Happy Halloween!

13 years old and this kid still wanted to go trick or treating! I love that he still wants to go out and get all dressed up and get some candy for free instead of just staying home doing nothing. He certainly misses Chelsea and how they would trade candy at the end of halloween night. He was a ghost and I love that he chose a simple costume. Cheap and easy to make and he was a cute one. He came home with a bag filled with candy and he was satisfied with what he got. He gets his braces off next Monday and he is counting the days until he can eat his gummy bears, skittles and popcorn balls! It was such a fun day and capturing moments in the city all dressed up is always fun. There are times when we wish we lived there and then we look at where we are and say, "the burbs aren't too bad" but nonetheless we always make our halloween adventures a fun time whether here or in the city. Maybe next year we will experience the trick or streets in New York! And just look at all the decor on these brownstone stoops! Absolutely amazing! 

Procession Of The Ghouls!

Last Friday Noah and I saw the Procession of the Ghouls for the first time at the Cathedral church of Saint John the Divine and it was absolutely amazing. Every year the present a film before the big ending and this year they showed the German horror film, "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" which was accompanied by a live organ. The music was perfect. The film was long at first but then it became funny and interesting. Reminded me of the Chaplin movies I used to watch as a kid with my mom. I loved the ending when all the ghouls came out dancing and their costumes were so cool. My favorites were the dancing demons and the skeleton cellist. I love how they interact with the audience. I absolutely loved it and will definitely come next year and bring Jon. It's a halloween event I wish I would have started coming to years ago but am so glad we finally saw it! Captured a few blurry photos...

Matthew Gray Gubler - The Little Kid with the Big Green Hand!

This was our second time meeting with Matthew Gray Gubler and it seems as if I just met him yesterday. I swear we act as if we've known each other for a long time. He was so accommodating to Noah and we loved every second talking with him about his newest book. He is definitely someone we'd like to hang around with. He is hilarious and down to earth and the sweetest human you can meet. I was lucky enough to be the 24th person to meet him and although he arrived late he made quite the entrance. Jon was like a little kid sitting in his VW bug and really enjoyed meeting Matthew for the first time. So glad I had these two come with me to see him again and we had a great time. From what I heard Matthew stayed at the bookstore until 2am or possibly even later! What a guy! He truly loves his fans and appreciates them to the point where he did not rush out of line. I hope that next time my girls get to see him. They were pretty jealous so Matthew, if you're reading this-write another book! haha!

Irving's Legend In Tarrytown!

Last weekend we saw Irving's Legend for the second year in a row. We absolutely love Jonathan Kruk. He truly is a master storyteller and does such a great job. His voice is mesmerizing and the way he tells the story of the Legend of Sleepy Hollow is captivating. We took Noah this time around and he absolutely loved it. He has read the book and seen the movie with Johnny Depp many times! It's not scary to him at all. In fact, he would love to live in sleepy hollow in New York (so would I!) It was a fabulous evening and even though it rained; it gave it so much character as we watched Jonathan tell the story under a tent. We met him after the show and he is the kindest man you'll ever meet. You can tell he loves telling stories and books! My kind of pal. We could have talked all evening about Texas since that's our native state! And Noah's favorite part....was meeting the Headless Horseman! 

Jersey Shore in January 2023.

Who says you can't go to the beach in the fall or in the winter when it's cold. That's the best time because there are no crowds, you don't need to pay for tags, and when the weather is overcast and the waves are choppy it's a good time to take pictures and go surfing. But we didn't go surfing. We just took pictures and along the shore while Noah chased the seagulls and enjoyed the sounds of the waves. We are so grateful to live near the shore and to be able to come here any time of the year! Every now and then we need to hear the sounds of the ocean and pretend you're the only family on earth! Now for some joyful moments with my two favorite boys... 

The Perfect Little Pumpkin Display!

