The Leaves are Falling Down.....

 Fall has arrived which means we are required to head to the woods for fall photos by our persistent Mom.  Due to the 80 degree weather we had last weekend, she decided to spare us the fall sweaters and instead allowed us to wear long-sleeve button ups.  Before we left, she played with a few settings on her camera and just giggled with these close-ups.  We hope you enjoy our fall photos!

Cooper jumped on my back which ironically created this super cute/favorite photo pic of the day!

 Throw leaves you say?!?!?  This is my kinda photo shoot :)

 Me too joined in on the fun and had some great expressions along the way.....

 Mama caught me giggling at Cooper.  She just loves how she captured this emotion!

 We brought Liberty along for our walk.... she mostly enjoyed the tree stumps and anything else that must have been marked by other dogs, yuck!

 We had time to play when we were done with our walk, but Mom still couldn't put the camera down.  She shot a few great impromptu pics on the playground.

 Mommy's school had a Fall Festival on Friday night.  We went for a short time to eat hot dogs, earn a few prizes, get faces painted, and watch the silly clown we met this summer make crazy balloon shapes (we didn't get one as the line was forever long).  Finley, Hadley and Heather were also there along with a ton of kids.  It was quite overwhelming but fun!

I had a pumpkin painted on my face

Cooper and I fished for stickers

 And Cooper attempted the Hula contest which earned us some more prizes.  Way to go Coop!

 We had a super chilly weekend of hockey, soccer and a quick stop with Grandma to a farm to pick out some pumpkins.  We loaded down her trunk with pumpkins for her porch and posed for a quick photo on the pumpkin wagons.  We had a fun day with you Grandma!!

 We made caramel apples the old fashioned way- Cooper and I unwrapped a bag of caramels, we melted them, dipped them and of course loaded them with Halloween Sprinkles.  It was a huge sticky mess but we loved it!

 While I had my last day at hockey camp, Mommy and Cooper decorated the house for fall and Halloween.  They must have found a few treasures from years past...... The Mickey costume was worn by me when I was only 1 (can you tell Cooper squeezed it on) and the hillbilly teeth were a Mommy/Daddy costume party pick years ago.  Thank God I never had to see them wearing these, yikes!

I had a fun 2 week hockey camp (GOAL- Get Out and Learn) which helped me work on balance, using a stick and some other basic skills.  I now will wait until early November to start Beginners Hockey which means I get to wear real hockey gear!  I am the little squirt front row, towards the right, wearing a burnt orange and brown jacket.  And the best part of GOAL was our ice cream party at the end.  I think I am going to like this sport!



Put Me in Mom!

It's autumn which means we start to visit our favorite "cold weather" spots around town.  We have dealt with only a few chilly mornings so far but the cold is on it's way :(  While I was at preschool, Mommy took Cooper to the Children's Museum to play.  We have a family pass but we rarely use it in summer with all of our outdoor play.  Mommy tries to be secretive about her outings with Cooper when I am at school.  She doesn't want to tell me if they are doing anything fun without me, so I basically see these pictures and start to wonder what is going on here.

This looks about right... Cooper is a take charge kind of kid

Hey Cooper, that helmet is a bit too big for ya!

Cooper loves the water exhibit (so do I) in the basement of the museum. He loves to splash, throw ducks, and turn the wheels and gadges.  Mommy thinks they should offer wetsuits for kids instead of these tiny smocks.

Daddy starts to act like all of the other animals in nature preparing for winter.... he has to check out his hunting land and look for signs of deer.  That meant the boys went scouting and Mom was able to have some quiet time at home.  She seriously looks forward to hunting season once we are old enough to go!

And you can tell who dressed us for the outdoors... look at that hat I am wearing, yikes!

We liked walking through the creek, watching quietly for deer, and seeing the leaves turning colors.

We couldn't resist a sunny and mild day to hit the park with our girlfriends.  The Moms call our outings "Tuesday with our Turds (TWOT)".  Classy, we know.

We wish you could see our faces in the above photo a bit better- our tongues are hanging out as we all decided to do a silly face for our paparazzi Mommies.

We pretended to be trapped in this little area while Laurie Jo and Mommy pretended to be trolls and witches under the bridge.  We are fairly certain other parents were thinking we were a bit crazy.

Lily and I stopped on the hand shaped chair at the park for a quick photo.  These hand chairs are all around town, locally painted to depict city happenings.  They are very cool!

It was my great idea to stop down at the river to toss in rocks (aka boulders).  After a few close blows to the head, our Moms said it was time to go home.... which Cooper was not too happy about (see stomping child below).  We love his backpack shirt from Gymboree~ so cute!

I started the GOAL program through our local hockey club.  It is a program to teach kids ages 4-8 how to skate and play hockey.  As you may remember, I learned to ice skate with a bunch of girls (figure skaters) last winter, so I was a tiny bit ahead as far as learning that skill.  The new part for me is getting a stick.  I was very excited about this addition.

 Mommy took photos while Daddy and Cooper stood in the FREEZING cold arena.  Mommy is not excited about this part of being a hockey parent, brrrrrr!

 Here I am learning to stand with my stick and get back down again.  I really liked using my hockey stick for a clapper (coaches taught us that important skill too)!

 Practicing my balance by playing catch with a tennis ball with my mini-mentor (hockey player).  Look at my sturdy stance.

 That same day, I had a soccer game in the afternoon.  I did well during the 20 minute practice but was worn out by game time.  Mommy and Daddy hope I show more interest in getting the ball IN the net~ I have two games and have yet to score a goal this season.

 And what do you know... it's Mommy in her glory~ coaching soccer!  She was asked to coach a few games while our regular coach is on vacation.  She did not sign up to coach but said she would assist as needed.  Mommy is used to coaching high school girls, so coaching U-6 was a WHOLE different ball game!

 Mommy loves these pictures of her coaching me.  She loves soccer and hopes I will love it too.  I was really excited to have Mommy coach my team.  She gets to coach again this Saturday.

 Picking my lip, nose, whatever.... defense is probably not my favorite position.

 And we're off!  I am number 9 and I like to run and run and run!

Go Doves (nice team name, right!?!?!?)  We are undefeated this season thanks to a few Kindergartners

(U-6) team that are scoring machines.

All of that hockey and soccer left Cooper exhausted.  When he got out of Daddy's truck, he laid right down on the driveway and was begging for a nap.  See his lovey under his arm.... he LOVES lovey and can't leave home without it.  It is seriously loved.

Mommy and Daddy received this picture text from daycare Mama Jenny.  She took all of us (her son Mason, Cooper, me, her niece Ava and neighbor Justice) to the park and out for ICE CREAM!  We love how Jenny spoils us with outings and yummy treats.  Enjoy the next few days of warm weather and beautiful fall trees!