The Carpenters: 2013 Wrap-up Part 2

September:

Finn started pre-school in September! He was SO excited to go the first day....until we got there and he realized I was leaving. Then he was like, "Um, nope. I think I'll just go home with mom." So there were tears (mostly from Finn). And the next 2 weeks were not much better. But then he decided he liked it, loved his teachers (LOVED!!!), and that he would give it a shot. Now he adores school and talks about it all the time. The amount of information he has learned has astounded us!

Miss Katie is very near and dear to Finn's heart.

In a shocking development, Finn likes doughnuts! :)

The Smiths and Gaults visited so we got to spend some time with the newest cousins. It was a really special weekend!

These three were all born within a few months of each other.

Getting a picture of everyone together was not a simple task. Of course mine (namely Finn) were the least cooperative. You would think instead of asking them to "say cheese" we are asking them to walk on hot coals or stab their eyes out with forks.

Wilkes loved making Henry laugh!

I had my annual girls weekend at Folly Beach. What would I do without these awesome lifelong friends?

Sweet Henry!

This thing Henry does where he looks at you and bites half of his lower lip...it just slays me every time.

Finn turned 2!!! How is this possible??? Such a sweet kiddo with such an awesome personality, quite the sense of humor, and a knock-your-socks-off dancer!

Matt and Finn both look unsure about the candles in this picture!

Make a wish!

That's one way to do it!

The biggest bite ever...

This is Finn's cake that I made for his party. Thank goodness I got this picture, because Myrtle kindly destroyed it during the night. Yes, it was my fault because I left it on the table where she could get it, blah, blah, blah. Still felt like killing her!

POOL PARTY!

If music is playing, Finn is dancing! Here he is showing off his dynamite moves!

Shake it Finn!

C.C. and Fuzzy salvaged the cake with a cake from Publix!

My boys love them some Bogan!

The parachute was the hit of the party.

My awesome friend Dawn.

October:

We had a phenomenal October! Fall fun and Halloween festivities kept us busy every weekend. We went to a pumpkin patch where there were so many activities to enjoy! Finn rode in this kiddie cow train. As you can see he was a little unsure about it!

He was NOT unsure about the animals....he loved them!

Especially riding this pony! I was nervous to let him do it by himself but he hung on like a big boy!

He was so proud.

Henbo was a big fan of this swing. He was cracking up!

This is the pumpkin Finn chose to bring home. Just kidding! Even daddy couldn't have picked that one up!

Henry enjoyed the hayride.

Pumpkin carving! I thought Finn would think it was neat to touch the pumpkin guts, but he said "No! Yucky!"

A spoon will do!

By far the cutest jack-o-lantern on the block

Getting a picture of the boys together with their jack-o-lantern wasn't easy. First Finn wanted to the roll it like a ball....

Too serious guys....

Too silly....

Good job Henbo! But....What kind of face is this Finn?

Yayyyy!!!

Finn had been totally enamored with Charlie Brown and the Great Pumpkin. So for Halloween I knew he'd be excited to be Charlie Brown and for Henry to be Snoopy.

That's Woodstock Henry is attempting to eat.

Unfortunately, not the first or last time Henry gets a foot to the face courtesy of his big brother. He's so tough though! No tears!

Finn getting his first taste of Halloween candy. The boys had fun trick-or-treating on our street. Finn didn't quite grasp the concept though. We tried to practice saying "trick-or-treat" and holding out our baskets. But soon it was clear that instead of the traditional methods to get candy from your neighbors, Finn was going to say "Happy Hal-ween!" and then try to enter the person's home. I guess he thought we were there for a visit! Luckily everyone thought it was funny and a few even invited him to stay!

We left the boys with my mom and went to Naples, FL for Matt's cousins wedding. It was SOOOO much fun! The rehearsal dinner and wedding itself were a blast, but my favorite parts of the weekend were 1) shopping downtown Naples all by myself, and 2) going out to eat with Matt all by ourselves!

Of course I missed the boys, but that time to rejuvenate was amazing!

This drink was oh so yummy!

Matt's family is always so much fun to be with!

Here's Finn driving the ship at our pediatrician's office. We couldn't ask for a better doctor to care for our babies.

November:

Come November, Henry was mobile! Starting to crawl and pull up, we could already tell that he was going to a really active guy. Here's are my attempts to get his 8 month pictures. Notice I said "attempts".

With Henry, everything he touches enters his mouth at some point!

What's down here?

8! Yummy!!!

Not the right position?

How about now?

Ok, well you're too hard to please. I'm outta here!

This 8 is a hoot!!!

Don't try to distract me with a car!

This is the best one I got. Still pretty cute though. :)

Since I was having major withdrawals from my BFF Tiffany who moved to Wichita, KS the previous winter, Finn and I decided to take a trip to see them. I needed to see her face and smooch those kiddos! His first airplane ride! He was majorly excited...it was too cute.

All ready to go! There were nay-sayers who thought he would mis-behave on the plane, but I know my boy! He was an angel. He loved the whole experience.

I asked him if he was sleepy, and he said "Yes." and put his little head in my lap. Precious.

Once we arrived, it was a whirlwind of fun! I was SO happy to see those Tates! They had tons planned to entertain us and Tiff and I even got a little girl time to catch up one night after the kids' bedtime. Oh how I miss her! We have been through and shared so much of life together. We were all sad when the weekend was over...it was way too short!

Getting a picture of our 2 little monkeys together was not easy!

If Austin isn't the funniest kid ever then I don't know who is!

Gorgeous Macey! Finn's future wife! Or Henry's! She can choose. :)

Finn was REAL excited about these pom-poms. It was kind of hysterical.

Blackmail pictures....

Pretending to be veterinarians!

The tornado simulator. Michael was a real sport to take the boys...Finn kept calling him "the other daddy." So funny!

This picture can be part of the slide-show at Macey and Finn's wedding...obviously.

Goofballs!

We went to a Fall Festival at the home of one of the ladies Matt works with. Finn was such a BIG boy that day! He played in a jump castle where he was the littlest one by far AND he rode a real, live horse! He was so brave! The horsey ride was so quick that I missed it with the camera, but check out this saunter of confidence afterwards!

Since my Grandmother doesn't travel, we took Thanksgiving to her! It has become a tradition for us to do this one of the weekends before Thanksgiving and she loves it. She also loves this little guy!

Finn adores Grandmother. The way he says "Gwandmodder" is just too much!

A fun trip to Nanny and Dody's house.

The Gaults came for a weekend visit. Here are Henry and Sadie looking VERY serious. They are definitely up to something.

Then it was THANKSGIVING! My favorite holiday! And not just because I love eating. I love having my family here and cooking for everyone. I hope we continue this tradition from now to eternity! We have so much to be thankful for.