Breakfast for a Princess

Daddy fixed Grace a special birthday breakfast yesterday morning. She wanted pancakes and bacon. I'm surprised that she didn't ask for pizza or popcorn. Ha!

Birthday Celebration at Mrs. Staci's

Grace picked out PINK cupcakes to take to Mrs. Staci's house Friday. After nap time, they had a little birthday celebration for Grace. Mrs. Staci put candles on her cupcake and they sang Happy Birthday. So sweet! Grace felt so special!

Halloweekend at Lake Rudolph

Last weekend we went to Lake Rudolph to camp. The McAfee's and the Lewis' were there too. We arrived later in the evening Thursday. As soon as camp was set up, the kids headed into the McAfee's camper to watch a movie.
We celebrated Daniel's birthday with some cookie cake too.
The kids got restless and ended up wrestling in Sam's bed.
It got a little to chaotic, so bedtime came pretty quickly.
Alicia took some of the kiddos for a ride on a golf cart Friday morning. It was a beautiful morning.
Grace, Darbi, and Jake played with toys.
Jackson, Gabriel, and Sam enjoyed a little snack while chillin' on a golf cart.
Janelle was in the driver seat with Darbi and Grace.
Friday evening was really chilly, but it didn't stop us from enjoying a hay ride through the campgrounds.
Daddy got some snuggle time with Grace during the hay ride. I have to admit, I was jealous.
Saturday morning we went to the carnival at the pavilion. It was b-u-s-y and crazy at the carnival.
Grace took a turn at the bean bag toss.
Then the kids grabbed a duck at the duck pond.
Gabriel and Grace picked out pumpkins to decorate.
Gabriel enjoyed his sucker from the sucker tree while he decorated his pumpkin.
We stood in line for a while at the bounce house. It was really nice because they only let 5 or 6 kids in at a time. It was a really big bounce house too, so I wasn't so afraid that someone would get hurt.
I think the bounce house was their favorite part of the carnival.
Jake and Alicia came down the inflatable slide.
Grace and I were next.
Saturday day evening the kids went trick or treating through the playground. The first stop was Ninny and Pap's camper!
Grace, dressed at Rosetta, rode for a little while in Daniel's golf cart.
These kids made out like little bandits! We have SO MUCH candy!
The three big boys --- Lightning McQueen, Mario, and Buzz Lightyear.
Aaaahhh . . . It was a quiet ride home Sunday morning. We had two tired kids after all that fun!

Camping in 2010

so the camp has wifi internet....weird! enjoy the uploads

Bedtime Buddies

These are Gabriel's bedtime buddies, (from left to right) Oliver, Lion, and Beebo. Lion is his absolute best friend. He carries Lion around the house at times. He never sleeps without Lion, and Lion provides a great amount of comfort and security. Gabriel received Beebo when he was 9 months old and has slept with him ever since. Oliver was supposed to be an emergency substitute for Lion if it was ever necessary, but no dice. He likes Oliver, but Lion cannot be replaced.

Anyhow, Gabriel was talking to me this morning about packing for camping and trying to convince me to pack all 3 of his buddies. I told him that Lion was the only one allowed to make the trip with us. Gabriel gave me a very long and creative story about how if I took only one then the other would be lonely, and if we only took two of them then the one left behind would be sad. Blah, blah, blah. Alas, I stood my ground --- only Lion can go camping. A few minutes later he came back and said, "Okay, Mom. They're going to talk it over." I gave it no more thought until I found the scene above on his bed when I got home this afternoon. That kiddo cracks me up!

Bugs, Bugs, Bugs

Daddy found a toad outside in the backyard this evening and brought it in for the kids to see.
Fascinating!
A few moments later, the kids headed outside to do a little digging. They love to find creepy, crawly things in the yard.
A minute later they were back yelling, "We found a worm! We found a worm! Come see! Quick!" How could Dan and I resist their enthusiasm?
Sure enough . . . they found a worm!
It is actually a grub. When they mature, they become beetles.

I love the expression on her face. We're not sure if it was defense mechanism or poop, but something nasty came out of the grub's rear-end.
They eventually found several grubs. They called them the mommy, daddy, and sister worms.
Gabriel ended up squishing the sister worm. Shocker, huh? I think it was a little Freudian. Ha!

Riding Bikes

Grace has been scared to ride her bike since a tumble down a hill while riding in West Virginia. Last night, instead of having her ride her bike, she rode on Daddy's back in the backpack. She had a ball riding fast with Daddy on his bicycle.
Riding bikes is one of Gabriel's favorite things.
Silly girl was hiding from the camera as she and Daddy rode by.


I kept trying to get a video of Grace laughing as she rode on Daddy's back. She laughed SO hard, but unfortunately I wasn't able to get it in the video.

Salon 'Do

Grandma couldn't make her hair appointment today, so Grace and I took it. This was Grace's first time to the salon for her hair cut, and it was worth paying more to get a good cut. Grace was a little wiggly, but Cara was understanding.
Cara French braided Grace's hair. It looked so cute, and Grace left it in the braid the rest of the day.

HH: Take 2

We went back to the Harvest Homecoming this morning to meet Ginny, Tom, Jake, and Michael. Ginny was determined to have fresh, hot donuts for breakfast. Me . . . I'll take a Krispy Kreme any day over waiting 30 minutes for a Harvest Homecoming donut, but I'm always up for beautiful fall weather, a festival, and family time.
Gabriel posed for a picture with Jake.
Grace always looks so cute when she rides on Daddy's back.
This the first time Dan has been able to hold Michael. We haven't seen him since February when he was born at only 6 months gestation. We certainly couldn't hold him then. He is doing perfectly now, and he certainly doesn't LOOK like a premie.
Mommy was sucker and paid $3 for Gabriel to play this racing game. He had so much fun that I guess it was worth it after all.
Grace did not want any donuts for breakfast, but boy, when we passed a booth serving pizza, she got excited. Daddy did great with this over-the-shoulder feeding thing. Grace was in heaven having pizza for breakfast! Ha!
We couldn't pass up a photo op. with a Shriner clown.