house tour: the dining room.

carved.

We usually have a huge pumpkin carving party each year for the kiddos, but this year, due to poor planning and time management, we couldn't quite get it together. Of course, we still needed to carve our pumpkins, so instead of inviting all of our friends and neighbors over, we just invited our friend Mary and her daughter, Betsy, and Frank and Rachel over for chili and some pumpkin carving fun.

We had a really wonderful, messy time and cannot wait to do it again next year!

cotton pickin' celebration.

Boo at the zoo was more or less a swing-and-a-miss, thanks to my poor planning. Surely, Old Baker Farm on a Saturday would be a home run, right?!

What was I thinking???

I should have thrown in the towel after Ann Bennett got sick again in her crib Friday night. She seemed to be feeling better come Saturday morning, so despite our reservations, we loaded up the kids and headed to the pumpkin patch.

I had to hold a sandwich bag under Sissy's chin the majority of the way there. She was as white as a ghost and kept saying that she was going to be sick. Luckily, she didn't. Thank you, Lord. When we arrived, the overflow parking had overflow parking. I thought Boo at the Zoo was crowded…

HA!

I should have done my research because come to find out, it was the farm's 2016 Cotton Pickin' Celebration. We specifically came for the experience of picking out a pumpkin, but the wait for the hayride to the patch was well over an hour. Probably two. Despite the crowds, we made the most of our time at the Hay Maze, Cotton Patch, Hay Mountain, the swings, and the Corn Maze. Brooks didn't want to leave he was having so much fun! I do wish that we could have stayed longer so Ann Bennett could have rode a pony and Brooks could have jumped in the Cotton Bounce, but it was lunch time and Little Miss needed a nap. They both did!

We stopped on the way home and grabbed two pumpkins because that night we were having some friends over to carve them! Luckily, the kiddos didn't know the difference! Like Boo at the Zoo, we are going to keep the tradition alive, but next year, we will plan on going on a week day when we are all well...

boo'd sick.

After the kids enjoyed their baskets on Friday, we ate a quick dinner and put on our Halloween costumes for Boo at the Zoo…along with the rest of Birmingham. We showed up and waited in line for-ev-errrr. When we finally made it into the zoo, we tried to dodge the crowds, to no avail. The candy lines were long, the ride lines were long. We decided to make it a quick trip and hit up every hot spot, except for the train, because, you guessed it, the line was too long.

Brooks had the most fun on the Spider Slide. He was hesitant to ride it at first, but once he did it, he asked to go again. I love how brave he is becoming. The highlight for Ann Bennett was the Elsa cut-out. I can laugh about it now, but there was almost a throw down when Brooks tried to get in the picture with her. 

We came, we saw, we trick-or-treated, and boo'd. Despite the crowds and a Red Riding Hood that didn't seem herself, we had a lot of fun. When we pulled into the driveway and I glanced back at Ann Bennett, I noticed she vomited all over herself and the carseat, without a peep. Poor baby girl. It certainly explained a lot!

We will certainly try again next year. On a week night. And hopefully, the stomach bug won't make its appearance.

from, pete.

I had grand plans of a fun, festive family weekend. It all came crashing down Friday night when Ann Bennett threw up in her car seat on the way home from Boo at the Zoo (more on that in another post), BUT! on Friday, when Brooks and Ann Bennett woke up from their afternoon naps, Pete, our beloved skeleton, surprised them with baskets full of Halloween goodies. They were so excited!

Thanks, Pete!

coming 'round the mountain.

This past weekend we loaded up and drove to the mountains for a family vacation with John's family. It was my first time visiting Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg, so I was really excited for a new change of scenery. We left Friday, late morning, and stopped for lunch in Mentone. We ate at Wildflower Cafe, and while it took forever, it sure was delicious.

With the time change, we arrived at the Dollywood's DreamMore Resort (so amazing) in the evening so we laid low. We ate dinner at the hotel, unpacked, and called it a night. The next morning we ate breakfast at The Apple Barn. We walked around for a bit then headed up the mountain to Gatlinburg to drive the Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail. Although it was foggy and misting, the views were beautiful.

We ended our day at good ol' Dollywood. The kids rode a few rides, played games, and we ate dinner…and cinnamon bread from Grist Mill. Oh wow.

We devoted the entire day on Sunday to Dollywood. This time, the adults had some fun. I LOVE rollercoasters, so I was on cloud nine. That is, until I rode on the Barnstormer and thought that I was going to die!

(Goodness, if you can zoom in on my face, please do.)

Lea and I waited in line for an hour and a half for the new coaster, Lightning Rod, the fastest wooden roller coaster in the world. Everyone else got tired of waiting for us, so they went back to the resort to swim while we walked around and rode a few more rides. It was nice having some alone time!

That night, we ate dinner at the resort and roasted marshmallows. The kids had fun making s'mores.  It was the perfect ending to a great trip!

We left early Monday morning to head home. We stopped in Chattanooga to stretch our legs and eat lunch. We ended up taking the kids to the Tennessee Aquarium (penguins!) and ate lunch at Urban Stack. Within minutes of being back in the car, our exhausted kids fell asleep and slept until we got home. 

It really was such a fun trip and we are so thankful for our time with John's family. The kids (and I) have sweet memories to hold on to!