Fall Break

For Fall Break this year, we actually put on the brakes. We stayed home and rested and played. Last year for Fall Break, we went to Branson with friends. The year before we had a three week old (not much breaking or resting), and the previous year we went to Disney World. This year it felt a little weird to not have big, busy plans, and I was a little worried the kids would be bummed, but it turned out to be perfect. I think the kids enjoyed a relaxed schedule, getting to play with friends, and getting to be lazy and carefree at home. The weather was gorgeous the entire break too which made everything more fun.

I asked each of the big kids to tell me one friend they'd like to have a play date with over the break. Elisabeth said she wanted to play with Ainsley and Makinley, so we had their family over for dinner on Tuesday night to kick off Fall Break. The kids played and played and the adults got to visit. The girls all doted on Katherine, so she had an awesome night, ha!

I also asked the kids for some ideas of fun things they wanted to do over the break. Elisabeth said she wanted to bake some treats, and Nathan thought making an apple pie would be fun, so that's what we did. We had to run to Braums for vanilla ice cream with our pie, and Katherine is serious about her ice cream. She wouldn't let go of the bag. It was hilarious.

The weather was so nice that the kids ate lunch outside on Wednesday.

Then while Katherine napped, we baked.

They were all so proud to peel the apples by themselves.

It turned out to be delicious. I enjoy baking, but pies are not at all my specialty. I'm glad Nathan forced me out of my comfort zone to try something new. I think we have some more pie baking days in our future. Samuel even asked if he could have apple pie instead of birthday cake for his next birthday.

They couldn't wait to dig into the pie.

While the pie cooled, some neighborhood friends came over to play. They are moving soon, so we wanted to squeeze in one more play date. Thankfully, the kids will still get to see them at school, but we'll miss having them as neighbors.

Thursday morning Elisabeth was invited to a birthday party for a friend from school. I took her and Addisyn to the party while the other kids played at Addisyn and Kamryn's house for the morning.

Thursday afternoon, we snuggled up together and watched the Wizard of Oz. We recently finished reading the book as our family read aloud, and the kids were excited to watch the movie- though they all agreed the book was better. Isn't it always?!?

We spent so much time outside playing. It was wonderful. Nathan asks to ride his bike almost any free moment we have, so the kids rode bikes a lot during Fall Break.

Friday morning we met up with the Millers at the park to play for a couple of hours. Great weather and great friends made for a fun morning.

Friday afternoon I dropped off the boys' at Caleb and Asher's house. When I asked them about a friend they wanted to have a play date with, Caleb and Asher were their answers and since they're brothers it worked out perfectly! They had a fun afternoon full of Legos and Ninjago. Their mom sent me this picture of Samuel. He was having fun for sure.

We had a pretty low key morning on Saturday. Matt had to work in the morning, so the kids and I just hung out and played. Elisabeth asked me to curl her hair, and I couldn't tell her no. Usually when she requests a hair style, she just wants to leave it long or wants it in a ponytail, so I soaked up some girly fun with her.

Saturday afternoon we drove to OKC to meet our new niece/cousin. We're thrilled to have a new family member and the kids fought over holding her. No one wanted to let her go. I didn't want to share either :).

Nathan was precious. He was so gentle with her and his eyes just radiated love and protection for his new cousin.

Katherine couldn't keep her hands off Baby Abigail, and she kept demanding it was her turn to hold her. I'm hoping they'll be great friends as they grow up.

We left the hospital and headed to a fun new park in OKC so the kids could get their wiggles out before the drive home. It was a great afternoon and meeting Abigail was everyone's Fall Break highlight.

Sunday was a pretty normal day for us- church, lunch, nap/quiet time, KJAM and family game night. It was Elisabeth's turn to choose our game for the night and Matt put a bug in her ear that she should choose Mario Party instead of a board game, so that's what we did to end a great Fall Break. It was refreshing to have a few days of sleeping in, lazy/relaxed mornings and plenty of time for play and fun. Hanging out with these four kids is the best gig around.