A New England Tradition

One of the best things to do here in New England is to go apple picking in the fall. We discovered this farm last fall and decided to go back again this year. The weather was just perfect in my not so humble opinion- sunny and mid 60s. There is supposed to be a bumper crop of apples this year. We got our bag and headed up to the orchards. Pushing a stroller on a bumpy, rocky dirt path can be a challenge. We all had a fun time and it was great to be together.





I just love this picture of Isaac. We had to remind him several times to get the red apples that are big.

Here is Rick holding up him up so he could get some high in the tree. It took a few minutes of coaxing him to get him up there. He's not a big fan of heights.

Here is Rick finding some winners deep in the tree.

Rick and the two best apple pickers...

Isabella loved it, but she might love her sippy cup more...

It was such a good day for photos.

Isabella isn't the most cooperative girl ever. She just doesn't sit still long enough.

Look who I found in the apple tree!

Rick and Isabella enjoying a nice apple.

Here is that sippy cup again. She really wouldn't put it down.

The farm also had a pumpkin patch that Isabella and I visited while Rick and Isaac went to the bouncy rides.

Again, she doesn't sit still. I had visions of this super cute photo to be used for Christmas cards... Oh well...

As soon as I sat her in the little box, she was climbing out. Doesn't that girl know that I want to take a picture??

Here's a little video of Isabella helping us.

And so far, I've made baked caramel creme apples and apple crisp. I have one more recipe to try, but I might make some more apple crisp because that is almost gone already.

Have a terrific autumn!

September So Far

September has been a bit of a busy month with lots of things kicking into gear. We are preparing for a community picnic that is sponsored by our church, getting ready to participate in a dear friends' wedding (as everyone but Isabella is involved), Isaac started pre-school 4, Midweek Ministries started again, and Small Groups starting up as well. Yikes, but God has been faithful and I think I've handled the stresses pretty well so far.

Nonna bought this truck for the boys, but I think Isabella will be driving it soon!

I took the kids to a nice park by the river and used the wagon to pull them. It was a lot of fun and we stopped for some apple pie ice cream.

Here is Isaac on his first day of new class.

I just love his silly faces!

We Survived Florida

Here are some much anticipated photographs from our infamous trip to Florida. If you have not heard about our numerous misadventures, here is a quick synopsis:



1. Bella was getting over some sort of rotovirus on our way down. She would not take soy milk.

2. Our flight was delayed for two hours. Bella screamed for nearly the entire flight. She calmed down when I walked the isle with her. With the late flight, grabbing our luggage like a bunch of Sherpas, obtaining the rental van and car seat, packing the van, kids, and luggage, driving to the super nice/new house, stopping at 7-11 at 1am for dairy milk, it was around 2am when we got to bed.

3. Arriving at Disney World during the hottest month of the year, not knowing where the pre-school appropriate rides were, being hot, sweaty, tired, grumpy, and the worst mistake we made for Disney World--not renting a stroller for Isaac.

4. TV and upstairs air conditioner not working at house. So we cranked up the air downstairs which was like an ice box so we could sleep upstairs.

5. I got Bella's forementioned virus on Wed.

6. Getting 2hrs of sleep before we left to come home Saturday morning.

7. Getting really sick again early Saturday morning.

8. Missing original airplane and Rick having do to double Sherpa duty while I visited the bathroom numerous times.



But, there were some redeeming moments as well (which is what I think God wanted us down there for):



1. Rick being able to get ministered to during General Council.

2. Hearing a wonderful and timely message on Leah. Oh, how did Dr. Wood know I (little ole' me) needed to hear that? And being prayed for by a pastor I knew back home who the Holy Spirit used to minister to me.

3. Spending time with the kiddos! Even if it was chasing Isabella b/c the house wasn't baby proof. Plus, I found out she liked Italian Wedding Soup.

4. Connecting with dear friends, like Melody and Pastor & Pam. My favorite part of the trip was the Friday night we spent at Pastor and Pam's fabulous home. We spent the evening sharing our hearts and hurts. I so needed that.

5. Being inspired by the total service that Disney provides so that we can put some of those things into practice at the church.

6. Experiencing God's healing in my body and being comforted by the prayers of friends and family.




Enjoy the photos.

We rented a stroller for Isaac during our visit to Animal Kingdom and that made our day so much more enjoyable.

Isaac wanted to see hippos on the safari ride.

This picture doesn't do this tree justice. There was this huge tree that had all these amazing carvings in it.

Downtown Disney was a big hit for our family as it had shopping for adults and play areas for kids. Isaac loved the Lego store b/c they had six areas just to play with Legos.





These next pictures were taken at Pastor and Pam's house.