Pony Party and Outdoor fun!

This morning we picked up AJ from his sleepover with his cousins at Baba and Dziadzi's and headed up to Whip-o-Will Stables in Dudley, MA for Xavier's 3rd birthday party.  It was a gorgeous day for the kiddos to ride a horse, pet a bunny and check out the goats and chickens around the farm.  On our way up to the party, we were explaining to AJ that he would be able to ride a pony and that he needed to be brave.  When it was finally his turn to get on the horse, he was a little hesitant, but with a little coaxing from Mommy and Daddy he got on.  They went around the barn three times and Daddy stayed right by his side the whole time.   He looked so serious while on the horse, but absolutely loved the ride!  When he got off he was all smiles and said 'Mommy, I was brave!!'  We were so proud of our little guy for trying a new experience!!

We had to leave the party a little early because Chloe desperately needed to take a nap.  We decided to take some back roads home and make our drive a little bit longer so both kiddos could get in a nap.  After about an hour or so ride, we were home and the kiddos were refreshed!  We headed outside to play on the water table and in the sandbox.  Miss Chloe can now stand up at the water table all by herself and was loving the water and dinosaurs! And AJ was super excited because Mommy brought out new dinosaur glaciers and he got to free them from the ice!  Next up was the sandbox, although Miss Chloe is a trouble maker in that sandbox!  She so slyly dips her fingers in the sand and then brings them to her mouth all covered in sand! YUCK!  She thinks it's hilarious though because every time she does it I try to stop her and say no so it's now a game!  But Mommy was a meanie and won the game because back to the water we went, while AJ got to continue playing in the sandbox!

He did it - he got on the horse!

So proud of this little rascal!

He loved every second of the horse ride!  

Petting the baby goats!

Game time!

AJ couldn't get enough of the goats!

Giving him a hug. So sweet!

After the car nap - this little one was refreshed and rejuvenated!  

Time to play with the water table!

So proud of herself for standing at the water table. 

Winding up to break the dinosaur glacier!

In action! 

He's almost melted!

He did it!  

 Snuggles with my favorite girl

Silly girl.

Back to the water table.

Chloe got ahold of the dinosaur glaciers... 

I tried to hide them from the sun (and her!).. but she figured out my hiding spot!

 

She also figured out how to melt the glaciers.. just a little bit of water will do the trick! 

  

Jeeps, T-Ball and Chalk, Oh My!

It was a beautiful day out and I couldn't resist taking the kiddos outside to get some fresh air.  We broke out the jeeps, the t-ball set, the exersaucer for Miss Chloe and the big purple ball.  We even did a little bit of drawing with sidewalk chalk on the driveway!  AJ absolutely loved learning how to hit the ball and see how far it would go on the driveway/yard.  He also enjoyed having an audience of his little sister and Mommy cheering him on!

[I love the continuous shutter on my iPhone - it makes for great action shots!  So expect to be inundated with lots of 'ready, set, go' pics of AJ learning how to play t-ball!]

Setting it up

Good hit buddy!

He's so strong he hits the base and makes it fall over! 

Winding up...

 

..and almost contact...

...he did it!

 

A different angle.

He hits....

He scores!

Woohoo Bud!  

Look at that wind-up!

..and the follow-through...

I think we might have a professional t-ball player on our hands!

There's nothing special about this picture, but I just love it.  My little guy...

Back at it!

'Mom, stop taking so many pictures!'

'I told you to stop!' 

Taking a bathroom break inside..with the cheese head, of course!  

Chloe enjoyed watching her big brother. 

He hits, he scores!

Play time for our little girl!

'Oh wow, look at that hit!'

Back to my playtime though...

'Hi Mom!'

Can you tell AJ wasn't into taking a picture with Mommy?!

Enjoying the view of my kiddos and the beautiful day.

I love the look on Chloe's face.. 'Wait a minute big bro, that's my seat!'

'Ahh, nevermind, back to playing!'

I even let Timber outside on the porch off the leash 

so he could partake in the outside time.

Loving life.

Fun with bouncing the purple ball. 

Our handsome furry first born.

I think someone was a bit tired from all of his outside fun.