October-November

As expected, the holiday season has been busy so far. And we are well into it now! Enjoying it, though!

Here's a little catch up.

Time with Great Mammaw and Pappaw

Great Pappaw!

Great Mammaw!

Halloween!

Libby was, of course, a princess. Cinderella to be exact. And I didn't even have to purchase a thing!

 Ty was a happy pumpkin:

 My camera still hasn't been fixed, so I'm still working off manual focus through viewfinder! Evening is even more difficult so unfortunately I didn't get the best pictures. :(

 Libby's first time. She followed right along and figured it out pretty quick. So sweet to thank people, too! She was always the last to arrive as she took her time with the dress that was a little too big.

 Ty was definitely interested in Wonder Woman. Can't say that she displayed the same interest. Come on, Tess, he's just a little small for his age, but he is a cutie! And very sweet!

 Princess Libby.

Fantasy of Trees

Before leaving for Thanksgiving, we went to hear Sam perform with his choir at the fantasy of trees. And it was Mom and Tot day (bonus!), so I got in for $5!

Unfortunately, Libby's black and red were in the wash. Too bad, to becuase this would have been so cute with them all matching!

 Pics with Poppy and Nana

 Libby loves getting her face painted and sat real still for them.

 We made some super fun ornaments. My tree probably has about 7 or 8 new ornaments this year as Libby loves doing crafts now. So I've pulled out some fun ornament ones.

 Ty did great, as usual, but was a little overwhelmed by all the lights, etc!

Libby got a princess manicure. So cute!

Probably thinking, "I thought she just painted my nails, but they don't seem to have any color." I guess the girl painted some sparkly nail polish that didn't really show up.

 Carousel! Ty loves these. Libby was a little afraid as I think this is the first time she's been on one that goes up and down, but Poppy was there to comfort her.

 Weeee! Annie's getting over her fears!

Thanksgiving

Don't have too many pics from Thanksgiving as I was enjoying the holiday and not worrying to much about documenting it. I did get these fun pics of Ty trying to be a big boy in the kids rocker.

Ty actually started crawling off his belly while we were up there! I kept thinking Libby was crawling at 7 months so he was right on target with her, but after looking at her baby book I realized she wasn't crawling till around 8 months! So even though he's little, he's still a bit ahead of the game! Good for you, little man! He's also sitting on his own now. He still falls over occasionally, but sits well for the most part.



Libby is still doing well with being potty trained, but has an accident every now and then. I think now they are becuase she doesn't want to take a break from playing to go to the bathroom. She talks my ear off every day, but I love it! She is so sweet and thankful for the little things. She tells me stories and now talks for her toys and baby, which she finally named "Ashley Joy". I'm always cracking up at the silly things she thinks of and comes up with. Her imagination is definitely not lacking!

The other day, she through her baby down the stairs, then I heard her disciplining it for screaming. When I asked her what she was doing, she said her baby was screaming becuase she through her down the stairs and her impression of the baby's scream made me laugh so much! She then informed me that her baby was having a bad a-ttude and hse was spanking her for it. The things she comes up with! I've attached a short video I made of her during this time (if it works) as I had the camera right next to me.

She's also informed me on multiple occasions that I am her "best friend eber(ever)" and so is Daddy and Mammaw and Pappaw and Nana and Poppy, etc. I'm so glad she misses the point of having a "best" friend, but loves me enough to think of my being her best friend!

These two definitely keep my hands full, but I LOVE IT!!! I could never ask for a better job, although it does get discouraging and monotonous at times cleaning up the same toys, in the same places multiple times a day! There's definitely not that feeling of accomplishment at the end of every day, but the joys of doing it far outway the troubles! I wouldn't want to miss one little thing that the kiddos learn and say.

Can't promise I'll have another post before Christmas, but we'll see.

