Fall in the Midwest

We spent the weekend with Nick’s family in Xenia, Ohio. I was so worried about how the kids would do on the airplane, but they did great! They were excited when we left.

preoccupied in the plane.

Then passed out by the time we got there, at least Lu was.

We had such a good time and did a lot of classic fall activities including eating chili and grilled cheese, pumpkin pie, and going to the pumpkin patch.

Z was so excited he could hardly stand it, and he’s been telling people he’s “going to O-HI-O for weeks! When we got there, they got right to playing with their cousins Emma and Addison.

Friday was a little chilly but we went to “The Pumpkin Barn” anyway. It was so fun, Z loved sliding down the slide into the hay, and did it over and over again.

Then we took a hayride out to the pumpkin patch, which was huge and really beautiful. Z picked out a small pumpkin, because “the big ones are too heavy.” Makes perfect sense…

That night we went over to Aunt Talia’s. The kids played and we visited with Nick’s Aunt, Uncle, and cousins.

Saturday we went to a children’s museum with Nick’s cousin and second cousin? (his cousin’s little girl). Z and Lola had a great time together.

They had this super cute grocery and cash register exhibit that Z and Lu loved! I guess they’re used to seeing us shop at the “green store” and wanted to try it out for themselves.

Z loves him some cash register ever since sweet AG introduced him to the concept at our house.

That night we celebrated Nana finishing up her Masters in Nursing (yay Nana!) by eating Hibachi and went back over to Aunt Talia’s for a bonfire and some s’mores! Z loved roasting marshmallows, but had a little problem with depth perception, although I got some s’more on my jacket, no one got speared, so that’s a plus.

Sunday, we headed back and the kids did really relatively well in the airplanes, although Z was very disappointed to find out we would not be staying in Atlanta, when he realized we were there.

Five minutes from pulling into our driveway, I see this… Happens every time!

Z was NOT HAPPY to be going home. He kept saying, “but I want to get on another airplane” and “where are we going next?”. Even this morning, I could tell he was sad to be home. I guess he’ll just have to wait til our next “adventure.”

Perfect Fall Weekend

We had a fantastic weekend, which started off just the right way, with me and my babes hanging out at home.

Lu’s version of a tupperware party!

“Befeating the bad guys”

After nap, we went to get Z’s hair cut, and Lu tagged along. He has been having more frequent less drastic haircuts now that we have a set person that does them. I like his hair longer anyway, and it’s not that hard to go on Friday afternoons every 4 weeks or so.

I love seeing that little molar peeking through on her left side :).

We got home just in time to greet my sweet friend from college, who just moved back to Birmingham from Jacksonville and her precious 3 and a half year old who has already become fast friends with Z for a playdate/dinner date. I made lasagna and my dad and cousin Jude ended up joining us (my mom was in P’cola with my sis and her kids and my brother had a meeting or something). We had so much fun talking about everything from med school (especially when my bro stopped by to pick up Jude) to kids to breastfeeding and beyond! And the boys had more fun than you could ever imagine together! Sadly, I have no pictures to document that though.

Saturday, Z had a swim lesson, which he loved now that the bubble is up and the pool is heated. Nick said he did great. I stayed at home with Lu, because as great of a cheerleader as she may be, I’d still rather her cheer from home than to chase her around trying to stop her from doing a nose dive straight into the pool. We had just as much fun at home.

We wanted to go to the pumpkin patch but the weather was just yucky, and nobody was really in the mood, so we hung out at home, ate lunch, had naps then headed to one of Z’s friend’s birthday party at Heavenly Donut. It was so fun! They got to decorate donuts, and the parents got coffee and donuts too, genius!

Lu LOVED it!

After they got plenty of sugar in their tanks, they ran around that place like the crazy 4 year olds they all are, and Lu of course joined in like she was one of them!

We stayed out after the party, went to Target bought more Star Wars apparel for Z and Nick as if we really needed that some fun things and then met my dad, bro, and sis-in-law for sushi YUM! I was so proud of Z and Lu, they were great! Lu ate fried rice like it was her birthday and Z chowed on some chicken fingers and fries, but more importantly they both sat at the table like relatively civilized children and allowed us all to have a relatively lovely evening.

We went home and watched the Auburn game while Z played his Nintendo DS. Vandy and Auburn both pulled pretty big upsets, which was a great end to a wonderful day!

Sunday was Z’s final soccer game of the season. It was a pretty day, and he had an awesome time running back and forth and scoring a few goals. I am going to miss seeing him run around the field every Sunday. Oh well, until Spring season….

Lu 17 Months

Okay, time is flying and I don’t like it, so there it is.

Lu is 17 months, and she is all over the place. She wants to say what Z says do what he does and be just like him, but without him touching, hugging, or otherwise messing with her, so all about Z… from a distance, sounds familiar.

And as you can see, it’s difficult for him to keep his hands off of her…

She is saying a lot of new words, one of which being “SSSaaayyyyyyyyd,” hilarious I love it! She can do a lot of animal sounds and is generally interested in animals although an encounter with a neighbor’s dog has her a little on edge around dogs.

She’s a little feisty and does things like slap your hand away when you dare offer her something she doesn’t like. She also likes to throw her food on the floor when she’s done with it. Although they tell me at school that they don’t see this feisty side. So, it’s just me then, great.

She really is a good eater. She eats a lot of things Z wouldn’t at her age.  She’s already had things like skittles and fruit loops that I wouldn’t have even given Z at this age, so I guess with the good comes a little bad.

They have just begun the age old tradition of wanting what the other kid has just because he/she has it. Do I really need to elaborate?

She’s sleeping great and down to one nap, the timing of which varies widely, but the best days are when she and Z sleep from around 1 to 3 (sometimes 4). That is a little bit of heaven right there!

Just as heavenly though are the days when we get home at a decent hour and we just hang out outside and enjoy the weather. It’s the perfect ending to a long day!

Picture Day

Today is picture day at school. I’m sure they’ll get better shots than these, but this is the real Z and Lu :)

And a special thanks goes out to my hubby who picked up on my hints that I REALLY wanted pictures of them this morning and took time to take them. They’re going to make me smile all day!