Corn Maze

A few weeks back we bought a groupon for a corn maze and activities about an hour north of us. We bought this before we had even thought about getting Gabby so we weren't sure what to do with her since we knew this was an all day activity. The corn maze folks said bring her along and I am so glad we did. She did great and loved the outdoors.

When I heard corn maze I was picturing a few things 1) the farm in Noblesville which has great fall activities but not my favorite....too many people for my liking and I never seem to enjoy it..too worried about a kid wandering off 2) Children of the Corn (a movie I am still scared of!).

Luckily it was neither one of these. The farm was not busy, we met lots of great people,we got to enjoy some wonderful family time (I didn't even have to yell..lol) and there were no lines.

This is one of those days I wish I could repeat over and over again!

 

The story behind the corn maze.

There were many different mazes but we started with the 1.2 mile one (some were over 4 miles!)

 

Seriously, isn't this crazy?

The one started with is in the word Donate.

 

My kids are all into posing.....don't you love this

 

Gabby was ready to go :)

 

The view from the tower

 

Hmmmm...posing :)

 

Matthew lead the way (we tried to read the map but it was no help).

But there were 6 clues along our route and we found all 6.

 

Love the team work

 

One of the 6 we found.

Each marker had a place, an animal and a weapon that was not used to kill the farmer.

You then took your card and punched out those objects that weren't used.

 There were over 15 stops (between 2 of the 6 mazes) but we only did 6 before it got dark.

Can you imagine getting stuck in there? It was open until midnight!!! That would be freaky!

 

But if you did find 10 clues you got a free cupcake.

Although I wanted a cupcake, I didn't want to get lost in there...forever :)

 

I had never heard of a corn cannon but it was a blast!

 

The girls and Jason tried to hit the targets but not Matthew.

He just tried to see how high he could get it.

 

Mooo....the cow train

 

As they were on the train, I turned around to find these guys looking at me

 

Hi Captain Matthew

 

A horse ride was extra and I told Ella if she wanted to ride, she could use her allowance.

Luckily Ella bought about $10 in dimes (yes, it was heavy), 

counted out $3.00 in change and took the ride.

Although I felt cheap having her pay, I like her to realize that she can save up for special things and not everything is about what Mom and Dad can get you.

 

Money well spent :)

 

The horse owner loved that Ella used her own money and even let Ella give the horse a treat :)

 

Gabby was so good! Here she is on the hay ride enjoying her new family.

We just love her.

                                                                         Happy Fall

Our new Gabby Girl

Jason and the kids have had a conspiracy....to get our family a dog. They would leave pictures on my computer of dogs, talk about the dogs they had researched, pet every dog no matter where we are, promise to take care of it, etc. I loved their excitement but I also know what a huge responsibility that a dog brings. It is tough balancing the kids, the house,the schedules, etc and I wasn't sure I could handle a dog.

But one Sunday we were at an arts and crafts fair where I saw a Golden Doodle. He was so good, not jumping or pulling, just staying near his owner. A-dorable dog! I pointed him out to Jason and Jason said, "what do you think? I found one in KY that is still available."Huh, ironic? I swear Jason sent this adult golden doodle just to get me to say yes :)

So that same Sunday night, we drove down to KY to meet with the breeder. She had two golden doodle puppies available: a girl and a boy. The boy, Buddy, was 75% poodle and 25% golden retriever. He was running around like a typical puppy. He was black and white and so incredibly cute. Then there was the girl (named Harley). She was completely black and had quite a different personality. As Buddy was running around like crazy, Harley just put her head on my lap. I think she knew who she had to win over. Harley is 50% golden, 50% poodle. After us going back and forth on who to take home, we knew that Harley was ours. They always say a dog choses it's family and this was certaintly the case.

 

Gabby, Matthew and I walking home from the bus stop

 

This is how we see Gabby quite often. Laying down...chilling.

 I asked the Vet if there was anything wrong with her because she is so chill.

