Family Trip to the Pumpkin Patch

We headed out early this morning to arrive at the pumpkin patch right as it opened at 9 o'clock since we had a busy day ahead of us with two soccer games and Ron's high school homecoming dance in the evening.  It was rather chilly when we arrived, but we enjoyed the smaller crowds in comparison to when we have normally gone in the past later in the day.  We started out in the barn looking at all of the animals before heading to Logan's favorite activity:  the duck races.  After taking a gander at the goats, we finished off in the pumpkin patch where everyone had a chance to pick out their pumpkin for carving in a few weeks.  We had a great time kicking off the holiday season this morning and can't wait for all of the fun and festivities to come!

Lia, Ella, and Logan posing outside of the baby bunny barn.

The kids standing in front of the turkey cage.

Logan and Ella in front of the adorable, baby chicks.

Logan having a go at milking a cow.

Ella following her big brother's lead.

How tall this fall?

Logan is almost 4 feet tall.  Gasp.

Lia is almost 5 feet tall.  Double gasp.

And sweet Ella is almost 3.5 feet tall.

The kids and me sitting on some very large pumpkins!

Lia enjoying the duck races.

Ella and Lia loading up their trough.

Logan pumping away!

All three kids hard at work.

Lia, Ella, and the goats.

The kids with rows and rows of mini pumpkins behind them.

Our traditional, family photo in the pumpkin house.

Logan loading up his pumpkin.

Papa putting Ella's pumpkin in the wheelbarrow.

Lia and Logan in front of one of the large spiders.

Mama and the kiddos posing for one more picture before heading out!

Logan's First Soccer Game

Ella and I drove down to the Rec Center today to cheer Logan on during his first soccer game of the season.  Ron wasn't able to attend since he was doing the same for Lia at her soccer game that started almost at the same time.  Logan really did a great job.  He has improved so much since last fall.  Every time he was in the game, he did a great job participating and chasing down the ball.  He is so much more aggressive and involved.  This is such a difference from last fall when he was much more timid and typically ran at the back of the pack of kids rarely touching the ball.  The months of participating in a soccer class from December to May last school year really helped him improve his skills.  We had a fun time watching him play and cheering him on from the sides.  Good job, Logie!  Keep it up!

Logan going after the ball.

Logan heading in at half time.

Logan back at it.

Chasing the ball.

Kicking again!

Logan leading a pack of kids.

More kicking,

and more kicking.

Chasing the ball as it heads out of bounds.

Giving the coach a 'high 5' at the end of the game.

Hydrating after the game was over!  

Christmas Pictures in October?

Although I am a fan of planning ahead, I am never thinking about Christmas pictures at the beginning of October. So, when I randomly got a call from my local JC Penney portraits studio two days ago, I was a little surprised to learn that they were offering a promotional, Christmas photo shoot on Friday evening.  Since a free 8x10 photo was involved, I decided to jump right on it although I had no idea what the children would even be wearing.  Luckily, after inspecting their closets earlier today, I found a decent, Christmas outfit for all three of them to wear.  After eating an early dinner and getting dressed in their Christmas duds, the four of us rushed off to the photo studio this evening while Ron drove back to work to supervise a home football game.  I was a little nervous about how the kids would do as this is the first photo shoot that all three of them have ever done together without Ron and me.  However, I am relieved to report that they all did a great job and actually had a fun time posing together! Here are the great pictures that the photographer managed to take of them...

Our First Ellaism for the Books

Although Lia and Logan have had their fair share of "Liaism" and "Loganism" posts on our family blog, Ella has never had one.  However, I have been recording a few of the funny things that she has said over the past several weeks to include in her first "Ellaism" post.  Ella is now to the age where she is saying some of the cutest and funniest things on a regular basis.  I wish that I could remember them all as I know that there are several things she has said that I have totally forgotten, but I figure that this is better than nothing.  So, here we go!

1.  "Two ones."  Ella uses this phrase ALL the time when describing two things.  It just cracks us up.
2.  "Can I buy these for Santa?"  This is the question Ella has asked me several times over the past few weeks as we have been talking about how we can ask Santa to bring us certain toys for Christmas.  It's just so cute as Ella hasn't quite figured out that she is always asking me to buy the toy she wants FOR Santa and not for her!
3.  "Two times I love you."  Ella told me this yesterday when she was trying to explain how much she loves me.  Totally melted my heart.
4.  "Rock me like a bee bee (baby)."  Ella still asks me this request on a regular basis at bedtime and I just love it.  I get to hold her in the recliner chair in her bedroom while rocking her in my lap and singing her favorite lullaby songs.  I am going to be so sad when the day comes when she is too big to lay in my lap.
5.  "Sleepy Booty" for Sleepy Beauty who is probably her favorite, Disney princess.
6.  "Fancy Ancy" for Fancy Nancy who Ella loves, loves, loves!
7.  "Tend you say" for "Pretend you say" which is the command Ella gives all the time when playing dolls with one of us.
8.  "I like carrying me, too."  Ella said this to me one day after I told  her how much I like carrying her upstairs to her bedroom for her afternoon nap.
9.  "Yes, it's on the two-th."  Ella said this one time when trying to describe something that was on the number two.
10.  "Sigh.  I guess I'm never going to make it back home to Mexico."  Ella has asked us many, many times since last April to go back to Mexico.  Every time her request is met with an explanation about how expensive it is and how I am not sure if we will ever return.  I guess that the reality of this really set in one day while eating her lunch when she randomly sighed and said this statement in a sad and heartbroken voice.  It was so funny!

***And although I know that this is a post dedicated to Ellaisms, I just had to include the following Loganism that he said to Ella the other day.  Logan was singing a song when Ella started copying him and began singing the same song.  Apparently, Logan did not like this as he then declared to Ella, "Stop following my song!"