County Fair

This was Nate's first year to truly experience the fair.  We've taken him the last couple of years just to see the animals and all of the lights and excitement.  This year he was old enough to ride several rides and he loved every minute of it.
Daily I am reminded that time is flying by and he is growing up fast.  Darren and I love getting to experience life with him, but it's bittersweet knowing that our baby is growing up. 

Pumpkin Patch

It finally feels like Fall in our neck of the woods.  Today a friend and I took advantage of the beautiful weather and visited the Pumpkin Patch.  The kids had a blast! 

I love seeing all of the different types of pumpkins and gourds. 

There were two baby pot-bellied pigs running around.

I think I mentioned that it was a beautiful day. 

One little, two little, three little Indians...

Here's the third little Indian.  There's actually a fourth, but he's only a couple of months old and slept most of the afternoon.

Brooklyn's sweet smile.

Nate had a blast going through this inflatable obstacle course. 

After an extremely difficult week...

My hope is built on nothing less
than Jesus' blood and righteousness.
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
but wholly lean on Jesus' name.
On Christ the solid rock I stand,
all other ground is sinking sand;
all other ground is sinking sand.

When Darkness veils his lovely face,
I rest on his unchanging grace.
In every high and stormy gale,
my anchor holds within the veil.
On Christ the solid rock I stand,
all other ground is sinking sand;
all other ground is sinking sand.

His oath, his covenant, his blood
supports me in the whelming flood.
When all around my soul gives way,
he then is all my hope and stay.
On Christ the solid rock I stand,
all other ground is sinking sand;
all other ground is sinking sand.

When he shall come with trumpet sound,
O may I then in him be found!
Dressed in his righteousness alone,
faultless to stand before the throne!
On Christ the solid rock I stand,
all other ground is sinking sand; 
all other ground is sinking sand.

Preschool

Today was Nate's first day of preschool. He is only going two days a week. We weren't going to do preschool this year and I missed registration at the two preschools we have in town. I called a few weeks ago and got him on the waiting list. Thankfully one had a spot open up last week and Nate was able to start with all of the other children. He had a great time today and is looking forward to Thursday. He is so funny because if you call it school, he corrects you and says "it's preschool." I tried to get the perfect first day of school picture, but as you can see that didn't work out.

Don't Eat Chips in Your Bed When You're Camping

We had a fun weekend camping.  Nate had a great time looking for "clues" with my parents' magnifying glass.  It looks like he had a great time riding his bike, but he didn't.  He really doesn't like riding it, but I had to get a picture. 

This camping trip was a little more exciting than usual.  Friday night Nate and I were laying in his bed (fold down couch) eating chips and watching Toy Story 2.  We would never eat chips in bed at home, so I kind of thought it was a fun treat.  About midnight that night Nate woke up crying hysterically.  It took us a good five minutes or so to figure out what was wrong.  Ants had gotten in his bed (thanks to the chip crumbs) and were biting him.  When we took his pjs off, he probably had 30 ant bites on him.  To say that I felt horrible, is a huge understatement.  It took us quite a while to get him to calm down.  I even called the pediatrician on call to make sure that we didn't need to seek medical attention because he was so hysterical.  By the time she called back, he was good...thanks to Cars.  While I was waiting on a call back, I decided to turn on Cars to see if it would calm him down and thankfully it did.  He slept great the rest of the night (in bed with us) and didn't mention it the rest of the trip unless we asked him about it. 



I really wanted to try to get a good picture of Nate this weekend.  I really admire (and have a ton of respect for) professional photographers who photograph young children.  It's tough. It probably also helps to make sure that your child doesn't have wild hair.  I love Nate's "long" curly hair, but there is a fine line with it between cute and wild.  This weekend it was definitely more on the wild side.  I think it's actually more manageable when the humidity is higher because it shrinks.  I think I will be scheduling more haircuts this fall.  Here are a couple of my favorites.