Lately

Paige got two more brackets put on at the orthodontist

Paige joined me on a fall foliage hike, I was so excited to have company!!

Paige mowed the lawn for the first time

And Pat taught her how to admire a job well done

Owen got his temps! And I tried to be calm during his first time behind the wheel and totally failed!

Griffin got to play in the leaves

New easy dessert recipe-Cinnamon Roll Apple Cobbler

The kittens got their Halloween meowbox in the mail

Griffin got to go outside another day and chose to hang out in the trampoline

Owen had his last soccer game! Not the record they wanted for the year but Owen had a great sophomore season!

 

Spooky Ranch

One of the moms from Paige's dance group organized a trip to the Spooky Ranch for all the moms and daughters. We had never been there before so I had no idea what to expect but it had a good mix of activities, some of which Paige opted out of. Everyone brought food so there was a ton to eat-walking tacos, chips, candy, cookies, sandwiches etc. After eating we went on a hayride. There were some scary moments like when the guy with the chainsaw was waving it over us and following us around and some confusing/not so scary moments like when a guy did the Thriller dance for an awkwardly long amount of time! We went through a haunted maze that terrified Paige so she chose not to do any of the other haunted houses but hung back with some other kids having fun

 

Foliage

I've taken so many Fall pictures this season, I don't know if it's extra beautiful this year or if I'm just paying more attention.

 

Red Wagon Farm

Our 4th annual trip to Red Wagon Farm! We started off with the corn maze and Owen reluctantly allowed me to tag along with him although I think I must have slowed him down because Pat and Paige found all the checkpoints and finished before us! The next spot we went to was the hayride which is always slightly creepy because of the weirdly stuffed scarecrows even though it's definitely meant to be totally family friendly. My favorite part is watching Pat try to pick up the pumpkins we gather for him and it didn't disappoint again this year, he managed 5 but next year I'm going to try to get him to try for 6! Then we headed over to the barn where we spent a small fortune on treats for everyone. Apple cider, apple fritters (the best I've had this year!), pumpkin candy, and some caramel puff things.

Corn maze winners

Corn maze losers

Seated for our hayride

Pat, mid-pumpkin carry

Back to the car to drop off pumpkins before snacks!

 

Lots of Misc

There are some old pictures in here because I haven't done one of these in awhile!

Butterbeer Cookies! So good but a little fussy to make because ingredients are measured by weight

Someone official came to a football game and took cute group pictures of the cheerleaders 

This one too!

Still haven't found a good apple fritter...

7th and 8th graders got to play with the marching band for a Friday night football game!

Paige is the flute in the back!

Wrapping up the soccer season!

Lots of naps around here

I took a hike to see the colorful leaves!!

Why is Griffin like this?

Stopped up at the studio and caught these two!

Owen and his friends went to a Browns game

Binx always likes to get in the mix when I'm making something

 

Towpath Marathon!

I ran my second marathon ever less than a week ago! There was a big difference between this year and last year. I didn't get around to incorporating all the changes I was going to make (better nutrition, more water, strength training) so I was a little worried going into the morning but I did have the confidence of knowing I had done the distance once and could do it again, no matter how long it took me! It was a much cooler day so that helped as well. I never got overheated or felt too thirsty. One mistake I made was carrying two small bottles when I just needed one. I had to ditch the second bottle a couple miles in because having two was weighing down my shorts and I never found it on the way back. I did manage to reach both of the goals I had. I didn't puke and I beat my time! I finished with a chip time of 4:16:22. I can't wait to do it again next year!!

Before the race with my parents. They ran the 10k and both got second in their age group!

I took a few pictures of the scenery while I ran

Action shot from the race photographer. My hand was cold and I hadn't ditched the second water bottle yet so I had to hold it for awhile

I texted everyone a picture while I ran

After the race! They had to wait quite awhile for me to finish

My favorite training partner!

I was in a lot of pain when we were walking to the car so Pat carried me for as long as he could:)