Catching up- October and November

We have had a busy few months with three different trips along with Halloween and Thanksgiving. Here is a little catch up of what we have been up to.
After coming home from Sedona, Emma had her first field trip of the year and I was able to go along as a chaperone.


We got to ride on the big yellow bus to the children's museum

Emma waiting to go into the museum
We had a great time playing in the museum and having a picnic lunch.

The next day, Emma had her annual school walk-a-thon.


Even with a soccer game in the middle, Emma walked 60 laps which equaled about 6 miles. Emma also got a medal for getting the most donations in the first grade, so thank you to all the family and friends that supported her! Ian walked 28 laps, too. He got a lollipop as the prize for walking 14 laps and that was his excitement of the day.

We headed to the pumpkin patch with friends:




Emma and Ian both liked the cow train

and they each went on a pony ride:


and the giant box of corn was a hit, too



Emma and Ian both had dress-up parades at school:

Ian really wanted to be a superhero this year. When asked which one he was going to be he always answered "The Blue One"



My favorite picture of the day; this is a classic Ian look.

Emma with good friend, Savana

Ian walked with Emma for part of her parade

In November, Emma had a 4 day weekend over Veterans Day, so we stretched it a bit and spent 5 days in Maui. We relaxed at the beach, drove the long road to Hana to see lots of waterfalls, and Emma learned to snorkel:


Emma and Daddy snorkeling

Ian enjoyed snacks on the beach

Dinner out

Waterfalls,

and lava tubes on the Road to Hana

More snorkeling


This is the "beach" the Emma and Daddy went snorkeling

Just one week later, we headed to Virginia to spend Thanksgiving with family.
Emma had a great time building a TeePee with B-pa


On Thanksgiving morning, we walked in a local turkey trot. It was a cold, early morning, so needless to say, our children were not the most joyous there:


On Saturday, we went down to Blacksburg to see Virginia Tech play UVA. It was cold, but we were much better dressed in winter jackets and hat, so we made it through the game with mostly happy faces.




So that is how we spent our fall! It was busy and went by quickly, but we had a lot of fun along the way

A Weekend in Sedona

We just got back from a wonderful weekend in Sedona, Arizona with Nana and B-Pa. Emma has been studying Deserts in school, so this was the perfect opportunity to take a field trip and learn first hand about the geology, animals, and culture of the area.

On Saturday morning, we all went hiking in Red Rocks State Park. Here, we were surrounded by awesome views like this :

and this:

Both Emma and Ian were great hikers

and they put B-pa's Binoculars to good use


When Ian was told that he could not walk with the binoculars, he made his own:

"I see a cactus!"

Our family close to the end of the hike

On Sunday, we went on another adventure to get even closer to the rock formations.

We went off roading on the pink jeep tours.
Where we went up and down roads like this:

and saw views like this:

We also visited and old native american  cliff dwelling called Montezuma's Castle:



That evening, we went to watch the sunset wash the rocks in color

and got some great family photos, too:





On Monday, we explored Flagstaff before flying back home. Thank You Nana and B-pa for such a fun weekend!

To see more pictures, check out this slideshow: