GAME ON....

So... it appears my dear friend, Jessamie has started a little "friendly" competition.  You see, she made some adorable cupcakes that looked as if they should be sold in a local coffee shop, basically putting my pumpkin cake to SHAME (mainly b/c I had NO time to let the cake cool before spreading on the icing.. ha,ha!)...SO, to redeem myself I made these adorable "pumpkin" rice krispy treats....

I melted CANDY CORN with the marshmellows to give them the ORANGE color and extra yummy "sweetness"... I do not like candy corn but these were the BEST homemade rice krispy treats I've EVER made (much better than the "original")... I may make them like this everytime!!  I used pretzel sticks for the "stem".  The candy corn really gave it a perfect "gooey", sticky, sweet taste... YUM!! And they were a "HIT" at the party!! ;)

I hope I've redeemed myself...they may not be "local coffee shop" material but I think they're worth a competition!! ;) So..to my dearest friend, Jessamie...LET THE GAMES BEGIN!!!!!!!!!!! :)

HaPPy HaLLoWeeN 2010 ;)

WOW! I can't believe it's HaLLoWeeN...we've lived in Charlottesville, VA for ONE YEAR to THE DAY as of tomorrow (Nov. 1)...what a YEAR it's been (I'll try to blog about that some other time!).  Here mommy is trying to get into character but her little Lion CUB was having nothing to do w/ it! ;)

Safari Hunter and his TWO lions

"Halloween on the lawn" at UVA...it was INCREDIBLE to see all the people that come out for this annual event!!

Brad and Jay (Robin's husband) with their lion cubs

Just takin a break from the running around

Hudson is always "smitten" with the little girls! ;)

We tied a balloon to Hudson's tail so we could keep an even CLOSER eye on him! ;) (isn't UVA gorgeous... it a beautful campus!)

Finally, back home visiting w/ our neighbors... they ADORE Hudson and it makes him feel so special (I seriously think he thinks he's an 8 year old??!!). ;)

"Trick OR Treat" :) :)

Our sweet neighbors Jeff and Tanya (they have 3 children and the dog, Riley!) ;)

One of Hudson's VERY favorite people.. Liz! You can tell Hudson is "pooped"...

What a great Halloween! :) I would just like to say how wonderful it was having my parents here this week... I know I sometimes give them a hard time b/c I like things a "certain" way... but Bee and Dee are sooo HELPFUL and extremely "attentive" to Hudson!  They have a very special bond/relationship w/ him... Hudson ADORES them and he's mastered their names... "Beeeee" and "Deeeee"!!! :) A perk to keepin the names simple!!! ;) I love you Mom and Dad...ThAnKs for everything!! ;)

Football and FUN!!!

While Brad and my dad went to the UVA vs. Miami game... my mom and I took Hudson to Carter's Mtn...more pumpkins, apples, etc.. Ya'll know how much I LOVE the "fall stuff"!! haha! ;)

Well...I'm sad to say that Brad's team (Georgia Bulldogs) LOST today... it was an awful way to lose!  Tied 31-31.. went in to over-time and LOST to a field goal kick..isn't that the WORST??!!  Even though I'm NOT a "bulldawg" fan... I did feel bad for the dawgs to lose that way!!  Here Hudson is getting excited wearing his GA jersey that his Grandaddy (Brad's dad) bought him! 
And as much as I'm trying to be "humble" my #1 TEAM (in the COUNTRY)... AUBURN won again TODAY! :) Auburn 51  Ole Miss 31 ... WAR EAGLE!!!! ;) "Lights, Cameron, Action"... Seriously, y'all have to ADMIT... Cam Newton is a STUD!!!! ;) ;)

A MUCH needed DaTe NiGhT!!!

While Bee and Dee (my parents) were in town this week/weekend... Brad and I went on a MUCH needed date night!! ;) We went to a local winery and had some delicious WINE and CHEESE/sausage...and then went to dinner in Crozet (b/c DUMBama was in C'ville)...it was a wonderful night and I'm so thankful Brad and I were able to go!!! ;) Thanks Bee and Dee!!

Enjoying my WINE, amazing cheese (and I'm not even that crazy about cheese), and sausage! YUM!

F-I-N-A-L-L-Y!!!!!!

FINALLY... this video uploaded!! I have been trying since Saturday... this is in HONOR of Saturday morning/College GAMEDAY (WAR EAGLE)!!! ;) Hudson was having a "paci" kind of morning... and PLEASE excuse our house... it was Saturday morning and Hudson was having a blast with all his toys!! ;)

My latest "creation"...

I don't know if this is "worth" blogging about but I'm so excited I was finally able to make the "pumpkin" cake I found in a PARENT magazine! It definitely does NOT look like the picture in the magazine but at least I tried... and it tasted delicious!! ;)

I remember my mom always having special traditions with festive place mats, specific recipes for a certain time of year/holiday, etc.. so I may be making this PUMPKIN cake around HaLLoWeeN every year... hopefully I can "perfect" it!!! ;) haha!!

A little "pre" HaLLoWeeN FUN!!! ;)

Charlottesville always has alot to offer young families, kids, etc... Saturday was the annual trick-or-treating at the downtown mall... we had a great time! Here is Hudson with our little friend, Maddie (Amanda and Joe's precious little girl).