True autumn days have officially arrived here in the east coast and according to the forecast it looks like it's here to stay! Fall is such a short season and the older Noah gets I just want the season to last a bit longer! This is why I'm always taking pictures of everything autumn such as pumpkin patches, fall foliage, and pumpkin displays. The fact that Noah and I are both autumn babies gets us even more motivated for the season and to enjoy all that comes with it. He's always loved pumpkins since he was a toddler and looking back at this post gets me all teary eyed knowing that the years are flying with this kid! We continue to adventure on and over the weekend we stopped by this cute little garden shop. Every time we are on a road trip I will stop at anything that catches my eye and this display did the trick. We just had lunch and as we were roaming around Connecticut passed by this garden nursery in Bethel and it was charming. I think Noah's favorite part of this prop was the truck! So here's hoping for more autumn adventures, and leaf peeping before this season ends and the cold begins!

 

The Martha-Mary Chapel & Redstone Schoolhouse.

After we explored this farm last year we stumbled upon a nearby church where they filmed "The Unholy" and I just had to stop! I love Jeffrey dean Morgan (even though he was not a good guy in The walking dead) but the movie was so good and the fact that it was filmed in New England made it even better. We didn't get to go inside the chapel as it was closed but we did get to go inside this cute little schoolhouse. There had to have been about 20 desks and if I lived back in those days oh how I would have loved coming here for school. Noah mentioned how he probably wouldn't be able to sit in one room all day, but he did like the nostalgia vibe it gave and all the antique desks. 

There is so much history behind the Redstone schoolhouse. The tour guide sat and told us all the history of how this schoolhouse is supposedly the school in the nursery rhyme "Mary Had a Little Lamb." It was very interesting and we could have talked to her all day! They even had a little library outside where you can take a book and Noah grabbed one to read. This gives us an excuse to go back and return it and add an extra book to put inside. Such a beautiful and peaceful spot surrounded by nature. We will definitely come back here again in hopes to go inside the church and take a peek!

SIX & Back To The Future On Broadway!

Broadway shows are the best gifts anyone can give me, and on my 52nd birthday I ended up watching two broadway shows and it was so much fun! I never grow weary of seeing a broadway show. What I do grow weary of is going to Times Square twice in one week! LOL. Don't get me wrong. Times Square is epic and all but the only reason we go there is to see shows and that's it! Maybe if we are in the mood we will walk around and eat at Cane's and capture a few shots, (and of course write our wishes before New Years eve once a year) otherwise been there done that way too many times!

52.

Not sure when I'll stop blogging about my birthday but 10 days ago on September 24th I turned 52. I won't write too much on here about me because what you see is who I am but I will say this....I am extremely thankful to have lived another year. To continue to have my faith in God and to pray and turn to Him whenever I'm at my lowest. To have healthy children and for them to see that no matter what trials they face; they press on and move on with life just like their mama. Thankful that my relationship with all of them is beautiful and that they still take the time to call me when they can! To have an amazing husband who calls me his "Latina drug" because without me he could never function! LOL! Thankful for his hardworking ethic but most of all for our friendship that continues to grow every day. No matter how old we both get we are a team and we are there for each other. It never gets old. Just aging. LOL! I count my blessings for having the life that I have at this moment and that I am in pretty good health. I have embraced my age with love and acceptance and I LOVE how I look! It is liberating to just not care anymore about how one should look once your over 50. And my words of wisdom to anyone who is aging and feels a little bit of insecurity in going grey to just let it go! Believe me, once you are ready to let go and go grey all they way you'll never want to look back. Just move forward and embrace it!  

The WaySide Inn Old Barn.

October is here and even though it's 80 degrees right now the weather is nice and sunny outside. Still, I long for overcast days so I can wear sweaters and drink hot chocolate and apple cider. We should only have these warm temps this week and then it should go back to the 60's! We love road trips during the fall and love venturing out to unknown territory. Last year on my birthday we spent the weekend in New England where we did a bit of traveling and we came upon this cool farm stand. New England has some of the most colorful farms and we stopped by and took some photos. I love, love this time of year and hope to explore more farms as we travel and go on more road trips. Truly quintessential New England. More photos below....