read any good books lately?

Noboday asked me that! But this Q&A session certainly qualifies as a novel!

First, let me just say that I loved receiving so many comments, and it was fun to see new names participating! I've actually been blogging for almost TWO YEARS now, so this giveaway was long overdue! I'm going to categorize the questions since many of you were curious about similar things...

Halloween
Mama asked: What are the boys going to dress up as for Halloween this year?
Happily, I was able to convince Harrison and Sawyer to go along with my Knight and Dragon theme, all it took was promising Sawyer that he could carry a sword too
Holly asked: do you have any fun Halloween traditions that you do with your children, or are there ones you want to start?!
Nothing original - we visit the same pumpkin patch each year, and navigate the corn maze, take a hayride, carve pumpkins...
Kelly asked: I want to know what kind of creepy fun foods you make to celebrate the spooky day.
None! As a boy mom, I really need to get more in touch with my "gross!!!" side.
My mom asked: What was your favorite Halloween Costume as a kid?
I loved dressing up as Laura Ingalls, with my sunbonnet and a borrowed skirt from mom-mom. Sadly, the memory is tainted by the fact that it was the same year John dressed as a pregnant woman... I also enjoyed being a 50's girl with poodle skirt and saddle shoes, but I was 16 by the time I discovered this perfect-for-me, costume, so I'm not sure if it qualifies...
Jenn asked: What are you looking forward to this fall?
Fall is my favorite season! I'm most looking forward to sweaters and being back on a schedule with the boys! I love putting pumpkins on the porch and going to Harrison's soccer games, the cooler weather, the pretty leaves...I love it all!

Disney World Vacation
Monique asked: I want to know where you're staying for your Disney vacation in Dec. and how long you're going for and every other detail imaginable.
We are going to Disney the first week of December (tsk, tsk for Harrison's school absence) and staying at The Wilderness Lodge We have 7 day park hopper tickets, and signed up for the meal plan. I made our reservations through AAA which was less overwhelming and slightly discounted.
Kelly (came back and) asked: What character dinners/Break./lunch have you scheduled at Disney? What other types of eating reservations have you made in advance?
12/1 Liberty Tree Tavern
12/2 Ohana’s
12/3/Kona’s Café
12/4/Whispering Canyon Café
12/5 Safari Breakfast @ the Tusker House
12/6 Garden Grill
Jeri asked: Aside from Disney, are you planning any other family vacations?
No, we kept this summer low key with day trips - for sanity (our boys aren't the best travelers) and budgets sake.

Baby (Names)
Kara asked: My question is are you going to add to your family?
We'd like to start trying for #3 when we get back from Disney
Kristi (our winner!) asked : Would you like to try for a little girl, and if so what would you name her?
I definitely want a third, and if it happened to be a girl, I would be in pink heaven! For naming purposes, a boy would be easier because both Jonathan and I love Graham Dalton. For a girl, he only wants the name Audrey Caroline - which was our girl name when I was pregnant with Harrison. I am not a name recycler, and I would prefer something less popular then Audrey has become. Caroline was my grandmother's name, and I LOVE it, but it's also very popular in our circles, and Jonathan doesn't want to use it for a first name anyway...well, unless we could use his grandmother's name as the middle name which was Selma....which means NO WAY!
Our (very) short list
*Darby Caroline (when we we were dating I wasn't as vocal about the fact that we would never own a dog, and Darby was tossed around as a potential pet name. Jonathan has an issue with this. And I would prefer something more glaringly obvious as a girls name)
*Maren Caroline (Jonathan disliked a former neighbor named Mara and has association issues) (also my mom hates this name)
Recently, I was able to get Jonathan to agree to the name Felicity - but I'm not 100% sold on it (and it's another name my mom hates). Girl names are so much harder(since Jonathan vetoes everything) Feel free to make suggestions (yes, even though I am NOT pregnant)
Amy asked:My question...if you could have any name other than Janet, what would it be and why?
If I could have any other name, I would in a heartbeat - besides Selma, I can't think of many names I dislike more then Janet. I think it's fitting for a receptionist in her mid-50's. This is why I ignore my moms opinions on names ;) I think if I could, I would choose from my own short list and name myself Maren or Darby. Or Carrie (short for Caroline).

