Turkey Trot 2013

Cold and foggy and rather miserable this year.

Penny especially did not have any fun.

Touring Eastern Washington

We were up early to head to the balloon rally, but the balloons didn't launch this year on account of the weather. They didn't get to go up any of the three days. We knew this was a possibility but decided to take the chance anyway (we didn't want to break Helena's attendance streak). After getting the news that it was a no-go, we got back into our cars and headed north to Wenatchee. We had brunch there. After that we went to the Pangborn Memorial Airport in East Wenatchee and saw a replica of the Miss Veedol- the first plane to fly nonstop across the Pacific Ocean.   

Our tour guide was one of the builders and pilots of the replica.

The last time my family was there was about 1990.

We stopped by Snowdrift Cider Co. and they gave us a tour of their facilities. It's a family-run operation and they were very friendly. They let each of the kids have an apple.

Then we decided that since we were so close we would go to Leavenworth. In retrospect, we should have headed home at this point. Once we got to Leavenworth we stopped for a coffee and treat (and to warm up) in one of the little shops. We all wandered around in the rain for a while. It was their Autumn Leaf Festival so there was a Bavarian band playing in the gazebo. Everybody polka!

We drove to Ellensburg and had dinner at the Valley Cafe. And then home, to bed.

Gratitude

We collected different kinds of leaves and made some crayon rubbings.

Then we cut out some of the leaf shapes, took turns thinking things we were thankful for to write on them, and hung them up.

Among other things, the children are thankful for...
air
turkey
Blue dog and Butcher bear  (stuffed animals)
Daddy
friends
stars
pumpkin muffins and pumpkin pudding
sandbox and shovels
chocolate
being tucked in by Daddy at night
family
candy

We are certainly blessed.

Field trip : pumpkin patch

We returned to the same farm we went to last year. It was a foggy morning, but cleared up during our visit.
We heard about how pumpkins grow and the different parts of the pumpkin plant from Farm Wife Julie.

This year the hayride was a little longer and the kids got to choose the pumpkins out of a larger field.

Henry picked one that was still attached to the vine so Farmer Bill came to the rescue.

 After riding back through the orchard there were the animals to visit in the petting zoo.

Then the best part of the morning- fresh pumpkin doughnuts!

The kids ran around and played on the playground some and we had a slightly chilly picnic lunch before heading home.

Sitting outside

The weather has been so nice here that even the baby came out to sit this afternoon.

She's wearing vintage Finnish pajamas that belonged to me and my sisters. I think she might be the last baby to do so, the zipper is about to give out. They've had a good run.

Apples!

When we made our list of plans for the year, apple picking was one of them.

For a few weeks now during school time one of the items the kids have been grateful for is apple picking.

One day I realized that if we didn't go soon we would miss the season. So on a pretty fall morning we put our galoshes on and headed across town to our usual orchard.

Every kid got to carry and fill a bucket. We picked 22 lbs. of Fuji apples.

They've been a snack-time favorite around here.

Balloon rally 2012

After we got back from our road trip it was time for one of my favorite mornings of the year- the Great Prosser Balloon Rally. Seeing hot air balloons up close just does not get old.

 It was one of the warm years so we were not too bundled up. Anja was with us again.

This balloon in the middle had to squeeze between the other two. Funny to watch.

 And suddenly it is daytime.

We made reservations at our usual breakfast spot and it was a good thing we did since they were busy this year.

Mimmu has my little girls drinking their coffee black.

Fall

Mark cleaned up the yard today and the kids had a chance to do some jumping in the leaves before they were bagged up. Fun!

Negotiating

There has been a lot of trading going on here with the loot. They are pretty good at transactions that leave everyone happy.

Pumpkin Patch

This year we headed to a new and different farm west of town. Bill's Berry Farm is a lovely family-run farm. They grow apples, pumpkins, cherries, and blueberries.Our tour started with a talk on fruits and vegetables and some of the different varieties of pumpkins by Farm Wife Julie. Then Farmer Bill gave us a hayride out to the pumpkin patch to pick our own Wee Bee Little pumpkin. Penny was pleased to find a pumpkin she could carry around. There was a hay pile to climb over and through. (There were tunnels underneath.) We rode back to pet some of the animals and (after a thorough hand-washing) had fresh pumpkin doughnuts. It was a excellent morning with great friends and good weather. They run this little animal train on the weekends. The horse behind her is named Henry.

At the orchard

We took Anja, Eila, and Raija to our local orchard to pick some fall fruits. The Finns enjoyed their first trip to a pick-your-own orchard. We had perfect weather for our outing. We picked peaches, nectarines, and apples. With three eager workers our family came home with a lot of fruit!