Hiking Up Gateway Trail

Last Saturday we set out on a hike up Gateway Trail.  It's close to home and we've wanted to go for a while  and finally got around to making the effort.  It's a 1.6 mile hike that we didn't complete.  Maybe we will make it all the way next time.  These guys just start complaining of being tired, bored, hungry, thirsty, etc... 

Josh reads the sign for us.  Now that he can read he likes to tell us what everything says.  

And we are off!

It was easy going at first but once we started going up into the mountain it was challenging.

I really had no idea that it was part of the National Forest.  

As the trail became steeper the complaints became more frequent.

We did let them stop for rests and water though.  

The trees were changing into their fall colors and were just gorgeous.

I took photo after photo of their beauty.

We collected pine cones and acorns to decorate with at home and it was fun to have the boys searching for these treasures and to hear them say, "I found one, look at this one!".

The littlest hiker fell down on the way back.  He just tripped on a rock and scraped up his arm.  He did not want us to touch it or look at it.  Poor thing.

Picking Apples

This past Thursday we went to Johnson's Farm in Bedford, VA and picked apples.  It was a first for all of us and it was a lot of fun!  It was about an 1.5 hour drive but it was worth it.  Beautiful scenery and a perfect family trip.

We picked out the size of sack we wanted to fill and then set off into the orchard to pick our apples.

It was easy to do, and we didn't need any special equipment to do it.

Most of them were down low so they were easy to pick.

Josh was a great apple picker, he could have filled several more bags if we would have let him.

Some of them were up high so a little help was needed.

This one came away with a bit of branch, I thought it looked cool!

My little apple pickers!

There are over 100 varieties of apples in their orchards.

Simon must have had a sour apple...

They had a little train that the boys played in for awhile.

Caleb posed with a Johnny Appleseed statue.  We will definitely be back to Johnson's Farm! 

Bouncing Bears

I signed Simon and I up for Bouncing Bears this fall and we had our first class this past Wednesday.  It was so much fun!  I did it with Caleb and Simon this past spring.  There are new mom's and kids that we have never met, so I am excited about us both making some new friends!

There are inflatable slides!  I even went down a couple of times...

The class is an hour of playing on fun inflatables, with balls and climbing squishy ramps and blocks.  

Bouncing in the bouncy house.

Shaking my sillie's out!

Bubbles!  There is about 15 minutes at the end where we sing songs, dance, pop bubbles and have parachute time.  

Simon loves the bubbles.

Going for a ride on the parachute!

This picture quality is not great, but you can see on his little face how happy he is!  This is why I stay home with my kids, and looking at pictures like this will remind me of that when the day is not going so great!

Funny Mouth

I got these guys a fun treat for a photo shoot and since they were still sucking on their mouth candy when we got home, I decided to take a few pics myself.  They thought it was funny to give each other kisses with them!

Slobber was running down Simon's chin at this point but I am not sure why Caleb is "helping" him with his sucker.  I think Josh is just thinking, "I'm hungry.  What can I eat now?".

Oh, my precious boys.  I'll remember these moments forever!

Covered Bridges and Apples from Wades Orchards

Papa and Grandi visited us for a good while this past month, and while they were here we went and checked out some covered bridges.  This was the Bob White bridge near Woolwine, VA.  Click on that link and it will take you to way more info about the bridge than you probably even care to know!  All I know is we had fun exploring around the bridge and posing for pictures.

  We like to go down and check out the water.  To also throw a rock or two in.

Looking through the bridge to Papa, Grandi and the boys.

Playing by the water.  That water was cold!

We stopped at Wades Orchards and bought apples and other fresh produce.  The boys loved their free sample!

It was a good day!  We enjoyed having Papa and Grandi around for some fun times!

All Aboard!

The boys were invited to a birthday party at the Transportation Museum in Roanoke.  We had been before and it is a very good museum.  It is right on part of the railroad system and so there are lots of old trains to look at.  This time they actually had a train we could ride!  We rode in the refurbished caboose and once was not enough.  We had to go two times!

The caboose. We sat up in the top part!

 There were two sides with two sections of seats.  Troy took Caleb and Simon to sit with him on one section.

Josh and I sat in the other section facing them.

On the other side were the rest of the kids for the party.  They really had so much fun!

 There is a little kitchen area with wood burning stove and all.  It was so fun to imagine the life that the men had on these trains. 

Chugging along!

Riding My Tricycle

Simon has finally learned to ride his tricycle and now it is one of his favorite things to do!  This day he kept peeking at me from the shadow of his Elmo hoodie, which made me think of the tricycle song that Elmo sings.

"Riding a tricycle feeling so proud..."

Soccer Begins

Fall soccer started at the beginning of September and Caleb is playing with some new friends this season.  There is one team mate that is also in his Kindergarten class.  There are 6 cute little boys and they decided to name their team The Midnight Blueberry Boys.  There may be a Mountain before the Boys, but I can't remember.  Either way, very original. 

Caleb is number 6, which he was happy about because as he reminded me he would soon be 6 years old.  As if I could forget!

He can be a very serious little player.

And because of that seriousness, sometimes he gets a little upset if he doesn't make the goal he was going for.

But we always tell him to do his best and try hard and that if he does those things than he can be proud!  I love watching him play.  He has a real eye for defense.

Big brother likes to sit and cheer.

Little brother likes to cheer and eat snacks!