Fall Festivities

In these last days of October, we have had 3 occasions to get dressed up!  (which is why we might be party poopers and not participate today)  Here are a few of the highlights:

Super Baby 

and Minnie Mouse 

enjoyed a birthday party at the park

Remember our Minnie last year...

I feel like you can really see how her sweet little toddler face has turned into a little girl.

Saturday was our church's Fall Festival.  Our princess, who loves to give us this face

She thinks it is a funny joke to pose this way, which I think is cute to see her try out her sense of humor.  

The best that the official Halloween 2012 picture is going to get!

Super Benja-mighty flies again!

Our princess and her Prince Charming love riding the ponies every year!

 It was fun to share the Fall Festival with our neighbor-friend Miller this year!

I try to remember to take a picture of me and Benjamin at events like this.  This was probably AK's last year of being the only kid with an opinion about what to do!

This 2 minute activity was the only thing that Benjamin actually participated in!

 a trip down the big slide, 

a jump on the inflatables, 

But, it was the game room that AK wanted to do one more time before the night was over.  I think we have a kid that gets that this is the room where she gets candy!  

Another year and another great Fall Festival!

Anna-Kate got to wear her costume one more time yesterday at Preschool.  The cute part:  when I picked up AK 3.5 hours later, she was the only kid still in her costume!  It was cute to watch her; you could tell she felt so special and pretty dressed up as a princess!

a Boy

Look at this little boy!  

This picture was supposed to be for the post announcing that Benjamin is quite the expert at sitting up on his own.  Instead, all I see is a little boy playing with his truck.  

a Veritable Smorgasboard

This is the Simmons way to do the fair!

We dream of this corn all year!

Anna-Kate's first corn dog....a winner!

Why are they so happy?

Fried Snickers bar! AK and I share because this is the only thing in life Will doesn't share!

My "Goose" meeting this pretty gray goose,

our proof we didn't only eat!

Benjamin was here too; I think his reaction would sound something like this:

So many big animals and great colors, but they didn't give me any of the yummy food and they put me in socks that don't match!  Next year ...

Love this boy!

The charming grin, the silly stories,

the sweet friendship, the smart questions, ...

Now and from the beginning, 

we love this boy!

Happy 4th Birthday Anderson!

Classic Sibling Moment

This week I finally started letting Benjamin take baths in the big tub without the baby tub.  They both thought this was so funny!  Benjamin had that "I am so big" grin on his face.  Love these sibling moments!

Show and Tell

Anna-Kate had her first show and tell assignment last week.  I had no idea what she should take.  She knew exactly what she wanted to take.  "My pony."  What are you going to tell your friends about your pony?  "Anything."  (her 3 year old sassy way to say "nothing.")  Does your pony have a name?  "Piggy Pie."

The smile is sweet but apparently the show I used to get her hair done for preschool needs to be turned off if I want her smile aimed at the camera!

One Fall Day

Can you believe it...we had never taken Anna-Kate to a pumpkin patch to get pumpkins.  We went to a festival last year that gave a way pumpkins, but we had never officially gone out looking for pumpkins.  This weekend we fixed that!  Fall is my and Will's favorite season, so it was about time we celebrated it fully with AK! and Benjamin, of course!  

First things first, the attempts at cute pictures with the pumpkins:

Two children + lots of pumpkins = Not a chance of two smiling faces toward the camera

Once again, Will has a side kick in Anna-Kate.  She loved seeing how many different shapes and sizes of pumpkins there are!  She loved that there was a kind called "Cinderella pumpkin."   

This Speckled Swan was mama's favorite!  

Once our assortment of pumpkins was complete, we were off to cousin Evelyn's first birthday party!  Happy birthday precious one!

This assortment looks great! but it is way more fun if you 

get to paint your own pumpkin too!

Serious business!  (a cut up cereal box became the canvas when the pumpkin was sufficiently covered)  

Pizza and a movie night round out a family-centered fall day; the perfect fall movie for the evening, Charlotte's Web!

Dry pumpkins back in position outside, tired kids off to bed

A great fall family day!

Happy First to our Niece!

Happy Birthday sweet Evelyn!! 

We have been smitten since your first hours!

You are loved little niece!

We love getting to watch you grow!  

Doc McWho

Mom, I need my 'i'gnosis book!

You have fussy-iotosis-i'gnosis.

See.  I had to draw your 'i'gnosis.

I will take your blood pressure and then give you a band-aid. 

One Last Trip

This past weekend we went to Carolina Beach with my family.  My sweet parents wanted a get away and enticed us to join them.  Who says no to that?!

The weather was wonderful!  So we spent most of the time Saturday just lounging at the beach.  After baths and naps and before dinner, we spent at the beach.  I didn't worry about the camera quite as much this trip.  Just tried to get a few images.  Here are some of my favorites:

Aunt Amanda and Benjamin

Benjamin with his Gramps

the image we woke up to on Saturday morning

This reminded me of a favorite from 2 years ago with Anna-Kate.  I tried to recreate it, but recreations never quite work out the way you want them to.  Still cute though!

I tried getting this classic siblings picture on the beach.  After about 10 pictures, I realized this really was going to be as good as it got.

Anna-Kate was really into finding shells this weekend.

Looking for the prettiest shells

Another classic pose

In love with this smiling boy!

Grandma and Gramps were so excited to take AK to the aquarium.  At places like this AK stays glued to Will.  He loves to get down and talk to her about all the animals;  Daddy and Anna-Kate both are both in their elements at moments like these!

Benjamin was at the Aquarium to, but he enjoyed it mostly with his car seat hood over him.  Of course at 8 months, this trick doesn't work as well and he only slept the last 15 minutes or so.

Could eat these toes!

Love her precious profile!

Look at those faces!  Can you tell those two are related?!

Gramps treated AK to a starfish painted pink the first night we were there.  Starfish immediately became the obsession of this trip.   So much so that in the car on the way home, this was the question we heard, "Mom, can I be a starfish for Halloween?"  

My sister Amanda

My brother and sister-in-law Walter and Heather

Like I said, Will and Anna-Kate are totally glued together and this picture is why:  petting sharks!  (Bamboo Sharks)

Benjamin was finally taken out for a few minutes of pictures at the end of our visit at the Aquarium 

Family pictures, 4 people smiling at the camera may just never happen

Huge frog was an obvious photo shoot moment!

One of the most genuine grins (for the camera) of the trip!

A great retreat, but now it is Monday morning and back to the real world!