Sup's Thanksgiving party

At Sup's preschool they have a Thanksgiving party instead of a Halloween party. They do a lot of fun things and parents have a chance to stay and be part of the party. 

For a few weeks prior to Thanksgiving they have been telling the Thanksgiving story to the kids about the pilgrims and the indians. So during circle time the kids could tell the story pretty good with the teacher.

After a few stories we headed over to one of the hallways where they had some fun Thanksgiving themed games set up. They had some of the parents in charge of the various to help the games go a little smoother. 

I think one of Sup's favorite was trying to get the ping pong balls into the pilgrims hat. The other favorite was the potato sack race they had in one of the other hallways. 

At the potato sack race my camera started to go downhill as you can see from the above picture. So I tried my best to capture the rest. When we came back from the games the kids had practiced a little song for us. They all did a really good job :)

Before we had our feast the teachers help put the turkey hats on the kids. So here is our little turkey ;) 

Different parents signed up to bring all different items for our Thanksgiving feast. After I got Sup dished up and all the other kids got their feast the parents were able to enjoy the feast as well. It was a fun morning for all of us :) 

The leaves come tumbling down

Fall has always been my favorite season. The cooler air is refreshing especially this year with the very hot summer! And I always enjoy the leaves turning, but now with our tree in our front yard it also mean a lot of leaf clean up :)

 The boys were actually pretty good helpers this year and were very excited to clean them up....with the hopes of making one big pile and then playing in it ;) 

 Since we only have one really good rake, we dug out the broom for the leaves in the drive-way. The boys found it was a lot easier sweeping verses raking. They did come around to the yard to put the leaves in the bags. 

 It was really fun seeing them all happy and willing to help ;) Eric and I are not sure how long the willingness to help will last so we'll take it while we can! :) 

After we got all the piles rounded up we did let them play with the one big pile that was by the tree. It was a fun little reward for all their hard work. And with their help we were able to clean up pretty quick and still have a lot of time to have some fun for the rest of our Saturday :)

Halloween 2012

 We really had more of a low key Halloween this year. We let the boys pick out what they wanted to be and took them out trick-or-treating for a couple hours. 

After a few conversations, Thomas decided he wanted to be a soldier and Sup wanted to be Bumblebee again. This made for a pretty easy Halloween :) With all my unfinished projects (which I am trying very hard to finish before the end of the year) buying the soldier costume was much easier and probably a little cheaper if I had made it. 

 After dinner, the boys and I headed to the little neighborhood not too far from our house. We have gone to the same place and have always gotten good results and this year was no different :) It was actually a lot easier for me this year as Thomas could knock loud enough so I just had to walk with them to the driveways and they would run up to the doors. 

After I think about a hour and a half they were happy with their candy treasures and ready to head home. We went by a few neighbors house and then headed inside. The boys really couldn't wait to see what they had and seemed to inventory..at least Thomas... very close to all the candy he had so he would know if Daddy happened to sneak any ;) Sup on the other hand was much more willing to share and actually got another bucket for Daddy and put some of his candy inside for him. 

Catapults

Eric really likes to do projects with the boys and it seems they always have a good time making things with Daddy. I am not sure how this idea came about I think he came across something on pinterest. 

 It seems the one on pinterest was a little more of a simple design and Eric wanted to beef it up a bit and used up some of his scrap wood. Thomas was very excited for this and had all kinds of plans for it. It was pretty simple so Eric and Thomas were able to knock out all three pretty quick. 

He made Sups with a little less "power" which for Sup was a good thing ;) Eric and I had to come up with rules on what things could be catapulted. They were just limited to mini marshmallows and squinkes. Lets just say even about two months later they still love to play with them :) I really don't find marshmallows as they usually just eat them but I do find the squinkes in all kinds of different place both high and low places. 

Tractor pull

After playing and getting some goodies we headed over to the food tent. It was pretty basic but for our boys it was probably a great lunch. There nothing like hotdogs and juice to get them excited. 

 Earlier in the day we went to the tractor pull and watched but they were were doing much older age groups. So we said after lunch we would try again to see if Thomas would be able to do it. 

 As you can see the bun is usually forgotten in the hotdog world ;) so after Thomas finished up his lunch we headed back over to the tractors. We got there right on time and were doing the youngest group the 4 and 5 yr olds. 

