Fall Routine

We are still feeling the changes that school has brought to our weekly routines. Until now, Bill has been the only one to really have a "9-5-Mon-thru-Fri" sort of life. I commute into the office odd days, and working from home doesn't really give the same sort of schedule from week to week.

This resulted in a free-wheeling week for the kiddos. Some days we could take off and play at a friends house and days when I had conference calls meant a playdate at Nonni's office. Gia's first question every morning was "What are we doing today?", to which I would respond with the day's gameplan.

Things are different now--not bad, just very structured. As a result, even our weekends have become more structured. Saturday mornings start with soccer games.

GOOOOOOOAAAAAAL-ie!

...and Sundays are for play. This week it was Hyland Apple Farm (oh, they have a brewery too--hmm, should I mention that is was Bill that suggested this place? coincidence?)

Trainrides for Gia

And for Mike...

but WHO are YOU? hmm....who knew Emus were so captivating?

you can tell how much fun it was by how dirty your feet get.


Oh my. These kids have clearly reached their fun quota.

Happy Fall!

Fall fun...but no goats :(

Wheee! I love fall...county fairs, craft fairs, renaissance fairs (ok, not so much renaissance fairs-but really, there's nothing wrong with dressing up like you're a "maiden"--I mean, I guess everyone has to have a hobby, but I digress...)



Our annual trip to the Woodstock Fair was fantastic...and we brought friends with us!




I know that I am getting older because carnival rides hold NO appeal anymore. Worse, Gia thinks they are great, so I spend the entire time she rides looking at the stray screws and bolts on the ground under the ride.











Oh, that looks safe....can you see them in there? What is that squeaking sound?









Now, face painting is an activity I can get behind--totally safe (unless you have an allergic reaction).


And snacks!!...you know my stance on snacks...can you see Mike's little hand pushing Gia out of way so he could get the cotton candy? While I certainly don't endorse that sort of behavior, I don't think there is any doubt he has my genes.

Good friends, good fun and good food...it was a great day!

Even if there were no goats...(really! there were cows, chickens, ducks, BIG bunnies, sheep wearing coats (below)--even an alpaca, but no goats--sorry Mike!)

Variations on a theme

If a little of something is good, then a lot of it must be better--and by that logic, being inundated with it should be nirvana. Good examples of this concept are seen with hot new "flavors" that come out each year. I think this explains why we have Chipolte flavored doritos and pomegrate jello. While these flavors start out novel, there is definitely a point of over-saturation. For example, take the mojito. Now, I love mojitos--but I am starting to see more and more mojito-flavored things:

BAD Mojito-theme

GOOD Mojito-theme

Really, this is just an excuse to show off the Mojito Cupcakes I made last weekend. The recipe came from this cupcake blog--read it, love it, bake it (then give some to me).

http://alpineberry.blogspot.com/2006/05/mojito-cupcakes.html

((as a public service, I should warn you--I've heard the Smirnoff beverage has actually caused vomiting in a number of consumers. Well, at least one that I know of.))

:)