HaPpY HaLlOwEeN!

Omaha Zoo

Jacob had a work meeting in Omaha, so we tagged along and visited the zoo.  It was a chilly day, but there are so many indoor exhibits that you hardly even notice!  

Mitchell helped keep the boys in line....visiting the zoo by yourself with three boys under 5 could be kind of interesting if it weren't for my little helper :)

We all agreed that the sharks and the gorillas were our favorite animals of the day.  Even gorillas that pick their noses....

There wasn't a big crowd at the zoo on this chilly day during the week.  Macallan loved running around the roomy exhibits!

Penguins are one of my favorite animals!  I LOVE watching them dive and swim!

The boys never grow tired of the Shark exhibit.  They look so deceivingly peaceful...kind of like my boys at times :)

The jellyfish were beautiful....slowly floating around.

 Have you ever seen a sting ray smile?

Garden Eel

The butterflies were so fun to watch flutter around!  We stayed a little longer than normal...maybe because their exhibit was humid and warm :)

  Look at ALL of those butterfly cocoons!

The weather didn't call for rain or chilly weather when we left, so I didn't think I'd packed too well...but as we went into the zoo, I was proud to report that each boy had a coat, hat and even gloves.  We also had a golf umbrella large enough for all of us!  I thought "Man, if you saw me in this split second, you'd think I'm a good planner and am organized!  Stay any longer and you'll quickly know the truth!" :)

Oh, and I should admit that Macallan's "gloves" were really socks...and one was lost before we got to the first exhibit.  Yep, THAT is a true picture of my motherhood :)

My little Maverick used his map to help us navigate the zoo.  He is OBSESSED with maps right now!  He can't read them to save his life, but he LOVES to look at them!  He'll fold them and unfold them until the fall apart.

Good times at our favorite zoo!  I think it's time to try out the Minneapolis Zoo!

Fall is in Full Swing :)

We are all enjoying some cooler weather this fall!  We're trying to spend as much time outdoors as possible, while we can!  All three boys are big fans of the park, so we have tried just about every one around town!  

Including the dog park!  The Woodbury dog park is one of my favorite places to go...we can ALL get some exercise!  We continue to work on Maverick's potty training.  He is a bit more stubborn than Mitchell...or maybe I'm less focused!  If you look closely at the below picture, you'll see that Maverick has decided this field is a great place to drop his pants and go pee.  Boys!

 Mitchell at the dog park.

 Macallan and my sister's dog, Happy

 Happy and my nephew, Grant.  Isn't that sweet? :)

Daddy playing at the park with the boys!

Macallan is still the favorite "play toy" for both of the boys!  They often argue over who gets to "hold" him.  Holding him lasts for about 2 seconds these days!  He is an active little fellow :)

I love this picture of my self titled "King of the Kids".  I think this changing table is his thrown :)  Look at his little admirer!

Here are my two little troublemakers!  They certainly have their moments, but generally they play together pretty well!

They love to bake!  Banana bread is their favorite thing to make..Mitchell loves to let the bananas get nice and soft because he knows what comes next!

Maverick took a break from cooking to roll around on the floor.  A necessary step in every recipe, right? :)

Macallan is officially WALKING!  I will try to post a video.  He takes up to 20ish steps at a time, which is increasing each and every day :)  Here he has crawled up on the bathroom stool to brush his teeth.  Isn't he the most hygenic 11 month old that you know?

Mitchell is soooo SILLY these days!  He calls this his "Rock-n-Roll pose"!

Eating time is the dogs' favorite activity at our house!  Macallan surely can't go through a whole meal without dropping something!

Although I was a little reluctant, we finally have Macallan his first haircut.  He was looking pretty shaggy!  Here is a "before" picture.  New do pictured below.

My mom bought us a discount ticket to a little amusement park in St. Paul.  The boys LOVE riding rides!  They aren't hesitant or scared at all!  At just over 36", Maverick was tall enough for nearly all of them:)

Mitchell loved driving the little cars around!  My favorite part was that he actually followed traffic laws.  See the little stop sign in the distance?  It was intended for decoration only, but not only did he stop at it, but he made sure that each of the other kids did too!  Ha!

Macallan was all too happy to ride around in Mom & Dad's arms watching his brothers.

The swings were a big hit!

Here is the after picture of Macallan's hair.  A little spikey and cute :)

 The boys are enjoyed the train.  Maverick chose the caboose.  Mitchell chose the engine.

Fireman Maverick!

We also recently took the boys to a little apple orchard.  Minnesota has TONS of apple orchards and pumpkin patches!  In fact, I asked Mitchell what he wanted to pray for before bed time tonight.  You never know what he'll come up with, but tonight Mitchell wanted to pray for the apple trees.  Hmmm....

Hey look, I got in front of the camera for one!

Macallan is pretty good to entertain himself at home.  Like the other boys, balls are one of his favorite toys :)

Mitchell just couldn't wait to carve a pumpkin, so we decided to carve one early this year.  Thanks to Gran for the nice carving tools!  They are sure to get lots of use for years to come!

We are having a fabulous Minnesota fall.  I made a fun checklist of activities that we're trying to do with the boys and we're steadily making progress!  Only a few left to squeeze in before the first snow!