Fall Festivities

I am amazed at how many fun fall activities the valley offers for little ones.

Here are a few we have enjoyed so far:

Cornbelly's 

This one is by far our favorite fall tradition. Thanks to the bounceback pass, we have been three times this year and might fit in one more visit. Between the bounce houses, wooden playgrounds, jumping pillows and Pumpkin Princess Play Land, it is the perfect place for little Ellie.

The adults have a pretty good time too.

 

Riding the cow train is a must.

 



These weird bikes were fun and a good work out!

Haley hickin' it up to the country music that was playing

 



Who knew tetherball could be so fun? Clay took a video of Haley and I playing, but it was seriously embarrassing. We looked like a couple of sissies.



Our family minus the littly guy, who we decided would have more fun inside with his grandma.

 



The Pumkin Princess Play Land is Ellie's favorite part of Cornbelly's by far. She could spend hours on this stage dancing to the music with the other "princesses."

 

Pumpkinland

This is a great little gem. Ellie loves the kiddie playland.

Jaker's Pumpkin Patch

This spot is smaller than places like Cornbelly's and Pumpkinland, but the wagon ride, corn box and exotic petting zoo make it a yearly must for our family.

 

Pumpkin Parade

We decided to hit up the Riverwoods one night with no idea this huge festivity was going on. It was SO fun. There was trick-or-treating at every store, a cute little petting zoo, a farmer's market, bounce houses, games and lots more. We will definitely put this one on the calendar for next year and go in costumes.

The Last of Hawaii

 We took the girls to watch some Hawaiian dancing. The whole time, Ellie was dancing along with them and she kept asking when it was her turn to get on the stage.

Lucky for her, they called all the kids up for a mini hula lesson:

 

 It's not every day you see a chicken on the beach, except in Kauai. There are hundreds of wild hens and roosters running around the island because of a hurricane years ago.

    Lest you think we spent all of our time at the beach, here are some photos to prove our pool-going.

 We also joined the resort's yoga session.

 

Can you tell which one of us is the {current} dancer?

 

As the time to leave approached, we were not looking forward to leaving the view we woke up to every morning.

 

 But we were more sad to separate these two.

Ellie has never been happier than when she has her "Katers" by her side.

 This little guy still hasn't gotten over his trip withdrawl.

He was sleeping way better in Hawaii. No joke. Plus, his dry skin improved so much.

I'm pretty sure we belong in Hawaii. But then again, living in a desert state makes it that much more exciting to visit tropical places.

 

 Here is our girl after 10+ hours of traveling. She was quite the trooper.

As we were leaving our plane from Hawaii, Ellie said, "We'll come back, Hawaii!"

She still talks about our trip almost every day.

Hawaii, Part II: All Beach

Our trip to Hawaii, Part I

Our family reunion in Kauai, Hawaii was a couple of years in the making and a couple of weeks too short. Next time (optimism!) we are staying at least 10 days.

It was fun to be together as a family and see the ones who live far away and we rarely see. Our days were filled with beach time, fresh tropical fruit and family dinners. 

I wondered how the long flight (with layovers) would go, but the kids did amazingly well and we miraculously had meltdown-free plane rides. The hard part was coming home. Our week went by at lightning speed and we couldn't believe it was already time to leave. Ellie is trying to figure out what to do without her best-friend cousin by her side at all times and Clay and I are having beach culture withdrawals. 

Here is the first round of pictures from the trip:

On our way to the resort, we drove through this beautiful tree-lined road. Kauai had me at "hello."

 This is where we stayed. Thanks for the hook-up, Mike and Jen! It was awesome. 

(Partial) family pic. Why am I awkwardly holding my bag over my skirt? Oh, because Camden had the blowout of the century and it ended up as a basketball-sized spot on my skirt. Moving on.

On our way to the beach, we stopped to take pictures of these two admiring their
Plumerias and Hibiscus flowers.

So happy to be at the beach. 

Ellie started out being a little timid in the water . . . 

But in no time, she was fearless. She is the small speck next to her cousin in the red hat.

The little man was a fan of the beach too and took long naps in his little sun hut. 

We went to a couple of lookouts. This one was good, but just wait for the next one . . . 

These two, of course, were inseparable the entire trip. Whenever we went back to our own units, They would constantly ask where the other one was. Life was a breeze with these two entertaining each other and Camden being happy as a Hawaiian clam. Thus the vacation withdrawal. :) 

This was the most beautiful view I have ever seen -- just as my brother-in-law promised. Kauai has some breathtaking scenery. No wonder they filmed Jurassic Park and Pirates there!

 I'll leave you with this Hawaiian sunset until the next (and last) round of pics.