Week-ending

I was just telling a co-worker of mine that things are really great in the Hauck's nest

right now (aside from the occasional melt down/tantrum and paci obsession).  But

honestly, we have a pretty good routine. It's predictable (mostly) and I love it.

I know that when I come home from work - Max will run around the corner

with some tale about school (recently it's been, "Miss Jessi says when Addie

or baby Sam have a toy I want, then I can get a different toy") but ultimately,

he wants me to jump right in and play with him.

 

 

Rob will usually use this as a cue to take a quick bathroom break

and then start prepping whatever low key meal we have planned. 

By the end of the week, I have usually forgotten to thaw some

meat and we opt to go out (read: less kitchen clean up for the win!)

This past Friday we did just that.  We loaded up the car

for some dinner at Chick-fil-A and Max played in the play space.

 

When we got home, it was getting dark and our friendly "peek a boo"

spiders started to emerge. We called them this mostly because they would hide

around the siding of our door and you could only see half their bodies.  When

you got to close, they would dive back in.  Well, this Friday night, Max was in

bed, Rob was watching Supernatural, and I was talking with my friend Candice

(all the way in Oregon).  I was standing outside so as not to disturb Max or Rob

and I noticed this horrifying beast of spider had fully emerged.

It could have literally wrapped up a small bird in the enormous

web it was weaving in the corner of porch. After hanging up with Candice,

 I promptly went in and told Rob we needed to move.

Case closed. 

 

 Oh, it's fall you say?  And it's Saturday?

You can find us at the farm!

(In our overalls no less).

This particular farm was called Lehners Pumpkin Farm

and was located in Radnor, Ohio. It was a bit of drive (Max was once

again lulled to sleep on those country roads) but once we made it -

the fun really began!

 

 

They had all your pumpkin farm staples - bounce pillow,

giant bales of hay, animals (with the addition of a llama!!),

barrel train, slides, and push carts...but they also had a

kiddie corn maze. This maze was actually just tall

pieces of plywood glued together (or something) with

twists and turns but they had painted it really cute and

added all these stuffed animals, tree stumps, pretend pond,

and then slide down from the Eagle's Nest at the end.

It was pretty cool!

 

Side note:  this llama was soooo cute!

He was making all these cute little noises

and basically begging for me take him home.

If you know of any local llama farms - point me in the right direction!

Saturday afternoon we left directly from the pumpkin farm, stopped

at a McDonald's for lunch, and then drove to Dayton.

We ate dinner at the Greene and shopped around for a bit.

Did you know they have a TV in Gymboree just for kids to watch

while their parents shop?? It was crazy. Also their stuff is crazy

expensive.  But they did have Thanksgiving undies, so clearly

we were coming home with those.  After we tucked Max in -

Mims and I went back out to Target. She was in search of some

"work out clothes" and made me promise not to laugh as she tried

on a million pairs ten pairs of stretch pants.  She did find some she

deemed appropriate to wear outside of her own living room and we left.

But the fun continued on, because when we got home - we used our

essential oils to MAKE OUR OWN HANDSOAP!

It was wild and awesome, and I will probably send you all your

own bottle of "sweet sweet hand soap" (which is of course the clever

name I came up with for mine).

 



 

Another Sunday, another pumpkin farm - only this time in Dayton.

We went to Windmill Farms (which is sort of weird in that I have

memories of going there as a 1st grader with my elementary school

big brothers and sisters program - and that was like over 20 years ago).

The farm hasn't changed much - same apple cider slushies, carmel apples,

haunted hayride (which we did NOT do this year), and pumpkin king.

With the addition of lots of Amish built playground structures.

I'm talking like a school bus, pirate ship, train, tractor, and castle.

 

It's tradition - you have to get your picture with the pumpkin king.

You probably can't tell from this angle - but Max agreed to some

face paint (a green tractor of course) - but was a little freaked out

by the fact that it was being painted on by a witch in full costume,

standing next to one of those creepy butlers who looks half dead.

He kept telling us, not to stand next to the butler.

 

 

We made a tiny pit stop at a garden center called

"Grandma's Gardens" - mostly so Mims and Mama

could take 500 more adorable pictures of Max picking

out gourds and pumpkins.

 

Max and Grandpa were repping their beloved Browns.

Although, sadly this did not help them win.

It's tough to be a Cleveland fan I tell you.

 

 

One final stop was made at "Treadway's" Farm Market.

Max was perplexed by a scarecrow that appeared to be standing

on it's head.  He kept asking me, how they were going to get

it's head out. I said they were going to have to tug, and tug, and tug.

This seemed to suffice him. He picked out a giant pumpkin for Mims.

And a much littler pumpkin for great grandpa Poppy.

He also managed to pick out 20 miniature gourds (though the total

would have been more like 50 had I not put the majority of them

back when he wasn't looking).

 

 

Papa Rob and I left during his nap on Sunday (much to

Max's chagrin as he woke up quite pissed according to Mim's).

But we did get to enjoy a little evening to ourselves

and Papa got to eat his beloved chicken wings!

 

What wild weekend of fun indeed!

I promise more pumpkin farm adventures in the weekends ahead.

And if you want your own sweet sweet soap you should probably let me know.

 

xoxo