Apple Fun?

Orchards are fun. Nobody cries at an apple orchard. There's tons of room to run, it's fun to pick apples, there are fall beauties everywhere you turn, there are pumpkins and lots of treats to look at and sample. Chris and I packed up the kids to head out to have some family fun to a nearby orchard. I packed a picnic lunch and had read to Jensen books about apples - how they grow, what an orchard is, etc. We got to orchard #1 (that's right, we went to two) where the woman behind the counter said that they were not a U-Pick orchard nor could you walk around the grounds unless it was on a Saturday for one of their fall festivals in which case you had to pay several dollars a person to enter. Hmmm...I should have called ahead. The only thing you could do on the day we arrived was shop in their country store. Not what we had planned. So I got back in the car and relayed the info to Chris. Jensen said that she wanted to go somewhere where people were more friendly. So thanks to Chris' smartphone we found a U-Pick orchard to drive to. The kids didn't nap and everyone was getting hungry so by the time we got to orchard #2 we knew we needed to hurry before the window of pleasantness closed. We ended up getting a nice big bag of apples and got a few pictures between the tears. Yes, people do cry at an orchard. Even though the afternoon was not our family's finest moment, Jensen still talks about the fun we had and had a great time celebrating Apple Week at home. We made apple butter in the crockpot, apple chips (which were kind of a flop), made a painting of an orchard complete with bumblebees, and made an apple family tree with each member of the family contributing a hand print. We also had a apple seed toss and did stamping with the the star part of the apple. Even though there were tears at the orchard I consider Apple Week a success.

I didn't caption the pictures...Jensen wanted to show off her green froggy boots. She also wanted to show her orchard painting...she painted a few of the trees with the leaves blowing which you can see in her brushstrokes. Poor Hayden was so tired he wouldn't smile in front of the pumpkins.

Swimmy

Hayden started rocking back and forth on all fours last night, but this is the position he normally is in...on his belly with all four limbs in the air moving...Jensen thinks he's trying to swim. Will he be crawling soon?

Snuggle Bug

I left napping children with Chris while I ran to the grocery on Sunday afternoon. Hayden apparently had trouble staying asleep and could not calm himself down. Chris snuggled up with him on the couch and he slept there for an hour and a half! This is a rare moment for our kiddos who seem to only sleep well in their beds! It may make me a bad mom, but I kid of like it when my kids are sick so that they'll want to snuggle up a bit more than normal. :) While he didn't get much work done while I was away, I think Chris kind of liked it too.

Happy Fall!

The Best Cornbread Ever

I got this recipe from our MOPS newsletter. It goes great with chili, mexican, and bbq chicken. I never liked cornbread until I tried this...it's so much more moist than most recipes!
1 cup flour
1 cup sugar
1 cup cornmeal
1 cup sour cream
dash of salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 egg
2 tbsp oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix all ingredients together and bake in a greased 8x8 square pan for 30 minutes. (I usually add a bit less sugar and a bit more sour cream until the consistency looks right.)Yum!

Ants on a Log

I try my best to find creative things for Jensen to do...I don't know how many times a day she asks me to do a craft...way too many to count. We made ants on a log the other day. She was excited to do the making, but when it came to eating she wasn't sure that the ants were really raisins and ended up picking them off before consuming the snack.

Little Buddy

A Calling?

Jensen's first chance at being a flower girl made a big impact on her life. Even though my brother's wedding was months ago she still talks about and practices dropping flower petals on the floor, nice sparkling wedding dresses and of course "whooping it up" on the dance floor. She was definitely in her element all night. Even though she danced with just about everyone luckily Daddy got one of the first dances with her. Hayden spent the weekend mostly in the arms of one of my aunt's and slept through an awful lot of loud music and blinking lights....that is until our drive home. Oh well! The drive home made us more thankful to actually be home I guess!
I had to put a few pictures in of our little rolly polly Haydie. He is getting big so fast! Most of these pictures are from a while ago though he is just a smiley! He is very talkative and usually communicates in grunts or short screeches. He is now rolling side to side and multiple times. I've found him under his bed a few times like he's hiding. He often looks like a swimmer...both arms and legs on the move, but not crawling yet. We love you Hayden!

Guess Who Is 3?

Jensen was thrilled to celebrate her birthday several times with grandparents and also with a few friends that we invited over. She helped bake cupcakes, decorate the kitchen and blow up balloons to fill the family room. The party goers enjoyed (hopefully) eating together, fishing with the dad's down at the lake, cupcakes and icecream and making sun visors to take home. Jensen had no idea that she would be getting gifts and happy to open and play with each gift given...over and over! Some of her gifts included Strawberry Shortcake characters, singing cards (which she danced to over and over), a pioneer set and her favorite...a two wheeled bike like her good friend's...complete with a princess helmet and bell. She's pretty good at pedaling and getting around...braking is another story! We love you Jensen!

Hayden Christopher

Sweet Hayden entered our world. What a blessing! We're getting adjusted to life as a family of 4!