Fall Festival

It's been a busy couple of days . . . the kids got an impromptu overnight visit with Grammy and Pappy (so Mommy and Daddy could do some work), Connor got to spend another night with Aunt Kelly at the local truck and tractor pull (which he absolutely loved and did NOT want to leave, ever), the little guys spent last night hanging out with Katie and Josh while Mommy and Daddy went to watch cousin Tommy play a big Friday night football game at the state fairgrounds, and today the boys and I met up with cousin Katie, Aunt Kelly and Grammy at the annual pumpkin festival at the local club (where Grammy is a member and we usually go swimming in the awesome kiddie pool). Whew!

Today was actually a lot of fun, right up until the very end, when I had three very tired and very cranky little boys on my hands. There were inflatable, bouncy rides in one area, where Connor had a blast on the tall slide. He even scared Katie once, doing a somersault from the top and then sliding down. The little guys liked a smaller one, but only after Mommy got permission to crawl in with them and get them started. Once they got used to it, they didn't need me at all anymore. There were balloon animals, pony rides, a petting zoo, and even a pumpkin painting area (the small ones, with washable finger paint). We had lunch at the little outdoor grill at the club, and spent a few hours checking out all the fun stuff. We ended the day with a rather long wait (not good with cranky little people) and an even longer hay ride around the farm where the club is located. Once we started moving, it was better and definitely worth the wait. Connor picked seats right behind the tractor, so he had a great view with Katie and Kelly (though quite a bit of dust on some parts of the trail). Grammy held Xander, who promptly fell asleep on her shoulder. I held Sawyer, who alternately sat on the floor of the wagon, sat on my knees, and danced between my legs. He only tried to jump off once, and that was as we were going near the lake. He, apparently, was ready to swim. Which I should have known, since he tried about five times to drag me to the fenced-in pools (right near the festival booths) that we usually visit. Thank goodness he never saw the actual kiddie pool, or it might have been all over for us.

Below are my favorite pictures of each of the kids from the day.



Connor getting to "drive" the tractor after our hay ride. He was actually invited to ride there the whole time, but turned bashful at the last second. It's a shame, he probably would have loved "driving" the hay ride with the tractor and two trailers full of hay and people.



Sawyer bouncing on his tip toes (he loved to bounce, once he got over his initial hesitation).



Xander taking a break from bouncing to see Mommy. He, too, loved to bounce after he got used to it.

Just another day in the life . . .