Hersheypark in the Dark

Just before Halloween, we took the boys to Hersheypark for Hersheypark in the Dark.

We weren't too sure what to expect..but wow did we have a great day.

 As part of our tickets, we got to make our candy bars.  We weren't sure how this would go.  The sign said it would take 40 minutes....we weren't sure if the boys could patiently wait that long...even for chocolate!

First, we all had to put on aprons and hair nets...

Next we had to choose what kind of candy bar to make...including what to add to the bar.

Have you ever seen a cuter hair net?

Here we are waiting for our candy bars to go through the assembly line.  As each bar went past, one of our names would light up.  That way we knew which bar was whose. 

 Check out silly Sawyer.  The hair net was over his right eye the entire time.  He didn't seem to mind a bit!

next, we had to make our wrappers.  We could choose a lot of designs...the boys did a great job decorating theirs.

 The waiting is almost over!  Sorry...I didn't get a shot of the boys getting the candy bars.  Craig had to take Mitchell outside since he kept pulling off his hair nets.  They looked great, but so far we haven't eaten them so we don't know how they taste!

 Next stop....rides.  And lots of them.  The boys changed into their costumes when we went into the park.
Warning....lots of pictures ahead....

 Love these pictures.  Sawyer and Jackson were having soooo much fun.  Can't you just see it on their faces!

 Mitchell even road a few mild rides.  He seemed to like it a lot.

 After the rides, we got to decorate some pumpkins.  Its hard to see, but i love the smiley face on Jackson's pumpkin!

 Our last stop....the train ride through the park....in the dark no less.  Spooky!



Holiday confusion....

What do you get when you add Halloween...with Christmas and Easter?

I'm not quite sure...but it happened this year with my family.

We were preparing to go trick or treating at Aunt Lisa and Uncle Steve's house...which we do every year...we spotted some odd characters walking up the street.

They rang the door bell..and handed out treats...then went on their way.

 After a few cute pictures that is.  The kids were tickled.  They thought it was so cool that they got some special visitors.  Although, Mitchell wasn't too sure about all this. 

I don't know about you...but Santa sure looks a lot like someones grandmother.

Hmmm.

10-10-10...or How we R-OCTOBERed!

Okay, it is a cheesy title, but it is true.  We had a fun, fast, fabulous October. One of the highlights was another visit from our new "neighbor".  Not really a neighbor, but it felt a bit like it.  Friends of Craig's family are in the SOWER ministry.  Servants On Wheels Ever Ready.  So cool.  They travel in the RV all over the country helping in different situations...clean up after natural disaster, fix up at camps, you name it...they are there.  Well,  our friends - John and Rosie Stoner - were in Lancaster for an extended period of time this summer.  John's mother was ill and they wanted to spend as much time as possible with her.  We were thrilled to have them park their RV on the farm during their stay.  The boys LOVED having them there and couldn't wait each evening to see them pull in...we even got to hang out in their super cool home on wheels. 

Well, John's mom passed away...and he ended up staying for a few days.  He ended the visit with a ride out the lane for the boys.  Super cool.

 The boys are on board here...heading out the lane.  There is now a very special place in our heart for the SOWERS.  We'd welcome them back any time!!!

That was just the beginning of our "perfect day".  Craig's birthday is 10-10.  We talked about having a big party with tons of friends and family...but instead opted to keep in small and simple.  (Craig's request...and since it was his birthday, I had to oblige! :)

The boys could not wait to give him his present from them.

In the weeks leading to Daddy's birthday, Connor had a few special thoughts for what he wanted to get.  A Phillies t-shirt...and Rock'em Sock'em robots.

Where was I supposed to find Rock'em Sock'em robots?

Well, good news.  One of my co-workers also works part time at a toy store.  He heard me talking about the gift and hooked me up....with a 20% discount.

The boys were literally ripping the paper off before the gift was even in Craig's hands!

Wow....what a lucky Daddy!

Around 5 that evening, we invited both our families over for a meal.  Steak on the grill with all the trimmings.  It was a gorgeous day so we ended up eating outside.

Then, came the cake.

Not just any cake.

The cake.

Chocolate cake with peanut butter icing.  (thank you aunt lynn.)

 We also celebrated Sawyer and Austin's birthday.  They share October 13 as b-day.
Look at those eyes.  What a cutie-pie!  Yep, I am absolutely biased!!!

The fun, funky Halloween decorated cake.  Super yum.

Next up, time for presents.  Do you see the look on Jackson's face...?  I'm not sure if he's in awe of the gift...or just taking it all in.  Oh, my.

On Sawyer's actual birthday,  I took the day off to do some fun stuff with the boys.  (Connor had school...and Jackson had pre-school...so it was Sawyer, Mitchell and I for most of the day.)  It was great.  We cheated a little bit though...and ate leftover cake from the weekend.  He didn't seem to mind.

I cannot believe that Sawyer is 3. 

This little boy has packed more fun and joy into 3 years than anyone else I know. 

He wakes up smiling...and usually doesn't stop til he finally falls asleep.

There are so many things going on in Sawyer's life that I do not want to forget.  Right now, he is really into Toy Story...especially Buzz Lightyear.  He loves pretending to be on a space mission...and loves role playing, often saying....Mommy, you be Zurg - I'll be Buzz!  He and Connor can play and play and play.  Sawyer is really talking a lot...we can probably understand 90-percent of it.  That's a big change since 6-8 months ago we couldn't understand much.  He loves tells us what's going no...and pays attention to a lot of detail.