Hudson and Jack as adorable little Lion cubs... and no, we did not purposely buy the same costume (we both knew we bought Lion costumes but had no idea it was the same one!!) haha!! ;)

I was proud of Hudson for wearing his costume...we put it on him about a month ago and he screamed... so it was a NICE surprise to see him wear it with such "pride"... I'll probably paint on "whiskers" for HaLLoWeeN!! TOO CUTE!! :) Oh yeah... WAR EAGLE!!! I'm soooo proud of Auburn... WOOHOO!!!! ;) ;)

Saturday morning "ritual"

Hudson knows exactly what he wants... he's extremely "opinionated"! He goes everywhere with "purpose"... including outside! Sometimes he goes straight to the trampoline, or the neighbors house, or playground, etc... but it seems like Saturday mornings (when daddy's home)... he wants the WAGON!!! ;)

My friend Robin knows how much I love pumpkins and "festive" clothing for Hudson... she bought H this adorable jack-o-lantern hoodie!! Such a sweet and thoughtful friend... THANKS ROBIN!!!! ;)

Stay tuned... I recorded a very funny/cute video of Hudson and Brad playing football this morning but I'm having a difficult time uploading it... URGH...

Hudson's FiRsT "real" haircut!! :)

How cute is this place?? It's called "Snip Its".. an adorable little children's barber shop that just opened!! I've given Hudson a little mommy "trim" TWICE.. and I thought I did a VERY good job...that is until it started growing back?! I started realizing how "choppy" his hair looked... so needless to say he needed a little "professional" haircut!! The lady (Jessica) did a GREAT job and Hudson seemed to LOVE IT!! :)

Doesn't he look so "grown up" in the chair... :(

He spotted the animal crackers in the cookie jar... he's eating and watching the baby!! So cute!! ;)

He got a PRIZE for being such a good little "customer"!! ;)

Yes, Another Pumpkin Patch... :)

Yes, it appears The Brown's can't get enough of the Pumpkin Patch(s) this year! But this time we went w/ some of our BEST friends here in C'ville (the Harms, Fisher's, and Hines families). We ALL have boys around the exact same age... so it made for a FUN day! Afterwards, we went to Jill/Luke's (Harms) house for dinner! Robin and I made Stromboli... it was delicious! And Jill made Chimichanga's for DESSERT... incredible! Sadly, while most of our friends up here in the "north" are not SEC fans... I did sit and watch the AUBURN game (with Robin and Brad)... WAR EAGLE!!! :)

I must say... this kind of thing (petting zoo, corn maze, pumpkin patches, etc..) is SO MUCH fun w/ Hudson! I'm loving this age! It just seems like last year we had so much going on w/ moving, Brad transferring territories, leaving my job, etc... that the FALL just slipped away. I'm VERY thankful we're able to really enjoy it this year... and Hudson is TOO!! :) :)

I LITERALLY fell in the barrel of pumpkins... glad they were there to catch my FALL!! haha!! ;)

Happy Friday!! :)

I apologize for these pictures... they're not my best but I wanted to show a typical afternoon for Hudson... he absolutely LOVES the kids on our street! And to our delight... the kids LOVE him just as much!! These are just 2 of the 10 kids on the street... sadly there are no toddlers but he actually prefers the older kids!? It appears that Hudson THINKS he's older than he really is... haha! ;)

Happy Friday! ;)

Have you thought about the DASH on your tombstone??

I know you may not have alot of time but when you do... please read this post of my friend back in MS... her husband is the small groups pastor at our old church in Mississippi... I'm blown away!! I've never thought about the DASH on our tombstone?!?!

HaPpY FALL Y'ALL!!!! :)

Well, it seems no matter where you live it's that wonderful (my favorite!) time of YEAR...FALL!!! It's all about harvest, apples, pumpkins, HaLLoWeeN, beautiful leaves, cooler temperatures (a "perk" to living in VA ;), a warm fire, cute fashion (boots, scarves, etc... ;) ), "hearty" food/recipes, FOOTBALL and the HOLIDAYS fast approaching...how can you not LLOOOVVEEE this time of year!?!? :) Just a few pictures to go along w/ my post... so from our home to yours... HAPPY FALL Y'ALL!!! :)

If Hudson could name his best friend... I'm pretty sure he'd say RILEY, the neighbors DOG!!!! :) I know, I know... Hudson needs a dog!

A "peek" into our night time...

Hudson loves books...he's actually completely entertained by books with bright and colorful "objects" and of course, ANIMALS (animal books are his favorite!!). In this first picture... Hudson brought me his book and positioned himself just perfectly on my FACE for storytime...haha!!! ;)

In this picture we are "GROWLING" like a BEAR... is it obvious how MUCH I LOVE my son??!! :)

CCCHHHHHEEEESSSSEEEE!!!!!!!!!! :)

Hudson has been putting our cell phones and even remote controls (that look like phones) up to his EYES or forehead (the forehead is the funniest) and saying..."eeeesssssseeeeee"(aka--CHEESE)!! That's what we tell him when we're trying to take a picture... I was finally able to "catch" him in action but this time he didn't have the phones/remote... haha!!! :)

Our good friends Jill and Ethan came over this morning for a little playdate... Hudson NEVER goes willingly into his "playpen" but Ethan LOVED it so Hudson wanted to join him... :) It was nice for .5 seconds until they wanted out...running all over the place! And YES-- Ethan is wearing GAP skinny jeans for boys... :) so cute!

Apple Festival!!! :)

We attended the annual Apple Festival today at Carter's Mountain (near Monticello)... we could not have been MORE "unprepared" for the crowd of people... I think everyone from the entire STATE of Virginia was there at the SAME time!!! :)

The first picture is of Hudson outside playing in the cool fall air... it felt AMAZING (49 degrees) this morning!!

FUN pumpkin pictures... the line was soooo long we didn't buy a pumpkin but we'll get one SOON! I have our entire house decorated for FALL so Hudson is able to enjoy the "fake" ones!! ;)

We DID buy the delicious Apple DONUTS, apples, cider, and "baby" pumpkins... it was a perfect day to enjoy the Autumn "festivities"!! :)