The Quintessential Apple Picking Trip

Fall just keeps on making me happier and happier. Despite my growing belly, decreasing energy and slower mobility, the weather and outdoor activities this fall has put a smile on my face almost everyday.

Apple picking is one thing that you have to do, every year. Its just one of those things that is so New England, you can't pass it up. So we didn't. On a fine Friday morning we met several friends at a nearby orchard and picked away.

In our family, we definitely had the pickers and the eaters. Not really hard to tell who they are.

They are both cute though, so we'll keep them.

New England Falls

New England falls are seriously wonderful. The weather is warm and pleasant, the colors are amazing and there are a ton of farms and venues to spend time at. A few weeks ago we ventured to a corn maze and small farm north of us for the festivities.

Racing rubber ducks

One of the only times we get them to to actually sit together.

They both use the bounce pillow in different ways.

On the home stretch of the corn maze-- after our double melt down and recovery. Louis thought we were looking for dinosaurs.

Elsie would have been happy to stay here almost the entire day. There is something about filling up and emptying things that just really makes her happy.

Twenty nine weeks pregnant and chillin on the hayride. Sad that this is basically the only picture of me in the last two months- I like being behind the lens.

Shooting the apple gun. The target was a pirate ship, but Louis wanted to aim at the ducks.

Unfortunately these are the faces we get out of Elsie most of the time. Lately her attitude has changed... and not for the better. We're entering that lovely phase where she knows what she wants, but doesn't know how to communicate it.

Luckily, she still loves her Dad to death and will follow him mostly anywhere he goes.

Parasaurolophus Party

If you don't know what a parasaurolophus is, don't worry- neither did we until about 5 months ago when Louis' dinosaur obsession started in earnest. In case you were wondering, its an upright walking plant eater with a crest on the back of its head. We know random things like that now in this house (and no, his mask is not a parasaurolophus, that is obviously a protoceratops).

So when that time of year came around for Louis' 3rd birthday, there was no question as to what kind of party we would have to throw. Louis was in heaven with everything being about dinosaurs. We've got a few pictures from the hallowed event to show you his delight.

We started the morning off with a few presents from Mom and Dad. Of course out of all of them, he loved his $1 squishy figurine of a ankylosaurus.

Elsie's favorite gift was of course, his dinosaur shoes. She was mad when she had to take them off to get dressed.

We had a little paleontologist dig site where they dug for buried dinosaur bones and then a real, erupting volcano-- Louis is quite morbidly obsessed about how all the dinosaurs died, and he is convinced from his reading that this is how they all died.

James prepared a really great treasure hunt for the kids with dinosaur maps and bits of the treasure hidden all around the park. Louis, who was introduced to maps this summer by his older cousin Dane, was obsessed. He took the whole thing extremely serious and kept on referring to his map to figure out where to go.

Serious map skills.

Masks found during the treasure hunt.

Dinosaur lunchtime, complete with sandwiches cut to the shape of a brontosaurus.

Elsie was on my back in a back pack for most of the party, but she did get to get down and do what she likes best, eat fruit.

Then of course there was the cake. James' friend Mana was in town and helped us created a truly menacing stegasaurus. All Louis wanted to do the morning of his party was open the fridge and look at it. At his party, he kept on trying to sneak over to the table just to stare at it.

He was very serious about the candle blowing.

And there you have it, Louis has finally turned 3. Both James and I have noticed how the closer he has gotten to his birthday, the faster he has kind of shed the 'terrible two' image and gotten calmer, less prone to fits, loves to help and can be reasoned with at least 50% of the time. We of course love him to bits and are grateful to have him in our lives.