Roooaaaaaaddddd Trippppp!!!!

My friend Sheri and I decided to take a little "Girls Only" trip up to Prescott over fall break.  And, by girls only, we mean girls of all ages {except for babies, I guess, because we left Reese at home}.  We convinced Nana to go, because who doesn't love fairs and pumpkin patches?

This was my first time to Prescott, and I've got to say, I was really impressed.  The weather was much cooler than the temperatures here in the valley, so maybe I was just blinded by the weather.

We hit some traffic on the way up and got to the fair a little later than we originally planned, but I think it worked out perfectly.  The girls had a blast riding the smaller carnival rides, and after checking out the animals, we sat in the stands of the arena and watched a little bit of a rodeo!  The girls got a little antsy because they could see the fair rides, so we let them ride a few more before heading to the hotel for the night.

➹ They LOVED that kettle corn! ➹

➹ Sydney was defending "her" bag! ➹

The next morning, we had breakfast in the hotel, and then went to an event for veterans around the town square.  Sheri's friend is in the Honor Guard and was performing there.  The girls had a nice time running around and collecting candy from all the booths.  While we were there, we met a veteran who fought in WWII!  

➹ I don't even know what is going on in this picture. ➹

After we left the Prescott, we headed towards home and made a pit stop at Mortimer Farms Pumpkin Patch.  The entrance fee sort of made my eyes pop out of my head, but the girls were able to do just about everything without additional costs once they were inside.

➹ She looks so big on that little pony! ➹

➹ They are all supposed to be pointing in different directions! ➹

➹ This picture breaks my heart.  She was upset with Olivia because Olivia was trying to tell everyone where to sit and how to pose and she wasn't listening to any of the suggestions Sydney was making.  She ran off and cried and then got back up on the hay and asked me to take her picture.  Bless her heart, she is trying to smile so big through her tears. ➹

All in all, I would say it was a wonderful 30 hour road trip!  The girls were filthy and exhausted when we got home.  I'm thinking we just started a yearly tradition!  ;) 

Fall Break, Part One

Our girls are off of school for two and a half weeks of Fall Break.  Two.And.A.Half.Weeks.  Eighteen glorious days where my children have no place to be.  That's either your best dream or your worst nightmare.  Or, if you're like me, it's somewhere in between.  No alarms to set or lunches to pack in the mornings, but no activities set to give a mom a little break in the day.  By Saturday, I knew that my kids were either going to kill each other or drive me to the psych ward, so I started planning.

We've swapped kids for playdates, gone to open swim at the water park, done open gyms at the gymnastics center, painted, dined, theatered, got a hair cut, and Targeted and that was only through Thursday!  By Friday, it was time to hit the road {that post coming another night}.

Dear Poppy, Sydney wants this for Christmas!

Are you exhausted?  We are!  So, enjoy our pictures and keep your eye out for more.

Miscellaneous September

Oh, you know, it's pretty much the end of the month and I've only blogged 5 times, so I probably ought to throw up some sort of miscellaneous post so you know that we have been doing something around here since we all know it isn't blogging.

➸➸ Sydney has been taking a gymnastics class with her friend, Hailey.  Oh my gosh, it is just the cutest thing!  These girls have a blast running all over the gym.  Sydney is a pro at the obstacle courses the teacher sets up!  She loves them!

➸➸  We have been trying to find some fun things for the girls to do after school, and Peter Piper Pizza has somehow become a sort of regular thing.  We've found that if we go RIGHT after school, we beat the crowds and can head to our favorite hamburger joint across the street when the crowd starts coming into the Child's Vegas Strip. ;) 

➸➸  The girls are finishing up swim lessons, and so we are still having some fun at the water park.  Sydney is fearless on the diving board.  She always has to scream something funny like, "BANANA" or "COWABUNGA!" before she dives off.  

➸➸  Liv's first grade teacher had a birthday, and so we got the class together to get her a Macy's gift card, a yorkie balloon, and some yorkie cookies!  She was so overwhelmed and thrilled with her celebration.  How adorable are these cookies? {And my two sweet girls too?}

➸➸  Before we left for the Gorge, we took my dad and brother to MOD Pizza.  It is seriously mine and Olivia's favorite pizza place now.  Even though it is probably a good 15 - 20 minutes away from her school, I still drove out there to get us some pizza one Wednesday for lunch.  She LOVED her surprise!

➸➸  We had a Girls Day one Sunday and went to a vintage / handmade market in Scottsdale.  Olivia and Riley had a blast looking at the different booths {especially the button one} and we all had a fun day out!

➸➸  Olivia had Spirit Week last week -- that is always a blast.  I love seeing the kids get all dressed up!

➹ Crazy Hair Day ➹

➹ Sports Day!  {OR Frenemy Day} ➹

➹ Pajama Day ➹

➹ Twin Day {OR Dress Like Riley Day}

➹ Red, White, and Blue Day ➹

➹ Red, White and Blue Day was also Apple Day in 1st Grade ➹

➹ I love that she still lets me eat lunch with her. ➹

➸➸  And, a few Sydney gems.... 

➹ 😳😳😳😳😳😳 ➹

It's almost October!  Do you know what that means?  One more month until we can be outside all day long without risk of heat stroke! Huzzzahhhh!

While You Were Dave Matthewsing...

As I mentioned before, my parents so graciously offered {more like got roped in} to watch our girls while we Gorged on some Dave Matthews over Labor Day weekend.  Fortunately, my brother was also in town for part of the weekend, and got a real dose of why he doesn't have kids.  I mean, had a great time with his two favorite nieces! ;) 

In case you can't tell, these girls got spoiled ROTTEN by just about everybody.  And, now they are asking when we are going away again!  So, great job, guys!