happy fall, y'all! {2014}

We took Natalie to her first pumpkin patch this past weekend and got some pretty good photos of the kids.  That's what parents do, right?  They go to pumpkin patches to get photos, right?  Not to buy the ridiculously priced pumpkins, surely...

We bought a couple of itty bitty pumpkins, but no way were we buying those other $20+ pumpkins, when I can get a perfectly good pumpkin at my Harris Teeter for half that price or less.

This pumpkin patch we went to is a local one here in Hampstead and is always really popular each fall season.  They're open for the better part of October/November with pumpkins, but they had a fall festival this past weekend.  It's the first time we've gone and we really enjoyed ourselves.  It was unseasonably warm (read: not feeling fall-ish at.all.) and the sun was shining so it was a good day to be out.

We went over and got our photos in the pumpkin patch and then let Deacon wear himself OUT on the bounce houses.  Natalie just hung out in the carrier attached to mama.  :)  Then we went on a free hay ride around the property of Hampstead UMC (where the festival/patch is located).  We all enjoyed that.

Fall is my all-time favorite season so it was fun to be together as a family last weekend, celebrating the season and introducing Natalie to pumpkins (she wasn't impressed, in case you were wondering).

Happy Fall, Y'all!

 

32 weeks old!

[all photos taken with instagram]

{ first 8 weeks }

{ second 8 weeks }

{ third 8 weeks }

{backposting}

Is that even a thing?

Backposting?

It is now, and I'm calling it the term used when your kids keep you too busy to stay current on blog posts.

It's when you finally get around to blogging (to heck with the rest of the chores!) NOW but you date your post on or around the date that events actually happened.  

Even if those dates are months and months ago.

So THIS post is to make you aware of some posts that I posted today but have actually been "backposted" to:

June 2014  -- Natalie turned 16 weeks old

August 2014 -- Natalie turned 24 weeks old

 My, how my blogging habits have changed with the addition of just one more child...

we have a PRESCHOOLER!

Somehow we already have a preschooler in the house!  I don't know where that (almost) 4 years has gone, but alllofasudden, Deacon has started preschool!

Scotts Hill Christian Academy is a preschool associated with our church, Scotts Hill Baptist, on the church campus, and that's where Deacon is enrolled in preschool.  He goes 2 days a week, on Tuesday & Thursday, from 9am until 12pm, and he seems to love it so far.  It's nice for mama, too, since Natalie naps during that time frame, so I have a little bit of time for myself on occasion.

We had an open house at SHCA the week before he started where he was able to meet his teachers and see his classroom and all the cool things Mrs. Faulk had set up...

Then, on September 4, we headed off to school for the first time.  After all the necessary photos were taken, of course...

[sweet boy, ready with a gift for his teachers, Mrs. Faulk and Mrs. Smith]

We are looking forward to a great year for Deacon.  He seems very bright already and is very social, so we're hoping that SHCA will be a great outlet for him in terms of honing skills that he's already showing signs for, and developing new skills for life.  We like his teachers and we know he does, too, so that's always a win.  :)  And everything SHCA does is bathed in lots of prayer and the Lord's guidance so we really can't expect anything less than a wonder-filled year!

beach bums...

Aaaaaand another 2 months has gone by since my last post.  It's not my intention for this to be the pattern.  It just is what it is, you know?

As a matter of fact, I've had this post in mind for quite awhile and I've only just had an opportunity to go through my [thousands and thousands of] photos to choose some to post here.

I thought with the end of summer approaching, or at least the end of beach season, it would be neat to post some photos from some of our trips to the beach this season, including Natalie's first time at the beach and in the ocean (intracoastal waterway):

[these were taken in May, when Natalie was 10 weeks old --

her first trip to the beach]

[these were taken a month later in June, when she was 14 weeks old]

[these were taken at the end of June, when Natalie was 4 mos old --

isn't her bathing suit adorable??]

[these were taken at the end of July, when Natalie was 5 mos old --

she took her first boat ride AND got into the water for the first time!]

These are not the only times we went to the beach; they're just the times I took my camera along, so as you can see, we have been quite the beach bums this season, since I'm now able to stay home with my littles (praise the Lord!).  Deacon loves going to the beach and now playing/swimming in the water.  He's gotten very confident with his puddle jumper, and it's nice for mom & dad, too, knowing he will pop right back up to the top.  :)  

So long, summer!  We'll see you next year!  Bring on F A L L!

24 weeks old!

[all photos taken with instagram]

{ first 8 weeks }

{ second 8 weeks }

Wenzel: Party of 4!

Being a mom of 2 kids is NO.JOKE.  Everyone told me that, and I believed them.  And I'm here to say they were preaching TRUTH.

And that's my excuse reason that it's been over 2 months since I posted here.

The other reason?  I've been living life as a mom with 2 kids.  It's the most challenging thing I've ever done -- but it's also the BEST.

And THAT'S the truth.

Okay, on to the point of this post.  I have a friend in our Connect Group at church that is a photographer, and she just happens to live in our neighborhood, right on the road behind ours.  She was sweet enough to come by one day before Jeff went back to work to take some family photos right after Natalie was born.

Deacon is 3 years and 4 months old in these photos, and Natalie is 12 days old...