After getting him registered Thomas was pretty excited to try it out. He hopped right up and started peddling. He did pretty good but the guy running it did help him out a little by helping him push the weights in the back ;)

Ready to race

One of the other things that the boys were looking forward to again this year was doing the little fun run. It is nice because they run it a few different time during the event so there are not too many kids and your time is a little more flexible.

 We were able to one that ran in the early afternoon. Sup was really excited this year because he was old enough to do it this year. This year Eric and switch places where he was the pep talker and I was at the end of the finish line. This worked out better for all parties :)

 Since Sup was in the 3 to 4 group he was probably one of the youngest and one of the smallest. Although being the smallest is probably something to get use to ;) Despite this, he is a pretty fast runner, and that is not just Mommy's opinion. He would have gotten a trophy for 3rd place but the kid in front of him stopped and so he stopped and he couldn't cross the finish line. Which was better then him pushing the girl to get out of his way.  

 Thomas was actually willing to participate this year. Last year he was excited to do and then when it was time to run it he didn't want to try it. At this point we were at the line so I had to run with him some what running and pushing him along. After explaining and have him watch us he realizes he doesn't have to win and has a lot of fun with them. 

We decided that Sup not getting a trophy was a good thing because they both got medals and Sup wasn't gloating that he got a trophy and Thomas didn't... yes Sup would have done this, anything to pester Thomas he gets a thrill out of ;) This way both where happy with their medals :)

The "bouncy" course

Last year at the family day they had a few of these bouncy things for the kids to play on. The boys...much to my surprise loved them.... and was looking forward to this with much anticipation this year. 

 Last year they were more into the houses that your just bounce around in. This year they decided to be a little more ambitious and they out the little course they had up. Eric and I didn't know if Sup would be able to make it up this hill but he did it without any problems. 

 We were both amazed how fast this little boy could make it through all obstacles. He would be quick at the start line and because he's so little would wiggle his way through the line before the attendant could stop him. 

 Thomas was much better at waiting in line and his turn to go through. After a little issue concerning his socks and having a talk with Daddy he was happy to try out the course. 

This big slide was at the very end of the course. It was by far the favorite thing of the course for both of the boys. 

 We were here for a long time. It worked out nice having both of us there because one could be at the beginning and one at the end. It was a good way to burn off at least some of their energy without us having to exert too much ;)

Family Day at Toyota

After a pretty rough November for our family I think I getting back into the routine which includes my much neglected blog. Hopefully I can get everyone caught up on whats been happening in our family. It was pretty sad that in the month of November there have only been two post.

 So lets head back into October ;) I think it was the third weekend in October Toyota had their annual family day at the plant. Although the plant was not open for tour like it was last year they did have a lot of fun things to do. 

 We first headed into the visitors center. The first thing the boys wanted to see was the type of cars Daddy made. The had a Highlander on display that they could go inside and check it out. They had a lot of fun looking and climbing around in it. They also had some of the other equipment and things that would be found and used in the plant on display for the kids to check out. 

 After awhile we headed back outside. It was a little bit of a chilly day but that didn't stop Sup or Daddy from getting a free ice cream sandwich ;) The one nice thing is that it was not dripping all over so it really wasn't messy at all which was a big plus for Mommy ;)

They had a tent set up for the kids that they could color, get their faces painted, and have ballon "animals" made for them. We skipped the face painting but the boys really wanted to get a ballon. When we got to the clown they could pick what they wanted made and what color. They both went with a sword. Of course they were battling one another and popped them so before we left we had to stop and get two new ones.... which they were much more careful with and actually made it a few days before they lost air. 

Picnic by the river

Sup and I started a going for walks down by the river in the mornings and have a lot of fun together. One day I thought it would be fun to go a little later in the morning and have a little picnic lunch. 

 Both of the boys LOVE to go on picnics, so when I asked Sup if he wanted to have a picnic by the river he was very excited. After I got our little lunch all packed we hopped in the car and headed to the trail. We walked down to the benches, and Sup was ready to eat. 

 Sup could hardly wait until I put down our lunch bag. We had a pretty simple lunch.. cheese, crackers, grapes, yogurt, juice, water, and cookies. 

 The weather was actually pretty nice for the beginning of October, but it was a little windy down by the river. It didn't seem to phase Sup at all as he was having fun with his picnic.  

 We both sat on the bench and chatted and enjoyed our time together. I will be sad when the weather turns too cold to do this so we are enjoying this time while we can. As you can see he was all smiles. 

