Apple Festival at Chapel Hills Farms and Nursery

We headed out to Chapel Hill Farms for the

The boys are always excited to go to a farm festival.  There is nothing more than the Stanley twins love more than a Farm Festival.  

Saying HELLO to the turkey.

Planning our next move -- a hayride.

The  excitement of the horse stables.

He was very concerned about the chickens as he was unable to find any.  There was lots of running around in an attempt to find them.  I'm sure the owners realized that the chickens would probably not react very well to all of the little people running around.

Connor is always scoping out his next move.  He is definitely a planner and has an agenda to get what he wants. I'm fairly confident that he was plotting to get a ride on the train.

The pedal tractors would be more fun if they could actually reach the pedals. I'm super hopeful for next year.

Fairly certain that this may have been the largest pig we will ever see.

All smiles while getting to ride on the train.

 

Before we left and after a slightly long wait that definitely tested our patience, the boys got to ride the Gator.

It was a great day and I'm happy to get to experience more Farm Festivals and new places with the boys.

Wacky Wednesday

The boys received a note in their bags that the teachers were encouraging them to do "wacky wednesdays" during the year.  Apparently, Mondays are marvelous and Fridays are funny. Connor was telling me on Friday that Jackson was marvelous so he definitely got some of the message.  I had talked to Connor about what could be wacky and asked if he would be willing to wear different socks. His initial response was no  and "why would I do that??" But, I checked in with him again this morning and it appeared to be o.k.  This is probably because it was sharing socks and knowing that Jackson would do it.

But, without hesitation, the boys celebrated their 1st Wacky Wednesday at school:

Their teacher and another classmate did different shoes but the socks was a little far out of Connor's comfort zone so we won't rush into any more wacky except for socks. For now, that is!!!

First Day of N3s Pictures

We were rushed heading out the door for school in the morning so I opted to set up the easel for once the boys woke up from their nap. It was still their first day, maybe, not the morning. 

 

Connor woke up from his nap and was my first to pose.

Soon after, Jackson woke up and we were able to get one of him too.  He is so busy that the only way that I could convince him to stand still was to include a prop, a/k/a lawn mower.

And, to get those pictures is never easy especially on my own.  I never include outtakes but it was necessary on this one.

The big CHEESE smile.

And, let me introduce you to our Salty and Sassy Connor.

1st Day of N3s

Today was the first day of school after the open house last week and teacher conferences.  It was a beautiful day and Michael was able to join us.

Upon arrival each day, the boys are to locate their name and put it on the check-in board.  Mrs. Beach was helping them and was slightly surprised when she realized how quickly they both located their name.

Jackson was first to find his name.

Jackson supervising Connor and Connor finishing off without older brother watching.

After checking in, the boys gravitated toward the wooden train system.  And, just like that, it was time for us to leave them to start a new school year.

A special thanks to Mrs. Klein and Mrs. Beach for taking care of our little boys from 9:30 to 12 on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.  They are so eager to learn and it is such an exciting time for them and we are so happy that you are the ones to care for them.  It takes a lot of patience to take care of that many 3 year olds. But, the things that they hear must be amazing!!!

Riding the Gorilla and the Camel at the Zoo

It was a beautiful morning and at the boys' request, we headed off to the zoo.  There was lots of excitement especially with the polar bears.  We are still hoping to catch them swimming since it is has been such a long time.  It was also nice to see the progress on the new penguin home. Diggers and zoo animals are really big for my toddlers.

Before we left, it was time to ride the carousel.   The boys picked the gorilla and camel.  They initially requested the Eagle (Jackson) and Penguin (Connor) but those animals had already been taken.  Jackson went with the camel, which was surprising since we told him as the person running the ride did that he wouldn't move up and down.  I guess it is because he never got a chance to ride the real one before the end of the summer.

Teacher Conferences

On Friday, the parents were invited back for a conference and the students would stay in their classroom exploring.  Our morning started off with dropping off Michael at work.  We had some time before we were scheduled to arrive at school.  So, we went outside to track down  a noisy water truck at the end of our block. 

On the way, we  ran into multiple vehicles.  There are a ton of kids in our neighborhood and they leave lots of vehicles out on the sidewalks. The boy's legs are too short to reach their big wheels and I'm thinking that we need to get them some bikes sooner than later.

We arrived at school and the boys worked on some play doh with their pal, Gillian, and Jackson checked in before I left for the conference with Mrs. Klein.

Before it was time for the boys to end their day, we were reading some books and Connor told me that Jackson was his best friend.  It just melts me to see how much they are worried about one another and how amazing it is to have a best friend available ALL-THE-TIME to experience life with and to learn and grow with.  What an adventure it is for the boys!!!

Open House for N3s

The boys were excited to check out their classroom as was I.  Without realizing that their new room was the 1st door, the boys bolted to their old room to check in on Mrs. G and Mrs. Howell and their horses. 


Both boys expressed concern that their new room, which is actually adjoining their old one, wouldn't have horses. Mrs. G. offered that they could "borrow" their beloved horses in case Mrs. Klein didn't have any.

Within a couple minutes of walking into the room, the boys found the farm....

Mrs. Klein went through some items with the class including the clean-up of the toys and sitting on the carpet.  They also were informed that they would be "reading" books

After going through the list of "helpers" that would be needed during the school year, the boys set off for a trip to the playground with the other guys in their class, including Andrew, Kim, Eli and Warren.

I got to see the boys in action with their mowers...

After some outside fun, Mrs. Klein wrapped up the day and sent us on our way.

After leaving schools, the boys and I celebrated with a trip to the mall for lunch and a pretzel for Jackson and a frappucino for Connor.   The boys spotted this State Farm ad and again thought that it was their dad.  They were jumping  up and down and couldn't handle themselves. One day they will figure it out.

Catching up with the spoonbills and their poop

Due to the new configuration of the zoo in light of the construction and making way for penguins, there has been an increased interest in the aviary.  This could be because they've dispersed the cranes around and the vultures are almost hidden but the spoonbills and ducks are winning over the boys.

Connor is trying to get as close as he can to the birds and Jackson is just SUPER excited about finding the Spoonbills.

They found the spoonbills and were lucky enough to catch this particular bird pooping.  It was all that they could talk about while we were at the zoo and the rest of the day. Lucky us.

After checking out the animals and on our way out, Connor was very upset with Jackson for not wanting to pose in a picture with him by the chimpanzee statue and eventually running away from him as we made it to the exit.  Connor is definitely moody and wants to be in control and his inability to stop Jackson often results in some serious emotional outbursts.