He looked at me like I had 4 heads and said..count your blessings :)

 

Ella's face makes me smile :)

Harley, renamed Gabby, is such a great dog! People are amazed that she is a puppy because she is so chill. She loves to run and play but when she is done, she just lays down. We are thinking she will be around 60 lbs (ahhh) but her personality is so perfect for our family.

Ella has been my huge helper with walks and making sure Gabby isn't chewing on things she shouldn't. We had an electric fence put in last week so Gabby is getting used to being off a lease. She loves running! And we just love her :)

Laney's first homework assignment

Laney came home excited to work on her first assignment...to make an All About Me poster. This poster was going to hang in the room the rest of the year and each student got to show off their poster in front of the class.

I was SO proud of her work.

She wrote her name herself and picked out the pictures she wanted to use:

Her school picture, our family, Gabby, her Grandparents, her favorite book (Pinkalicious), her favorite sport (tennis...mind you she hasn't picked up a racket but that is ok, right?), some of her artwork and random writings.

Way to go, Laney!!

Look who is riding without training wheels?

One afternoon, Laney decided on her own it was time to take her training wheels off.

It took about 2 tries and she had it down.

It is amazing when a kid's timing is right, they just get it!

Way to go Laney!!

Still on training wheels and loving the ramp Jason built for the kids :)

Matthew's First Day of Preschool

Matthew started preschool at St. Thomas Episcopal Church and is going two mornings a week. It seems weird that my youngest is in "school" but I know he needs his own time (and I would love 5 hours to myself a week). And let me say, Matthew is SO ready! He ran into the room ready to go and excited to see his "friends." Yes, friends he had never met before :) Love that!

He is supposed to be potty trained to in the 3s class but oh no, Matthew is not there. The teachers were very nice and just said send him in undies...brave women!!! But no accidents the first day...maybe we are getting somewhere??

His teachers are Mrs. Caesar and Mrs. Kaiser. They are a great combination of flexibility, excitement, teaching, disciplinarians, etc. I am so happy Matthew has them.

What a pose!

Look at my 2 boys

Do you think he is excited to walk in?

Mrs. Caesar showing Matthew his cubby

Ok Mom, I got this!

His cubby

Matthew and his teacher, Mrs. Caesar

He loved his first day and told me about the huge tower he built and that he went potty twice. 

Both very important facts :)

Laney's First day of Kindergarten

Laney's Friday day of Kindergarten was Thursday, September 6th. She has been so excited to go and see her friends. There are 2 kindergarten classes, and her teacher is Mrs. Concannon. In her class she has some good friends that she is excited to see everyday but also a great group of new kids to us. We were able to see her desk the night before and see that she was sitting near her friend Sarah. She warmed right up to the brand new room and loved chatting with Mrs. Concannon (who reminds me of Mary Poppins).

She was SO excited!

I "think" the girls were even excited to go to school together :)

The stairs that lead to her room (which is HUGE).

Big windows, great cubbies, new desks, new toys...wow is all we kept saying.

Our friends the Muench's

Laney with her school supplies (that is Mrs. Concannon in the background...see, Mrs. Poppins).

Laney & Liam.

Whenever I say the name Liam, she puts her hands on her head, smiles and says, "ah, he has a crush on me."

These 2 are a hoot together!

One last pep talk before she goes inside.

It was right here when I told myself, "be strong, don't break down."

Then we turned around and saw this big smile and wave :)

Laney is so ready for Kindergarten. She came home saying she had the best day ever. They had a scavenger hunt for a missing watermelon (which took them to the second floor, to the basement and everywhere in between). The watermelon showed up in the cafeteria, all cut up for a snack :) I love how excited she is for the fun upcoming year!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The second day of Kindergarten Laney wanted to take the bus with her friends:

Getting on the bus with her friends :)

The bus always looks so big when your little girl is on it.

Ella was so helpful to Laney...making sure she got off at the right bus stop (we are the first) and making sure she had a place to sit. Although they rarely get along, it is nice when there are some good moments :)