A big TREAT for Halloween!

What a great weekend! Our treat was having Nana and Papa, Aunt Ginny and cousins Hannah, Sam and Seth here! The kids had so much fun playing and laughing and especially trick or treating! We wish they lived closer so we could see them more often. We drove to Yellow Springs on Saturday and went to Young's Dairy to play a little.


We had an early dinner and headed out a little after 6. Cowboy Cooper really loved it! I didn't think he'd walk that whole time but he did bucket and all! Ballerina Ava (who refused to wear her tiara:) had a ball as well....except for some of the scary costumes she ran into. I have to say one house we were walking up to had a sweet older woman handing out candy and a 'grim reaper' kind of think next to her. He had a black sheet over him, scary head, etc. Ava saw it and her eyes got as big as saucers so her aunt Ginny and myself were reassuring her that it wasn't real...it was just a box with a sheet over it, etc. No sooner as we said that he stood up very slowing and started to move toward us!!! Now come on...that isn't helping with my 3 year old who doesn't do well with this stuff!!! I was holding Ava and Seth's hands and as soon as he did that we bolted out of there....there buckets were full enough they didn't need anymore! I have to admit it was scary!

Our neighbor was so thoughtful and brought over the biggest red apples for each of the kids as we started out for the night and he told us that the fire station always has candy for Halloween. So that was our first stop! How fun! This will be a tradition for us...they were grilling out, giving out hot dogs, lots of candy and letting the kids sit in the trucks! This is Seth the Spiderman taking a turn.

Nana, Papa, Aunt Ginny, Hannah, Sam and Seth...will you be our treat again next year? WE sure hope so!

Before Matt's family came we decided to take a turn at carving pumpkins. We hadn't done this as a family yet not knowing how the kids would do. But they loved it! They also loved decorating their own pumpkins with stickers, googly, eyes, pipe cleaners, whatever we could find!

Gymnastics

The last 8 weeks every Thursday night we've walked over to the Y for gymnastics. It has been so much fun! The kids have loved every minute of it! Ava is in the "big girl" class now. Parents cannot help her or be out on the floor with her. I wasn't sure how this would go over at first but she hasn't looked back once! She has loved walking on the beam, trying cartwheels, the trampoline! Ava's teacher has done an incredible job with the kids!

In Cooper's class either Matt or I have to be with him. Ava did this class last year...boy do they have different approaches:) He loves just moving, flopping, flipping, sliding, swinging, bouncing, rolling...you name it, he tries it.

We are so sad the class is over! We are tempted to start them back up again in a week...this or swimming???

Does This Have to Come to an End?

As I sit here now the rain is pouring down and there is a cold wind blowing... oh how I am going to miss these days we've had of absolutely gorgeous weather!! Here's a bit of what fun we've been having.....

Picking pumpkins and more pumpkins!!!

Bouncing in fun jump houses and running through hay tunnels and bouncing some more....

Picking raspberries....YUM!!

We don't want it to end yet!!!

Wait...I Should Know this by Now!

All I can say is EXPECTATIONS!!! Ahhh...they get me every time! Last Friday we had great weather....I don't know if I mentioned it but I LOVE LOVE this time of year and all the fun things that you can do outside! So, I got online and found a farm down in Lebanon where we could go apple picking!! I was so excited because we haven't done this as a family together...we just stick to the pumpkin picking. We pull up to the farm, get out and the first sign Matt sees says, "We apologize but the apple orchard is closed due to a bad crop of apples this season." What?!! I know to some...no big deal. Move on. But I was so sad!! Expectation dashed!
Thankfully, I was able to pull it together and have a fun evening still...picking pumpkins instead:)

Then on to Saturday...a new day! I was looking forward to a Mommy/Daughter day! We had a buy one get one free coupon for Disney Princess on Ice!! Perfect...or so I thought...or actually I wasn't thinking it all through when I bought the tickets. Long story short...I forgot that each Princess story has a Villian... and Ava is very sensitive to these things. Ava was scared...really scared! I won't go into all the details but ugh...I was mad! After waiting it out until intermission, I decided to go ahead and leave and now looking back so thankful I did. Expectations dashed! My emotions were on a roller coaster and I'm thankful God entered in to eventually bring me to a place of asking for forgiveness from my sweet Ava....the redemptive spot in the day - she looked at me, gave me a big hug and said, "I forgive you mama!" Lot's I'm learning about myself, about my kids and how God wants to change and grow me!