Gray had his first school field trip a few weeks ago and Hayes and I joined him and were so glad we did. We made the beautiful drive to Marion, Arkansas' Circle R Ranch and had a great time on the hayride, choosing a pumpkin, riding the pony, petting the animals, and picking cotton. Sure hope they make that an annual trip because it was such a fun outing on such a gorgeous Fall day!
We had so much fun picking cotton, but I didn't have my good camera with me so we didn't get any good shots. Instead, I took the kids down to the Agricenter's cotton fields and had a blast watching them take it all in. By the way, if you've never been down there at this time of the year, it's absolutely breathtaking.
Don't get me wrong, I love the Fall....the pumpkins, the colors, the leaves falling (okay, that's a lie), and all of the delicious comfort foods that we start to make. But my FAVORITE part of the season is my baby boy's birthday. Gray turned 3 on the 16th of October and even though most of our family was out of town and his party wasn't until the next week, we made sure he had a big day. I made him some chocolate pumpkin muffins for breakfast and he had a complete blast opening his gifts. We went to the zoo and then Lovie and Papa came over for dinner, cake/ice cream, and of course more presents! It was truly the first time he had shown such excitement about the whole gift concept and it made me all the more excited about this year's Christmas. Here is his opening some of his treasures.....
As if he hadn't celebrated enough, we had all of his friends over for a pumpkin decorating party at our house this past Saturday. It was great fun to watch all of the kids poring over their pumpkins and so excited to see the final product. I think the parents were pretty relieved when they saw all the pieces were self-adhesive foam and there was no paint or carving involved.....we'll save that for another year I guess.
Since Halloween is my absolute FAVORITE holiday of the year, I was so thrilled to finally be able to have a Halloween birthday party for Gray and only wonder why I didn't think of it sooner....so many fun decorations and food!
Recipe for the Jackolantern Cheese Ball:
2 10 oz blocks extra sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1 8 oz package cream cheese, softened
2 4 oz goat cheese logs, softened
½ tsp pepper
Stir together cheeses and pepper
Shape into a ball to resemble a pumpkin
Smooth with metal spatula or table knife, making grooves with fingertips
Serve with crackers and assorted veggies
Party favors
Poor thing....he almost passed out trying to blow them out!
Homemade pumpkin spice cupcakes with cream cheese frosting
And again, he was over the moon opening and playing with all of his new toys. As soon as someone would walk in with a gift, he would tear it open, take it in another room and play with it all by himself. I think I have FINALLY solved the mystery of who gave him what gift since he did not do me the courtesy of keeping the gift cards with the gifts. His all-time favorite gift though was from his Aunt Lala and Uncle Andrew. It was a parking garage with a helicopter pad and 4 levels of parking. Since Uncle Andrew didn't make it back in town in time for his party, he paid his penance by putting it together for him.
Even Hayes had a great time, though it took her a while to get over the shock of all of those people and all of the noise they were making. Thankfully she had lots of grandparents, aunts, and uncles there to love on her until she warmed up to the idea. Here she is playing with some of Gray's new toys and eating dinner after the party with her cousin Greer.
After a long day of getting ready for the party, a fun-filled time with family and friends, and then pizza and football with all of our family, we were ready to finally wrap up Gray's week-long birthday celebration....even if he wasn't. Happy 3rd birthday sweet baby boy. We love you and have had such an amazing year. Here's to the next one!
And again, he was over the moon opening and playing with all of his new toys. As soon as someone would walk in with a gift, he would tear it open, take it in another room and play with it all by himself. I think I have FINALLY solved the mystery of who gave him what gift since he did not do me the courtesy of keeping the gift cards with the gifts. His all-time favorite gift though was from his Aunt Lala and Uncle Andrew. It was a parking garage with a helicopter pad and 4 levels of parking. Since Uncle Andrew didn't make it back in town in time for his party, he paid his penance by putting it together for him. 
Even Hayes had a great time, though it took her a while to get over the shock of all of those people and all of the noise they were making. Thankfully she had lots of grandparents, aunts, and uncles there to love on her until she warmed up to the idea. Here she is playing with some of Gray's new toys and eating dinner after the party with her cousin Greer. 
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