Our house, in the middle of our street

It's been over six months since we have moved to our new home. We're mostly unpacked, so I thought it was about time that I take some pictures of our new place.
I started with the second floor. Here is the hallway looking into the boys' room.
The room belonging to Casey, Gavin, and Liam. Yes, three cribs fit in here with some room to spare.


This is the master suite. Okay, it's not really a suite, but it feels that way because it's the third floor. The attic was converted into livable space.
Whoops! I woke up Belly with this shot.
The exercise room, or second guest room, or future playroom.
The views from the windows in the exercise room. This view faces north.
And this view faces east.
The guest room is also where we store toys.

The dining room, with a view into the family room.

The view from the dining room, which faces east.
Here is our light kitchen.
The view from the kitchen.
The banister at the end of the stairs with the really cool window.
The view from the cool window.
The family room. Everyone has a place to sit!

Lions and Tigers and Gorillas, Oh My!!!

Today was our first trip to the zoo together as a family.
With much pointing and staring, Casey, Gavin, and Liam admired the animals.
The gorillas were stinky, but the boys didn't seem to notice.
By far, the sea lions were the most fun to watch as they swam right up to the glass to say hello.

What gets your goat?

Today we went to a pumpkin patch that had it all: pumpkins, apples, petting zoo, slides, a "sandbox" made of dried corn, and hay and corn mazes. With all the different activities, we had quite a busy day!

First, we enjoyed the petting zoo:

This goat liked chasing me around. I finally took its picture. Apparently there are some really photogenic goats out there.
Paco makes friends with two goats.
Casey, Gavin, and Liam watch as Dad says hello to the goats.

Gavin and Liam watch as Mama feeds a goat. Casey did not care to watch.
We're not sure why there was a duck in the chicken coop, but it gave the boys a chance to practice saying "Duh.."
Gavin lets a goat sniff his hand. He's definitely the brave one at times.

More corny toads

Before we drove over to the pumpkin patch, we made a pitstop at a cornbox. Everyone enjoyed the corn so much they didn't realize it wasn't sand.

Journey to the bottom of the one hundred foot slide

Casey, Gavin, and Liam are no strangers to slides at the playground. This slide that they were about to use, however, was something entirely new and special. Built on the side of a steep hill, it was one hundred feet long and waxed with pledge every week (said the woman in the orange shirt). Each boy had to sit with either Mama or Dad on the way down.

Gavin smiles with Mama before his turn down the slide.
Casey giggles as Dad tries to get a good grasp of him before his turn.



After a couple of slides down, we decided to takes some video clips to show our adventures.

Fire Truck climbers

Another feature that Casey, Gavin, and Liam enjoyed at the pumpkin patch was a fire engine with a slide built on the side.
To get to the slide, everyone had to climb hay bales.
Liam leads the way to the top, staying true to his risk-taking nature.

When I pressed down the shutter, Casey was facing me. He really does flip around fast. His preferred method of going down slides is actually on his belly.

Gavin slides down, just a wee bit scared.

Liam heads down the slide with a little help from Dad.


At the top of the firetruck, everyone admires the view.

Pumped up for Pumpkins

At first, Casey found a pumpkin that seemed pretty good.
But then he had his doubts. Better sit down and test out the pumpkins.
Pat! Pat! Tap! Tap! Casey checks this one out for the proper hollow sound.

Nya! It's okay.

Liam examines one pumpkin a little more closely.

Liam scans the pumpkin patch for the best gourd. You may be wondering why he looks like he's a little more dressed up than Casey or Gavin. Well, let's just say breakfast did not agree with him this morning.

Gavin finds it really handy that the pumpkins have stems. It makes for easy maneuvering in and out of the pumpkin patch.

Gavin is becoming a seasoned pumpkin picker. Here he dives right into the patch to search for the best one.

At first, Gavin stared at the pumpkins and said, "Ball." You can see why he would make the comparison, because both pumpkins and balls are round.