On the ferry....Madeleine on the left and Emily on the right....a little bit windy!
In a brand new adventure Emily and Madeleine crossed the James River on a ferry! I had decided to go to College Run Farms to get our pumpkins and to get there we had to take the Jamestown-Scotland Ferry, something I had thought would be a big deal...it was actually very easy. This new activity involved driving 10 minutes from our house, waiting for the ferry, boarding the ferry, getting out of the car during the ferry ride (a whopping 10-15 min) and watching seagulls. Emily and Madeleine were concerned they did not have their life jackets (which their mother took as a good sign they are inheriting her safety-oriented paranoia), but were calmed when it was pointed out we had their car seats (because those would help in the water!). Madeleine and Emily had a wonderful time and seem to feel they have earned their sea legs.
College Run Farms was a nice place to get pumpkins, although we opted to choose from those already at the farm stand rather than hike through the soggy mud to the U-Pick section. Once again the girls were fascinated by the mini pumpkins and gourds and each brought home three. Much to their mother's consternation they had no interest in traditional Halloween pumpkins, instead preferring a variety called "Long Island Cheese" which, near as I can tell, are good for pies and basically a glorified squash...there is no making jack-o-lanterns out of these! Emily and Madeleine are finally willing to watch
It's The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown, which their mother has been forcing on them for four Octobers now (I thought they'd like the colors as infants)...we still don't like the skeletons in the very beginning, but the show is growing on us. The day we got our pumpkins, we watched the show with them...after the girls, and pumpkins, took their naps.
Never fear, a trip to Pumpkinville has also been planned. I don't know about your community, but in ours, a place with homemade Sesame Street characters is rare and we are not going to give up the opportunity for our yearly visit.
Emily
Madeleine
Emily (L), pumpkins, Madeleine (R) watching It's The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown.
In non-pumpkin news, we have been to Busch Gardens on the past two Saturdays. However, these visits are noteworthy as we did
not take the stroller!! Don't get me wrong, our Graco DuoGlider has been my loyal companion for many months (especially since moving here) and it is always in the back of my car - just in case it is needed, but we have started to physically outgrow it (although it is a nice mobile time-out zone). I think this is one of those times where being twins slows things down - a singleton would have been out of the stroller a while ago, however when I'm faced with two, running in opposite directions, I'm keeping them pinned in place. The girls did a great job walking all over the park and we did not hear complaints until I made the mistake, the first week, of praising their efforts on our way out of the park (the next week I knew to wait until we were on the tram to the parking lot). The solo adventure was a bit of a double-edged sword: we didn't have to lift the occupied stroller on and off the tram, drag it around, keep track of it, find space for it on the park's train, etc. However, the stroller's occupants were a bit drunk with their new found freedom and had some fun darting away from us (resulting in one young lady being placed in time-out temporarily).
Busch Gardens has been undergoing some improvements. The "glockenspiel" in "Germany" now sort of functions which is rather thrilling. And, in truly exciting news, they are adding a Sesame Street section which will open next spring! There is an entire Sesame Street park in Pennsylvania, which we have half-heartily contemplated visiting, but this takes its place and doesn't involve hours in the car!
While at Busch Gardens we spotted caramel apples and made some at home (shockingly those made at home did not cost $6 each!). While we approve of putting sugar, in any form, on all things possible, we found the apples a bit daunting. However, once they were cut in wedges - success was ours! We have also recently put up our Halloween decorations including our lovely vinyl tablecloth that is black with purple and orange jack-o-lanterns...it is actually a great weight loss method as everything looks absolutely disgusting on this tablecloth.
And finally, for those who try to keep track of who is who, we have new shoes. Madeleine's are white and pink and Emily's are brown and pink. Also, generally - but not always, Emily tends to choose warm colors, leaning towards pink, yellow, red, etc. and Madeleine, prefers cool colors as in green, blue, purple, etc. This is true, not only in clothing, but choice of color crayons, paper, etc.
Emily (sorry it is blurry - life is like that sometimes)
Madeleine
Madeleine
Emily
Madeleine (l) and Emily (r) checking the lawn for fairy dust before trick-or-treating.
Emily - "Ballerina Fairy"
Madeleine "Scarecrow" in the parade.
Emily "Scarecrow" in the parade.
Emily at the end of the table and Madeleine to Emily's left (in stripes) at the party.
