The Emerald City.....

This year Dawson knew exactly who she wanted to be...Dorothy!  It does not surprise me because her desire for a small dog like Toto surfaces every day.  "Please may I get a dog for me?" is what I hear ALL the time!   We went with her friend Julia from school and her family.  It was so fun seeing the girls walk together and not stop talking.  I'm not sure what they were saying but, they each had a lot to say!

 This year the zoo seemed to really go all out.  There were a lot of new decorations and many new renovations!

 It was just fun to look at everything.....

 We never miss a year without a picture in the pumpkin carriage.  Thank goodness there are different holes for people of different heights!

The tiger was very active tonight.  He kept pacing back and forth.  I was wondering if he liked the orange pumpkin.  They have been known to eat pumpkins?

 Time for a rest and a lot more talking....

 We went up to see the bears and one sat right in front of the window, it's behind facing us, and took the longest pee we have ever seen.  The kids watched the whole thing and just kept laughing hysterically.  Nature at it's best!

 It's always fun to run to the next station.

 I noticed a little more bravery this year.  In the past, she would barely go up and get her treats.  This year she hesitated a bit but, went up slowly on her own! 

 My adorable Dorothy as a scarecrow.

And of course, we can never leave the zoo without a zoo picture above the sign!  The best part of this picture is that she gets to climb a wall to get up to the top!

Hale Farm

We had the perfect Fall day for a school fieldtrip to Hale Farm and Village.  The first grade had the chance to spend the day with their sixth grade prayer partners. 

I was quite surprised at how much the first graders LOVE the sixth graders.  Dawson's prayer partner is Rowen.  She is sweet as can be and Dawson talks about her ALL the time!  In fact, she's the one who started us on the Rainbow Loom....that's another post yet to come!

A little after lunch free time!

 It was a day full of listening and learning.  I was VERY impressed on the knowledge of all the girls.  The questions they asked were outstanding along with their behavior and manners!

It made me realize what a good education my daughter is getting and how lucky she is to be at that school!

 The students all enjoyed going back and experiencing mid 19th century life.  The farm has many areas to visit where there is a person role playing daily life many years ago.`  Here is the broom making barn.  Dawson was picked to demonstrate but, of course she said no thank you!   

Look at the sky in this picture....wow!

  

 This was candle making.

 There were many farm animals such as oxen, sheep, pigs, chickens and horses.

 Of course, the most popular animal was the pig.  Can you say they were really stinky....yuck!

 I couldn't resist taking lots of pictures because the lighting, weather and scenery were all perfect today!

Fairies

I saw a few fairies flying through the yard last week!  They were the cutest fairies EVER!

Johnny Appleseed Festival

It was a beautiful weekend to get out and enjoy the weather.  A local apple farm holds a Johnny Appleseed festival every year.  This was a first time!

They had a restaurant, store, bakery and tons of kids stuff set up to do outside.

Our favorite thing to do was the jumping platform.  It's a huge jumpy mat that the girls couldn't stop doing.  As the other kids were jumping, they were bouncing the girls off the mat....they loved it!

I heard some great laughs!

The farm had many things to climb on.  These were huge tires that lead up to a fun slide.  All this climbing wiped out the kids by the end of the day!

Here's the slide the tires led up to.....FUN!

There were many farm animals to pet and look at.  The girls were talking to them in this picture.  I'm not quite sure what they were talking about?

A little shopping....

A cool tepee....

And the piggy ride.  All of us took a ride on the piggies being pulled by a tractor.  Probably our favorite part!

At the end, we hit a few corn mazes (which were easy because I don't really like them).  The girls had fun stopping and doing some hand shakes and claps they do at recess.  Thanks for inviting us to spend the day with you Julia!

Fall Hiking Spree

The Fall Hiking Spree has arrived.  The Metroparks kicks off a hiking spree each fall from Sept. to Nov.  The object of the spree is to complete 8 hikes out of a list of about 12.  They range in distance from 1 mile to a little over 3 miles.

 We started off today with a 1.2 mile hike to see an old quarry.  It was a little warm and humid but, a great day for a hike.

When we complete our 8 hikes, Dawson will be awarded a hiking stick.   My mom says I got my stick when I was 4.  I will get a medal to pound on mine this year.  I wonder where that stick is of mine?

 

 Notice how green everything is.....this is going to change quickly in the next few weeks!

And we ended our hike with some nice cold water!!!

A "Pixar" Night at the Orchestra

Last night we enjoyed some fabulous music from the Cleveland Orchestra.  We sat outside, had a picnic and enjoyed an amazing concert with friends.  This year's theme was a night of "Pixar."  The orchestra played music from Pixar's greatest movies such as Toy Story, The Incredibles and Up.

Holiday concerts are usually busy but, this year it was packed!  Our blankets were all touching and there was not a single space to move around in!  It's difficult to see the many video screens in this picture that were used to show stunning movie clips from the songs being played by the orchestra.  

 My music loving girl sat and watched the entire 2 hour show...she was mesmerized.  There was also a lot of dancing and movement going on throughout the concert.

 Even daddy and Teddy enjoyed the night!

 One of the highlights of the night were the glowsticks.  It was fun to see all of the lawn light up with glowsticks as the sky turned dark.

All three girls working hard on some glowstick creations!   We are already looking forward to next year's concert.  Each year is a different theme!  

CLASS of 2025

Can you believe it....the class of 2025 is starting first grade!  This year is the year the uniforms kick in.  I must say I LOVE the idea of uniforms.  Believe or not, 

Dawson does too!  

Our picture as we walked out the door and headed to our first day of first grade!

One more picture...I grabbed a quick Iphone photo as they lined up in morning care.  She was all smiles as she headed off to her new classroom.  We are off to a great start!