The Rest of October...

 The past few weeks have been full of autumn fun!

We harvested the rest of the garden, 

picking every pumpkin--whether or not it had turned orange yet...

 Although it may not appear to be the most bountiful crop, 

we were proud of our little pile...haha.

Growing a garden this year has been a good learning experience.

We worked hard to prepare our garden spot, and were so excited when all the seeds began to sprout. But we learned that gardening takes more time and effort and experience than merely planting the seeds. 

It gave TJ and I a lot to consider for our future gardening endeavors. We now have a better idea of what we'd like to plant in the future, what we're not going to bother with planting again, and how much more effort we need to make next time to yield a better crop.

 ~

 Now that the hot, hot summer weather is behind us,

the nice crisp autumn temperatures have finally allowed me to begin baking again.

We love baking! Nothing makes our little house feel cozier than a hot oven, filling our home with warmth and the aroma of our next batch of cookies, cinnamon rolls or baked mac and cheese. Mmmmm....

~

A couple of Friday's ago, 

we even awoke to the beautiful sight of a snow covered yard!

 Nathan made cute little snow babies...

 And Trever wouldn't give up until he'd build himself a satisfactory snowman, himself.

By the afternoon, the snow had melted away, leaving a little stump where the snowman once stood, but the boys weren't sad about it, because their Grandma & Grandpa Martin were on their way! Few things are more exciting for our boys than a visit from their grandparents!

~

 The next day was a perfect fall day and we chose to spend it with TJ's parents at Fritzler's Farm. (That "sandbox" the boys are sitting in is filled huge, dried corn kernels. A "corn box," per say...) The boys loved it.

 But the farm was more than just "corn boxes" and corn mazes...it was full of fun stuff!

Like......

 Bungee Cord Bouncing!!!

hahaha....yes, that's TJ!!!

 The expressions on Nathan's face were priceless!

 And Trever got to check this activity off of his wish list!

They all did back flips, too! 

It was quite the sight! Little Isaiah just slept right through it, though...haha.

 We all enjoyed the barrel train ride...

 (I loved the fact that even the adults were getting in on all the farm fun!)

 The boys did some more bouncing around...

 and some potato sack sliding, too.

 They even got to shoot pumpkins out of cannons!

 But my camera battery died before I got any pictures of my favorite part of the farm....The Pig Races! Four determined little piglets raced around the fenced track with all their might to get their Oreo cookie at the finish line! It was so cute! Each piglet had a different color of scarf around their neck and the announcer handed out a coordinating flag to four audience members. Trever got to wave the red flag by the track during the first race...and his piglet won! He got a plastic pig nose to wear, as his prize. For the second race, the announcer was looking for 4 new volunteers. Nathan was bouncing up and down, frantically waving his little arms, while Trever waved and shouted, pointing at Nathan, too. He wanted Nathan to have a turn so badly that he even hoisted Nathan into the air with all his might, to get the announcer's attention. I just couldn't watch Nathan get passed by after seeing both his and Trever's eagerness for him, so I started cheering and pointing towards Nathan, too. And it worked! The announcer saw us, and chose Nathan to hold the same red flag. And once again...although barely by the hair of his chinny, chin chin....the little red-scarfed piglet won the race! Hurray! Nathan got a plastic pig nose, too, and both boys were so happy that it was contagious! 

~sigh~ happy times!

~

We had an absolutely delightful time while TJ's parents were here to visit, and we sure hope they did, too! (Thank you so much for coming!!!)

~

After such a fun weekend, we went back to our usual routine. 

But not without a little more excitement...

 Trever received his Bobcat Merit Badge at his Cub Scout Pack Meeting and I got a little Bobcat pin, too! I was so proud of him, and he was pretty proud of himself, too! He loves Scouts and says that his main goal is to earn his Eagle Scout award. He is such a great kid, that I'm certain he will! They brought home their report cards last weekend, and Trever had straight A's, with only one A-. Nathan's report card was all very Satisfactory and S+, which is amazing, considering how much more effort he has to make to hear everything in class. These boys never cease to amaze me!

~

 Or make me laugh!!!

They dressed up as the bearded men from the TV show "Duck Dynasty" for our ward Halloween party.

 So did TJ! And I dressed as one of the wives from the show. Isaiah was our Mallard duck and the boys even had real duck calls that they tooted the whole night! hahaha! It was so much fun! And we even won the costume contest for "Most Original!" 

~

And, last, but not least.....Isaiah will turn 9 months old tomorrow!!!

 How did that happen?!

 Time flies!

 Isn't he just adorable?!

I love the little blue sweater he's wearing. It's one of my treasures! My amazingly talented and oh-so-wonderful Grandma Plocher made this one for Trever years ago. I love everything about it...the pointed little hood, the color and softness, but most of all, the love knitted into every stitch. Every time I put it on one of my babies, he becomes bundled up in my grandma's love, something so priceless and so very special. I'm so grateful for all of the treasures she's made for us over the years....So, even when we're far apart, we can feel so very near & dear. Thank you, Grandma.

~

~thinking of you all, xoxo~