boat on the water. Sheila and I got quite a workout! Then we had lunch outside on the patio. We headed to the Science center after and went to the Dinosaur Unearthed exhibit. It was really fun! Isabelle was very impressed! Then we went to the Omnimax in the Science Center and saw Wild Ocean. It was incredible! Good times today, good times.

Happy Halloween!!

Today was a beautiful fall day. Perfect for raking leaves and then jumping in the leaves! Here are some pictures of our Halloween fun (notice the cute pumpkin pizza JP made)! Isabelle chose to appear as Snow White this evening and had a great time trick-or-treating on her own. At each house she would tell us that she was going to do "this one by myself".

Pumpkin Decorating and Fall Fun

We've had a lot of fun family time in the last several weeks. We stuffed a scarecrow, played in the Apple Fun Corral at our local Eckert's Family Farm, and picked the pumpkins that Isabelle grew in her own garden! Then we used Mr. Potato Head pumpkin kits to decorate the pumpkins. I have to say that I LOVE the kits, they're so much easier (and less messy) than carving the traditional way.

Isabelle's First Field Trip

Isabelle took her first field trip on Friday. Her preschool class went to Eckert's Orchard to learn about and pick apples. I went along as a chaperone. It was intresting being on the other side of a field trip for once.

Sheila's Release Par-tay!

My little sister Darcy has been best friends with Sheila Shahpari since they were in 7th grade. Tonight was her first CD release party. Absolutely fabulous! Here are some pictures. Check her out at sheilashahpari.com.

Fruits of our labor

Isabelle planted pumpkin seeds and they have produced several pumpkins! The moles/rabbits/what-evers have eaten three of them but two have survived and are growing!

Mary Poppins!

We took Isabelle to her first live theater production last night. We saw Mary Poppins. It was amazing! The dancing was great and watching Isabelle was even better! She kept saying, in her Minnie Mouse voice, "How'd she DO that?!?"
Enjoy the pictures!