A Chilly Trip to Ellms

Over the weekend we took our second trip of the season to Ellms.  If I was complaining too much about summer hanging on because I've been longing for the crisp cool days of fall, we've had them lately!  It was freezing this trip- a huge change from our last visit, but we came prepared with hats and gloves.  The weather definitely put a slow down on our Ellms fun (and picture taking), but even in the cold we had a great time.  Its nice to have the season pass so if we don't stay that long or don't have a great trip we don't feel like we are wasting money.

not quite big enough to jump yet...

"look at THESE pumpkins!!"

Happy October!

It is Thursday.  It is also the first day of October.  Where did September go??

MiniM.E. was sick since the beginning of the week with strep and a post nasal infection so the days until today are kind of a tired, needy blur.

But she seems much better and we needed to do something fun for MiniM.E. and the fresh air seemed like a good idea, so we headed down to Bowman Orchards for some playtime on their fantastic wooden playground and a picnic lunch.

I remember how much MiniM.E. loved the playground there starting when she was about LittleL.G.'s age (see this post), so I was hoping LittleL.G. would love it too, and MiniM.E. would find enough to keep her entertained.

Maybe because she still wasn't feeling 100% or maybe because playgrounds aren't as fun when you can't walk, or most likely because it was just over 50°, LittleL.G. really wasn't feeling the playground.  She did love the animals and was insistent on getting an alpaca to come over for her to pet.  Fortunately the goats loved her too, but the alpacas were ?growling? at us? so we stayed away.

chickens!!

Even though LittleL.G. wasn't into slides and swings, MiniM.E. had a blast and didn't want to leave:

By the end of our visit, LittleL.G. ventured out and did some climbing and crawling around:

It was nice to get out (in the freezing cold) but it was probably our only Bowman Orchards trip this year.  Maybe next year it will be a favorite destination again.

Lunar Eclipse

We were driving home from NH when the lunar eclipse started, and even though I was a little disappointed that we weren't home to sit outside and watch it, we probably actually saw more of it driving in the car than we would have at home.

We made it home just as the moon was entering the full eclipse and I managed to get a reasonable photo from our back deck before we went to bed.

It was pretty exciting to see something that hasn't happened before in my entire lifetime!

A Quick NH Visit

We went back to NH with Gram to help her get ready for a yard sale.  I had to go through lots of my old stuff and help organize and price and all that other fun yard sale stuff, so Grumpy and Daddy did a lot of playing with the girls.

There was a lot of fun stuff to look through in the basement.  The best find was this priest costume.  Hilarious.  Especially looking back to MiniM.E.'s Halloween costume choice from last year!

Halloween 2014

Apple Picking Field Trip

Gram came to visit for a few days on Wednesday and since LittleL.G. naps during MiniM.E.'s time at school, Gram took MiniM.E. on her apple picking field trip so LittleL.G. could nap at home.

Fortunately, Gram takes a lot of photos too!

They had a great time (except that MiniM.E. made Gram sit in the back of the bus and it was SO bumpy!)

Playgrounds and Pumpkins

"don't make me go down the slide AGAIN mom!!"

Being on a Schedule is Exhausting!

As the summer wore on, I was definitely looking forward to getting back on a schedule this fall.  Now that fall is here we are all having a hard time adjusting.  Except LittleL.G.- as long as she gets her naps, yogurt sticks and books, she is happy. 

I feel like every moment of our days is scheduled between school, LittleL.G.'s naps, activities and play dates.  I know it is good for us and in a few weeks it will feel easy, but for now, it is stressful to be on a schedule after months of unscheduled-do-whatever-we-want days.

MiniM.E. is feeling it too.  She loves school but I can tell it wears her out.  Add on our other activities, and this smiley little girl:

Is EXHAUSTED!!