Saturday, November 7, 2015

Havin' A Ball in the Fall!!

The fall has been full of new experiences and new schedules. We are enjoying all the times we are having as a family and the fall as it is one of our favorite seasons! It has been a warm fall here so far, but one that has made me long for the colors of the South. The trees are nice here, but there is just something special about a Southern Fall to this Southern Girl and the richness of the colors of the leaves in the hills and mountains of the South. (I guess you can take the girl out of the South, but you can't take the South out of the girl!)




 We started the Fall by checking off apple picking. This has been on our bucket list for a looooong time! We had plans to go last year in the mountains, but God had other plans to move us here, so we waited another year! We had a great time and loved the apples!

Ben's sister came and visited his parents and we were able to see them and have them meet Mia! Gotta love Quinny, she has her own ideas when it comes to pictures!
 While Daddy was out of town, we went to the zoo. They were cleaning the bear habitat at the zoo, so the girls and I got to go inside! It was pretty fun to go in their habitat and see where they like to roam at the zoo!
 We had a great time at the corn pit before picking out our pumpkin!



 Mia's face is adorable! She had the best smile!

 We celebrated Daddy! He is now the big 3-5!!!

 We carved our pumpkins! Ellie got really into it this year! It helped that they carved one at school for Pumpkin Science.
 Excited for carving!!

 Quinn picked Ben's (the face) and Ellie picked mine (the owl)!
 We had Elsa, Rapunzel and for the last time our little butterfly! We waited for Daddy to get home from work and then headed out! We went the furthest yet and Mia had a great time riding in the stroller. Ellie, Quinny and Mommy went to all the doors. Mommy did a lot of trick or treating and they were kind enough to share their Almond Joys with me, which they don't like and I do, so win-win! Quinny was loving it! She would have gone for quite a while, but Ellie was tired and so was Daddy. We had a great time and they got a good amount of candy to choose from!

 We also made Mummy Dogs!
 Ellie's school had a costume parade for parents to come to and each class had a party. We all went to the parade and then Mommy and Quinny stayed for the party while Daddy took Mia home.
 Ellie and her teacher! All the Kindergarten teachers were rainbows! Ellie is LOVING Kindergarten! She is rocking it! She was Student of the Month in her first month of school! We had her conference last week and she has met all the goals for the end of Kindergarten already! She is beginning to have assignments and activities for reading and math that are specific to her to challenge her and allow her to continue to excel. We are so proud of her and her teacher is AMAZING! Ellie absolutely adores her. Ellie is our child that always wants to meet the goal and push herself beyond it. She desires to do things right and well, it is ingrained in who she is, so she has made this time more than easy. Not only has she excelled in academics, but she is a great friend and has a fun personality to match, or as her teacher says, a little flare! God has tremendously blessed us!

 We also made it to one more Twins game!
 Ellie has been a writing machine...
 and lost another tooth, with two more itching to come out!
 This little cutie finally learned to eat on her own! Huge thank you to the Bible Study ladies!
 She is also working on helping with the laundry!
 These two tested out the ice fishing tents! (Where are we living!?!)
 And we made sure to get back to the corn pit one more time with our buddy Caleb!



Saturday, October 10, 2015

September Adventures

We have been busy getting into our new routine. Having Ellie in school has been a new adjustment and reorganization of our time. Mia, Quinn and I are also back to bible study once a week, Quinny has started swim lessons and Ellie is back to Awana. We went on good adventures in September and Quinny started Mommy school. It has been a busy month, but a fun one!

 Love taking this animal lover to the zoo for play dates! She loves the animals!!
 Sweet Mia!
We are a bike riding family now! I grew up riding bikes with my family very regularly and Ben and I are excited to ride with our girls in whatever form we need to! These two are loving the bike trailer!
 Quinny started swim lessons!
 The first day the pool won as she screamed each time they took her from the wall. They suggested a Mommy and Me class and so...

 we BEAT the pool! Quinn is getting more confident with each lesson! Though it wasn't the ideal for Mommy to take lessons too and we are trying to get her comfortable with separation, it is working well and they know our goals and she is succeeding. I will do what it takes for her to be a success at anything she strives for, so if that means I am jumping in the pool each week for lessons together, then I am doing it!
 We have learned to play some serious card games around here!
 We have been cooking treats for Ellie to come home to!

 GrannyFranny knows this girl's heart! When she sends clothes, these girls are over the moon and they are always perfect! Quinny LOVES animals and could not wait to wear this the next day to church! Her giraffe dress was perfect as they started the story of creation at church!
 We were invited to a preview night at Chik-Fil-A! It was an awesome experience! In the South, Chik-Fil-A is everywhere, but here, this is only the 3rd one in the area and one of the few places around we can get SWEET TEA! I am a Southern girl and sweet tea is a must! We got to taste a sampling of everything as they served us and prepared to open. It was something we had no idea what to expect, but was really amazing! This one is styled in a completely different way, I call it kind of farmhouse chic. I have never seen one this way and it was really a cool environment and of course the service was amazing as it is Chik-Fil-A.
 A little sad that her frozen lemonade was all gone!
 One little lady is tired of getting left behind, so she conquered the stairs!
 Working at our Mommy school!
 Some days are just so tiring!
 Every morning we walk Ellie to school and this morning they held hands the whole way! Be still my heart!
This little lady has been cooking up a storm!