Pumpkinland!

Norah was very excited to go see the animals at Pumpkinland this year. I made the mistake of going too early this year and hyped her up for it, only to find out it wasn't open yet. Now she's been talking about it for two weeks saying, "Animals. Later." since I told her we would go again later, and she also asks, "Open?" every time we talk about it, like she wants me to double check that it's for sure open this time. Ha. 

Today was a beautiful day for it! It was cool enough to wear sweatshirts, and the sun was shining perfectly. Norah loves to see animals from a distance and talk about them basically all the time, but she gets scared when she gets too close. 

That sweatshirt and hat. Too cute. (She really hates to wear sunglasses, so at least I can sometimes get her to wear a hat when it's really sunny. I should correct that- she loves to put sunglasses on, but only for 3 seconds before she rips them off.)

She spotted her favorite animal- a donkey! She has been obsessed with donkeys lately because she loves to find them in her children's Bible every night when we read a story. 

The cutest little pumpkin stand! They had these little wheelbarrows for kids and Norah pushed one around for a long time, putting little pumpkins in it.

And Saturdays are always the best days because Daddy can come along too!

We (and when I say we, I mean I), had to get a medium pumpkin for Norah and two tiny pumpkins for the twins. So cute! Our three little babies!

Apple picking at the farm.

Two of my good friends here are sisters-in-laws, and their in-laws live on a farm. We got to go visit it and it was wonderful! It was an amazingly beautiful day, and we both loved it! We got to see their cows, dog (which Norah didn't like too much), and their kittens. We also got to pick apples, and Norah loved putting them in her bag!

Their property is beautiful and it was such a fun morning! I am so thankful to be a stay at home mom and I truly do love it, especially on days like today where we get to see friends, be outside, and do something out of the ordinary. It was a perfect morning and I am so grateful to be Norah's mom. 

Washington DC trip 2016 (part two).

Here are some more pictures of our fun time in DC visiting Stephanie! On Saturday we went for brunch at Le Diplomate, which was delicious. I had this vanilla/strawberry/lime french toast and I wish I could have it again. It's one of Stephanie's favorite spots, so we wanted to show it to my mom.

We made the mistake of telling Norah we were going to the zoo that morning too early, so she was not happy about going to brunch. She wanted animals immediately. Oops.

After brunch we headed to the zoo! It was hot, but fun. Norah liked seeing the elephants and donkeys best. She is currently obsessed with donkeys because so many of her Bible stories have pictures of donkeys in them,

The monkeys were fun and we got to watch one walk across these ropes!

Norah liked riding the carousel!

Looking at the donkeys with Stephanie.

In the afternoon we went to the Museum of Natural History. I had never been there before- it was neat!

Of all the things to look at, Norah loved crawling through this tunnel that was part of a termite exhibit. 

Then we headed to the White House! We kept telling Norah that President Obama lives there, and now she says, "Ohh-bama!" and it's super cute.

We had a great trip and are thankful we were able to go. We love you, Stephanie! Thanks for showing us around DC. (You can see part one here, in case you missed it.)

Washington DC trip 2016 (part one).

My mom, Norah, and I were visiting DC last week! It was a great trip! My best friend, Stephanie, lives there. Kley and I have visited twice in the past years, but unfortunately it didn't work out for him to come to miss work this time. He had a weekend trip with his high school friends though, which turned out perfectly to be on the same weekend we were gone. He also doesn't get to see them often, so I'm glad he got to have some guy fellowship. Since Kley couldn't come, I asked my mom to come and it was the best idea ever! It was so great to have alone time with her, and she was a huge help with Norah!

Of course, as typical tourists, and since my mom had never been do DC before, we had to go visit the monuments! We walked over to the Supreme Court and Capital buildings on Thursday when we arrived.

This is one of my favorite pictures of the trip! Being able to show Norah different parts of the world is so exciting, and I'm so glad she got to have some time with Stephanie- two of my most favorite people together in one picture!

She was also wearing her Best Big Sis shirt to tell Stephanie we were pregnant (before we knew it was twins!).

Norah and the Washington Monument!

Stephanie's apartment has amazing windows, and Norah was mesmerized just standing in front of them and watching. Her absolute favorite part of the trip were all the buses. She would scream, "BUS!" every time she saw one, which was often since there are buses everywhere. Since she loved the buses so much, we took her on a bus ride to see the monuments while Stephanie was at work on Friday- a win for everyone!

We drove past the Jefferson Memorial on the bus, but actually got out to walk around at the Lincoln Memorial, Washington Monument, and WWII Memorial. So neat!

Friday night we went to Georgetown and ate dinner, shopped a bit, and walked on the waterfront!

Norah is looking at the ducks in the water. Traveling with kids is definitely hard, but I'm so glad we were able to go. Seeing Stephanie was amazing, and experiencing DC with my mom and Norah, who had never seen it before, was so fun!

Stay tuned for part two!