Pumpkin Patch 2012

Don't you know we had to take our crew to the pumpkin patch this year!

No fun until I see some smiles.  I mean it.  Mama has to have her pictures, you know.

And off we went.

One of the best parts of the pumpkin patch we went to was the pig race.  I LOVE pig races!  I have fun memories of going to the pig races at the state fair with my grandparents. 

 

The pigs' names were awesome.  Brittney Spear-ribs.  Lindsay Lo-ham.  And of course, Kevin Bacon.

And they're off! 

Next we went down an underground slide and rode some little kiddie rides. Then the main event: off to pick some pumpkins!  A tractor ride close-up of Grandma and Papa.

The kids had no problem finding the perfect pumpkin.

Finding the pumpkin: easy.  Carrying the pumpkin: not so much.

We hauled our little pumpkins back home.

One pumpkin fell asleep in his pumpkin seat.  Pun totally intended.

30 Day Photography Challenge, Part II

Here are days 10- 17...

Day 10: Holding hands

Day 11:  Tiny feet

Day 12: Eating breakfast

 

Day 13:  Shoot from above and show how small they are

Day 14:  Quiet time

Day 15:  Playing outside

Day 16: Interacting with siblings/friends

Day 17: Walking away

30 Day Photography Challenge: Photograph Your Kids

Like the title says, I've been doing a 30-day photography challenge with some other moms on Facebook.  As though I need encouragement to take more pictures of my children.  Anyway, I just thought I'd share them here, too.  :-)

Day 1: Self-portrait

Day 2: Your child sleeping.

Day 3: Your child/children reading their favorite books.

Day 4: Your child playing/running around.

This took me a few (hundred) tries, but I caught it! 


Day 5:  Your child with their favorite toy/stuffed animal.

I have a different picture that I like much better and that, you know, actually shows a child.  But Nathan is in his underwear, so I thought I'd post this one instead.


Day 6: Crack the door and photograph what they are doing.

They are playing "Sleeping My Little Ponies."  That was your next guess, right?

 

 

Day 7: Playing in the bathtub

 



 

Day 8: Silhouette

 

 

I want to go back to this bridge sometime when there's a pretty sunset.  I bet that would be a cool shot. 

 

Day 9: Crying/having a melt down

 





 

Eli gets super mad when I wipe his face off after he eats.  The nerve I have, right?  I had my camera ready and he delivered.  See the little tooth down there?  



A Princess Party

To celebrate Brooke's fifth birthday we had us a little princess party. 

 

This was our first "friend" party. Admittedly, I was completely stressed. I've never hosted anything like this. I didn't want anyone to be bored. I worried that they wouldn't have fun if I didn't plan it well.  I poured over Pinterest and made list after list of possible games and activities.

 

Then our sweet friends started coming over, dressed in their little princess dresses, and I immediately stopped worrying.  Really, what was I thinking?  The girls would have fun if I hadn't planned a thing. 

 

 

We started in on the activities. Everybody knows a princess must have a crown, so we started off with some crown decorating.

 



We hunted for Cinderella's lost shoe in the backyard and played Pin the Kiss on the Frog.

 

Next, the moment we'd all been waiting for...Princess Belle!  Yes, the real, live Princess Belle was coming to the party! 

 

We waited for Belle to arrive. 

 

Then we waited some more. 

 

Then her Royal Highness called to let us know she'd be thirty minutes late. Do you know how long thirty minutes is when you're entertaining 8 little girls?  It's long.  I sort of panicked. 

 

Thankfully, two fourth grade girls, Grace and Charly, were at the party.  They were a huge help. Grace and Charly painted the girls' faces and organized some outdoor games.  For these reasons and others, I would please like a fourth grade girl for Christmas.

 

And then...finally...Belle arrived! (Which I missed because I was feeding Eli...sigh.) 

I do love the face on this one...

Turns out, Belle is a pretty fun girl.  She read a book, did the limbo, and played Freeze Dance with the girls, which was a big hit.  She took some pictures with the girls, too.

What's a birthday party without cake?

 

 

It was such a fun and memorable day!  Brooke is still talking about it three weeks later. And do you know what her favorite part was?  She says her favorite part was having her friends here...seriously.  That's how awesome our friends are.  Even better than Belle and cake and gifts like Barbie and My Little Pony. 

 

And that's saying something.





When You Were Four

When you were four...

You wanted to marry Daddy.

Your clothes were a major annoyance.

You learned that baby boys aren't so bad, after all.

Your laugh was infectious.

You (still) loved a good mess.

You dreamed of one day being a mama with three girls.

You learned how to be a really good friend and big sister.

You shared your Papa's love of fancy words.

You thanked God for "parades and parade candy and getting parade candy" and asked God to please make Mama's hydrangeas feel better.

Your creative, artistic side really began to shine.

You picked every weed you could find and gave most of them to me.

You started every other sentence with "Pretend that I'm a princess and...."

You sang like no one was listening...

...and danced like no one was watching.

 Oh, what a sweet year!  Now on to five!!

Happy birthday, Brooke!! What a blessing you are to us! :-)