Go Hawks!

Last weekend we had 13 extra people stay with us for a Hawkeye weekend to remember!  It was "Air Mattress Central" in the basement!  My parents, brother Kenny, sister-in-law Carrie, nephew Tate, my cousin Abby and her three kids, Cael, Dannah, and Easton, and my cousin Ally and her two kids, Kayne and Jaylee, and Abby and Ally's step brother Chase all traveled here to cheer on the Hawkeyes in basketball, wrestling, and football!  

We started out by attending the Men's basketball game at Kinnick on Friday night.  They played Gardner-Webb and won!

Even though it was way past the kids' bedtime, they all did very well!

Late night photo before bed!

This gang attended the first ever outdoor wrestling match at Kinnick Stadium!  Grapple on the Gridiron was held at 11am before the night football game.  The goal was to gain the new record of most in attendance at an NCAA wrestling match.  The previous record was just under 16,000.  And this group became part of the 42,287 people to attend the historic event!  They said it was a great morning and that the atmosphere was incredible!  And to top it all off, the #4 Hawkeye wrestling team beat #1 Oklahoma State!  Luckily, the weather was around 50 degrees to make it even more enjoyable!   

Kenny, Kayne, and Paul

(new Children's hospital in the background)

Meanwhile, Carrie and I took this group to the Children's Museum!  

Go Hawks!

Mom and Dad stayed with Annie ;)

We headed back home for lunch and after the two littlest boys, Tate and Jace, were down for a nap, I took these three cuties to the park near our home.  

Dannah, Ruby, and Jaylee

They had so much fun together!  

After naptime :)

Games with Grandma/Aunt LaDonn

Once the wrestling crew came back, it was time for our own little football game in the backyard!

Ruby, Jace, and the big boys vs. the four little boys ;) 

Run, Ruby, Run!  

Group shot!  Seriously...LOVE these people ;)

Grandpa Bill and Annie

Uncle Kenny has the touch.

Another highlight of the weekend, especially for the boy "hunters," was the deer activity.  The deer frequented the corn pile on several occasions and it was a contest to see who could get the closest before the deer ran away.  ;)  

No one ended up with tickets for the football game so we had a giant cheering section in our living room instead!  We were chanting "Go Hawks" loud enough for the whole neighborhood to hear, I'm sure! 

Ally, Abby, and me...cousins!

Kenny, Easton, and Kayne

Hawkeyes won!  10-0!!!!!!!!!

Tate, Ruby, and Jace

Ruby sandwich!

SUCH a fun weekend hosting this awesome group!  And we loved seeing/cheering on three different Hawkeye sports to three WINS in two days!  You are all welcome back to make this an annual event!  

In other news... I think I'm finally caught up!  

The Fall Wrap-up

As the first snowfall of the season is occurring as I write, I suppose fall in Iowa is officially over.  

Here are several of the things we were able to do this fall.  

Uncle Joel came for a quick visit!

Painting a mural at church

Trips to the IC Farmer's Market...which was more about the chance to climb this tree...

...and get free balloon animals...or swords!

Ruby's preschool class took a field trip to Wilson's Apple Orchard and Jace, Annie, and I were able to tag along.  

I love that she looks after her little brother ;)

Park dates with mom while big sis is at school.  

Several trips to Colony Pumpkin Patch...right down the road!

Should've attempted this picture when we arrived...and not when it was time to leave.

A trip to Sass Family Farms near Riverside, Iowa.

They LOVE the haunted barn at Sass Family Farms... we went through it about 20 times.  It kind of freaked me out but they loved it!    

University of Iowa Homecoming Parade...an annual favorite!

Paul and I were able to go to the Homecoming game!  The Hawkeyes played Illinios and won!  The Hawkeyes are currently 10-0...let's hope they can make that 11-0 tomorrow in a snow-covered Kinnick!

Ruby and I had a mommy-daughter date to Brush and Barrel, the local painting store.  They hold several kids events and we attended the Cinderella day.  Ruby got to meet Cinderella and paint a beautiful picture!   

They used a stencil for the silhouette of Princess Cinderella.  ;)

Finished paintings with friend Clara and cousin Sydney 

Ok these.  Our mall now has these giant animals that you can ride around the mall.  Of course, they are located right by the play area and our kids spotted them immediately.  I kept saying NO every time we saw them.  So one night we had daddy with us for a family date night to the mall and we let them ride one!  It was pretty funny!  Ruby let Jace choose the animal since she got to "drive."  The rhino won.  We let Jace attempt to drive but that only lasted about one minute!  We had a fun time taking pictures and the kids thought they were pretty awesome.  We also checked out the Mellow Mushroom, a new pizza place at the mall.  It was pretty tasty!

 Both Ruby and Jace participated in the Run For The Schools.  Their race was a half mile.  This was Ruby's second time running; Jace's first.  

Ruby gave Jace a little "pep talk" beforehand:

"Just remember Jace, I'm older than you, so I'll probably be ahead of you.  But it's OK.  Just keep running."  

I thought that was pretty funny and cute, especially as Jace listened to her intently  ;)

Pre-race pictures

Ruby making her way towards the finish line.

I ran with Jace and we literally held hands the entire time, except the last 10 yards so I could snap this cute picture.  This will be one memory I will always hold close to my heart.  He asked one time if I could hold him and I said, no buddy, this is your race!  And so he kept going!  I asked him if he was having fun a couple times and he said "yes" every time.  We definitely were some of the last ones to finish but I couldn't help but smile when he told me he couldn't wait until the next race!  

So proud of their ribbons!

We took a morning to hike at Kent State Park...with daddy!  Those are the best days!

Ruby has been wanting to jump in leaf piles all fall....so we brought our rake along and found a spot to do some jumping!  

No hike is complete without some throwing of rocks!

My adorable foursome ;)

Love.

And we made a trip to Bloomsbury Farms outside Atkins, Iowa.  

Cousins: Ruby, Sydney, Annie, Jace, and Asher :)

Friends!

We only made it to one volleyball game this year and it started out a little rough!

 The kids are always able to go down to the court and get high-fives from Herky and the volleyball girls.  Apparently, Herky ran by and missed Jace's hand...devastating!  This boy has a love for Herky like non other.  And as the picture shows, Ruby was very concerned for him.  

But no worries... we were able to make up for the traumatic start.  

Annie's first picture with Herky!

Jace and I were able to make our first trip to the Raptor Center.  It was quite interesting!  We met a wonderful worker that let Jace feed some birds and go into a bird blind.  We were hoping to see some deer but they didn't come out that day.  We will definitely be making a return trip sometime in the spring!

 So Paul has been buying cracked corn for the "city deer" that live in our area.  We love seeing them around our house and they definitely know where the corn pile is!  We've seen a lot of action in the last year.  The most we've ever seen are ten deer at a time!  The deer sometimes fight with each other and swat or chase each other away.  And then other times, there are 3-4 deer that eat peacefully together.  Fun to watch!  

Ruby and Jace taking their turn feeding the deer.