After lunch we packed up, but still had time to sit and enjoy day. So for Sup that was sitting watching the boats pass by and play with the dirt :)

Thomas' first project

Thomas really wanted to do a project with Daddy. With the new Bad Piggies game out from the makers of Angry Birds, Thomas wanted to make his own plane for his birds. 

 Earlier in the week Eric told Thomas to draw up a plan that he wanted for his birds and they would work together to make it. Thomas was very excited about this idea and game up with several plans by the weekend. 

 After seeing what Thomas has drawn out he had most of the building materials already at home. There were a few things that he needed that he went and got at the hardware store. 

 Thomas was very excited to work with Daddy and to really have a hand in actually making it. Obviously Eric did all the cutting but he helped him use all the other tools to help him put it together. 

 I think it was a great experience for both of them and they really had a lot of fun working together. I think Thomas liked the sander the most because he could use that one all on his own. 

Here is the final project :) Eric will say that it is not his best work but the boys absolutely love it. The paper that Thomas is holding was his plan and he will say that it turned out exactly like his picture :)  

Sup's field trip

A few weeks ago I had a chance to go with Sup and his preschool on a field trip. It was a lot of fun and it seemed that everyone had a fun time. 

 Every year they take the 3 year olds to Mayse Farm Market. We have been there before and had a fun time. Sup did pretty good with the picture even though the sun was in his eyes. As you can see he is one of the smallest in his class. 

 First he was able to play in the little tunnel made out of straw. I think him and another little one walk through here about a dozen times. After getting his fill of the tunnel it was off to the corn maze. 

 Luckily it was a guided tour through the maze.... Really who wants 14 little kids going through a maze??? Along the way they had little did bits of different farm animals that the tour guide explained to the kids what their role was in a farm setting. The kids did really great listening and participating. 

 At the end of the maze was a really big and fun slide. Sup was in love with this. It may have been a little hard to get him from running up the steps to go down again. I think he would have been here for a lot longer if he had a chance too. 

 Before we went on the hay ride to find our pumpkins we were treated with a nice little snack. Cookies and juice were all ready for us as we headed to the picnic tables. It was a beautiful day warm and sunny , perfect for our little field trip. 

 After our snack we headed over to the tractor and had a fun hay ride out to the pumpkin patch. When we got to the pumpkins Sup may have a little of me in him.... took the boy FOREVER to finally pick one that he wanted. Since I went along I was able to get one too and I thought I would have Sup help me and we could give it to Thomas. But since he took so long picking to pick out a second one we probably would have missed the ride back so I picked it by myself. But Sup did find his "perfect pumpkin" and happily rode back with it on his lap. 

We were able to play around in the kids straw maze and castle a little bit before the kids headed back on the bus. Sup was so excited to ride the bus that he wanted to ride it back to the school. I could have taken him right home from the farm market, but I let him have fun with the bus ride home. So I followed the bus back to the school. It was a fun day for both of us :)

More of the Fest

The Fall Festival is a 6 day event. It is really nice because it is always held Monday thru Saturday. Our first year here Eric had heard that you could go down everyday and get something different each day and come home full. 

 At first we were a little skeptical but it is very true. We didn't go every day but we did go a few times and got something different each time. Thomas likes the giant texas tenderloins. There are several booths but after a few years you start to know who sells the best of different items. 

 The deep fried cookie dough we haven't pinned pointed the best yet...well not at the fest any way. Our first experience with them was in a little hole in the wall place in Michigan, but we try a new place each year. Sup was not too impressed with them as it was too gooey for him. 

 For both of the boys the most popular item is the corn dog/pronto pups. There are ton of places with them, the boys don't seems to care if they are the hand-dipped ones, but they are the better ones to get :) 

 This year they had a contest of sorts seeing how far you have come this year to come to the fest. To be honest they may have had it before I just happened to notice it this year. If you were the farthest one you got a prize package. They had a world map and a US map. When we looked on Tuesday the far one was from California, but we may know a few people that would have ended up on the world map and most likely would have won the prize package ;) Something to think about for the coming years ;)

At the one end of the food booths they have all your carnival rides and games. The boys are really not into the rides and for the expense not really worth it for the rides for our family. But the games in the kids sections there are a lot where you can get a prize really just for playing. There are a few booths that had angry birds that you could win so you know which booths we went to :)