State Fair!

Last Thursday, Mark and I took Eli to his first NC State Fair. We had to miss last year because he was a tiny newborn. From the start, Eli loved it. The weather that evening was perfect and there was so much for him to see and hear.

We were able to catch a pig race, visit a LOT of animals, and eat a TON of yummy fair food. To Mark and I, the fair is mostly about the food. I mean, where else can you get fried oreos and fried pecan pie? Eli was able to enjoy a sampling of everything we ate too, and boy did he love that!

This year's fair experience definitely did not disappoint! All three of us are looking forward to next year's fun already!



So this is what a fried oreo looks like...



Beyond ready to take a bite!



The 864 pound pumpkin!



Looking at some animals.





So excited about my frozen chocolate-covered banana with sprinkles! My favorite fair food!



Eli's eyes were locked onto Daddy's fried pecan pie!

Rough Night!

A couple weekends ago, we had our monthly Couples Fellowship dinner. Since it fell so close to Halloween, we decided to dress-up the kids like we did last year. Things were so much different this time around...which is to be expected with an almost 2-year-old, a 1 1/2-year-old, 2 one-year-olds, and a one-month old!

So, let's get to the reason for the title of this post. Eli's night started out well. He was having a great time toddling around playing with his little buddies. The drama began at dinner, when I had to take his milk cup away because he kept slamming it on his highchair making milk squirt everywhere. This did NOT go over well. He proceeded to throw the biggest crying fit, eventually making himself vomit-up some of his dinner. The worst part was that the puke came out with a huge bubble that I totally caught in my hand. What a Mom moment. Eventually, he calmed himself down and was perfectly fine.

After eating, we dressed-up all of the kids. Eli is a tiger this year and absolutely hates the hood that is a part of his costume. Taking pictures was quite crazy this time around. We didn't really get any good ones because at least one kid was always trying to escape the couch they were sitting on. Sweet baby Keira was the only one that cooperated!







The worst part of Eli's night happened right after pictures. He was walking around and ended up tripping and falling face-first onto a little plastic Handy Manny hammer. When he stood up, the blood was gushing and he was pretty hysterical. Thankfully, Mark and I got the bleeding to stop pretty quickly and eventually got Eli calmed-down as well. I'm sure this only the first of many bloody injuries to come...

Playing so innocently...




The aftermath...

Apple-Picking 2K10 Part Two

On Saturday, we headed out to pick our apples and just spend a great day hanging-out as a family. This was the first time all of my family had been together since the year before. So, this year's trip was a highly anticipated event by all, and thankfully the weather was gorgeous for us all weekend.

On our way to the orchards, we stopped by our usual spot to get lunch. It's amazing how much Eli has changed in the period of a year!

3 weeks old





Almost 13-months-old




The trees were full of apples this year and it was nice to miss the crowds from the Apple Festival this year, since we were able to go the weekend before it started.


Eli power-napped on the drive to the orchards. This was how we found him when we arrived!



Picking apples with Mommy!


Throwing apples into the pond with Daddy...






We had to stop by the apple scale after we were done picking. This year, thankfully, my child did not fall out of the scale...

2009



2010



And of course, we had to end our day with a little hill-rolling and hanging-out in front of the lodge...







...a perfect ending to a perfect day!

Apple Picking 2K10 Part One

On October 1st, we headed north to the mountains of Virginia for my family's annual Apple Picking trip. Mark took Friday off, so we were able to stop by our beloved James Madison University for a quick visit with Eli. Technically, this was Eli's second trip to JMU, but since he was barely 3-weeks-old when we were there last time, I don't think that visit officially counted. The weather was gorgeous for our drive and perfect when we arrived late that afternoon. Our campus visit began with a trip to the bookstore to pick-up new t-shirts for all 3 of us. It also happened to be parents-weekend starting that Friday as well, so there were TONS of people everywhere! After shopping, we strolled around campus and showed Eli some of the places his parents would hang-out when we were students. It's so crazy (and fun) to share everything with our son!

Daddy and Eli in front of Wilson Hall



Mommy and Eli on "Kissing Rock"



You knew this one was coming...




My child-hood friend, Elizabeth, is the head pastry-chef for one of JMU's newer dining facilities, so we were able to meet-up with her for dinner while we were there too. For any of my fellow JMU-ers, this new dining hall was like an even better version of D-hall. We'll just say my husband was in heaven as he ate about 6 different plates of dinner entrees and too many of Elizabeth's yummy desserts to count! We had a great time catching up with such a sweet friend.

After feeding our faces, we headed off to meet-up with the rest of my family. It was a long but good day.

View of the Quad and Wilson Hall from the beautiful new Performing Arts Center on Main Street.




Eli got to hang-out with Jimmy-Mad for a little while...he wasn't quite sure what to think of him. (and yes, James Madison was that short!)



Eli got to hear the Marching Royal Dukes practicing in Bridgeforth Stadium too. He couldn't help but dance a little when they were playing!