Pumpkin Spooktacular

pumpkin spooktacular

On the warmest night of the season we headed down to the pumpking spectacular at the Roger Williams Zoo. We could not have asked for a better weather night. Jeremy put the word out at Inquest so employees would go with their families. It was nice to catch up with some people we don't get to see very often. We traveled with the Andersons and Johnsons. We all ate pizza for dinner at the office and then headed over to the zoo. HOLY traffic! The lines were past rediculous. Thankfully, because we were part of a group we didn't have to wait to buy tickets, but this did not save us from lines. There were 15 just in our immediate group. It was almost impossible to find anyone else we knew. The pumpkins were fabulous though. Thousands and thousands of different, decorated and carved pumpkins. Some huge and some tiny. Because we were traveling with 9 children and a billion other people, it was not the stroll it may have been for an individual, but it was neat to enjoy their wonder.

Fall is here

fall fun

It's official, fall is here. It was so warm and beautiful this last week, we went for a hike after school. The kids and I took a walk in the woods at Coggshall, climbed the rocks, spent time on the playground and fed the ducks. It was a perfect day. On another day, we had the chance to visit the Anderson's and play on the trampoline and run around the yard.

Playtime

playtime

Was it the tutu? Or was it the wig that made you laugh first? We love to play dress up, even the boys.

Pumpkin picking

pumpkin picking

We went to Sholan Farm for a hayride and to choose pumpkins. We carved the pumpkins together and the kids each made theirs unique. They're outside now because the mold was starting to creep in. YUK.

Trikes and Bikes

bikes and trikes

The kiddos love Titi and CUG's cul de sac. And love spending time with the girls, Kaylah and Sydney. It was a lovely day for outside fun.

Pancakes for supper

pj party

We had a dinner party with the Anderson family. A PJ party, and ate pancakes and sausage for dinner. It was so fun for the kids to get together in their jammies and eat breakfast for dinner. Who doesn't like pancakes for supper?

Sawyer and the bean stalk

funny beans

Sawyer planted a bean plant last May in his speech class. I repotted it and set it out in the back yard for the summer. It didn't do much, but stayed alive. As I was clearing out my pots for the end of the season, I came across this giant bean. There was one tiny bean at the top, but there was one huge one. Sawyer was so proud.

Berlin Orchard

berlin

This is a genuine, be it shy and sideways, Caleb smile. They are few and far between. Caleb was so excited to ride a pony. He has had lots of opportunities in the past, but for some reason, he hopped at this one. This was an afternoon trip to the apple orchard and wound up to be tons of fun. And let me tell you, the Honeycrisp apples we bought were some of the yummiest apples we have ever had. MMM....

Jer's B-day

jer bday

We celebrated Jeremy's birthday with the family. As it is so important to all kids, they insisted he choose a theme. Pressed over the last few days before the party, he picked facebook :) Guess what he was doing when the kids cornered him? It was a great Italian feast with yummy cake. Family, food and festivities. Happy Birthday Daddy!

Caramel and TV

candy apples

We had a little playdate where the kids picked apples, played at a park and came back to the house to caramel dip their apples. I grabbed the camera to capture how Jeremy attracts kids. Some of the kids didn't even know him, and within minutes, they were clinging to him (and whatever video entertainment he had on the TV ;)

Sept stuff

september bits

Some this and that from the month of September.

Caleb's first day of school!

first day of kindergarten

Caleb was so looking forward to his first day of kindergarten, and yet so nervous. He is doing really well, but has had a lot of adjusting to do. So many new faces and routines. The first day he came home in tears (as he was most of the day), but as the first week came to a close, he was describing his day as "super duper".
With Sawyer, the day was a little more funny. Caleb's first day of school was on a Tuesday. And Sawyer attends preschool Tue/ Thur. So they were to start school the same day, ten minutes apart, on separate sides of town. So I asked Nana to drive Sawyer to school (he had just been there a couple weeks earlier for the summer program, not much adjusting. And it's Sawyer we're talking about). Well, guess what... Sawyer's first day of school was Thursday. So, after he'd been totally pumped up, with new haircut and new clothes, he was two days early. My Mom felt so bad, trying to explain to him that I had made a mistake. Mrs Wirtz, the full day teacher, was so sweet she let him stay with her for the day. They are so great at that school! We love them!

Kimball's deep freeze

driving for ice cream.

We hadn't been to Kimball's all summer, so we tried to squeeze in a trip before it got too late. Holy Coldness! It was so cold, we were all freezing, but we stuck it out. We hit some balls on the driving range (Caleb loves to golf), and got some of the best icecream ever tasted. I'm still dreaming about it.....

Stylin'

stylin'

It was time for back to school haircuts for the boys and Caleb had been requesting this particular salon. Audrey was so excited for her turn and the stylist was kind enough to spritz on some water and style her hair for her. It was adorable.

End of Summer

last hurrah

Finishing the summer strong. These are a few pics from the last days of summer vacation. Caleb was heading off to Kindergarten in just a few days. We did some apple picking, and playground time. Even a spin or two around the cul de sac at the Creaven's. Note the pictures of the large bolt and round yellow thing. Dr Destructo (Sawyer) removed the industrial grade steering wheel from the play structure with his hands. This child is amazing. He took out the huge bolt that holds it on, then just walked away. When Caleb tried to play with it, the wheel came off in his hands. Poor thing thought he broke it, I had other ideas, almost immediately. Looked around and found the bolt in a minute or two, over in the mulch. Though Sawyer denied 'breaking it', his hands were covered in black greese. Caught black handed!

Matt and Emily's wedding

Matt and Emily Wedding

Beautiful setting, beautiful company, beautiful couple. It was great. The weather was a stressor right up until the ceremony, and then the clouds parted and the sun shone upon this fantastic couple and their special day. It was a wonderful party of friends and family! Congrats Matt and Emily!

Sesame take 2

sesame two

Sesame Place take 2. You may not recognize the people posing with the characthers in this photo. For good reason. We have no idea who they are. Our kids refused to pose with them, and just about everything else for two days. This was in theory, the best family vacation, ever. Not so much. Whatever the combination, the kids were miserable. Sleep deprived, and cranky. The weather was fantastic, hot and humid. As a water park, we were in the best location, but the kids refused to touch the water. And when coerced, they went kicking and screaming. UGH! We were more then glad to get in the car and go home. We'll try again next year.

Stepping Stone

stepping stone children's museum

This was the start of our second summer vacation. We were off and headed to Sesame Street in PA. This was our pitstop in Ct. Stepping Stone children's museum and Park. It was an awesome place for the kids. Too bad we didn't have all day to poke around. There were both indoor and outdoor activities. And the location was super convenient.

Audrey's 2!

audrey's 2

Our little girl is 2! She is so girly too. Isn't that fun. Dress up and dolls. Sweet as can be. Lots of friends to help us celebrate in the rain. Everyone had fun.

Sandblast

sandblast

Our annual trip to Crane beach in Ipswich with the Casey's. Millions and millions of people. Lovely weather and good company. Oh, and cooked kids! Audrey fell asleep on Jeremy's head, and little Maeve fell asleep in Denise's arms. The sand sculptures were good, but the mobs of people made it difficult to take it all in.

Nana the Great

NTG

We just love to visit with Nana the Great. She came up for a weekend to spend some time at the camp in Ashburnham. The kids had a blast running her around. Fun with glow jewlery, reading books, crafts and more. Fun Fun Fun.