He is, I'm sorry to admit, a bit of a bully.  Maybe that's because of his size.  His is rock solid...not fat, but solid.  At last check, he weighed around 40 pounds.  He is not patient and will push his way to the front of a line...or to grab a toy.  With Sawyer, it is always game on!

Sawyer also loves with every inch of his body.  He gives the best bear hugs around...loves to be held "up high Mommy"...can't get enough of kisses on his belly (zurburts)....lights up even the darkest days with his smile. 

He stills carries his blanket around with him...and if he thinks he's misplaced it, then finds it...he yells...Blankie, and gives it a big hug.  He enjoys trying to read...and wants to keep up with his brothers in every aspect.  He asks me to tie his shoes 8-thousand times each day....if he notices he's untied he won't move until it's tied.  He is very physically active...loves to wrestle, throw balls, play in the sand box, and is trying to ride his bike.  One of my favorite things he does right now is put his hands over his eyes...as if we can't see him...and shout Surprise!!!  Then he asks, did I scare you Mommy?  Did I scare you?

There are so many things I could add here.  I love this little guy with all of my heart.  I am overwhelmingly blessed to be his mommy.  I will never forget the moments as he was entering the world....yes, all 9 plus pounds of him!!!  It has been my great joy to be along for the ride.

Every night, after the boys fall asleep.  I go into their rooms and give them a kiss.  I pray for them...and I pray for Craig and I that we would be the parents they need...and lead them along right paths.

Sawyer, may you ask the Lord Jesus Christ into you heart...may you live in the center of His will...may you do great things in His name...and may you be blessed abundantly along the way.

I love you.

Random

Jackson was the friend of the week the other week at pre-school....meaning he was supposed to fill a bin with his favorite things and take it in to share with the other kids.  He was supposed to bring along things that best represented him.  Guess what he chose....

 Yup....just a few of Jackson's best friends.  He posed them...then had me take their pictures.  He was so pleased with the results!  I wish I were a better photographer...I'll keep trying.  They are a little dark.

Anyway, he loved sharing his favorite trains.  The teachers were not at all surprised that he brought in a bin full of Thomas trains, books, pictures and puzzles.   My favorite little train fan.

 Another, random entry.  We were on our way out the lane the other day...look what we spotted.  It was Direct TV blimp.  We got out and I took a few pictures.  So cool.  It was huge!  We think it was coming from a Phillies game.

When we saw the blimp, we had been on our way to.....

THE PUMPKIN PATCH!!!!

 Jackson bee lined right over to the chickens that were roaming in the fence.  He goes there every year!
Connor was all business.  He picked out his favorite pumpkins, a few gourds...and some Indian corn.

Sawyer wandered around the place a few times...picked out about 3 dozen different pumpkins and wanted to take them all home.  He finally settled on this one. Yep, it has a little blemish on the side, but he loved it...so it's a keeper.

As the other boys combed the patch for their perfect pumpkin, Mitchell was busy making friends.  Okay, if you take a look at the faces of the others kids, they really don't look too pleased.  I think that's becuase Mitchell was actually attempting to take and use every one of their toys.  Ooops.  These kids were very kind...and did not yell or grab anything away from Mitchell.  They just stared.  Mitchell, on the other hand, was oblivious to it all!  Just check out the grin.

 Here's Jackson posing with his prized pumpkin.  It's a beaut!

 Our final selections. ...actually we took home 6, one for each of us.  The others are already in the van! We're planning on sitting them on the porch along with the few small pumpkins we got from our garden this year.   Aunt Lynn is promising a jack o lantern carving event.  We'll see what they come up with! 

More Firsts...

After  Connor got home from school on the first day, I had promised him we would do something special for dinner.  Initially I thought we could go out to eat, or I would make his favorite meal...well, it turned out Craig was MOD (Manager On Duty)  that night so I had to adapt my plan.

We ended up taking dinner to Daddy.  Yes, it was just Burger King...but the boys didn't seem to mind.

It was a gorgeous evening.We took our food up to Mulligans since no one was around.  We ate and talked about Connor's first day of first grade.  I don't think you can see it in the picture, but Connor is eating on a red plate.  His teacher sent it home on the first day of school.  It goes back to an old American folk tale about eating on a red plate on special days.  She sent a plate home with each student...to let us know they each had a special day.  She also challenged us to recognize our child's accomplishments...both big and small...and allow them to eat on the red plate whenever we felt it would be special.  I cried...yes, I am overly sappy...when I read the note from the teacher.  It was so heart warming to know that she cared so much for my little guy.

I think we'll make this a tradition.  A special night, a special meal to celebrate the first day of school.  I'm going to go out and get a set of red plates so that each of my boys can be recognized for their special accomplishments!

A few days after Connor's first day.  Jackson had his first day.

Watch our pre-school...jackson is on his way!

I thought Jackson looked so adorable.  He was so eager to head to pre-school...and didn't even look back when I dropped him off.  I stayed at the school for a Mom's group...then picked him up and we had a special lunch at his choice of fine dining establishments.  McDonald's it was.  We took PopPop along with us for the fun.  I took the day off so I could enjoy it with Jackson.

My little guy is getting big, too.  Oh.