A typical afternoon

our resident zookeeper- he almost always has a stuffed animal in tow, usually 2 giraffes and a puppy!


He is really into coloring lately- pay no attention to the sharpened pencil in my 16 month olds hand!! If he sees A & J doing it, he is going to try it!!

So, if you were to just pop in unannounced one afternoon, especially during the time I am preparing dinner, this is what you are likely to find... Abby dressed in a princess costume either coloring or reading. Jacob carrying around either a small broom or a horse on a stick using it as a guitar and singing imagination mover songs (although this morning it was a fast paced version of go tell it on the mountain!) and Nathan coloring on a sheet of paper taped to the floor! I think it's the everyday things that I'm most likely to forget. I love this because it is such a reflection of who they are!!

I've been tagged again and again

My friend heather tagged me a while back on her blog. I didn't respond to her tag so she has begun tagging me again and again and leaving random comments on my blog in an effort to coerce me into participating! Since I'm such a good sport, here it goes. My "tag" instructions were to go to my picture folders, go to the 4th folder and get the 4th picture. This is A and J in the whirlpool tub- otherwise known as bubble heads!
alright stalker, I mean Heather, there you go!!!!

More fall fun!

Today is football day at "school" for Jacob. A special thanks to Mamma and Pappa for getting him this jersey and mailing it to us! He LOVES it! the next Peyton Manning?
Go big orange!!!
practicing with a real football
little man is not willing to be left out of anything fun!!
one of Jacob's best buddies came over to play and they had a great time dressing up!

two silly spidermen- for those who know them, they know this picture is much more them!

A day at Oak Mountain

Yesterday we spent the afternoon at Oak Mountain! It was a beautiful day - perfect for enjoying the cooler weather and changing leaves. We packed a picnic and took their bikes and let them eat, ride, and explore. Later we drove to the top and then hiked down to Pevine Falls. Although it was more of a trickle, the kids loved it. They had a great time collecting leaves, finding sticks, climbing in the trees, and just playing outside.

2 monkeys in a tree!

down in the canyon near Pevine Falls (or trickle!) The leaves were gorgeous!

family in the tree

Jacob collecting a few fallen leaves

resting on the bridge

headed back up!

Halloween

We had a lot of fun for Halloween. Jay came home early so he and A could carve their pumpkin. We trick or treated with some friends from the neighborhood and then had everyone over for dessert afterward. Ms. Jennifer made dirt pudding with gummy worms and scorpions and it was a big hit (I made pretty sugar cookies w/ orange sprinkles!!). It was our first time to trick or treat our neighborhood and it was a great way to get to meet more neighbors!

Cleaning out the pumpkin- you can see Jacob making his escape- he was not so excited about this!

the finished product! These two love to do "artsy" things together, so this was super fun for them.

Nathan, the sad zebra. He cried most of the night, so I thought I'd put it on here. He hated the hat on his costume!

finally caught one of him half-smiling!

Jay and the kids- Jacob is a confused super hero!!

I love this picture b/c it is reality!! We had just handed them all glow-sticks and they were not the least bit interested in having their pictures made! (Notice Nathan still pulling on the zebra hat- at least he's not crying!) We're headed off to trick or treat!

Pumpkin Patch

We went yesterday for our annual trip to the pumpkin patch! This is one of my favorite things we do as a family. The kids love riding the wagon out to the big field of pumpkins and being able to choose one to bring home. This year, Abby was extremely particular and finally, after examining close to 100 pumpkins, found one that was perfect! We let them choose one extra activity and they both chose the pony ride! After our picnic, they ran in the big field, watched the helicopter take off, and ate cotton candy! It was a perfect fall day. Abby and the scarecrows!
Friends, Trevor and Taylor, waiting for the helicopter to land
with our friends on the wagon ride
Nathan in the pumpkin patch
Jacob's 1st pumpkin

Nathan, Abby, and Jacob on the bumpy pumpkins!
Such a classic family picture! Two smiling and one with his lip stuck out!
Abby and Cas the pony!
Jacob's 2nd pumpkin
On the wagon ride out to the pumpkin patch!

14 months and Fall fun!!!

A couple of weeks ago, I went on Abby's first K field trip- the zoo! We had a great time together. It was the first time I went to the zoo w/out a stroller in 5 years!!Abby, Ms. Candler (her teacher), 2 classmates and Abby's fave animal- the HIPPO!!!
Abby at the zoo!

Abby and Jacob have been on fall break since last Thursday and we have loved every minute of it! It has been so nice to sleep in, stay in our pajamas longer, eat chocolate chip pancakes, and play outside. We took Jacob to pick out a new bike- he has been riding Abby's for a while and that gets tricky when she's home and wants to ride too!!

Jacob's new bike!!

Nathan turned 14 months yesterday and has been walking for almost 2 weeks. He's still wobbly and tries to go WAY too fast, but he sure is proud of himself and cute in the process!

sitting in the bean bag looking at books!!
chocolate chip pancake face!! SOOO kissable!
1st time to wear shoes!

big boy walking!

Fun snack idea!!

I went to Abby's class to day to read them a story. I also took them a little snack that was SOOO easy and a tremendous hit. 1 box of wafer ice cream cones (24 in box), 3 cups popcorn, 2 cups multi-grain cheerios, 1 cup dried fruit, 1/2 cup yogurt covered raisins. Mix popcorn, cheerios, fruit, and raisins together and scoop into cones. To transport, I covered each with a small piece of saran wrap and secured it with a rubber band.

Her class loved it! I feel like it was pretty healthy (I just added the yogurt covered raisins, they were an afterthought b/c mine love those) We had quite a bit of filling left over, so i served it with their lunch today!!

Happy snacking!!

Knoxville to see Mamma and Pappa

We went to Knoxville to spend some time with my grandparents. We had gorgeous weather and spent Saturday outside enjoying it. We took the kids down by Neyland Stadium so they could see the thousands of tailgaters and the people who come in for the game on their boats. If you have never been to a home game in Knoxville, it is a great experience! Then we headed on over to a nearby park, for a picnic and lots of fun. That night we went to Pigeon Forge for the Dixie Stampede! We had a great visit!!Abby log rolling!
doing the slide together!
Jacob up high!
coming down the tunnel slide- excuse Abby's head, I love his expression!

Nathan w/ mamma and pappa at the park
Jacob loves Pappa's riding lawnmower!!
writing and drawing together!
they were like 2 little old men sitting on the porch- talking and looking around!!
at the Dixie Stampede in Pigeon Forge- such a fun treat for the kids. It's a dinner show complete with cowboys, Texas Longhorn Cattle, Square dancing, pig racing, ostrich racing, lasso contests, dancing- they LOVED it!!