Preschool Field Trip to Mize Pumpkin Farm

Yesterday my 3 year old class went on a field trip to Mize Pumpkin Farm.  Its a small farm but plenty big enough for ten 3 year olds!  We had a great time and all the kids had fun picking out pumpkins, pulling each other in the wagons and their favorite, the hay ride.  Mr. George is always eager to take the kids on a hay ride around the farm and then gives each one a special "treat" when they come up and tell him their names.  Since we had been reading books at school about pumpkin patches and farms, it was fun to get to go with the kids to pick out real pumpkins.  We will use these pumpkins for our pumpkin hunt and decorate them at school.  I really LOVE this time of year.  There are so many fun things to do.  I especially enjoyed this year because not only do I get to be the teacher, but my own sweet girl is one of my students so I got to be Mama too :)

Cohen & Madison.  They collected lots of pumpkins in their wagon :)

Madison pulls Cohen & Brody

Gathering more pumpkins

Ready for the hayride.  It was hard to get a picture with the sun shining right in their faces

One with Mama, her famous smile and NOT looking at the camera

Cohen and the pumpkin she picked out

Happy Birthday Brock!

Last week we celebrated Brock's 9th birthday.  This post is a little late, but better late than never :)  I really can't believe he is 9.  I was there right when he was born and he has been a blessing ever since.  Brock is one of these little boys who you just love to be around.  He is always happy and energetic and he is a lover!  You will always get a hug from Brock.  Brock has always been special because he is the baby of my 3 nephews and even lived with us for a while last year.  Kelly and I always say this may be our only "Boy" since we have a house of girls so far.  

I think he had a very good birthday though!  We all went out to eat for his birthday and then came back to our house for cake and presents.  Paula had to work late but was able to make it for the presents which was his favorite part I know!  I think he got everything on his "birthday" list and you will see from the pictures, he was very excited!  Happy Birthday Brock, we love you and are so proud of you!

Happy Birthday Brock!

Coco!!

They love each other!

Brock's football cake

Brock & Kate

So excited over his new iPod touch from Grandma

New XBOX game...

Now smiling because he knows he's getting an XBOX

Smiling on our gift to him...razor scooter 360

trying it out...

A picture of me and the hubs

We love our Brock!!

Fall Fun

Over the weekend we got to take advantage of the beautiful fall weather.  Yesterday was so nice so we decided to go to Anderson, SC to Denver Downs farm.  We went to this place last year and Brock has asked me a few times if we could go back to "that fun place" again.  Its only open on weekends and our weekends are so full that we have to go any spare minute we can.  I have weddings to photograph twice this month and then we have Halloween festivities coming up so we picked Brock up a little early from his travel ball practice and took off!  If you've been to Denver Downs you know there is plenty of fun to have. They have a pumpkin patch, corn maze, hayride, tons of games, kid rides, animals, and a barn complete with a rope swing.  Cohen and Brock enjoyed all the fun things to do while Kate happily rode in her stroller.  She fussed to get out once and when I took her out, I think she was amazed at everything going on.  She really looked at the baby pigs!  These piglets were only a week old and I have to say they were pretty cute.  I really love fall and all the fun that comes along with it.  I wish this weather would stay like this for a while.  Everything just seems extra beautiful right now :)

Cohen leading Daddy through the "mini" corn maze

Brock, Cohen, & Kate

Riding the horse swing

Coco checking out the baby pigs

Waiting at the bottom of this big slide for Cohen

Here she comes...started forwards and ended up sideways/backwards.  Her tights helped her speed :)

Trying to get the football through the tire

This sums her up!  Mad because she couldn't get the ball in.  Her famous hands on hips and pouty face

Smiley!

Cohen takes a ride on the cow train

Our Annual Trip to Sky Top Apple Orchard

Over the weekend we made our annual trip to Sky Top Apple Orchard.  Kelly and I have been going to this orchard for the past 5 years.  We started going the fall that I was pregnant with Cohen.  We love this place so much that it has become a tradition to go each year.  We meet up with our friends from Charlotte and it has been so neat to watch our babies enjoy it more and more each year.  The best part about the orchard is the homemade apple cider donuts!  This year they were making pumpkin donuts too so it was twice as nice!  I also love their apple cider slushies.  When we got there we went ahead and bought some apples and donuts then we were off to explore the orchard.  We let Cohen take a basket and pick apples from the trees and this year we were excited that there were a good many apples on the trees.  Some years depending on the weather there may not be any left except higher up in the trees.  They also have a bamboo forest, animals to see and hayrides.  It does tend to get crowded in the afternoons.  Everyone had a great time.  Afterwards we headed back to Charlotte for a night with our good friends Michael and Amy.  Amy and I have been pregnant together during both our pregnancies.  Her boys are 1 month older than my girls.  It is so fun to get together and have adult time while our kids play well together.

Carrying the babies

picking apples

Ashton and Kate

Family picture

Kate got a kick out of watching Cohen swing

Her own little pumpkin patch inside the barn

Kate at 4 months

I am playing catch up on my blogging because we were out of town over the weekend.  I feel like I just posted on Kate being 3 months old but as we all know time moves so fast!  I feel like she was just born.  I can't say enough how sweet Kate is.  God really blessed us with such a sweet, good baby.  I just enjoy her so much!  We went for her 4 month check-up last Thursday and here are some of her stats:
Weight- 13 lbs 6 oz
Length-24 1/4 inches
Head -16 1/4 inches
She is pretty much in the middle of all 3 charts and in the words of Dr. Setia, she is "perfect".
We will be starting her  on cereal pretty soon.

At 4 months Kate:

• Loves her hands, she has found her fingers and loves to put them in her mouth
• Holds toys and they quickly go straight to the mouth as well
• Loves to lay on her play mat
• Smiles constantly
• Coos and makes sweet noises
• Can almost roll over.  She gets stuck on her arm.  I also have a hard time laying her down:)
• wears 3-6 month clothes
• varies on how she sleeps, sometimes all night, sometimes she eats once, and some nights lately she has still eaten twice.
• Loves her big sister!  Cohen can come right up to Kate and immediately a smile is on her face
• has almost out grown her bassinet which makes Mommy very sad!
• Kate gets told she looks like a lot of people, some say me, some Kelly, others Cohen and she even has a few say she looks like Brock.  So we sum it up to say she is one cutie patootie!

Here are a few snapshots of her lately.  Her laid back, happy personality is so fun to capture on camera.

Playing on her mat

Loves her bumbo chair!

I had to post one of my favorite--chunky little thighs!

Mommy's Lil' Pumpkin

I had to share the latest pictures I took of my sweet Kate!  I often will take pictures of Kate and Cohen with my phone so I can send them via text message to some of our family and friends in Charlotte.   I like for them to see the girls, especially during sweet/funny moments.  Well last weekend I sent my friend Tara a picture of Kate and her response was a picture of a baby in a pumpkin saying "I expect to see Kate in a pumpkin soon".  Well not to disappoint, I went out and bought a pumpkin, carved it, and in she went!  I have to say that my precious Kate is always a good sport for her mommy and of course I think she is the sweetest, most adorable pumpkin ever!  So of course I have Tara to thank for the inspiration and Kate for being my sweetest model ever!  Happy Fall!

Wouldn't you love to know what is going through her head now...

All smiles in her pumpkin!