Questions from Melissa & Melissa & Monique's friends (one of whom is named Melissa!)
Melissa asked: What is Harrison wearing for his first day of kindergarten?
I'm pretty sure it will be this polo (which reminds me of a box of crayons) and khaki shorts

Melissa asked: what did you order at CB?
I drool for the french toast at Cracker Barrel - it's total yummy goodness!
Monique's friend Melissa asked: if you had an entire day to yourself, how would you spend it? Or in other words, what is your idea of a perfect day?
The first thing I would do is sleep in (a real luxury since both my boys are roosters) and take my sweet time getting ready for the day. I'd go for a pedicure, read, and stuff myself silly with a delicious dinner out. The mall would still be open after our meal, so I'd shop until closing. In my perfect world, the boys would behave like angels through all of this, and Jonathan would pay for everything without a single complaint about my spending. Bliss!
Monique's friend Lizzy asked: My question is how do you know Monique?
Monique and met seven years ago (how crazy is that!) posting on 2Peas in a bucket scrapbooking site. When Monique was living in Connecticut, we were able to connect for some fun weekends/time together with our families. I am mortified, that the first time I met her I was enormously pregnant and dressed like a watermelon. I actually have a picture of that somewhere...
Monique's friend Wendie asked: What's your favorite room in your house? What makes it your favorite?
I have two favorite rooms - the playroom because it's so cheery and the kitchen because (cliche) it's the heart of our home!

House
Hilary asked: What is your favorite thing about your new house?
Space! I love having additional closets and an extra garage stall. I love that when we have guests over it doesn't feel cramped. I love feeling like everything is organized because it has a designated place in our home.
Tricia asked: What is your favorite holiday to decorate for?
Definitely Fall/Halloween. Christmas comes in second.
The Knight Family asked: OK, for my question - It seems like I liked the color you painted your dining room awhile ago......was it blue... I am not totally sure now. Anyway if it was blue, what was the paint color you used? Or, what is your favorite paint color that you have used in your house?
It was blue! Sherwin Williams Jubilee. My other favorites in the house are also by Sherwin Williams and they are Oyster Bay (blue-green) and Harvester (golden-yellow) in our playroom.

Jonathan
Andrea asked: What was your biggest fight with Jonathan about?
I'm for sure it's not a good thing that I have many fights to choose from. I guess it's a toss up between him buying me a goat for our 5 year anniversary and pretty much our entire California vacation where we fought about family loyalty and how it was time to cut the apron strings. We also had a rather explosive argument once where I chucked a binky at him and it (accidentally! I swear!) hit him in the face. I'd like to say we laugh about it now...but we don't! Omigosh, we can be The Bickersons!
Shannon asked: Where did you and Jonathan go on your first date?
Aaah...happier times! For our first date we attempted to have dinner at The Olive Garden which had too long of a wait so we ended up at some hole in the wall diner, where I ordered a grilled cheese (and Jonathan says I duped him into thinking I was low maintenance girlfriend material). Afterwards, we went to a Christian coffee house (neither of us drink coffee!) and listened to live music with his co-workers (talk about pressure on a first date!)

Miscellaneous
Anne asked: if you weren't a stay at home mom, what would you be? my guess is a buyer for pottery barn or cracker barrel.
My dream job would be to answer questions in an advice column of some sort. Realistically, I'd probably work in retail to get a killer discount somewhere. I've never had career goals....
Angela asked: Okay, so besides your family or any other person, what are three things that you feel you just could not live without?
My faith. Photographs. And it's really hard to choose a third thing - Computer, Diet Coke, house, car, purse, camera...
Nicole asked: If you were a shoe, what kind of shoe would you be and why? LOL, that is my attempt to be deep and philosophical (which I am NOT).
Any shoe from J.Crew - they are a splurge (for me, at least!) and I love splurging on pretty things! Colorful! They are the perfect updated classic in my book!