Cantaloupe girl

According to the online "experts", at 34 weeks the baby girl should weigh as much as a cantaloupe (around 4 3/4 lbs) and be around 18 inches long.  I would say that's pretty accurate since I definitely look like there's a large melon in my midriff and can feel the girl kicking my ribs and stomach! Six weeks left and counting :)

PSL love

Yes, this would be me with a pumpkins spice latte (a Venti I might add) from Starbucks. My FAVORITE drink EVER.  A girl's gotta get one on a regular basis since it's a seasonal drink and is only available until the end of fall! sniff, sniff. 

and if you look close you'll notice quite a baby bump....only 6.5 weeks to go!

cookout and campout

Last night we had a little cookout in the backyard and then eli and daddy camped-out in the tent!  Eli was on cloud-9 in anticipation and again this morning after it was all over.  Starting around 6:30 Eli asked every 15 minutes or so if it was time to go to sleep! Matt said Eli did great in the tent- took him a while to fall asleep because Eli was a little chatterbox.  I slept inside the house but the windows were open so I could hear Eli talking for a long time. So glad daddy and boy got some special time together.  And a special thank you to Uncle Mark for giving Matt the idea. 

Sitting around the fire, or if you're Isaac, not sitting but exploring.

Found a stick to throw in.

Ch-eeeese!

Jumping with excitement in the tent.

The tent is still up outside and Eli asked to sleep in it during naptime!  I did the mommy thing and quickly made up a reason why we only sleep in tents at nighttime when it's dark and daddy's home. It worked :)

fun in cookeville on a saturday

Saturday we went to Cookeville's annual Fall Fun Fest held on the square. The boys, especially Eli, were old enough this year to have fun at the different booths they have set up for kids.  The boys painted butterflies, made shaving cream art, got their faces painted, ate suckers, got stickers, listened to live music, and people watched.  It was a really fun morning, even if it did rain some. 

There was a booth set up where some people were making balloons into creations so daddy requested a hat for Eli. He wore it the-whole-morning-long! (I always get Eli's picture in the middle of the CH part of cheese)

Mommy requested a puppy for Isaac.

Isaac spied these cool dune buggies so he went and drove one.

The boys are watching the chinese dragons go by

Photo op with Thomas himself

Isaac's prized possession of the day

Watching the flash mob dance to the cookie monster song

We had such a good time we went back that evening to listen to the live band perform.  We ate kettle corn and the boys (matt included) danced in the street. Eli said, "dancing feels good".  Fun times!

camping fun

Last week we took a family vacation and went camping at Land Between the Lakes in Kentucky.  We were there for a week, and while it was really hot (and rained some) we had a fun time as a family having new adventures and being together.  The campground was amazing and we picked a wonderful site that was shaded and right next to a flat road where Eli could ride his new bike.  

Eli and Daddy are trying to teach Isaac how to ride the trike

Isaac is giving it a go.

but he'd rather play with sticks and run than ride the trike

We went to the nature center where there were all kinds of cool exhibits....like turtles

and turkeys

and red wolves! And other neat animals like owls and beavers and eagles and coyotes but I didn't get pictures of those :)

We also went to a bison & elk preserve

but we went on a really HOT day and only saw 2 bison from like a million feet away. 

And on the way home Eli had to read the Thomas book to Thomas!

And I'm happy to report that we're not hot today. It's 70 and rainy and I actually sat in the garage with sweatpants on and drank hot chocolate while the boys played.  So yeah for vacations and yeah for cool weather!

elijah is 3!!!

So my firstborn child turned 3 years old last week! A-Mazing how fast the time has gone.  Here are some pictures from the birthday boy's special day. 

getting ready to open presents

wtth his RaRa and long awaited big boy bike

takin' the bike for a spin

getting some help back up the hill

train birthday cake made by mommy

the party-goers enjoying yummy cake