Fall is in the air

Ahhh...Fall is in the air! I love Fall! Cooler weather, football games, and now soccer games with Trip, leaves changing colors...all of it makes Fall my favorite season of the year. We kicked off the Fall season with a trip to Wisconsin! And, it was almost like the seasons changed while we were there. We started off our visit with a swim in the pool and ended in it wearing jeans and jackets just to go outside and play. Our visit was planned around the annual PI Picnic. PI is the company that TJ's dad owns and they have an annual picnic for the employees and their families. Despite the yucky, rainy weather, we still had a great time. There were tons of things for the kids to do...bouncy houses and a huge bouncy slide, games, tattoos, face painting and crafts. Plus the best part was a huge mound of dirt with money buried inside. The kids could dig in the dirt for the buried treasure. And, for the adults there was delicious food and beer! We had a great time catching up with friends and family, but it went so fast, I felt like we barely had a chance to see all the people we knew there. We spent the rest of the weekend hanging out with family and friends. And, on our last day we got to go out to TJ's aunt's property and the kids got to ride on a big horse. They loved it! I was so proud of them for not being intimidated (like their parents) and jumping right on the horse! TJ, Trip and I left Mady for her alone time with Pitty and Grumpa and headed back home. Our travels both ways this time included a layover. We have never done that before with the kids, but they loved it. I think the more modes of transportation it takes to get from point A to point B for them, the better. If we told them we had to switch planes 10 times, they would be pumped! :-) They are such great travelers and it was even easier with just Trip. TJ and I both actually got to read on the plane...such a simple pleasure, but one that we've missed since we started traveling with kids. Mady really enjoyed her alone time in Wisconsin. She even got to spend extra time with Aunt Betsy because the big storms changed her travel plans. Mady told me that her two favorite things she did in Wisconsin were go to the library and the playground! No surprises there. :-) We missed her while she was gone, and were SO glad to have her back home at the end of the week. Thank you to Pitty, Grumpa and Aunt Betsy for making her time in Wisconsin so special! While most things about the Fall make me smile, remembering September 11th each year, brings back such sad memories. I was especially sad this year, the ten year anniversary of that tragedy, as I was confronted with the task of explaining it to sweet Trip. His school celebrated Patriot Day and had the kids wore Red, White and Blue and we talked about what they were paying tribute to. I will never forget that day, watching that second plane hit the tower as they newscasters were still trying to figure out what happened with the first plane and knowing that our world would never be the same. The world my children are growing up in is so different because of the impact of that day. But, the one thing that has not changed is our God. He was there before September 11th, He was there on September 11th and He is with us now. I take great comfort in knowing that!