Apple Picking in Julian

It is so hard to believe it's that time of year again!  We headed up to Julian last weekend to pick apples (and of course eat apple pie!)  The weather was beautiful!  The perfect day!  The kids were great on the way up there.  We couldn't help but think about last year when Colin screamed most of the way up to Dudley's then screamed from Dudley's to the orchard.  So glad that wasn't the case this year!  We headed over to Calico Ranch again this year.  We've gone there the last 3 years and it's been a great spot!  There were lots of apples on the trees still.  The kids had a blast!  Even John and Colin!  John seemed wasn't too excited about this event last year.  He likes apples now though, so maybe that made a difference :) Colin's into everything now!  He loves being outdoors and he loved picking all the apples up.  It reminded me of our trip when Riley was that age and every apple on the ground made it into her basket, especially the rotten ones!  Riley loves apple picking and still did this year.  She said a few times that this was "the best day ever!"

 

Here's our girl showing off the first apple she picked of the season.  She was very excited!  Notice Colin in the back.  He loved all the apples on the ground. 

 Here's our guy!  What a cutie!

 John loved his perfect apple!  It really did look like a picture.  It was the perfect shape, size, and even had a leaf still attached :)

 Colin loved throwing the apples around. It was like having balls everywhere on the ground!

 Gotta pose for a picture :)

 Mama and Colin. He was so happy out in the orchard.  Maybe he'll be a landscape architect or a farmer some day!

 John needed a lift to reach the next perfect apple!

  I have to add the "blooper" pictures too.  Although without sound, it doesn't look too bad.  The kids were posed perfectly!  Even Colin was standing and looking.  Right as I'm about o take the picture, Riley decided to start fighting with John about an apple she saw in his basket that she knows was hers!  She starts crying and yelling at John.  Colin just stayed smiling for a second longer before he turned to check out the scene too

 Luckily, there were LOTS of apples to choose from :)

 Here's Riley and her perfect apple (with a leaf too!)

 I just love the pictures of the kids picking the apples.  What sweeties we have!

 Family picture time!  Our Party of Five :)

 I got another chance for a posed picture of the three kids.  It's easier now that Colin stays a little longer...

 but I still have to be fast!

 More picking...

 Daddy and Colin enjoyed eating apples while the big kids filled their bags

 Our goofball!

 By the end of our trip, Colin was wanting to reach up and pick the apples from the trees too!  He found a few low ones and I'm glad I was able to get pictures :)

 Riley is always close by to help :)

 "Been caught stealing once when I was 1.." He has a funny face here, like he got caught doing something :) Love this kid's expressions!

 All done... time for pie!!

 The kids love this bench swing!  The perfect way to end our time in Julian

 Again, the look on Colin's face just made me laugh.  He is in amazement of his big brother and sister. Ry is posed and pretty as usual :) 

 

This is such a fun tradition and one we look forward to every year.



New Blog

The last few months I've been working on our new family blog since I'm running very short on room here... Here is the new blog, we hope you enjoy seeing John and Riley's adventures!

http://www.johnjohnandriley.blogspot.com/

Fun with Friends too!

Laura and David were in town from Memphis Thanksgiving week too. We finally got to meet Baby Daniel in person!! They came up for dinner with Sadie, Ryan and Indigo too. The kids had a blast together and we had fun catching up.

Here's our group picture. So fun since we've all been friends since elementary school, bridesmaids at each others weddings and all that good stuff.

Here's a group shot at dinner....

Danny is such a lttle cutie! It's blurry since I didn't want to use the flash in his face. He's such a happy boy and such a sweet persoanlity
He had fun cuddling with Auntie Sadie :)

It was so much fun having them out here. Laura and I met up for a few walks while they were here. It was so nice having a neighborhood walking buddy. Can't wait for their next trip out!

The Zoo with Cousin Lily

Cousin Lily was in town the week before Thanksgiving. We planned to go to the zoo and hang out. Luckily John was on break that week, so he got to come too!

Riley had fun hanging out with Lily, she sure enjoys the big girls!

Ry enjoyed seeing the orangutans up close
Here's a picture of the cousins! I'm still surprised I got this one!

John got to bring a Lunchable for lunch that day. It was the highlight of the day for him! He started asking right when we got there (9:00 in the morning) when it was time for lunch. We finally decided on 11:00 as lunchtime. He was SO happy when it was time. Luckily, around then Daddy met up with us too!

John and Lily had fun on the moving stairway

Cheese! The kids thought this was funny :)

Here's the family... It was great getting together. The kids had so much fun at the zoo and playing together

We weren't even on the freeway yet and Ry was asleep... it was a very fun day!

Family Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving we had dinner at our house with just our little family. The night before, we broke the bread into little pieces so it would dry out for the stuffing. The kids were great at it and had so much fun doing it.

Mmmm! Dinnertime! John ate turkey this year! Riley liked pretty much everything but the stuffing. It was a yummy spread, like always. Daddy does such a great job!!

Thanksgiving

We went up to Auntie Ep's the day after Thanksgiving. Riley got all dressed up for the occasion. She looked so cute and she knew it! I called it her princess dress and she couldn't wait to show Daddy. She even had new princess shoes to wear with it!

I tried to get a picture of both the kids... this was the best one
although this one made me laugh!

Little stinker kept running away from me, but it made for some cute smiles!

On the way up... both kids have an iPhone to play with... I wish we'd had that when I was a kid on family road trips!

Ma and the kids. Auntie Ep had cute turkey hats for the kids

Uncle Eric and Auntie Laura with Ry (before Cousin Haylie arrived)

Riley got this super cute sweater from Emily. She looked like a little snow baby and it went great with her princess outfit

The kids all had a blast playing together this year. Ry loved playing with Emily and Matthew. Here they are rolling in the grass together. Lots of laughs!

John and Michael had fun playing together too.

Here's a hug from Matthew

and more cousin fun!

It was a great holiday and so much fun playing this year! Next year will be extra fun with Cousin Haylie in the mix too!