Happy Halloween!

Just a few quick pictures from last night's Halloween fun.  We shared a great family night with some wonderful friends.  After dinner at our house, the kids hit the street for trick or treating.   We had some really beautiful weather, and considering it was a school night, the neighborhood was pretty ambitious with its decorations, parties, and general festivities.  We definitely had a record turnout of kids!

Simone and Chase pre-trick or treat poses.

And the gang returns home with all their loot...

So much fun!! 

Finally Fall

At long last, it is really starting to feel like fall here. And one of our favorite fall traditions is Spooky Bingo at Simone's school.  We have been going each year since Simone started first grade, and though we've never actually won the bingo, it's a fun night nonetheless.  Each year she picks her costume -- this year she insisted on a toy soldier.

This year's 5th grade Simone (and her last Spooky Bingo) ...

...with her school principal.

And throwback to 2013...

1st grade Simone with daddy at her first bingo.

Our original bingo daubers that we've been using since our very first Spooky Bingo.

The last number of the night!

We made a pretty good bingo team, even if we didn't win.

Playing with a friend during clean up.

A pose on the bingo stage.

Sorry Simone, no luck tonight!

After bingo, we went straight to Noku Sushi for a late night snack.  Simone's favorite...

Today we had a brilliant autumn day exploring a little bit of our very own Loudoun County.  We headed over to Purcellville to enjoy lunch and check out their downtown.

Had lunch on the outdoor patio at Magnolia's. 

This station is at the very very end of the W&OD trail which we've biked parts of several times.  We've yet to bike all the way to the end but we will soon!

 Virginia wine country is such a lovely place anytime of year, but especially on a clear sunny autumn day with the colorful foliage.

Couldn't miss the tea store downtown.  Yes, we of course, bought more tea!

And finally, a shot of the stunning sky as the sun set on our perfect day.  

A Belated Birthday Party

This past weekend we road tripped up to PA to celebrate Simone's birthday with her cousins, per her request.   We combined a few of her favorite activities to construct a day full of birthday fun.

We began with a birthday lunch at a Japanese restaurant called Kome.  All the kids loved the hibachi and Simone, of course, couldn't resist the sushi.

Holding her newest second cousin, Emmy, at the restaurant.

Believe it or not, as often as we eat Japanese food, this was Simone's very first hibachi meal.

Special birthday dessert, compliments of Kome.

 Next up, we organized a birthday scavenger hunt at the local outdoor mall.  The girls had a BLAST with this.  Simone loves, loves, loves scavenger hunts and doing one with her cousins was icing on the proverbial (birthday) cake.

After the scavenger hunt, we headed back to her aunt's house for cake and gifts with the whole family.  

A very fun and successful celebration, indeed! A special day for our special little--that's right, I still get to say little-- girl!!

Birthday Number TEN

Ok everyone... it's about to get real.  Today Simone turned 10 years old!  I won't lie -- I'm having a tough time with this one.  It gets harder every day to think of her as a little kid anymore.  I'm not sure how we got to this point so fast, but I suppose we have a decade of some pretty awesome memories to show for it.

She has asked to have her birthday celebration up in PA at a future point, but tonight we marked the occasion of her actual birthday with a surprise dinner and ice cream with a few of her close friends.  They had such a good time, and as I watched and listened to their little tween conversation as they sat and at blizzards at DQ, I couldn't help but think of just how very few years of such sweet outings remain.  No fear, we will make the most of them all!!

At birthday dinner.  The girls unanimously decided on Thai.

A quick pose near the pumpkins after dinner. 

Ice cream for dessert!

End of the night selfie.

The last two shots are from yesterday when mommy and Simone went for an after school snack and then dessert to celebrate her very last day of being 9 years old.  

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SIMONE!! 

Mommy and daddy love you more than you will ever know!

(hang on tight for the next decade!)

The TOTAL Eclipse

THE DOTSONS SURVIVED THE SOLAR ECLIPSE OF 2017!!!!!

OK, so we didn't get any pictures of today's solar eclipse but I feel like it's an historic milestone to note on Simone's blog to mark the occasion for posterity.

So in honor of today's eclipse which reached maximum coverage in northern VA at 2:42pm, I post these shots of the lunar eclipse that I did take from our house in Sept of 2015 --LOL!

Winding Down the Summer

Well, the leaves on the trees are starting to brown ever so slightly and school starts in just a few days.  But no complaints here.  We've had a terrific summer.  Simone attended a some great summer camps, and we recently enjoyed a terrific visit from Grammy, Pop, and the cousins.

One of Simone's camps was like a mini Disney World (without Mickey, of course).  It had a full kitchen for cooking classes, a bowling alley, a dance theater, and a variety of other activity rooms.  She had a blast!

On a walk with the cousins after dinner -- they just have so much fun together!

This was another camp -- Creative Dance Center.  Simone and her camp mates put  on a great parent show in Friday, and was especially memorable because her cousins got to see her perform too.

Spent a day down on the Mall seeing some monuments and going to the Natural History Museum.

Pop saw an episode of Food Wars that featured DC's very own Pizza Mart and their jumbo pizza slices.  That was it -- it was determined to go and get giant slices for everyone.

All the kids got a kick out of the humongous slices.

Too big to even pick up!

 And of course, we spent some time at the Reston Watermine -- a family favorite.

We had great times this summer and will be sad to see it go.  But spent the weekend finishing up school shopping, and we're all ready for 5th grade! Bring it on!