Mali ~
Wheweeeee!! It's almost mid November and I am just now getting around to updating your October! Sorry about that. Things feel a little surreal right now thanks to an unexpectedly horrible turn in our democracy regarding our recent presidential election. But, alas, I will save that for your blog post next month. I still need time to process it anyway so that I can come up with a coherent explanation (of course, I don't know if there actually is one at this point). *sigh*
Anyway, here is our October in a nutshell.
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| chill time with the bunnies...look at your legs ~ so cute! |
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you surprised me with an awesome message before leaving for speech one day
(love you too, M!) |
One big thing that we did this October was attend our friend Erin's wedding to her fiance, Scott. It was a beautiful day and an extremely personal and moving ceremony. So much fun! And you were SO stoked to get all snazzy with a brand new suit! Check you out! Rawrr!
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| our gorgeous family |
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| silliness with Daddy at the reception |
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| so fancy! |
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I love this picture I snapped of the bride and groom, dancing
their way into the reception ~ so happy! |
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| cool dudes |
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you and the bride, all smiles!
(Erin was so happy you came!) |
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| being silly in their photo booth |
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us with the bride as well as my friends, Tanisha
and Shannon from work |
We also got to celebrate Daddy's birthday the day after the wedding. We made him a pineapple upside down cake and surprised him with birthday decorations when he came home from a long day of golfing. Happy birthday, Daddy!
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all Daddy wants to do is relax but he is getting licks
from Suzy and you are using him as a chair...ha ha ha! |
We cast our early vote with Lao Lao and you were so excited to vote for Hillary Rodham Clinton...the first woman to ever be a major party presidential candidate in US history. So cool! We are with HER!
And that same night you went to the circus with Darion and his family. So thankful they are in our neighborhood and you have such a good friend to have fun with!
We also did our obligatory pumpkin and apple picking for fall, this time at Branstool Orchards. It was such a good family day spent laughing and doing some seriously "autumn-y" activities together. The more time I spend with you and Daddy, the more grateful I am that I get to share my life with you both.
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| trying to find just the right pumpkins |
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| you needed a little help picking the higher apples on the tree |
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| crunch! yum! |
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| my arms got a work out ~ you are getting heavy! |
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| our family = my heart |
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| leave it to Daddy to find the one apple with a butt! |
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you got a running leap and jumped to try to get the higher apples yourself
(nice air, M!) |
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| silly |
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| one of my favorite pictures from the day |
Once we got home, Darion came over to spend the night and help us carve jack-o-lanterns. The picture below was from our trip to the store to get junk food. Can't have a sleepover without having junk food, right?!
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| pumpkin guts ~ eww! |
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| it got a little crazy ~ dancing on the table! |
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| we even made chocolate/caramel/apple pops too! |
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these turned out ah-mazing!
(Darion's on left, yours on right) |
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| spooky |
More family time at Inniswoods to enjoy the gorgeous fall foliage. Never forget that some of the greatest joys in life can come from the most simple pleasures!
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| you brought your sketch pad with you to capture the beauty around us |
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| sketching Daddy who is in tree yoga pose in a bunch of trees |
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| leaf fight! Mama has no mercy!! |
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| I love you both! |
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| cracking yourself up |
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| hugs! |
And of course, we made FEET LOAF when we got home! Eww or Yum?!
At a housewarming party for my friend, Ashley ~ you made a new friend, Hannah. You were like two peas in a pod.
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| and you found a cat ~ score! |
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found this picture you drew..."high school hair"
(evidently you want to shave one side of your head and shave a lightning bolt when you get
in high school ~ cool!) |
Towards the end of October, I went on a girls' weekend of camping near Amish country and so you and Daddy stayed home and had fun golfing with Courtney. The time away was what I needed and obviously you had a blast too.
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from left: me, Ashley, Cynthia, Lorna, and Heather
(shopping in Amish country) |
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| golf buddies |
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| oh my! she let you drive the golf cart ~ look out! |
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| Daddy said you did an awesome job! |
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and during my trip to Hershberger's Amish Farm and Bakery,
I made a new friend ~ is it a sheep or carpet? |
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I think you can safely say that we were both glad that I was home
by bedtime on Sunday night...love my snuggles from you! |
When Halloween finally rolled around, Daddy actually left for Hawaii. What with all of the hardships and health scares that interrupted his vacations for the last 2 summers, we decided to cash in our travel points and send him to Hawaii to stay with a mutual friend and get some much needed rest and relaxation.
While we missed him being part of all the Halloween festivities, we still had a ton of fun. You made the most adorable Pikachu!
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got this picture of you and Lily while helping
out at your classroom party |
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I love that your friend, Logan, had a huge T-Rex
costume (and McKenna is in the background) |
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| marching in the costume parade at your school |
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| here they come! |
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| playing the "wrap the mummy" toilet paper game with classmates |
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| just before going trick or treating ~ so stinkin' cute! |
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| 2 Pikachus and a witch (you, Annabelle, and Maddy) |
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and now we added Darion to the mix as Black Panther
(your trick or treating crew!) |
You had a super time trick or treating - probably the best you have had yet! You and your friends ran from house to house while the parents trailed behind. You reminded me of so many Halloweens that I had as a kid. I loved watching you revel in making a great childhood memory!
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Courtney came over to participate in the
festivities and we showed her how to play
our traditional "slip the weiner" game...
too funny! |
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so thankful that Courtney came to be with our family
that night ~ she is so awesome! |
And finally, I will leave you with some fun or touching quips as shared with our friends on Facebook. Once again proving that life with you is never dull.
And the following are typical texts I get from you when we are apart and you are hanging with Lao Lao. You love your emojis!!
Love you, kid!
Mama
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