Funny Faces

We had a beautiful fall day the other day, the perfect kind of day to take pictures of the boys at the park.

Most of the pictures turned out like this:

Of 160 photos taken, there isn't a single one of them looking at the camera and smiling--at the same time. But they're pretty cute anyway.

The Leaf Pile

Around September 20, Grant realized that fall was around the corner. "That means we get to jump in the leaves tomorrow!" he told his brother. The boys have asked every day since then when they would have a leaf pile to jump into. So last weekend, we found a few leaves to make a small pile. 

Hours of fun ensued.

 

Fall Fun

On Friday, I took the day off to join Miles and his preschool class on a field trip to a local pumpkin patch. It was the first day that it felt like fall--50 degrees and windy. Miles wasn't thrilled about the cold temps--he is my snow bird after all. But he persevered, snuggling close to me on the hay ride.

He picked a yellow pumpkin because "lellow" is his favorite color.

The farm had a play area filled with corn kernels. At first he wasn't crazy about getting corn in his shoes, but he eventually warmed up to the idea, especially after spying a yellow truck.

Later we went home and enjoyed hot chocolate with marshmallows, and Miles painted his pumpkin, leaving just a small patch of yellow.

On Saturday, we went to a fall festival at a local park, which had inflatables, pumpkin decorating and a train. G went down this slide nearly 100 times.

G learned how to use a hula-hoop. He was actually pretty good for a first-timer.

Later that day, we lit our first fire in the fireplace. We finally had the fireplace cleaned and inspected recently, so we felt safe to use it. The boys were fascinated with the idea of having a fire in the house. They kept asking if firefighters would come to put it out. 

And Miles did a little fire dance.

No one loved it more than Ted the Hero.

Apples, Apples, Apples

Although it doesn't feel much like fall around here, the trees are starting to change colors, the nights are cool (even if the days are still hot) and everyone is talking about football. In honor of fall, we hit an apple orchard last weekend. It's our favorite season for economical reasons. G has LOVED apples since his first bite as a baby. These days, he eats two to three apples a day, and Miles eats at least another one or two a day. When apples are out of season, it adds up!

A hayride took us to the apple trees. This was Miles' favorite part.

Unlike our berry-picking adventure a couple months back, we had no trouble finding apples to pick.

G, put your apple down for a minute so I can take your picture.
"Come on, Mom!"

Miles, go stand by your brother so I can take a picture.
"Nope."

Don't Forget Antarctica, Miles

Miles was so excited to perform the "Continents Song" for us, which he learned at school. But the poor guy couldn't get through the song without his big brother correcting him.

Riding the Rails With Friends

Last weekend, the boys "kinda cousins" (Kent's cousin's kids) came from Wisconsin so they could join us on our annual trip to ride Thomas the Tank Engine. Ages 5 and 3, Owen and Drew were a great match for our two boys.

Miles thought Owen, 5, was pretty cool.

Owen and G, two happy passengers.

Miles and Drew check out the scenery.

Silly Drew. This must be a second-child thing.