Bowman Orchards

Tuesday we met up with friends for the first apple picking trip of the season.  We went to Bowman Orchards, mostly because they were one of the few places open, but also because we were all south that day and they have a really neat wooden playground.

This will be our third year of Bowman Orchard visits, though last year we only went once because we found Ellm's Farm which has a lot more for a two-year old. 

MiniM.E. remembered everything about it (as usual) and insisted we first find the floppy eared goat.

Flashback, here she is two years ago with the same goat:

We had a great time at the playground.  Since the first time we visited they added these pony tire swings and they are MiniM.E.'s favorite thing- she likes to have horsey fights where the two swings crash into each other.

We had to wait for everyone to arrive before we went apple picking.  We drove into the orchard and MiniM.E. proceeded to pick exactly THREE apples before she insisted she was done.  Fortunately, I convinced her to hang around by suggesting she eat an apple which took her approximately 20 minutes.

I managed to squeeze in a few extra minutes by finding this "hiding" apple and a few mini ones she was excited to pick:

After apple picking it was back to the playground for a picnic lunch and some more playground fun.

The best part of the day?  This:

Our adorable budding photographers.

(MiniM.E. only managed a shot of our stomachs, which is definitely NOT making the blog!)

Thanks for a great day, girls!

A Weekend-Long Sleepover

Last weekend we watched a friends' son for the weekend.  It was the first time we attempted overnight babysitting.  I have to admit, I was a little leery of the situation given that watching my own child all day at 8+ months pregnant has me ready for bed at 6pm.

It was definitely a challenge to make sure two two-year-olds had everything they needed (essentially two of everything) everywhere went.  And an even bigger challenge to mediate play time since anytime one kid touched something, the other immediately wanted it and we only have one of most of our toys... MiniM.E. was really into helping to babysit our visiting toddler, but like most two year olds, he wanted to do everything himself- not have MiniM.E. do it for him.

Overall though, they both seemed to enjoy having a permanent playmate for a couple days.

The Last Week of "Summer"

Before school... before activities... before we are tied to a schedule...

We took the last week of summer and the first week in September to try to enjoy the last of lazy mornings (whenever we feel like it), just playing at home all day and squeezing in one last trip to the beach.

MiniM.E. decided last week that taking a shower was much better than a bath:

 We went out to lunch with friends:

Made some brownies in our PJs:

And visited our friends who were renting a lake house at Schroon Lake for one last beach day:

The First Day of School

Monday was MiniM.E.'s first day of (pre)school.  It was an open house day, so parents got to stay too.

I've been apprehensive about school for MiniM.E. since we put her on the list way back in the fall of last year.  I'm sure eventually she'll do fine, but MiniM.E. is very wary of new people, doesn't like large groups of kids, and has been away from me (with someone other than Gram) a number of times I can count on one hand.  Doesn't sound very promising to drop her in a room with a teacher and a bunch of kids she doesn't know and just leave...

In preparation for the big day, we've been talking it up for the past few weeks and MiniM.E. was beyond excited to go- in fact she insisted we leave at 6:30, 7, 7:30, 7:45 and roughly every 15 minutes throughout the day until it was actually time to leave for preschool at 12:30...

Here she is dressed in her new school clothes:

Fortunately, day 1 with Mom went really well.  She interacted with other kids, played (a little) on her own, had a tiny conversation with the teacher and generally seemed to like it there.  Bonus: brand new playground with huge slide that MiniM.E. loves!

All in all, we left preschool on good terms.  Until we got to the parking lot where she had a total melt-down from all the stimulation and insisted she didn't want Mommy to leave her next time.  Let's just see what happens on Wednesday when parents have to leave...

Hello September!

I feel like I just wrote a post about how I couldn't believe it was already August and here we are into September... YIKES! The summer flew by!

The last week of summer was busy...

We kitten-sat:

A BBQ with friends:

Had our last ice cream of the season from Dairy Haus and ate it on our front porch:

Walked around Congress Park:

Spent another morning at Congress Park with friends:

 Visited the playground by our old house:

Went to the fireworks at Lake George:

Over the Labor Day weekend, instead of taking a vacation somewhere, we decided to do a crazy house project and put in some hardwood floors.  Talk about an awesome job to do 8 months pregnant!  It was good to get done before Baby#2 arrives and it looks great, so we're happy.  And since MiniM.E.'s school and activities don't start until next week, we still have one more week of "summer"!

Story Land

Last week while in NH we took a day trip with Gram and Auntie Jen to Story Land.  My mom had taken me when I was about MiniM.E.'s age and we have some adorable photos of me looking out of a pumpkin window, sitting with a clown, and riding the swan boats which we thought would be fun to replicate.  Not to mention, MiniM.E. is a demanding charge and having to spend an entire week at home (even if it is Gram's home) with her can be challenging.  A day trip was definitely needed.

Of course like any other amusement park, I was not allowed on many of the rides due to my largely protruding stomach.  Fortunately Gram and Auntie Jen were able to take her on everything she wanted to go on as she wasn't feeling too adventurous (not like the day at Hoffman's where she nearly gave me a heart attack riding the Scrambler!).

First stop was the Cuckoo Clock which would have made Gram sick except that MiniM.E. insisted Auntie Jen keep the cup from spinning.

Then the flying shoes which MiniM.E. was the most excited about because she had seen a photo of me riding in them:

The log flume was a little much for MiniM.E. but with the help of Auntie Jen's extra shirt to keep her dry she made it!

I was allowed on the hot air balloon ferris wheel which I made MiniM.E. go on with me even though she didn't want to because I at least wanted one ride with her:

Then it was up to Cinderella's castle:

Complete with pumpkin coach ride down the hill:

Then it was to the swan boats.  MiniM.E. patiently waited in line for what felt like hours, but enjoyed it so much it was worth it:

We ended our day at a cute fountain where MiniM.E. was so excited that rather than her normal excited -which consists of a half frown and zero acknowledgement of the fun we're having- we got a "I love it here!"  Unfortunately, the fun was short lived as she tripped and skinned her knee.  Being a little drama queen, the rest of the park must have thought she severed an arm and we had to deal with agonizing screams from the fountain to the park exit and from the parking lot to Dairy Queen (ice cream didn't even help) until she fell asleep on the way home.  

The worst part about the skinned knee episode (other than the fact that it continued on into the evening after her nap and even into the next day) was that we never made it to the pumpkin where we wanted the photo of MiniM.E. I guess we'll have to try again next year...