Christmas Lights

Like last year, we headed to our nearby Market Village in Smyrna and checked out the Christmas lights with our friends Ella & Ms. Tracy.  The girls had lots of fun running around!  They had endless amounts of fun looking at these lights and also looking for other Christmas lights any time we were out and about around Christmas.  Never gets old hearing "Mommy, look at THOSE Christmas lights!" Everything is always new and always exciting with these two.  Love it. 

Reindeer and Hot Dogs

Since the girls had enjoyed the previous puppet show so much and because I love Rudolph (ha), we took a family/friend outing to see the Red-Nosed Reindeer and his friends at the Center for Puppetry Arts.  It was amazing!  The show looked just like the cartoon I grew up watching and still love.  I was a little nervous about the girls' reaction to the Abominable Snowman, but they took it like champs.  Due in part to me making them watch it several times before we went.  Both for my entertainment and to teach them that he is, at the end, a nice snowman (with no teeth) who puts the star on the top of the tree.  See?  It's all about education, people.  Education and figuring out ways to make them watch really old Christmas cartoons because I love them. 

They did great throughout the show - it was an hour long, so they started getting a little antsy, i.e., "Mommy??  Is it OVER yet?" - but held it together nicely with the promise of water and snacks at the end.  And boy did they get more than that.  Their first trip to The Varsity!  It was a big day, folks.  Rudolph and Varsity hats.  Good times.  They thoroughly enjoyed their hot dogs - Elle even ate 1/2 of my chili cheese dog.  The girl was a machine.  Nothing says Christmas like reindeer and hot dogs! 

RUDOLPH!

If you don't hear from me for a while, it's because Tyler killed me for posting this picture of him. 

Cambie!

Kater

Three little heads watching Santa & his reindeer.  Cuteness.

Ketchup for hot dog?  Check.

Friends to dine with?  Check.

Contemplating the ever important question - "What'll ya have?  What'll ya have?"

Bellies full and now onto Daddy's lap

Fun at the Fair

We went to the Cumming Fair with some dear friends of ours several weeks ago and had a great time.  Elle & Kate LOVED riding the rides - the Nemo ride was Kate's favorite and the Motorcycle ride was Elle's.  There was a also a (smelly) petting zoo and the world's largest snake, which Tyler would not let us come near.  :)  The girls had a blast in the petting zoo, especially loving the "tiny little pigs" and the miniature horses. 

There was even a stage in a big arena where what I assume was a local dance school was performing their dances.  Boy, did that take me back.  I leaned over to Tyler and said "That used to be me."  Performing at different county events, competitions, etc.  He laughed and said "So, it will be the girls one day too?"  Um, God-willing!  I hope they find/have something as fun as dance was for me.  But I promise not to be one of those crazy dance/sports/whathaveyou moms.  But I do not promise not to cry when they do a performance of any type.  I will TOTALLY be that mom and embarrass the crap out of them.  And myself. 

After the fair, a pizza dinner with our friends capped off a lovely day.  Thanks, Albrights!

The best pic I got of all 3 girls.  Doh!

Loving the Nemo ride

Kate's face is awesome.

Bad to the bone.

A is for...

We took the girls up to Mercier Orchards last weekend for a little apple pickin'!  They had been talking about apples in school the whole week before, so it was kinda perfect timing.  And holy crow, were the apples good!  They also had pumpkins, and the girls each got to pick a little one to bring home.

We all had an excellent time picking - though Mommy & Daddy had to pick most of them as the lower branches were pretty clear of apples.  Sidenote: it is hard to make 3 year olds understand that they aren't allowed to pick up the apples off the ground.  We told them they'd go to jail because it was against the law.  What?  It kind of is.  The Department of Agriculture don't play, y'all.  :)  Anywho - they did manage to find a few on their level to pick and then eat.  Though we were a little scared of the yellow jackets who tended to hover around the apples.  We escaped unscathed though, with bellies full of Golden Delicious and Suncrisp.

Then we went to the store.  Oh, the store.  Good. Grief.  That place was crowded - both with people and with every kind of apple product you could ever imagine.  It was both glorious and overwhelming.  We also randomly ran into some friends while we were there - fun!  We came home with apple cider donuts, fried apple pies, apple butter and the girls both sucked down like 16 ounces of frozen apple cider each.  Good stuff, guys.  Oh, not to mention the 10 lbs of apples we picked.  Apple recipes, anyone?

It was a hit and we had a great time.

Sour, yet, delicious.

Finally found one low enough to pick!

2 cute pickers

Tyler actually tried to climb to where he's looking.  :)

Found one!

My homegirls

Can't get enough!

Big stuff.  And also tired of walking.

Self-portrait

In a nutshell.  Or an apple peel.  You choose.

Future Firefighters

Our new fire station just opened up down the road from us and we went on a family outing to the Ribbon Cutting Ceremony.  Tyler's firm designed the station, so he was our official tour guide.  The girls had a great time climbing in the fire trucks, meeting the Chick-Fil-A Fire Chief, and seeing where all the firefighters sleep.  Tyler and I totally thought it was cool to sit in the fire truck too.  :)  The only disappointing thing for me?  No fire pole!  What the heck?  I thought that was a requirement for every fire station! 

Kate LOVED the cow. 

And Elle actually held his hand - progress!

Explaining the intricacies of the fire truck.

Relaxing in the firemen's sweet leather chairs.

Getting a lesson from Daddy.

No really.  You should stay 200 feet back from these 2 AT ALL TIMES.  :)

Go Braves!

We took the girls to their first Braves game in August, and while they still haven't quite mastered the Tomahawk chop, I think they had an excellent time.  It was blazing hot, because of course, it's August in Atlanta - but they got their ice cream in little Braves helmets and were such troopers.  Mommy & Daddy were actually the ones who called it in the 5th inning.  Heat stroke ain't pretty, people.  And carrying toddlers all the way back to your car parked in Lot Timbuktu?  Not pretty either.  Perhaps a nice spring or fall game next time?  Really though - they had a blast and their favorite parts were definitely the ice cream and the fireworks.  Though Kate did keep asking "Where is the pitcher, Mommy? I don't see him!"  So maybe she'll be our little sports nut!

Hanging out before the game

She loves her sunglasses!

It is amazing how much ice cream fits in those little helmets.

Daddy had to help out.  Don't worry - Mommy did too.  :)

Go Braves!

Who's Got the Power?

In case you don't know - the answer to the question is...Super Why!  He's got the power.  Well, the power to read.  And Elle & Kate got to see Super Why Live!  It's a show I actually like and find wayyyy less annoying than Dora or Diego, so I happily encourage any excitement towards it.  And I won 4 tickets, so off we went to go see the super readers, live!

Again - like on the carousel - they were both super excited before it started and then Kate just quietly sat while it was going on while Elle danced in her chair and squealed.  Kate let out the occasional squeal and enjoyed it, but was definitely taking it all in. 

One of the most fun things about being a parent is watching your kiddos experience new things, so I spent most of the show watching their little faces.  And Kate sat on my lap for most of the time, which doesn't happen as often as it used to, so - bonus! 

Pre-show hijinks

Our view from the free seats

The girls each got a magic wand.  They were a hit!

So fun watching them, watching Super Why

Sweet Elle & Daddy