Emery, Bodie and I met my mom and Nanny at Denver Downs Farm in Anderson, SC, last weekend for our annual visit to the pumpkin patch and celebration of all things fall.  They added a new feature this year--a giant bubble of a trampoline/moon bouncy thing.  Emery had so much fun!  I inquired about having one put in our backyard, but apparently they're not as simple as I had hoped.  Somehow I don't think Ben will go for me digging trenches all through his beloved yard to blow air into this huge tarp thing that would surely kill the grass.  I guess we'll have to stick with our original plan to get a trampoline one day in the near future.  However, falling off one of these bubble things would be a lot less dangerous.

 

 Jack-o-lantern tetherball

 Rubber ducky races

 Rolling around in corn....just like last year.

 Bodie's first autumn!  And also his first taste of ice cream (thank you, Nanny!)

 He loved it!

Fruits of my labor

Eight jars of apple butter made from our Sky Top apples. It's pretty darn good, if I do say so myself!

Sky Top Apple Orchard

For the second year in a row, Emery and I made the trek up to the North Carolina mountains (only about 45 minutes from our house--I don't know why we don't take advantage of this proximity more often) to visit Sky Top Apple Orchard.  We were joined by Davis and Harper (of course) and their mommies, Casey and Diana, as well as my friend Ashley and her 14 month old twins, Max and Sydney!  We had a wonderful afternoon in the warm sunshine picking apples, eating apple doughnuts (oh my--words cannot describe the goodness), enjoying our picnic lunch, and watching the kids run all over the beautiful landscape. 

 

 Harper, Davis and Emery

 We hit the peak of Golden Delicious and Granny Smith picking time.  So far I've made eight jars of apple butter.  I also see a pie in my future.  The apples are delicious.

 The whole gang!  Davis, Emery, Harper (back row) and Sydney and Max in the wagon.

 Emery hard at work.  She quickly filled our basket to the point of overflowing.

My pretty girl.

Emery's First Movie

Emery has been in love with "Finding Nemo" for about a year and a half.  I recorded it one night on ABC Family and I couldn't believe the immediate obsession.  It is the first movie she ever watched from start to finish and she wanted to watch it continuously.  Good thing Mommy happens to like the movie, too.  Dory is Emery's favorite character.  We even named our Betta "Dory" last summer--and she's still with us!  I was thrilled to learn that "Finding Nemo" was being rereleased in theaters--in 3D!  I've never seen a 3D flick and Emery had never been to a movie in a theater.  We had to go.  So, last Sunday we had a date with Nemo, Marlin, Dory, Bruce, Nigel, Peach, Chum and the others.

 We had a little photo session before we left.  Emery wore her Bruce tee shirt and brought along her enormous Nemo.

 3D glasses.  These are mine.  Emery's were smaller and blue, but she wanted to wear mine.

We made it through the entire movie!  Yay!  Thankfully, the theater was almost empty as Emery really enjoyed running up and down the stairs and climbing over the seats.  However, she was reasonably quiet and got a kick out of seeing these well-loved Pixar friends on the big screen.  She also got a kick out of her Coke, popcorn and m&m's. 

Wheeler Homecoming

My recent trip to Atlanta happened to coincide with my former high school's homecoming parade.  Given Emery's recent obsession with cheerleading, I figured this would be the perfect opportunity for the kids to enjoy some fun and games WHILE watching cheerleaders.  Plus, my high school is in the midst of a major renovation and I was curious to check it out.  Wheeler High School is going to be amazing! 

 Bodie on the end zone paw print.  The field is now astro turf and looks incredible.  The parade concluded with a fair and bonfire along the track.  Such a fun evening!  I'll definitely try to plan for this again next year.

 Emery, Bodie, Kelsey and Hayes at their mommies' alma mater

 Racing the field

 Witchy Emery

 Emery got her face painted by an actual cheerleader--she was in awe.

Go Wildcats!

LegoLand at Phipps Plaza

Last week the kiddos and I headed down to Atlanta for a quick visit.  I hadn't been in months and I was itching to go to Book B*tches since I found last month's selection VERY intriguing.  Do yourselves a favor and read Gone Girl.  Words fail me.  All I can say is it's the best book I've read in a loooong time.

 

 While in Atlanta we squeezed in a trip to LegoLand at Phipps Plaza.  Emery, Hayes and Kelsey thoroughly enjoyed themselves.  I thought it was pretty cool, too.  Emery is just now getting into Legos and this visit to LegoLand definitely jumpstarted things.

 Emery is 102 Lego bricks tall.

 My favorite part of the attraction is the exhibit featuring all the Atlanta landmarks constructed out of Legos.  A Delta jet...

 The Capitol building...

 Emery and Hayes put on quite a dance show

 Emery LOVED the Lego Friends section of LegoLand.  I guess these are kind of new....pastel colored Legos geared toward little girls:  bakeries, salons, pet stores, etc.  Well played, Lego!  Lego also has a line of Disney Legos:  Cars, Cinderella, Snow White.  Obviously we had to purchase the Cinderella set of Legos, which Emery has built about fifty times in the past four days.

Karaoke in the Lego Friends Land.