Pumpkin Patch!

There is a pumpkin patch in Medina we've been taking Ainsley to for four years now...it's really cute and has lots of stuff for the little ones. There's face painting, pumpkin painting, a hay maze, a petting zoo, hay rides, all the food you can eat...and much more!

This was Addison's first year to really participate since she was so little in 2008, and she seems to love it just as much as Ainsley...looks like we'll be coming back again!

Ainsley didn't QUITE get the idea...

Our sweet girl posing for the camera...she LOVES having her picture taken!

Then there's her sister, who will not sit still long enough for a photo most times...

Ainsley loves going to the petting zoo...here she is holding a baby chick...she loved it!

The girls decided they wanted to paint pumpkins. Here is Ainsley after PAINstakingly selecting her pumpkin.

Here is Addy painting hers...shortly before she shoved her whole hand in the paint cup.

This was as close as I got ALL DAY to getting Addison to look at the camera...ah, well...there's always next year...

Addy and Her Books

Just a cute photo I loved...

Addison Demolishes Spaghetti

We decided (stupidly, apparently) to take the girls to dinner tonight at The Olive Garden. We pass it every day on the way home from school, and decided it would be a nice change of pace. I ordered what I *thought* was the same dish for both the girls...pasta with butter...and that's what Ainsley got. Addison, however, was served pasta with tomato sauce. Let's just say she *really* liked it...

Ainsley very sweetly eating her pasta.

Addison inhaling her pasta like we lock her in a closet and starve her during the rest of the week...

You can't see it in this photo, but she has red sauce on her shirt, shorts, shins and shoes. It was completely disgusting getting her out of here and in the car.

A Night Out!

My sweet friend Laura invited us to go with her to the San Antonio Botanical Garden's "Gardens by Moonlight" to celebrate her husband (and my dear friend) James' birthday. There were bands all over the gardens and Central Market provided all the food. It was a neat atmosphere, because you literally just brought chairs or a blanket and sat down wherever you wanted. It was us and another couple we adore all evening, and we had a ball.

The final group we saw that night was T Bird and the Breaks. They had a really cool jazz/blues/rock sound that we all loved. These photos definitely don't do it justice, but we had a great time!

Miss Priss

I got this cute picture of Ainsley while we were at a stop light this morning on the way to school...just cracked me up to see her sitting there with her legs crossed, watching a movie and flipping through a catalog...is she a girl, or what!!??

Big Sister Reads to Little Sister

Ainsley is so proud of herself that she can read now. So, she's taken to reading to Addison, who cannot get enough of books. Mommy and Daddy are thrilled, because it relieves them from the hours of book duty we've been taking on since Miss Addison discovered books. Don't get me wrong, we read to her plenty, but this child is insatiable...seriously...

Ainsley Turns Five

Ainsley turned five this week. I still cannot believe she's already five years old. It seems like just yesterday I thought she'd never get to two!

We talked a lot about what she wanted to do for her party, and this was the first year I agreed to invite classmates...I just thought it was too much in the past. So, since school just started and didn't know all the kids yet, we decided to invite all the kids who had returned from the previous year. Don't kid yourself that I got off easy...this was still something like 12 kids not including family!

We decided to have her party at Clay Casa here in San Antonio. It's a really cute little art studio where you pick a piece of pottery and paint it with colors you pick yourself. You then give it back to them to be fired and come back to pick it up in a week or so when it's ready.

Here is the birthday girl in the car right before we went inside for her party. She was soooooo excited!

We started with pizza, but here are the kids getting into their painting...they were all so cute about choosing the item to paint. Each had their own particular reason for picking what they did.

Here in Ainsley painting her snail.

Here is little sister Addison with Pawpaw...her favorite person in the whole world.

Here are the girls with Gram. Ainsley LOVES her Gram!

Ainsley decided on a Hello Kitty party, so here is her adorable cake, made by Cathy Young here in San Antonio. She makes the BEST cakes!

Here is my super sweet sister, Lauren, and her awesome hubby, Don. They have come to EVERY birthday party my kids have had. How cool is that?!

The kids had a blast painting and didn't want to leave their stuff there at the end until I assured them I would get it to them! Then Clay Casa gave us a tile for everyone to sign at the party to give Ainsley as a keepsake. Too bad Mommy won't let her keep it in her room on account of fear that she'll break it by trying to keep it in her bed with her.

Ah, well...another year come and gone. And she's already planning Birthday #6. I think I heard something about ice sculptures...