Up to no good!

Eliot is officially just like his brother!  He loves to be outside, tooling around making a mess of something.  The other day I let him go out back with Elese and Eli and he found for himself the favorite hole.  I was sitting out on the deck and ran in to get the camera.

Scott's been battling the kids over this hole since we've lived here.  He fills it up and they keep digging it out!  He's tried talking to them but I think he's finally thrown in the towel.  They all love.this.hole.  Eliot made a b line over there and started digging.

Of course big sister had to join in!  By the way, Elese TRIES  to only wear dresses or skirts these days.  Yes, she's outside in a dress digging in the dirt.

Meanwhile Eli has moved past the hole and is on to bigger and better things...the fire pit!  Seriously?  I really didn't have a clue about boys!

Eliot was pretty proud of himself that he could stand up in the hole.  This was before he started walking full time.

All of a sudden Elese says to me, "Get a picture of me Mom!"  This turned into a photo session (couldn't resist) of her smiling and posing.

While I'm doing a photo shoot with Elese, Eliot dumps the bowl of water that Elese was playing with and now we have mud!

Mud, dirt, mulch...what else does a boy need?

Shaw Family Farm

On Sunday we made our way over to Shaw Family Farm for their annual fall festival.  The Guess family came over after church and we went together.  The farm is literally 4 minutes from our house and we end up going several times during the summer and fall.  The kids LOVE all the fun things to climb on and check out.

The 6 Pack in the patch

 
Group shot...Reagan, Elese, Addison, Emery, Eliot, Gracyn & Eli.  We were joking that with our crew we could fill the entire barrel ride!

And the adults were there too!  Thanks to big girls Emery & Addison for taking our pictures. :)  Tom & Kim moved here back in March from Colorado.  Tom & Scott work together and we have all become friends.

Eli & Reagan went right to the patch in search of the best pumpkin.  Eli had many favorites and would bring them back for inspection.

Eli kept saying, "Ball!" for the pumpkins.  He was trying to ride them, hit them and just figure it all out.

My big girl posing!

We let Elese go without a nap on Sunday and she did fine but mostly wanted to sit in the stroller.  She eventually picked out a pumpkin and livened up!

Couple shot

Eliot was having fun playing with this vine for a LONG time!

My big boy muscles

Addison & Emery on the wagon.  It's funny how well our kids play together.  Even Reagan & Eli pal right up.

The annual wagon ride...not exactly the best shot but hey, we're all in there!  Thanks Guess' for a fun day!

Baptism

Sunday was a very exciting day here in the Jackson family.  Emery made a decision to be baptized!  Scott & I are so proud of her for making her decision to follow God public with baptism.

Our first born...such a sweet girl and mighty leader.  God has big plans for you Emery Grace.  We are more than thrilled to be your earthly parents and can't wait to see what God has in store for you.  No matter what, we will always love you and support you.

Carrie Hughes is the director of Children's Ministries at church.  Carrie & her husband Randy are such great leaders for the kids at church.

Here we are waiting for the right time during the service...all baptisms are in front of the church.

Emery was given the choice as to who she wanted to baptise her.  This is a memory that I will cherish forever...and I hope she will too.

Making a public declaration to the church.

I now baptise you in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Congratulations Emery!

Wow, it really hit me that Emery is growing up.  I am so happy for her but sad that she's getting bigger everyday.  What a glorious day!

We had a nice lunch to celebrate after church.  The menu was italian chicken, green beans, mashed potatoes & carmel apple crisp.  Thank you Mom for all your help cooking!

There were a couple of presents too!  A real gold cross from Grandma & Grandadaddy.  What a gift to always remember this special day.  Love that face!  Thank you :)

A prayer angel from Uncle Lurch!  Thank you :)

A baptism photo album & cup like Mom & Dad! 

Aunt Michelle, Uncle Brad, Keith, Kylee & Kate couldn't be here but sent a gift for the celebration.  A beautiful necklace with Emery's birthstones and a devotional for girls.  Thank you :)

Kings Island Halloween Festival

On Saturday we took the gang and headed over to Kings Island for a little Halloween fun.  My Mom and Jason joined us...and braved the cool weather!  We were all bundled up and the kids had a ball.

Our first stop was the carousel.

 Grandma "manned" the stroller while we were on the carousel.

While the big kids went to ride the Beastie, Mom and I took the little ones to ride the cars.  At this point Eliot was more concerned with the Skittles that Grandma had waiting for him in the stoller. :)  He drove the cars a little but kept his eyes on the stroller!

Here he is in action with the Skittles...he LOVED them!

Em taking a little break.

Uncle Jason & Eli were content to wait for the girls by the popcorn bucket.  One round of popcorn wasn't enough so we ended up with 2 rounds!  Gotta love the Kings Island popcorn!

There were tons of activities for the kids.  This was a foam pit.  I wish it were warmer so they could have stayed in there longer.  The foam got us really wet and we were freezing but it was so much fun!

This was probably Eli's favorite thing...aside from the pony ride!

Happy fall ya'll!

Group shot...I should have edited this before the upload to get a tighter shot of us.  Oops!

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Pony rides!  At first everyone but Em was all set to ride.  Elese changed her mind at the last minute.

Any time there is an opportunity to ride a horse, Eli is in heaven!  He rode most of the time without even holding on.  He loves horses and of course anything outdoors.

This is my most favorite picture of the day.  Eliot LOVED the horse ride just as much as Eli.  They are turning out to be more alike every day.  Such a sweet smile!