Fall Festivities

We have had such a busy October with fall activities and preparing for Halloween. The Halloween Disney Cruise will need a post all in its own, so this one will just include pictures from Green Meadows Farm and hanging around the house painting pumpkins and visiting the local pumpkin patch.

We had a great October and are looking forward to things slowing down a bit with football season winding down and preparing for a low-key Thanksgiving. Pretty soon the Christmas season will be upon us and things will be back to being hectic!

Hanging on the porch at Cracker Barrel after Zoo Boo Bash.

At the local pumpkin patch!

At the entrance to Green Meadows Farm.

Kaitlyn walking around the farm.

Mady and Emily checking out the pumpkins at the farm.

Mady riding a pony at the farm.

Mady holding some sort of animal (chick or duck) at the farm.

Painting our pumpkins while our daddies carved the big ones!

Weekend Activities

This weekend was packed with fun activities. Jacob's brother got married on Saturday and then Mady and I met up with some friends at Sea World for Halloween Spooktacular.

The Falk Family (minus KK, of course)

Halloween Spooktacular!

Our new minivan! The girls were so excited to play in the back!

Magic Kingdom: Crowded Kingdom

On Sunday we decided to take the girls to the Magic Kingdom for the day, but more importantly we wanted to take KK to the barbershop on Main Street and get her first haircut. We took Mady to the barbershop when she was 20 months old and figured it was time for KK to get her first haircut since her hair is much longer than what Mady's was at this age. I knew it was a three day weekend due to the Jewish holiday, however, I had no idea that everyone was going to head to the Magic Kingdom for the day. We arrived around 11 and went straight to the barbershop. There was a 1 hour wait, so we headed to Fantasyland with the plan of stopping by the barbershop on our way out in a few hours. On our way out around 2, there was a 2 hour wait. We might try again this Wednesday when we go for Jacob's birthday, if not we'll try again at a later time!

Playing at Pooh's Playground.

Showing some sisterly love!

Kaitlyn taking in all the sights on It's A Small World.

Mady on It's A Small World.

Mady when she was 20 months old getting her first haircut at Disney!

Happy 14 Months!

I can't believe my little girl is 14 months old now! She has such a personality and is talking up a storm. She is walking everywhere and her latest obsession is shoes. I even bought her, her first pair of Keds tennis shoes since the weather is turning cooler and she loves to walk outside. She started month 14 on 4 different meds, but is now down to her regular one and is doing great. What started out as a cough turned into a double ear infection and a slight case of pneumonia. After 2 weeks on pulmicort, xopenex, an antibiotic, and a liquid steroid she is fully recovered. She weighs in at 18 lb, 12 oz and is still considered little, but she looks so big to me! She loves real people food and we are almost completely off of baby food. She only gets it when we are out and it's convenient. She is such a daddy's girl and still cannot stand for Jacob to leave the room! Hopefully this seperation anxiety phase over him will end soon! Other than that, she is a complete joy and Mady is loving having a playmate!

Gatorland

Today we met my friend Pam and her son Jay over at Gatorland in Kissimmee. They have an awesome discount right now where Florida teachers plus one guest get in free and all Florida residents get in for $9.99. So, for $14.90 the four of us got in, plus rode the train! We walked around and saw the alligators, the jumparoo show, fed some birds, rode the train, and played in the splashground. Both girls fell asleep on the way home and as soon as they wake up we are headed to see the grandparents.

At the entrance to Gatorland.

All aboard the train.

Feeding the birds. KK loved it, Mady not so much.

Gator jumparoo show.

Skating Party

About once a month my school hosts a skating party at Semoran Skateway. We invited our friends, The Pearsons, to join us and see if Mady and Emily would skate. We took Mady to a skating party last winter and she sorta skated with her friend Bryce. This time it took both girls about an hour to warm up to the idea, but by the end of the night they were in the beginner rink going from one end to the other. Jacob and I even took Mady around the big rink once. Hopefully we'll continue taking Mady to the monthly skating parties and she'll get the hang of it!

Mady and Mommy in the beginner rink!

Mady showing off her skating skills!

Mady and Emily practicing skating!

Random Cuteness

Here are some random photos from the month of September. Some are from my birthday and the girls eating cake. We went to Boma's at Animal Kingdom Lodge for dinner on my actual birthday. I've always wanted to go there and it was awesome. We also had a mini birthday party at home 2 days later with both girls complete with balloons and a cake! Mady and her friend Emily also had a pretend slumber party one night. Emily brought her sleeping bag over and after the girls played they watched a movie. Emily actually cried when she had to go home because she really thought she was spending the night!

Kaitlyn eating a cookie at Boma's

I think KK loved the birthday cake!

Mady getting ready to eat icing. That's all she likes.

My adorable 14 month old!

Watching a movie in their matching sleeping bags.

Labor Day Weekend

We didn't have any plans over the weekend except for the UCF game so we decided to head over to our friends, The Pearsons, and have a pool party. Mady loves playing with Emily in the pool and KK has decided that she has no fear of the water. We swam, ate, and hung out around the house while the kids played. We had a great day and it was so sad to have to go back to work the next day! Thanks to the Pearsons for inviting us over and letting us use their pool!

