Did I mention - Abby turned 2 last month

Oh goodness. I'm just now realizing how far behind I've gotten on the family blog. Abby turned 2 in November. And now I just saw I never posted anything.

Thanks to our friends at Stuck in the Middle she got amazing Minnie cupcakes. They were gluten-free (so I could eat them) and you would never even know. They even put a lot of frosting on them to make them messy for her - since the bakers know Abby and know she loves a mess.

Abby got a new bed and a bed tent for her birthday. The tent has Minnie on it. I put the bed on the ground because Nicholas got a real bed and never slept in it. He just slept on the ground. For Abby's birthday, Jon and I got a month of sleepless nights. She's just now sleeping in her room - in her bed is optional. I'm just going for in her bed.

Here are the best pictures from her birthday here and from the one at my mom's house.

Apple HIll trip

So about 2 weeks ago we went to Apple Hill with one of our homeschool co-op groups. We signed up to make pies.




We got there a little early and it was cold. The kids decided that their hats and jackets had to be on. It was the only time that I have had no fuss about wearing a jacket.

We went to Denver Dan's. They did a pie making class. It was great fun. The instructions to the parents were to stand back and they would help all the kids - even Abby! So I stood back. It took the teacher approximately 6 minutes to realize that with a bunch of kids under 10, a 2 year old needed her mom to help.

They had a great time making little personal pies. And the store tempted me into spending extra money on some very amazing vinegar. they even had some left over dough to make a big rolled cookie. They baked everything right there!

While the pies were baking, they told us we could go pick apples for free. For free?! Who knew. So the kids went on an apple picking adventure. They had a lot of fun throwing the rotten ones down the hill as far as they could. They just had fun running around. We went with a friend of mine who homeschools her son too. He's 8, but he had Nicholas had a blast. It was a great trip.

And yes, I got a pie and apple cider made from fresh apples. Now if I could only use all the apples we picked. That would be nice.

My favorite pictures of the Fall.

So we went to Dave's Pumpkin Patch with the groupon deal and we got some great pictures. Here they are!

Nicholas' first riding lesson.

Nichols had his first rising lesson last week. I thought it was going to be a disaster but it went so well. Thank you to Kim at Nighthorse Farms for making it such a great lesson. She just had him help tack up and brush, then put him on the horse and made him do everything. It was awesome!

She even let Abby on at the end. It was a great lesson and I'm so happy he wants to continue with it.

Calaveras camping trip.

So we went to Calaveras State Park on Saturday to go camping for the night. We originally thought we might go for 2 nights, but decided on one - thank goodness.

I had packed and packed, making sure we would have enough variety of foods to suit everyone. Turns out all I should've packed was marshmallows, chocolate, and fruit snacks. The kids would've been happy with that. Too bad I made them eat real food too.

We hiked the North Grove on Saturday and did the Visitor's Center. I like a good, free, visitor's center. Nicholas tried to con me into getting him binoculars. I told him when he could name 4 different types of birds and their characteristics, he could get them. He promptly told me there were red bird, blue birds, black birds, and dead birds. He named their characteristics (colors), and said they have beaks, feet, wings, and feathers. He also mentioned they poop while flying - because poop is an important thing to  4year old boy. So he got binoculars. I was impressed with the dead bird variety. Silly kid.

We also walked on logs through the meadow in the center of the campground. They have these fallen tree trucks placed strategically to walk on. Nicholas did it all on his own. Abby wanted too - but Jon was nervous and held her hand. They also found the gate to the campground and swung on that. Here we are in this great big forest and they like the gate.

The kids did all the wood finding for us - it was nice to have free labor. Abby started falling asleep a 4:30 and wouldn't wake up. So at 5:30 we put her down. Guess who decided to wake up? Abby. But we let her play in the tent while we all had smore's and dinner. Then Nicholas said he was tired - my kid got tired at 6p!! So Jon took the kids into the tent and had the time of his life trying to get them to sleep. I was on fire watch, then joined them.

Jon and Nicholas eating smores. Nicholas was very focused on eating his like Daddy.

Abby had a great night. She waited until it was dark out and puked all over her crib, me, and the sleeping bag. So we spent the rest of the night with Nicholas' sleeping bag, Jon's sleeping bag, and Abby curled up with her Minnie blanket. I got a blanket to sleep on. It was cold. A little blanket meant for a couch in Sacramento isn't enough for a night in the woods.

It was a horrible night, with Abby waking up every 30 minutes asking to go home, for fruit snacks, and water (she only got the water). Jon slept through most of this. I don't think I've ever wanted the sun to rise so quickly in my life.

Beaver Creek was awesome!

Then on Sunday we ate breakfast and went to hike in the South Grove. We lasted about 1/2 a mile before the kids decided they were tired. So we went to the Beaver Creek Day Use Area. I loved that place! The creek was awesome and cold. But the kids had a blast and didn't really want to leave there.

Nicholas holding Abby's hand while we are hiking. It's the only way she would hike after she got tired.

In the big tree tunnel in the North Grove.

She's so tired she can barely keep her eyes open for the picture.

And here's the gate they liked to swing on.

Abby and Jon tree walking.

But finally we left and came home. Now if I could only catch up on laundry.

CA Academy of Science Homeschool Day.

