October and Such Catch Up

Ok, so maybe now I see why it was so hard to keep the blog up this fall... we were BUSY!  October was full of lots of outdoor adventures!

Jeremy ran his 2nd Twin Cities Marathon (his 4th overall), and I ran the TC 10 mile.  It was a cold and rainy day, but I LOVED the 10 mile distance, and having all the people along the race course made the time go pretty fast.  I hope to run this race again!

I ran my fastest 10 miles of my life :)

Since I was all alone after the race for a few hours, it was fun to go hopping around from spot to spot to find Jeremy along the marathon course.  He did a great job--and best of all, he crushed the Brooks Power Mile goal and won himself a brand new pair of Brooks for having mile 21 be faster than the average of his first 21 miles.  Hardest mile on the course, and he did it!!

Our October included a couple camping adventures.  We still LOVE our camper and agree it was one of the best purchases we've made for our family so far!!  It was a little frustrating when the heat went out on a chilly weekend, but thank goodness for G and G Kalal, because they kept us warm, dry and cozy all together in their camper.

Jeremy and Cooper spent a TON of time out in the blind, and later in the tree stand, deer hunting. 

We hit up a BP Tiger football game, and got to see Cole and his team go for the win!  I see more football games in our future!

The apple orchard is a favorite fall stop, and although we couldn't find time to go as a family this year, I took the kids out by myself, and they did great!  Izzy found her favorite combo of apple pie and ice cream.  Surprise, surprise.

And this kid is growing way too fast.  Sometimes I just look at him and can't believe he's a little boy.  Look how much of my arms my BABY takes up!!

He's learning so much so fast, and he soaks up everything his brother and sister are saying and doing.  Here, he was practicing his thumbs up :)  He was also telling daddy that he was ready to go hunting since he had the hunting hat on...

The TC 10 mile was my warm up race for my 2nd half marathon.  I was so disappointed in my performance in the Scenic Byway half last year, that I needed to run another one, on a different course, to prove to myself that I could do so much better.  Everything about the Mankato half marathon was perfect.  Perfect weather, perfectly flat and down-hill course, perfect amount of runners and spectators, perfect parking spot, and a finish that was more than 5 minutes ahead of my 2:15 goal!  Jeremy and the kids came to watch, too, so that made it even more special!

We snuck in one last camping weekend, and it was nearly time to button up for the winter ahead.  This particular weekend felt like summer, though!!  Tank tops and t-shirts were a must!

What fall is complete without a giant pile of leaves in the front yard? 

My little monsters really do get along so well most of the time.  Cooper and Izzy both like to read to Carson, and he loves to listen.  He is even starting to 'read' his own stories every now and then.  Our kids are in love with books in general, and that makes my heart so HAPPY!!

If you know me, you know I'm a sucker for a good deal, so back last summer when I found a BOGO Groupon for the arboretum, I had to buy it!  Little did I realize we'd have such a hard time finding a fall date as a family to go.  Lucky for us, Grandma was up for a spontaneous weeknight trip!  It was very cold and very windy, but such a fun adventure!  We will definitely be back to explore more this coming summer and fall.

Happy birthday to our new five year old!!  Izzy wished for a 'surprise party' this year, so we secretly invited close by family to join us for a little surprise at Pizza Ranch.  She was surprised and super excited!!

Pumpkin carving went about like expected... the kids picked out their designs... and then went to play while Jeremy and I carved.  Izzy did do a little digging, but Cooper wouldn't touch the guts, and Carson wouldn't even get close!!  Having giant pumpkins this year was really fun.  Thanks to G and G Adamek and their magical pumpkin patch for the great picks!