Mady hanging by the pool!

Emily and Mady monkey crawling from the deep end to the shallow end.

Daddy and the girls. Kaitlyn LOVES the water!

UCF Game

The first UCF game of the season was on Saturday, September 5th against Samford. Typically we don't go to the first game because it always falls during Labor Day weekend, but since we didn't have any plans and we have to miss the October 3rd home game, we went. Our babysitter Michelle came over around 6 and Jacob and I headed over to Bright House Stadium. The game started at 7:30 and we made a quick trip over to the bookstore to pick up new gear for the new season. We even got Mady her first UCF cheerleader outfit! We stayed until the start of the 4th quarter when UCF was losing, and by the time we made it to the parking garage UCF scored and won the game. This week we are headed to the second home game against Buffalo. Mady and KK are going to their grandparent's house for the night so that we might actually get to tailgate and have some pre-game fun!

All smiles in my new UCF gear!

The band at halftime paid tribute to Michael Jackson!

A kid free night and football!

Bike Riding with the Family

After dinner tonight we decided to bring out the bikes and trailer and take the girls on a ride to Winter Springs and back. We put Mady in the bike trailer and Kaitlyn in the seat on the back of Jacob's bike. This was KK's first time on the back of Jacob's bike, normally she rides in her infant carrier in the bike trailer. She had a great time and wore Mady's helmet that Mady wore when she was KK's age. I even included a picture of me with my hot pink bike just to prove that I do participate in outdoor activities with the family! Plus, with the weather turning cooler soon we'll be outside even more!

Kaitlyn in her helmet that used to be Mady's.

Ashley and the hot pink bike, my favorite color.

The sweetest picture ever of Mady on her first bike ride! What a cutie!

Sunday at Sea World

Today we decided to meet up with our friends The Pearsons and visit Sea World. We haven't been since the beginning of summer and with school back in session the crowds are starting to die down. We even brought Kaitlyn along this time. She hasn't been to Sea World since we visited over Spring Break in April when our beach plans got cancelled because of the cold weather. The park was not crowded at all and was easy to manage with both girls. We first visited the sharks and the penguins, and then decided to see the dolphin show. Mady loves this show and was asking all day yesterday if we could see the dolphin show and dog and kitty cat show. I asked her if she wanted to see the Shamu show, and she said no because it was too loud. So, we saw the dolphin show and then went over to Shamu's Happy Harbor. Mady and Emily rode the carousel and then we saw the polar bears and beluga whales. After the whales it was time to see the dog and kitty cat show (Pets Ahoy!). Mady LOVES this show and we have to see it on every visit. After the show it was after 3 pm and time to go home! Both girls fell asleep in the car and woke up as soon as we got home. It was a great day and we're so glad the summer months are almost over so we can visit the theme parks more often!

Waiting patiently for the dolphin show to begin!

All the girls waiting for the show!

Watching intently at the acrobats and high divers during the show.

Attempting to get a picture with dolphins at the underwater viewing area. They literally left when we went to take a picture.

Eating strawberries at lunch. The girls were so good all day!

No trip to Sea World is complete without a ride on the carousel!

Kaitlyn worn out at the end of the day!

We Survived!

Today was our official first day back to school. We were all up and dressed by 7:30 and out the door by 7:40. This is amazing considering for the past two months it was a great day if we were up and out the door by 10. In other amazing news, Kaitlyn is officially walking all around! Very rarely is she crawling these days, and is even mastering her ability to walk and suck her thumb at the same time! She was not happy in these pictures because Jacob had put her down, and apparently whenever you do that these days she has a fit!

Hanging with mommy on the porch!

Crying while walking. She hates it when Jacob puts her down.

Walking to daddy, still crying.

Big sister sitting oh so pretty!

New Smyrna Beach 2009

This past week we celebrated the end of summer with our annual trip to New Smyrna Beach. The weather could not have been more perfect, I don't think it started raining until Thursday and we arrived that past Sunday. That kind of weather almost never happens in Florida. Usually in the summer the storms hit in the early afternoon for an hour or so, this week there was all the sunshine you could want and very little clouds. We did have some rain on Friday, however, it wasn't enough to ruin any plans or prevent us from having a great beach day.

Sisters so happy to be together at the beach.

The week was wonderful with days spent at the beach and pool. Kaitlyn loved the water at the beach and Mady got to practice her swimming skills she learned earlier in the summer. We had friends come visit us twice during the week, and there were trips to Breakers, Mannys, and Mi Mexico as well.

Kaitlyn walking like a big girl on the shore.

Kaitlyn loved the water at the beach and would walk/crawl all around.

Mady's friend Emily came over on Friday and spent the night!

Mady loved spending her days making sand castles and decorating them with sea shells.

Tomorrow our summer is officially over with the return to school and a routine, but I have loved being home with the girls and look forward to jam packed weekends this fall, spending as much time together with them as I can!

Goodbye Summer!