Lucky Ladd Farm

Way back before Halloween (October 27th, to be exact), we went to Lucky Ladd Farms.  It was a Sunday so Brian got to go with us!!!  We've gone every fall since we've lived here.  They have a corn maze, pumpkin patch, farm animals, a hay ride, and dozens of fun things for the kids to play on.

We bought some feed and the boys fed the animals first.

Duck racing ...

The tractor ride ...

The small slide that both boys will go on ...

And the big one that only Carter will do ...

The sound Carter makes going down is too funny :)

Carter and Brian chucked a few small pumpkins ...

Next we took a hay ride ...

I had to tear Carter away from the tire swing.  It may have been his favorite thing out there!

Success!

The last thing we did was the corn maze.

They had a fun activity card for the kids that was essentially like the game Clue.  At the 6 stations that you had to find in the maze, there were pictures that helped you eliminate which animal did something and with what.

Rylan had been so good walking the entire time we were at the farm but he'd had enough in the corn maze.  I carried him for a long time but we eventually made our way out and waited for Brian and Carter to finish up (he is HEAVY).  We found this cool horse made out of corn.  Rylan is yelling, "Yeeha!"

We headed out then (we were there a few hours).  It was great getting to spend the day with Brian doing something fun!

Pump It Up

Rylan has never gone down the big slide at Pump It Up (except when he was smaller and went with me and wasn't a fan).

For some reason he decided last Monday that he wanted to give it a try.  This was his second time down.

He probably went down it 30 times more.  Woohoo, Rylan!!!

Elf on the Shelf Friday

He's back!!!

Mr. Elf had arrived while we were in North Carolina for Thanksgiving.  We found him on the kitchen table when we walked in on Sunday night.

On Monday morning we found Mr. Elf putting out a fire in our fireplace with the help of some the boys' toys.  We think Mr. Elf liked how cold the house was while we were gone (we turned the heat down really low) and didn't like that it was so warm now.

I was still super sick on Monday and hadn't cleaned up all the arts and crafts supplies the boys had gotten out before I went to bed.  Mr. Elf got ahold of the pipe cleaners and made a ladder to climb our reindeer!

Mr. Elf got mischievous and on Wednesday we found the toilet in the half bath wrapped in wrapping paper!!!

Carter had built some things with Legos on Wednesday night.  He went and told Mr. Elf before he went to bed to not mess them up.  Apparently some of the Lego guys wanted to make sure Mr. Elf didn't mess with Carter's stuff and tied him down!

This morning we found that Mr. Elf had created a "North Pole Carnival" last night complete with a ring toss, can knock down, and fishing game!

Carter was scared of Mr. Elf at first but he's gotten braver and looks for him in the morning without much fear (I still have to be right next to him).  Rylan doesn't want to come downstairs until Carter is up so that Carter finds the elf first.  Carter has been getting up earlier than normal this week so that's been working for Rylan but we'll see how that goes next week.

Preschool Thanksgiving Celebration

A week before Thanksgiving, the boys had their Thanksgiving celebrations at school.  Since I'm Carter's room mom, I got to be at the party (and plan it).  Lauren is the other room mom and they went to Disney World so it was just me this time.  I decided to collect money from the other parents and got a Chick-fil-A nugget platter, along with fruit, cheese, pretzels, and juice boxes for the kids.  We moved the tables to make one long table for lunch.

After eating, the kids got to have the turkey cookies they had made earlier in the (I was planning on making similar ones to bring but luckily Ms. Denise and I talked beforehand and figured out we were doing the same thing!).

Afterwards we played a game of Autumn Bingo that I had brought along.  I lot of the kids didn't know how to play, but it was still lots of fun!  And Carter LOVES that I get to come into his class.  And I love that he wants me there!  I know it won't last forever!

Ms. Denise gave each of the kids these cute Reese's Pieces turkeys she made for them.  And bonus for Brian and I - Carter didn't like the candy :)

The kids also made these cute Thanksgiving placemats.  It's always interesting to see what the kids are thankful for.  Carter must have made this the day he brought in his stuffed dog for show-and-tell.  Thanksgiving week the kids had to bring in something they were thankful for.  Carter had his well checkup a couple of days earlier and had brought along a stuffed dog to help him be brave getting shots.  So he brought that dog for show-and-tell.  I think the last two things on his list are both that dog.

For Rylan's Thanksgiving party, we all signed up to bring different things for lunch.  During his party, the kids also made Thanksgiving Mix with some of the things we brought in.

Rylan's class also made placemats.  They did cute turkey handprints.

Maddie's Birthday Party

A few Sundays ago (the day after Carter's birthday party), we went to a party for Maddie's 3rd birthday.  Ashley had a horse-themed party at her house.  There was a good chance of severe weather (it was the afternoon Illinois and Indiana had some horrible tornadoes), but we lucked out and only had some sprinkles by the afternoon.

Ashley is great at details and some super cute decorations on her porch.

Maddie (the birthday girl) with her big brother, Carson (who is Carter's age and was on his first soccer team).

The highlight of the party were the REAL HORSES!!!  I don't remember who, but someone in Ashley's family owns some horses.  When we arrived at the party, the horse trailer was parked in front of their house with the horses inside of it.  Because of the weather, they stayed in there most of the party, but one was brought out for a few minutes.

All the kids got to feed the horses carrots and apples.

Another highlight was the pinata.  Thank goodness the weather cooperated so the kids could do both of these things!!!

Maddie is not a fan of loud noise or singing :)

The kids had a blast at a fun and unique party!!!

We're Back

We are back from Raleigh and I have so much to post about (I still haven't even done Carter's birthday party!!!), but Brian and I are sick and barely functioning (hoping the kids don't get it!).  I'll be back with lots to share soon, hopefully!!!

Crossbow

This was Papa Mike's birthday present for Carter.  No one has shot an eye out, yet :)  The packaging said it can shoot up to 100 feet - we haven't tried it outside yet, but I believe it!

Lil Sluggers - Sliding

Carter got to do the sliding session at Lil Sluggers on his birthday (while wearing his crown!) ...