Fall Time

We went camping this past weekend in Damascus, VA. It was a blast! We missed Matt, who had to stay home and work on school work. We went with the rest of my family, minus Peter, Bethany and Hudson (we missed you guys!). Since I was missing my man (who could have helped with tent set up, etc), the kids and I stayed in the camper with my Mom and Dad. The nights got pretty chilly, so we were happy for the heat! The weather was perfect for camping with camp fires at night and the leaves were beautiful! I was so thankful to get a chance to camp this fall!

Ty in his flannel:

 And leaves.

Making phone calls and plans from an overlook where we actually got phone service. Libby and Mom enjoying the view.

We biked the Virginia Creeper Trail and had a blast! The kids loved it! We're so thankful for this bike cart! They had a comfy ride and I didn't hear one complaint!

Ty loves being outdoors and just looks at everything.



Taking a break waiting for everyone to catch up.

 

We also took a break at the Rooster to enjoy some ice cream.

Nicole, in her aviator gear. You're clear for take off! :)

 Scott, Ash and Annie enjoying a little break.

 Libby enjoying her strawberry Popsicle.

David took over pulling the kiddos for me for the last bit. It wasn't bad at all as most of the way it was downhill. At a stop sign, We noticed David had a tag-along - a jumping spider! He enjoyed the ride for a little ways, then flew away.

 I love these baby blues! Even with dirt all in them from the bike ride.

 Libby and Annie playing while we waited for the cars to arrive for pick up. So glad that Annie is getting closer to the age of being able to play with Libby!

 More pics of my little man. I can't get enough! He's so photogenic!

 What a funny face!

 The little cousins hanging out.

 The colors were amazing! Had to get some pics of this bright red tree at the end of our ride.

We only rode half way, from Whitetop to Damascus, as that is the easy half. It went so fast, I wished that we had ridden the whole way. Although I'm sure by the end of that, I would have wished we'd stuck to half. At the end of the Damascus trail, there was a little train. So, of course, I had to get some pics with the kids and let Libby play engineer.

 Back at the campsite, Libby and Annie enjoyed some time playing in the leaves.

These were the trees right outside out camper on our campsite. They were beautiful!

 Libby with Uncle Ben and Aunt Bri:



It was a great camping experience and Libby got to roast marshmellows and sit around the campfire with us. She loved it! I hope we can do it again some time next year!

October

October has been a full month. Full of ups, and full of downs!

I lost my dear old dog, Rose, this month. I'm so sad to have lost such a wonderful, calm, loyal and loving dog! She lived to 11 1/2 years old and I've had her since I was 17 years old. She has been my loyal friend and shoulder to cry on through high school, college, Matt's deployment, marriage, and kids #1 and 2. I doubt I will ever have another dog as wonderful as she was, and the house is now too quiet without her. We miss you already, Rose, thanks for your years of loving my family!

On the upside, Libby is now potty trained. Other than pull-ups at night, she wears panties all the time and is doing a fantastic job of keeping them dry! It's still hard for me to believe that she is officially potty trained, but it's wonderful to not have to change one set of diapers/pull-ups.

She is growing up too fast! The downside of potty training a girl: she got a UTI. Not fun, not at all! She's better now, though, and I hope life will settle back into it's normal pace.

We've had a fun fall, so far. Libby loves pointing to leaves falling from trees or seeing pumpkins set up in a fall display and declaring, "It's fall time, Mom!" She's learning the seasons now and I'm so glad for her to understand one of my favorites!

We went on a bike ride in Townsend with my Mom and then went to get a pumpkin on the way to Pigeon Forge, where we then went to the Chrismas store and had a blast!

Ty was dedicated a couple Sundays ago at our church.

My dear Ty, may you grow to be a godly man who loves the Lord with all your heart. Obedient to your parents, a faithful friend, a strong leader like your Dad. May the Lord grant us wisdom in raising and training you and may the Spirit fill you with all his gifts and fruits. Love you, son! 

More pics to come from our camping trip and bike ride on the Virginia Creeper!