2 weeks, 2 seasons!

It's mid-November, time for jumping in the leaves, right? ...which was just what Emma and her friend Jessica were doing one Saturday evening, when the temperature was in the mid-50s. Just over a week later, though, our yard was covered in about 4 inches of snow, resulting in a snow day for all of us! At least it was still in the upper 20s, making it warm enough for us to go out and enjoy the white stuff before it turned bitterly cold later in the week, with highs below 20 for a few days. It felt strange to be playing in the snow while so many leaves were still unraked on the ground and even still hanging on the trees. Will we have a white Christmas next month? Weather forecasters say this "winter" storm in the fall is no indication of what kind of weather is in store for us over the next few months. Time will tell...

A Day to Remember!

A few weeks ago, our family began talking about a birthday party for Emma's Great-Great Uncle Ray. He would be turning 89 this year, and my cousin Sharon wanted to have a "90th year" surprise party for him. What we didn't realize was how many of our relatives would be there...including our family in Tennessee. When we found out the triplets were coming, we were ecstatic. It had been 5 years since we went to Knoxville to see Kendall, Clark, and Emma Claire. The kids were all under two at that time, so none of them remembers their brief encounter. We've watched the kids grow through blogs and Facebook updates, but of course it's not the same as a real visit! My cousin Kim, their mom, suggested a kid-friendly get-together before the party. We chose Cosi, a science museum in Columbus. The triplets and Emma Grace (as we called her for the day, to tell the two Emmas apart) all enjoy museums, and none of them had been to Cosi before, so it was quite a treat. The kids all got along well and interacted easily with each other. Afterwards, we headed to Uncle Ray's party, which was held at an Olive Garden near his house. He was genuinely surprised, and the kids especially loved ducking behind the table and shouting "Happy Birthday!" It was great to visit face-to-face with our extended family after so many years apart, all while helping Uncle Ray celebrate! It was truly a day to remember!

Awesome October!

We had a fun fall! As usual, time flies when you're having fun, so I'm combining the pictures of several events. The highlights: Emma watched her friend Jessica cheerleading at a football game. Emma's Brownie Troop had a camp-in at their leader's house (not pictured). Emma and I visited Aunt Linda and Grandma Coe in Circleville, then we went with Mom, Dad, Jason, and Kristen to the Circleville Pumpkin Show, where we watched the Parade of Bands including the OSU marching band. Our church held its annual "Trunk or Treat" festivities. We enjoyed activities at Devine Farms, including a barrel train ride, corn maze, sliding and crawling in the hay barn, and picking out gourds and pumpkins. Emma's dance studio had a Halloween Dance Party with games, crafts, and of course a dance-off. We went back to Kings Island to enjoy "Snoopy's Halloween Party" like we did last month (although this time Emma wore her Elsa costume). We enjoyed trick or treat by decorating cookies for our family, canvassing the entire neighborhood, and carving pumpkins. Finally, Emma enjoyed a Fall Party with her class at school. As you can see, October wore Emma out!