Fall Follow-up

Wow! How embarrassing to realize only today that I haven't blogged since October! And that was a blog about the summer! Sheesh! I guess life has been busy or something.

Let's do a bit of catch up, shall we? Here's a few highlights from the fall, minus Halloween. I'll do that next, because what I'm sure you're really looking for in the month of January are some cute pumpkin pictures! Anyway, fall  was fun. There were hikes, and soccer games, and field trips, and science projects, and pumpkin picking, and Thanksgiving. And that's just what I have pictures of!

First up for your viewing pleasure, a quick glimpse from Hayden's debut YMCA soccer season.I'm not sure she's going to be getting a scholarship but she had a blast.  We spent every Monday evening at practice, and Saturday noon was game time. The fields had a small track around them, so E and M enjoyed riding bikes and scooters around and around while H played.

in action, sort of.

her motley crew.

Sometime in October, of course, we went to the pumpkin patch to pick out pumpkins. Not quite fall weather (the kids weren't happy about long sleeve Halloween themed shirts), but nice and sunny. We even got a couple cute pictures before the outing devolved. It was hot, M refused to participate in pumpkin picking, it got crowded and we all left grumpy.

couldn't get Molly in this one, see below... but they look great!

I don't WANT a pumpkin

everyone is almost happy, or at least neutrally spacing out

now she smiles her cutie pie smile

We have spent a lot of time on the Epworth playground. Most of Eliza's class goes after school gets out and we often stay to play for a while, especially if the day is nice. Her tricks on the monkey bars are amazing and she is SO strong. Most of those pics are on my phone and I don't know how to get them to the blog yet, so this one will have to do. She ALWAYS wears a headband now. ALWAYS.

 Even with our busy fall, and all the soccer, we snuck in one or two hikes to enjoy the colors. And since Jason was done dissertating, he even got to join the usual grandparents plus me and the kids crowd!

family photo! Look at those cheeseball grins!

love this one

 Fall also saw several field trips and school projects. Molly and her class went to a local farm (we picked strawberries there in the spring).  We got a great tour by the farmer, peppered with MANY hilarious farm puns/jokes that the grownups got and the kids completely missed. Eliza got to go to Duke Homestead to see what life was like "in olden times." It was related to their Thanksgiving unit, but Duke Homestead styles itself after the 1870s.  Hayden decorated a pumpkin in a literary theme and participated in the school science fair for the first time. She did a great job completing both projects and transporting them to school on her own!

Molly delights to get some chicken feed.

M's class at the farm.

at the end, each kid got to pick a pumpkin

science project! We love sedimentary rock!

the finished project! (could you find chalk powder?!)

H and her decorated pumpkin. Doesn't it look great?! (It's a cute book if you don't know it.)

E at Duke Homestead with her class. didn't take any other pictures

And to end my quick journey through our fall, we come to Thanksgiving. Apparently, I took almost no pictures then either. But Grammy and Granddad came to visit us over the long weekend, bringing lots of fun stuff as they packed their house up to move. We had Thanksgiving dinner at Grandma and Poppop's with more Vosburgh family coming over as well. All the food was DELICIOUS but the best was DESSERT! I do have a picture of the dessert table, look at all that pie! So good!

apple (2), chocolate bourbon pecan (2), pumpkin (2), and chocolate chess (1)

wish we still had some!

 Last but not least, one more of Molly which does a pretty good job of capturing her spirit at the moment. She's in dress up clothes, wearing fleece boot slippers, silly grin, messy hair, and eating - but about to get down to get into trouble. That's Molly these days!