Hello October!

I think October is my favorite month.  It most definitely feels like fall, pumpkin flavored treats are everywhere, the leaves are changing, the weather is cooler, MiniM.E.'s birthday is coming up, Baby#2 is ready to come any day, and Halloween is just around the corner- which for me, marks the start of the holiday season, and I LOVE the holidays.

I can't believe it's already October-- the last few months have flown by!

Here's what we've been up to:

raking... not our yard, but we found leaves!

puddle jumping

riding her new scooter- thanks Auntie Jen!

Happy 3rd Birthday (Party) MiniM.E.!

I expect that MiniM.E.'s actual birthday on the 15th is going to be overshadowed by the introduction of Baby#2 to our family.  Actually, at this point, it better be, because I'm not sure I can handle being pregnant much longer than that.

Anticipating Baby#2's arrival and the excitement and probable chaos of having a new baby in the house, I planned for MiniM.E. to have a birthday party (what I hoped was) well in advance of the actual day Baby#2 arrived.  I was a bit concerned that I wouldn't make it, but Sunday came and went with no baby appearance and we threw MiniM.E. a small but formidable 3rd birthday party with some close family and friends.

I planned on going super low-key, seeing as how I am less than a week away from my due date, but I ended up going a bit overboard on the cake and decorations.  It wasn't even close to the Jungle Party that was her 1st birthday or the Owl 2nd birthday, but of the three parties, she is definitely at the age where she enjoyed her party most this year.

the cake

putting the candles on

so happy everyone's singing

Yay for presents!

Happy (Early) Birthday MiniM.E.!

Sunnyside Gardens

Tuesday we went to Sunnyside Gardens with our friends.  It's become a tradition, and even though we like Ellms Farm and Bowman Orchards because they have more to offer for the kids, we still end up going here a couple times a season because its close and cute and the kids remember it.

watching the trains

riding in the wagon

on the train ride

 Here is the reason we have to keep going every year- the wagon photo:

2012

2013

2014

these girls are too cute!

After Sunnyside we had lunch out with Daddy and then MiniM.E. and Daddy played at the playground near work while I went to a doctor's appointment.

Waiting... and...

MiniM.E. was a week late.  I thought I was doing a good job waiting one day after her due date...  I remember feeling so anxious and excited to meet her and to have her out, though looking back, there was no rush... having a newborn is way harder than anybody tells you.  Not that I wasn't overjoyed to be a mom for the first time and to be able to see her and hold her and cuddle her, but it was so different than I expected.

So this time around I am excited to have her make her debut, but mostly because I am gigantic and uncomfortable.  For the most part she can be as late as she likes because I still have a lot to get done before she arrives and MiniM.E. is still having a hard time with the school drop off and the more days she can go before the baby, the better.

Here's what we've been up to while waiting for the past week:

playground at the YMCA 

in a box

 Friday we went on our first school field trip to an apple orchard:

on the bus

trying to get a photo...

downtown playing in the leaves

Gram came to visit to help me get a few last things crossed off my to-do list.  Saturday we took MiniM.E. to Ellms again:

Moo Choo Train!

bouncy pillow

giant slide

chicken show 

Monday we tried a new sensory activity, galaxy slime.  We found the recipe here:

starting with blue and pink

after we realized we needed a smock, mixing it together. 

streeeettttcccching!

This was by far the longest lasting of our new inside activities and we've played with it every day since we made it!

Apple Picking: Take 2

A few weeks ago we went apple picking with our friends and had such a good time we decided to go again yesterday. This time we tried Saratoga Apple.  It didn't have the wooden playground or the goats and alpacas that Bowman's has, but surprisingly, the three girls hung in for much longer than expected.  MiniM.E. picked six or seven apples (twice as many as last time!) and the other two girls picked almost whole bags!  The apples were much lower on these trees so the girls could actually pick.  And the branches were so low that the girls were really into "apple houses" and had a great time playing in the trees and making piles of dried grass clippings.

After our apple picking morning, we stopped back at one of our friend's houses for some kitten cuddles.  MiniM.E. loves Pico and has been wanting to see him pretty much every day since we kitten-sat a few weeks ago.  She even picked out a present for him last time we stopped at Petsmart to watch the puppies get hair cuts.  He is a pretty cute kitten.  Here his is playing in the water while the girls washed their hands in the sink.

In other news, MiniM.E. had a SUPER day at preschool today... despite the fact that it was a pretty rough morning full of "please don't make me go"s and "but I just want to stay with Mommy"s.  At least she's doing really well while she's there, and being at preschool has definitely brought her out of her shell a little.  We just have to get over the anxiety of getting there...