Annual Trip to the Orchard

Had a pretty busy weekend of activities.  We had soccer games Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday and a lacrosse game on Sunday as well.  We got out to play some tennis on Sunday afternoon but the real highlight was probably Saturday afternoon when we headed out to the apple orchard.  We've now been to this particular apple orchard about 4 years running I think, and hope we'll keep coming back as everyone is a fan.

We made sure to fix our error from last year in going too late in the season so we put it on the calendar back in August to try and save some time.  We were rewarded with a really nice day - still warm temps here in Chicago so not the cool weather we've had in years passed.  First stop is always the red tractor for Margie.

The big girls prefer to play on top of the hay bale maze.  They jump across it and spent a good amount of time playing hide and seek.

 Margot's legs aren't quite big enough to jump from bale to bale yet, but she did pose for us.

 As did the big girls on the top of the mountain - beautiful blue skies on this day.

 This girl is getting so big - and is counting down till her birthday this weekend.

We spent a bit of time checking out the barn animals.  A donkey, goats, the roosters, bunny, and one turkey who seems to be getting fat for November.

 We hopped on the tractor carts and headed out into the orchards.

 On our way to Stop #1

We got out and started to pick our favorite apples of the day - Fiji.  Everyone but Isla, who for no reason other than she just decides she doesn't like foods, quickly grabbed an apple off the vine and started to nosh.

 We had two bags to fill and the girls really enjoyed picking the good ones

We went to two spots and tried four different kinds of apples, and the family was in agreement that some types are better than others

 Now we just have to get them home to make some pie

Before we left we did some raspberry picking as well.  Big score.  These were gobbled up pretty quickly this week.

We also grabbed apple donuts, jam, cider, and honey.  All in all a solid trip.  Our kids were giving us a run for our money that day though - for our sanity we had to stop on the way home for a late lunch b/c if we listened to them the whole ride with no break we might not have made it.  But the lunch stop helped, and we polished it off with some ice cream, which at the very least made this mama happy.

So chalk up another trip to the orchard in the books.

Being Great in America

Every other year my company rents out Great America for a Saturday in September and so we go and ride rides, and have fun.  Girls were looking forward to this day because they are getting more and more into rides as they get older.

We started the day with Isla's soccer game.  Was misting/raining throughout but our girl managed to score twice - wahoo Isla!  There were some slips and slides this game which was funny to watch but all in all good game.  After going home, we waited out the rain a bit before heading out to lunch and then the amusement park.

As always, we start our day with a ride on the merry go round which is just inside the entrance, and a double decker.  These ladies were all about that top level.  Here we are on the stairs ready to get it going.

 Getting ready to ride...

Mark tried to ride, but the guy made him get off and stand next to Margot.  Thankfully he didn't even think about asking me to do it...

 And last but not least, Sawyer.

 The happiest girl by far though was Margot - she just couldn't wipe that smile off her face!

After that, the park was open game.  We ended up staying for five hours and going on a bunch of rides.  It would be hot in the sun, and kind of cool in the shade, but generally we couldn't have asked for a better day.  Here's Sawyer loving that she's wearing Mark's hat for a few.

Sawyer did some bigger rides with a friend we met up with, while these two munchkins did some of the smaller kid rides.  Safe to say everyone found something they loved.

 Mark went on the airplanes with the girls because Margot couldn't go on alone.  He was the only one who would look at me taking pictures

 And really started to play to the camera....

 Haha - this is my favorite.

 We stopped for a little snack break to energize.

 Road some "horses"

 And even went on roller coasters.  The last ride was our "biggest".  It was a roller coaster that went really fast and had some large descents.  Margot went on twice - once with Mark and then I was on next, and so she hopped on my lap for a second time, while Sawyer and Isla rode together.  I think Sawyer was the most afraid of the ride!

Speaking of which, this girl started lacrosse on Sunday.  You need full face mask, mouth guard, cleats, and stick to play.  She has a practice this week and her first game next week.  Let's hope she's learned something by then....

Living the Life

We are just a week and a half into the school year but feels like longer.  Kids are all loving school. They have no need for Mark or I that is for sure.  Mark said Margot doesn't even give him a hug when she goes to school, just says goodbye and then goes and hugs her teachers instead.  Isla doesn't give us much info though she has made some more friends and seems to talk to them.  We went to the ice cream social and she actually talked to kids which is good.  On the school front though she tells us that the math is too easy.  And Sawyer is the same - she recounts her day to the n'th level of degree, giving us more info than we need.  Last night at dinner I'm not sure she took a breath she had so much to say.  But all is good - she has met some new friends this year, seems to like her teacher and is following our rule that there's no electronics before bed on school nights which we weren't as strict about last year.

So school is good and now we are starting to get into activities which they like even more.  Margot and Isla are in separate ballet/tap classes and seeing the in their outfits is the cutest thing ever. Margot starts her art class with Mark next week which she has missed over the summer.  Isla and Sawyer started an art class after school with a friend from the summer and seem to really like.  Isla is mid-season of soccer and Sawyer is starting gymnastics, tennis, and lacrosse.  Crazy, right?  Believe it or not Sawyer wanted to do more but we had to say no for obvious reasons.  That girl likes to try everything.

Isla, though she shares no interest in the same sports as Sawyer, loves soccer.  She is on a team of 10 girls, all of whom go to her school and live close by and many are in her class.  She loves running and so this is perfect for her and she's starting to hit her stride - she got 6 goals her last game!

 And I have to say unexpected for me, I love going to her games.  It's so fun to watch, and they all travel in little packs but someone usually has a breakaway and sometimes they get the goal and sometimes they miss, and it's heartbreaking.  There's not any crazy competitiveness and during the first game two of the girls just walked up the field holding hands.  Was super precious, until they realized the ball was in play.

 This past weekend was a nice reprieve with Monday off.  Mark and I got out on Sunday to a concert with friends.  Annual trip up to Ravinia which was super fun, and we lucked out in that Caroline came out to stay at our house and watch the girls for us.  So while we were gone I wasn't concerned about whether we'd get home too late which was nice.  Plus, they all had a blast, going to the neighbors for a party, out for ice cream, etc.  Happy girls.

The next day we decided to make the trip into the city to drop Caroline off at home a little outing for the girls.  So I took them into the city with me and we hit up Maggie Daley Park.  Caroline had not seen it and came with us and these girls loved it.

 We hit up the big swings which are a favorite every time.

 The only problem was it was crowded, hot, and really humid.  We didn't last very long before we got complaints about the heat and thirst and hunger.  I had already planned a spot for lunch and while this crew complained the entire three block walk with Margot "unable to go on" we finally made it into the air conditioning and got ourselves some lemonade and cheeseburgers.  Amazing what this did to perk the crew up.

Instead of going back to the playground we took Caroline home and went to check out her new apartment.  While I had seen it, they hadn't, and enjoyed being able to go out on the patio 20 floors up and look down at the street.  Thankfully, no children were injured or came close to falling and they have already invited themselves back for a slumber party at some point, which I'm sure Caroline's roommate will love.

And with that, I'll leave you with a selfie I found of me and Margot.  I'm not often in the pictures so need to throw one in every now and then.

Lots of fun stuff coming up for us here in September, including a trip to Great America, the apple orchard, the fun run, celebrating Sawyer's birthday, and then a little adult-only trip.  My goal is to take lots of pictures...