A Visit from Family and a Trip to the Pumpkin Patch

We had a wonderful visit from Grandma and Grandpa a few weeks back.   The weather was terrific and so we spent a lot of time outside.  After a fabulous nature hunt, all of the kids were kind enough to pose for a picture with G and G.

Grandma talks to Will and Natalie while they are on their nature hunt.

 

During the hunt, the kids begged to cut some flowers.  So we cut some beautiful hydrangeas, which are still looking lovely after all of these weeks.

Everyone got to cut two.

 

During the weekend, we made a visit to one of the local pumpkin patches.  First up was jumping on a giant pillow.  Natalie took a pass on this activity but Will and Amanda had great fun.

 

 

 

 

Next up was a hike up the giant hay bale pyramid.  They were on top of the world here!

The kids also had great fun in the corn pit.  Their favorite part was burying themselves in the corn.

 

 

 

 

Three little sillies!

Boo!

Will had a little chocolate pudding with his lunch.  It must have been good!

Before we left, we got sucked into the balloon animal and face painting gigs.  Here, the kids intently watch the clown make balloon creatures.

Will has his money ready!

Yay!  An alligator for Will.

Grandma and Grandpa watch the activity.

Amanda with a monkey on her shoulder.

 

And Miss Natalie chose face painting instead of a balloon.  She was transformed into a beautiful butterfly!

 

At the end of Grandma and Grandpa's stay, niece/cousin Rebecca and her boyfriend, Chris, also swooped in for a quick visit.  The kids loved hanging out with them!

 

 

Thanks, Grandma and Grandpa, and Rebecca and Chris for making the trek to California and for creating great memories with us!

Nature Hunt

The kids love to go on "nature hunts" and collect a variety of leaves, flowers and sticks.  We have a huge magnolia tree in our front yard that drops a lot, and as a result, their collections can be quite robust!  Here they are organizing their treasures.

They did a nice job.  Very orderly!

 

 

Afterwards, mom convinced everyone to pose for a few photos.  Natalie was up first.
 

Big sister smiles!

A shot with all three munchkins.  Gotta love those smiles!

More big smiles.

 

 

Will, who is standing on a big rock, says "I'm a giant"!

 

What a cute, little innocent face!

We had to get Dad and Sable in the photo shoot too! 

 

 

Sssssnakes!

We had a good time at the reptile show! The kids were all very was brave and wore a snake around their necks.

 

Natalie wasn't too sure about it, but she could not be left out!

She didn't hesitate talking to this little alligator though, who was safely in an aquarium.

Will pet an iguana.

And the girls had fun chatting with these turtles.

And they also pet some little alligators.

 

We saw a ton of snakes.

After the show, we had a great lunch at a local hot spot.  The restaurant was so full from all of the sports patrons that we had to sit outside in the boiling sun.  Will cooled off by licking a lemon.

And the girls escaped to their very own table to find some shade. 

 

It was a great day!