We went today - my birthday - to the CA Academy of Science Homeschool Day. It was cheap admission and it was a day when they would have lots of docents out to answer questions.

We showed up early and got to run around Golden Gate Park for a while. My kids really loved running around the stage at the Music Concourse.

We went in and did the earthquake area and rocks first. I thought Nicholas would be much more interested in the rocks than he was. We had been studying them. But instead he looks at them, named them, and ran off to make buildings topple in the earthquake simulator.

Then came the aquarium. Clearly I've been trying to occupy Abby the wrong way. If I want her in one place I should just get a jelly fish. She happily sat and watched their little jellyfish for a while. She did not want to go anywhere else. She would run away to the jellyfish if you tried to take her to the coral reef or somewhere. I guess our next pet it a jellyfish.

The tide pool touching area was a big hit too. A fish swam up from the bottom into the part where the kids can touch and Nicholas ran around touching it and making it move. He liked the sea stars but not the urchins. And the abalone was acceptable too. Abby just liked splashing in the water.

Their rainforest was fun for me and my mom, but the kids didn't like the butterflies everywhere.

Now the toddler zone was cool. We had a bit of a wait to get in, but it was a blast. Nicholas and some kids staged a puppet show with lizards and dinosaurs. The show was called "Terrible Lizards." Nicholas informed everyone that dinosaur means terrible lizard. Abby ran around with goggles on. It was funny.

Then the museum store for toys - grandmas treat. The big hit of the day were the space toys for Nicholas and the pink and purple rocks for Abby. She put Daisy Duck near the purple rock and Minnie near the pink one. Woe betide you who thinks to move those around.

It was a blast and a wonderful birthday. Thanks mom!

Disneyland!

It's a little late, but what else is there to say? Thanks to a wonderful mom, we were able to go to Disneyland.

It was a great time. Evidently the secret to getting Abby to take naps is to wear her out from 8a -10a and then walk around Disneyland.

We had a great time. And the character breakfast with Minnie was totally worth it. They even, upon learning I couldn't eat gluten, made me gluten free breakfast food. It was fabulous.

Here are some of the favorite pictures.

The poop puddle and the dairy.

Jon's family owns a dairy. Really his Uncle Carl does. So while we were in Idaho we went to visit.

It turns out that while Abby loves the cows, the cows don't like people. It might have something to do with having to get hooked to the milking machine when they see people. I wouldn't like people either in that case.

But the dairy also had horses we got to feed. We tried to feed the calves but they didn't want treats from people. Some disliked us south they ran into their little houses when my kids tried to pet them.

There's also a poop pond at the dairy. It's water that I run through the pile of poop that the cows make. It's really gross looking. Nicholas thought it was just the thing to throw rocks into because it made splashes o brown water. I just wanted to avoid him falling in.

The dairy also had dogs. That was Abby's favorite part of the dairy. And in the absence of sand, my children insisted on building gravel castles in the driveway.

At the end of the day we had a little water fight. I had the hose so I won. But Jon did manage to soak me with the buckets of water. Nicholas informed me that he wouldn't get his dad wet because Rey were a team and they had to get me wet. I used this as an opportunity to pull out the soap and give them baths outside. We were already wet. We might as well be clean.

Did I mention that we went to Utah and Idaho?

We've been traveling this summer. We went to Virginia Beach and DC in June and then Utah and Idaho in July. They were awesome trips.

I learned that no matter how many clothes you take for the kids you still will have to do laundry. Impromptu family water fights are a blast. Family car rides are a pain because the diaper wearing child will poop right after the rest stop in the middle of the desert. I don't like long car rides, although they aren't too bad. I also learned that searching for cows and horses will keep Abby occupied in a pinch.

Here are the best of the pictures!

Adventures of the ping-pong table.

So we did lots of things recently, but the one that is sticking in my mind was the horrible drive with the ping pong table.

I checked the dimensions before I bought it and it would fit in my car. But when I went to get it, nope, it didn't fit. So I had to buy some rope at the store and tie it down. Never again will I drive with something on the roof of my car like that. It was horrible.

I had to go 25 the whole way from the Palladio in Folsom to home - a drive that takes about 20 minutes normally. It took me a long time - an hour to be exact.

My husband better like his birthday present because I'm never doing something like this again. Next time I'll just pay the $165.00 shipping fee and let it be. Grrr.

Abby's idea of soccer camp.

This is what Abby thinks soccer camp is all about.

Our week.

We've done a lot this week. Nicholas had soccer amp, we went to the library to see a juggler (who had all the kids play limbo), we got a new art table and art supplies (thanks Aunt Debby), and we are going on a road trip to Utah and then to Tahoe. I love being busy, but I'm looking forward to a little down time at the end of next week.

Love the Nut Tree.

While I'm generally a fan of playgrounds in shopping malls - because it lets my kids get some energy out and then be ready to shop again- the Nut Tree is a favorite.

It has free areas and pay to ride stuff- like the train. But bet of all it let's me spend some quality time with my mom and still let her be grandma. Saturday's at the Nut Tree rock.

Sweet corn festival.

Thanks Davis Ranch for yet another fun smiley festival. We love that they have free bounce houses, entertainment, and tractor rides. It's always fun to go as a family.