Apples and a Hay Ride

Today the boys and I met Grammy and Poppy at Erie Orchards to enjoy a beautiful Fall day. We started off by watching cider get made then enjoyed a taste along with some donuts. Next we moved on to their kiddie play area. The boys had a great time driving the little tractors all around the track and playing in the hay. They also got a chance to feed some animals. Then we headed out to the orchard on a hay ride. We each got to pick two apples before heading back to the parking lot. The kids had a great time and were sad to leave. I love that there are so many fun places to visit during the Fall. The big question is do we try to head back to this particular orchard later in the season or do we try to hit up as many different orchards as possible. Decisions, decisions! I know, tough life. :)

 

Nature Walk

This week I took the boys to a local metropark to run off some energy and I think we've found a new favorite place to visit. After playing on the playground for awhile, we hopped on one of the nature trails and took a walk. The boys were simply fascinated with the woods and loved pointing out all sorts of random details. Colin was intrigued by all the little cabins (although he seemed to think that there were dead bodies in all of them) and Eli loved looking for animals. We had a really cool opportunity to check out nature up close and personal when we walked by 2 deer who were maybe 5 yards away from us and who just watched us as we took pictures and the boys tried to be calm and quiet. I'm looking forward to taking the boys for more walks this Fall as the leaves change colors and I am definitely going to have to take advantage of getting them out of the house so they're not bouncing off the walls. I love finding these little jems of Ohio that are so close to where we live.

Funny Family Feet Project or Why do I Bother

I realize that my foot might at least be a small step up from my children's abstract masterpieces, but does my husband have to out-do me by actually drawing something other than flowers and smiley faces (which are the only things I know how to draw, and clearly not well)? But seriously, I'm used to that. The part that really shamed me was him putting a family member on each of the toes which were positioned as such to represent the fact that he loves his family above everything else. Um, yeah.

Fall is in the Air

I know it's not quite officially Fall, but it certainly feels like it and I'm loving it! This weekend was Harrison Rally Day and the weather was divine! Last year I remember sweating profusely but this year we were snuggly in sweatshirts and jeans. In my personal opinion, Harrison Rally Day is really the best festival Perrysburg offers. The parade was great and there's such a cute fair afterward. The boys and I didn't stay much past lunch - we had to get home to watch the UM game (Go Blue!), but we still had a great time. It really got me in the mood for Fall and all the fun activities associated with the season!

Watching the parade and waiting for candy.

Enjoying hotdogs for lunch.

Back to School

Colin started his second year of preschool last week and he is so happy to be back! Despite some trepidation on his part at preview the previous week, he was super excited the morning of his first day back. As soon as he woke up, he got dressed right away, brushed his teeth, and combed his hair (?? *I* don't even comb his hair!). He came downstairs for breakfast, which he ate in record time (usually breakfast is an hour ordeal in our house) and was all smiles for the camera when I took his annual shots on the front porch. Unfortunately it was a little chilly and since we wanted to make sure we got some good shots of his new Star Wars shirt, we came inside to finish the photo shoot. He was chatty Charlie on the drive to school and was filling Eli in on everything he gets to look forward to next year. However, when we actually got to the school, things started to go a little south. He was no longer interested in taking pictures and he refused to speak to any of the other kids we came across on our way in. I tried to get a picture of him in front of his classroom, but he wasn't having it. I got a couple action shots and a small "Chandler" before Eli and I left, but I was actually feeling a little concerned that maybe this first day wouldn't go as well as we all had hoped. Thankfully, I had nothing to worry about and when I picked Colin up at the end of the day, he was all smiles again telling me that he had a great day and couldn't wait to go back. We celebrated by getting McDonald's for lunch (which he now asks for everyday after school) and he and Eli had a sweet brother moment where they confessed to each other how much they missed the other and then they proceeded to play incredibly well together for the rest of the day. Everyday Colin talks about how he really looks forward to the days he gets to go to school and is thrilled that he gets to go 3 days this year instead of just 2. Yay for school!

Stay-cation 2011

The boys and I just finished up our summer stay-cation. We started the week off by going to play mini-golf and arcade games. Colin was super speedy and as sad as I am to admit it, I believe he had less strokes than I did.

Our next excursion took us to the beach at Maumee Bay State Park. The boys had a great time playing in the sand building castles and playing catch in the water. I'm so glad we decided to skip the Lake Erie shore this year. It was nice not having to worry about blue-green algae or some other nastiness.

 

 
The big thing we did new this year was go to Greenfield Village. At first I thought the trip was a total bust. Eli was fussy almost the entire time and refused to walk anywhere and Colin just flitted from one house to the next, acting bored. However, we came across the trains at the end of our day and it was a real hit with the boys. They loved looking at the engines in the round-house and kept talking about how it was just like their train table at home. Then we rode the train, which Colin loved. Eli eventually enjoyed himself on the ride but that was after a full 8 minutes of screaming that he wanted to get out of there while covering his ears because he was worried the whistle was going to be too loud. The people sitting behind us really enjoyed our family. I'm surprised they didn't move to different seats. Even though the boys said they had fun at the end of the day, I think they definitely enjoyed the Henry Ford Museum more.
 

 This expression exemplifies Eli's mood for the day.

On the train.

The next day the forecast called for rain so we went to Imagination Station. The kids spent most of their time in the Little Kidspace playing dress-up, grocery shopping, climbing the treehouse, and playing in the water room. We also spent time in the Mind Zone and Engineer It. Even though we have a membership and have already gone a couple times this summer, the boys still had a great time and it was nice for Chris to be able to enjoy it with them. 



On our last day of stay-cation we went to the African Wildlife Safari Park. This year we spent very little time in the regular zoo area. We are definitely spoiled being members of the Toledo Zoo. Not only are there very few animals to see at the Safari Park, but it was *really* stinky. Even the kids were offended by the stench. After a quick walk around the zoo during which we spent most of our time watching the boys climb rocks, we got back in our car, bought our food and headed into the safari area. This part was still a blast and thankfully there was no major damage to our car which we will be trying to sell very soon. Just a little dirt and a lot of snot. It could have been much worse. The best part was that this year Eli participated in the feedings. He didn't feed out of hand like Colin, but he threw carrots out the window. He was slightly terrified when two creatures stuck their heads in his window to try to get more carrots, but I can't blame him. I screamed when the buffalo stuck his head in my window and I didn't have any hands free to roll up my window because I had a cup of food in one hand and our camera in the other. Good times!

 

 

 

This was a nice end to our summer. Now we need to buckle down and get ready for the new school year!