Happy Halloween - Pumpkin Patch Style

Two weeks ago we made our annual trip to the local Pumpkin' Patch. Since we had so much fun last year at the 4R Ranch, we decided to go back for round two. I always like to start off with some posing (while I still have the leverage of bribing them with more fun and games) to try to get a "framable" picture of the two of them together.

But shortly after I got them seated, up pulls the horse drawn wagon that brings you out to the Pumpkin Patch and the games. Audrey was quite concerned we were going to miss our ride and Grant was just trying to hurry up and get it over with so he could get on with the fun.

Look, he was even trying to get his sister to cooperate!

I then tried the angle of getting a good individual shot of each of them....

Little Missy still wouldn't smile for her Mama.

There we go! One more good one. And we were off!!!!

Grant had a blast running through the hay bale maze.

But Tootie wasn't so sure about roaming free. She wanted me to hold her the entire time.

Hold her, that is until we found the animals. She is a true animal lover (like her Mama) and she had no problem checking out the baby chicks...

...and even feeding the donkey (actually it was 1/2 donkey and 1/2 horse...go figure!)

There was an adorable little calf to pet.

There was also this silly looking sheep.

Oh, and this glutenous cute piggy.

Grant had a blast digging in the hay to find buried treasure.

Once he found the coveted coin, he got himself a yummy piece of Laughy Taffy.

This was all done while little Sissy sat in the wagon, with her hand nervously in her mouth. I guess I don't have to worry about her wondering off, now do I! (Oh, and what is with the guy in the background with the sleeveless shirt? I was feeling guilty that my kids didn't have jackets on and he doesn't even have sleeves! I know it was sunny, but it was by no means sleeveless shirt weather!)

Next, came the highlight of Grant's day...

Yep, a horse ride. NOT a Pony ride. A full size HORSE ride. There were both options, but he was determined to ride the big one!

And he did awesome! Him Mama was a bit nervous for him, but he did just fine.

Seriously...look at how big that horse is! What a brave little man he is becoming :)

Audrey was pretty excited for her brother too! Can you tell???

And finally, the dismount. I just love this picture of the "cowboy" helping Grant off of the horse.

Next it was off to pay for the pumpkins we had picked.

But not before trying for "just a couple more pictures!"

The kids decided they wanted to pick out a couple of miniature pumpkins as well.

I'm thinkin' Tootie found the one she liked best!

There's my smiley girl with no fingers in her mouth!

Ohhh, another one ;)

This one, I am not sure what was going on (actually I think she was cold and shivering) but the expression on her face sure makes me giggle!

And there is my sweet, sweet boy.

Havin' a great day at the good ole' Pumpkin Patch!

We had family over last night to celebrate Audrey's Birthday and with us not feeling well earlier this week (we - Grant, Audrey and I all had Strep and now have nasty head colds), we still haven't had a chance to carve our pumpkins. Guess we'll have to do that today before heading out to do a little Trick-or Treating.

Hope this Halloween bring you many smiles and memories you will cherish forever.

Happy Halloween!

Happy 2nd Birthday, Baby Girl

Two years ago today at 8:27 AM I gave birth to the most beautiful baby girl I have ever laid eyes upon.

The picture below is the actual first picture ever of my sweet Audrey Mae.

Little Tootie was due to arrive on November 1st but instead, she arrived 3 days early. She was so pretty and so perfect...and much smaller than we had expected.

Grant was 8 lbs 8 oz at birth and the Dr. approximated her (not knowing she was a "she" as we did not find out the sex) at 7 lbs with 3 weeks left in my pregnancy. As you can see by the scale below, this little monster weighed in at 6 lbs 12.9 oz and measured 19". Much tinier than anticipated to say the least.

Her Daddy and I were so happy to have a little princess join our family.

I actually think I was in a bit of shock as I could hardly believe my dreams had come true. A little boy and now a little girl to love so dearly.

I deeply cherish those moments of holding my babies for the very first time. There is no other feeling in the world that compares to holding your child for the first time.

I have to say I was quite surprised at all of her dark hair. Grant had very light and very little hair at birth but she came out with a full head of dark brown softness.

She was so angelic and had such a delicate sweetness about her.

Yes, October 29, 2007 was the day that my life was forever changed by the love of a daughter.

And now, after two years have passed, that love has grown even deeper that I could have ever imagined.

Her eyes, her smile and her spunky yet sweet spirit has me wrapped around her tiny dimpled little finger.

Not to mention she is really fun to dress up and take many, many pictures of!

One thing I hadn't thought of right away was that, not only do I get to dress her up like a little doll....I get to do her hair. And hair we do!

On top of her extensive wardrobe, I have a little obsession with hair clippies, hats and head bands and flowers...oh my!

But Shhhhhh, don't tell her Daddy how much I spend on her looking so darn cute!

I am a little sad that we have already reached the milestone of 2 as that is when the babyness really seems to begin to fade but at the same time I am looking forward to watching my beautiful baby girl blossom into a smart, sensitive and loving young lady.

Happy 2nd Birthday, Baby Girl!!!!

I ♥ Faces - Halloween Dress-Up

This weeks photo challenge over at I ♥ Faces is "Halloween Dress-Up." The slacker that I am, did not dress the kids up in their costumes and try for a super cool shot. Actually, the kids haven't been feeling the best this weekend so they wouldn't have been the best subjects anyway.

Instead, delved into the archives and found this picture of Grant from this past summer at Como Zoo. He had his face painted for the first time and was so proud of how he looked. He loooooves Spidey and loved looking like him even more! He even asked me to take a picture of him so I could remember how it looked...you know, so I could paint it on him again for Halloween and all! Luckily we found him a "Vit-a-min" (aka - Venom) costume and it has a black hooded mask so guess who lucked out and doesn't have to attempt this....

Pretty sure I don't have the skills to duplicate this masterpiece anyway!

Make sure to head on over to http://www.iheartfaces.blogspot.com/ to check out all of the other ghouls and goblins!

Evil Knievel

I think we have a little Evil Knievel on our hands!

Minus the training wheels, this kid could be dangerous! Speaking of training wheels, Grant says he will be ready to ride his bike without them when he is 5. Not sure how he got 5 on his brain, but I guess if he believes it, it will come true.

Until then, I am perfectly happy with him using the training wheels along with all other necessary PPE (Personal Protective Equipment...give me a break, I work in the Safety Dept!)

His latest PPE acquisition are these snazzy blue goggles. Daddy pulled them out of the closet and gave them to little Mr. cause you know what they say...Safety First!

Safety First is a mighty strong lecturing point pretty popular saying 'round these parts! Maybe if we say it enough we can suppress the Evil Knievel stunts just a little longer ;)