Anna Under the Hood

This is what I saw when I walked into the garage on Saturday - and this is where Anna wanted to be all weekend.

Mommy: "Anna, what are you doing?"
Anna: "I'm wrenching."

And this is what Rachel has been up to:
Watch out, here she comes!

Fall Fun Fest

Last night was our annual Fall Fun Fest at church. It's a great outreach event filled with fun, food, and games. Our small group always volunteers to work a game (this year, it was the cookie walk) I enjoy seeing all of Anna's friends all dressed up.

This year we had Millie (who's normally a red head) dressed up as Dora, Eliot the flamingo, and Anna (who still refuses to smile for many pictures) the ballerina (because we had this costume already at home)

Rachel the ladybug (who seemed to really enjoy getting dressed up)
Here's three little Curious George monkeys and two "men with yellow hats"
I took this picture without asking them to pose (it was kind of a crazy evening)
and the Flintstones (way to go Sue and Mike!)


Anna loved the pony ride (how many ballerinas have you seen on a pony?)
and what could get better than a train ride with dad?
Those were the only two things Anna was interested in doing. There were tons of games, bounce houses, and cotton candy.... not interested. She still doesn't like candy - which is totally fine except that Ben and I were planning on snacking on her "loot" later that evening but we came home empty handed. :)

October at the farm

Last weekend, we took our annual fall trip to my dad's farm in north Arkansas. We were hoping to catch some cool weather and fall color. It was a little rainy and cold, but still so much fun to be outside all bundled up. We were a little too early for the leaves changing colors, but they had started and it was still absolutely beautiful.

Our first stop was to see Jason, Katie, and Zach on our way. I cannot tell you how wonderful it was to see her face and hold her tight. I have prayed for and cried for this sweet friend many times over the loss of Reese and even though her pain is still very near, it did my heart some good just to see her. I was grateful for the opportunity.
Happy 30th to you Katie on Thursday!!!

From there, we headed on to the farm and of course began our trip with a ride on the four-wheeler. That's actually all Anna wanted to do the entire time. Ben even let her drive a little (meaning, she got to push the button to make it go) and it was evident that she enjoyed that. Many times, I heard her saying "faster, daddy faster" I have a feeling this girl will be taking advantage of every opportunity to fly on the four-wheeler - just like her mama!

Our animal count on the four wheeler:

- many cows and calves (of course)

-1 wolf

-2 skunks (or "snuks" as Anna calls them)

-1 dead armadillo (yummy!)

As I was taking this picture, it made me think that we've taken a picture of Anna on the four-wheeler at every age:

2007

Spring (6 months)

Fall (11 months)

2008

Spring (1 1/2 years old)

Fall (2 years old)

2009
Spring (2 1/2 years old)








Fall (almost 3 years old)








Here's a picture of my dad's new house that he's building:


and the view from his front porch.... beautiful isn't it? He's had this exact site picked out for years and the house is finally being built. I can't wait to sit on this front porch and take it all in.

Hunnie and Kayla (my dad's dog) checking out the new porch. They ran and ran and ran... and ran all weekend
Me and my "sweet cheeks"

Ashlee, this one's for you. We thought your photography skills would be impressed!
Rachel loves to be thrown into the air (just like her sister) and this sunset was just beautiful!

Rachel also had her first ride on the four-wheeler in the backpack. Ben's sister gave us this backpack when Anna was born - BEST present ever and it's gotten LOTS of use.

my dad with all his girls as we say goodbye - THANK YOU dad for a restful visit and all the great cooking. I'll stop eating now in order to prepare for Thanksgiving. :)

Fall at the Arboretum

Fall is here!!!! This is definitely my most favorite time of year - the weather cools off, my pumpkin spice candle is burning with the windows open, most of our day is spent outside, the leaves kind of turn colors (in Texas)... It's just a great time of year - in my opinion. This week we got to visit the Arboretum with our friends from our church small group. My friend Keri got some great pictures of the girls, but here are a few that I took. Our membership is about to expire and I wanted to get one last trip in before we think about renewing or taking a year off and renewing when Rachel gets a little older.

I just love this one of Anna - she picked out a small pumpkin as soon as we arrived and carried it around everywhere with her. As usual, she chose to sit back and watch her friends play but that pumpkin never left her sight. :)

And here's my little pumpkin balanced carefully..

Our friends Ruth with her twin sisters Lucy and Betty

This isn't the best picture, but it made the day fun - this fountain was filled with small pumpkins and the girls thought it was hilarious to try and pick them up and then gently toss them back in and watch the splash - I promise that we did not damage anything. :)

Stay tuned for more fall fun!

Hunnie Love

Hunnie has been a part of our family for 5 years now (thank you Jared and Julie for having puppies!)
We love our Hunnie and she is so good with the girls. Sometimes I'll look outside and Anna and Hunnie are actually playing together in the backyard - it's great!

H-howls like crazy sometimes when she doesn't receive attention

U-unable to control her licking tongue

N-never turns down a walk

N-needs trips to the farm and lake

I-is patient with the girls

E-enjoys tummy rubs and being loved on by anyone who'll give her attention

Having Hunnie has also been a great way to teach Anna responsibility. It's her job to feed her (when we remind her of course) and to hold the leash when we take walks.

Fruit and Vegetable Co-op

Ben and I are trying out a fruit and vegetable co-op in our area. We heard about it from several friends and are in the middle of a 6 week trial period to see if we like it. The benefits include: a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables, new things for Anna to try, things to puree into baby food for Rachel, and since we pick up a load every two weeks, it forces us to eat our fruits and veggies daily. I'm splitting a share with another friend. Here's what we got this week after we split everything:

I never know what to expect so it makes meal planning interesting, but it's fun to try out new stuff sometimes. I like the variety - now I just need to figure out what to do with eggplant!

Plano Hot Air Balloon Festival 2009

This weekend we attended the Hot Air Balloon Festival once again - this was our third year to attend and as usual it was lots of fun. Anna knew what to expect this time and was excited about our "special day" as she called it.

The corn dogs were excellent :) She gets her excitement for food from her mommy!

the skydivers landing on the field:

just happy to be outside :)

the balloon launch:

waiting for it to get dark:

the balloon glow: