How Do You Like Them Apples?

Well, we had quite a busy weekend. On Saturday we hit our favorite orchard in New Hampshire for the first apple pickin' of the season with cousin E. The best way to celebrate the bountiful harvest of the new season is to put the children to work in the fields like migrant laborers, I always say.

When our apple bags were full, we went over to the farm stand to buy peaches and ice cream and feed the ducks.

Later that afternoon, Grandpa put up a tent to play in and then we had dinner and cake to celebrate his birthday.

THEN, on Sunday we had Mike's company picnic. It's usually held at a place called Kimball Farms, which has ice cream and mini golf and bumper boats and pony rides, etc. The girls always love it, so it was worth scrambling to fit it all in.

This was a simulator ride in the arcade. They chose to do the runaway mine car ride, so Kate felt it was both fun and scary as "old mines" are one of the things on her short list of scariest things ever.

Gotta do the pony ride.

Now they both want a pony for Christmas. "Just make the house bigger," Katie says.

And finally, today was Kate's first real day of school. When Mike and I walked her into her classroom this morning, all the kids yelled, "Kate!" and she ran off to sit on the rug with them without even saying goodbye to us. This evening she sang us a song she made up that goes:

I love school.
These are new friends to make.
I love my teacher.
I love my friends.

So I guess that's all good. Yeah. September is moving right along. Now I just need it to get chilly enough so that I can wear jeans all the time and stop shaving my legs. Then I'll be all set! Bring on the sweater weather!