Apple Picking

I had turned down many invitation to go apple picking in prior years.  I just couldn't wrap my head around what someone would do with all of those apples.  But, with the kids at an age to enjoy it, we decided to give it a shot.  The weather was perfect to spend a day outside, so we headed out to Hartland Orchard.  The views were beautiful and the price for the apples was a steal.  We filled our large bag quite quickly.  The boys really enjoyed picking apples.  We just did our best to make sure Tyler was putting apples from trees, not the ground, in our bag.

 

What a beautiful day!  The kids were really having fun.

Tyler and Brian walking back towards the car.

 

Before leaving the orchard, I set up the camera for a quick family picture.  I wish I had realized the glare had caught my sunglasses.  Still a nice enough photo to share.  We headed just a few miles west for lunch at the Apple House in Linden, VA.  I had read a review of this place and it sounded like a hole in the wall, but I didn't realize how packed it would be on a Saturday.  We lucked out and didn't have to wait to order, but by the time we left, there was a line nearly the length of the place.

Since we had made the hour drive to the orchards, we decided to also check out Stribling Orchard before heading home.  This place gave out apple grabbers that allowed you to reach apples higher in the tree.  The boys loved it and often directed Brian to pick apples at the top of the trees.  After filling two bags, we decided to call it a day!  We were all beat and all the boys (yes, Brian too) dozed as I drove them home.  The speed limit on route 66 that far west was 70 MPH, so at lease we could zoom east without having to worry about getting pulled over.  (I admit that we don't travel west that often and I was pretty surprised to see 70 MPH on a speed limit sign!)

This was our haul!  These apples aren't quite the right kind for making pies, so I'm not sure what I'm going to do with them, but we'll do our best to eat up before they go bad.  Applesauce anyone?

Tyler's 1st Day of Preschool

After Brennan got on the bus this morning, I had to get Tyler ready for his first day of preschool.  He brought me the container of his hair product and said, "cool hair."  After I did his hair (I use Garnier Surfer Putty), I sprayed it and used the blow dryer to set it... he pointed at the hairspray and said, "more."  Ha... he cracks me up!  He is attending the 1-day 2's class at Kids Under Construction Preschool.  His teachers are Ms. Amy and Ms. Laurie.  When we arrived at school, he didn't want to pose for a picture and tried to throw his backpack down and hide behind a parked car.

Our friend's daughter is in the same class and we tried to get a cute picture of them together before heading in.  Of course, I didn't get one shot with both kids looking at the camera at the same time... it was a little too sunny.

Tyler went right in, without much of a goodbye and no tears.  He took his seat at the table to started coloring.  I snapped this photo and got out of there before he could change his mind!

He came out with a big smile at pick-up.  Ms. Jen, the preschool director, said that he did great today!  He made a cute little hand print craft today, photoed below.  He ended up with a partial/double impression of his left hand, but nonetheless, a nice keepsake from his first day of school!  Although everything is going well with school, we are all feeling exhausted with the new schedule... the boys have been crankier than usual, Tyler has been napping a lot more and I have been having trouble motivating myself to cook dinner.  We'll get there, but we are definitely in a transition time right now!  On the up side, I get 2.5 hours of time to myself on Friday mornings!  This week, I meet Ally for breakfast at Amphora Bakery!

Brennan's 1st Day of Kindergarten

Brennan started Kindergarten on Tuesday! He has morning kindergarten, which means his school day starts early - 7:50 AM! His bus comes at 7:19, so he had to be up early in order to eat breakfast. I wasn't worried about being able to get him up, but wasn't sure if he'd eat that early. Thankfully, he got up and ate an entire bagel (from the two dozen we brought back from NY)!  We headed out shortly after 7 to make sure we'd have time for a few photos.  Brennan had some first day jitters the night before, but on Tuesday morning, he was excited and ready to go!

The boys were hamming it up all the way to the bus stop. Unfortunately, we live far from the bus stop, relatively speaking. We are right in between two stops, about 10 houses away from either stop.

We chose the bus stop where we knew we'd have friends.  Ben and Jack are our neighbors and are in second grade.  Brennan was happy to get on the bus with friends.

Brennan gets motion sickness, so I suggested he sit in the front half of the bus. He took me quite literally and sat right in the front seat with a random little girl.  I was able to catch a picture of him right before the bus doors shut

Upon returning home, Tyler discovered a cicada sitting right next to the front door and decided to check him out.

When the bus dropped Brennan off at home, he didn't want to get off ! The mid-day kindergarten bus comes right to the house, so we had been waiting out front, hoping he'd come running off, but instead, I had to step on the bus and coax him off!  Thankfully, today, he came right off.  The video below is kind of long, but it contains his thoughts on his first day of school. I didn't catch my initial question on video, but I asked him what happened when he got to school.

Wedding Weekend!

Peter and Meghan got married this Saturday, August 31!  Brian and I looked forward to celebrating our 11th anniversary at their wedding.  Brennan and Tyler were ring bearers, along with Owen, Meghan's sister's son.  I took the boys over to the B&B where the guys were meeting ahead of time for photos.  Tyler was very cranky, so Brian took him for a drive, while Brennan stuck around for photos.

The wedding was at Hallockville Farm, just minutes from my parent's house.  My dad was the best man, so Brian had the honor of walking my mom down the isle, since Dad was standing up front with Pete.

It just wasn't Tyler's day.  He continue throwing a fit during the ceremony, so only Brennan and Owen made it down the isle.

Here is a shot of my lovely grandparents, Poppy and Mama.

Joe played his violin as guests arrived for the ceremony and during the procession.

 

Peter made the beautiful arbor photoed below.

These are my cousins on the Huszagh side.

It was a beautiful reception site and we danced the night away under a tent beside the rustic barn.  They had a great band and everyone really enjoyed themselves!  Congratulations, Pete and Meg!  We wish you a lifetime of love and happiness!