Pumpkin Patch 2014

Of course now that we have a kiddo, we'll be joining the ranks of sharing pictures of kids & pumpkins together! :) But we just have to show him off as he takes in his first real time at a Pumpkin Patch {and by patch, I mean that generically as they're all just stacked together}. While he was there last year too, he's just now realizing what's going on and taking it all in.

Watching him experience everything and seeing it through his eyes was SO much fun!!! It was seriously incredibly special.

So on Saturday morning, we went to a nearby pumpkin patch, farm, cafe, etc, that holds an annual Fall Festival with tons of goodies and animals everywhere. We didn't do any of the rides or animal stuff yet since Elijah's not old enough, but we did take a peek from the sidelines and I reminisced about 3 years ago when we first took our little buddy Parker there!

Such sweet memories. And now there are many more!

Elijah enjoyed helping choose 8 little pumpkins to donate to his daycare classroom. What fun!

Grandpa & Grandma were with us too! Such a special treat!!

We tried taking him around to the corn and places where you could stand and take pictures behind random cartoon characters, but he wasn't the least bit interested. He just wanted to run back to the pumpkins!!

First time touching a real, big pumpkin!

Our lil' fam

Not quite sure how my mom managed to grab such a great pic as it was so crowded and we were feeling a bit rushed, but isn't the look on his face priceless?!?! :)

Yum, yum!

Elijah was quite enthralled with the camels

And the giraffes in the distance!

Aww my sweet boy

Funny faces with daddy

Before we left of course we had to get some yummy treats - including fresh hot apple cider, some coffee for Grandpa, fresh apple cider donuts, and freshly made kettle corn. Super yummy!

And finally, here's our big boy walking with Grandma back to our car. Love this. :) 

A truly wonderful experience on a perfectly gorgeous Fall day!!

It is amazing to watch the world through a child's eyes. I'm floored every day by something he sees or does or exclaims "whoaaa!!" to. He's growing and changing so much, I can barely keep up. He's almost 16 months old and I'm not sure how to process that.

We are trying to soak in every beautiful Fall day, and every chance we get to experience something new with Elijah in this stage... because all too soon we'll be stuck inside for the Winter. For a child who looooooooves the outdoors, this will be a challenging season!

So Fall, please stay around just a little bit longer.

A Sprinkle Baby Shower

You all have heard me speak of my dearest friend Monica. This past October, a few of us ladies set aside a Saturday to treat Monica to a special shower. She has two boys and with this being her first girl, we wanted to celebrate and give her pink things, frills, bows, etc. 

After a long, trying pregnancy, challenges around every corner, and labor signs for over a month, Monica's body has been done with pregnancy seemingly for a while now. But baby wasn't ready to come out until this morning!! For the first time in 3 pregnancies, baby girl Avery was born 5 days past her due date {the boys were both born about a week before their due dates}. 

We are SOOOO thrilled for this great family that their baby girl is finally here! In honor of that, I thought it was high time I posted these pics that I've had sitting in a draft post for over a month!

We had to have an elaborate amount of pink, of course!! Pinterest decoration ideas here and here.

And what better than some delicious girly food?!

My homemade cherry coffee cake, and apple cider donuts that I bought fresh from a local farm.

Sarah's crustini

Sarah's veggies, pita chips, and hummus

Annie's fruit kabobs

My sausage & egg breakfast bake

Our coffee barista & hostess extraordinare for the day, Sherah!

Our replacement of a game was to stuff and ice our own cupcakes. Thanks for the idea Pinterest! Sherah did a fabulous job making the cupcakes, even making special ones for our vegan friend Sarah, made some homemade whipped cream, and colored the icing. Sherah also found this thing that pushes down the middle of the cupcake so you can easily fill it with pudding or icing, kind of like a donut. It was delightful!!

Sherah included these precious favor boxes so we could take our cupcakes with us if we didn't want to eat them there. So great!

We all had so much fun!

I gave the devotional. It was so special to me to have been asked. I was nervous, but it went well and Monica said it was precious for her too. That's all I needed to know. :) Just wanted to encourage and give honor to God.

Annie utilized this idea I'd found on Pinterest and made it her own. It was SO special!! We all wrote down wishes for baby and favorite Bible verses for Monica's encouragement. Annie then collected them all into a little scrapbook of sorts that she tied together right there on the spot. Perfect!

Writing and thinking...

Annie had also sent the idea to Monica's mom and sister. She received their letters and then included those in the book. We also read a couple of them aloud to Monica on their behalf. It was really special. So glad she thought to do this!!

Another decoration idea from Pinterest - kind of.

Then it was time for gifts!

We all had so much fun at Monica's intimate baby girl shower, and we are so thankful for the gifts of all of these girls!

Monica & Heather

Sarah & Monica

Annie & Monica

Monica & ... who is that??

Monica & shower-idea-hostess Sherah

So many ladies were there with us in spirit. There was so much already going on that weekend, not everyone who wanted to could make it. But it was a very sweet, special time for us to shower love onto Monica & Avery, and we all came away feeling blessed.

We love you, friend! And we are sooooo glad baby Avery is finally here!!!!