pumpkins, parades, carnivals and candy

It seems like we've been participating in fall festivities for a week now! We began last Saturday night with a fall carnival at the elementary school right by our house. Berkley was really excited about going since this is the school she will be at next year! (Her school was having a carnival the same night, but we decided to attend the one close to our house.) So, we got everyone dressed up and walked over to Austin Elementary.

Berkley insisted on being Tinkerbell this year. So, since I always want to make a "theme" out of everything, I started suggesting to Beckham that he could be Peter Pan (I know, not very manly to wear tights!) or Captain Hook. He didn't like either suggestion. Every time I asked him what he wanted to dress up as, he simply looked at me dumbfounded that I had to ask, and simply replied, "A cowboy!" So... Berkley was Tinkerbell, Beckham was a cowboy, and Brenner was a cow. (At least the boy's costumes went together, and thankfully Brenner is still too young to protest!)

Here is our crew ready to head over to the carnival.

There were so many fun things to do once we got there. They even had a petting zoo! Beckham immediately wanted to feed the animals. Berkley was a little hesitant at first, but I think she ended up enjoying it too.

After participating in all kinds of activities from putt-putt and ring tosses to cake walks and face painting, we ended the night with a hayride. Berkley & Beckham met up with two of their good friends, Carlee & Nic. They all enjoyed riding together.

On Sunday, Berkley went to a birthday party for her friend, Charlie. It was another fun time full of festivities. The party started with a parade through Buffalo Gap. After that, everyone returned to the Buffalo Gap Historical Village for birthday cake. The kids got to eat in the old schoolhouse. Afterwards, they all had so much fun playing on the old playground.

Berkley & Lily were partners in the parade through town.

The see-saw was a big hit with all of the kids... once they got the hang of it. You never see these on playgrounds anymore!

The merry-go-round had to be the favorite for most of the kids there. They all had so much fun piling on and screaming and giggling as someone pushed them around.

After a while, the kids figured out that they could do the pushing too. Berkley's expression truly shows how much fun she had at the party.

On Thursday, all of the kids had some kind of fall festival celebration at their schools. Berkley's class got to put their costumes on at the end of the day for their celebration. All of her friends looked great in their costumes. Her friend, Annabelle, was Lady Liberty; and Kaitlyn was Bindi the Jungle Girl. Aren't they cute?

Once everyone was dressed up, the class got to "parade" through the school showing off their costumes to other teachers, students, and administrators.

When they got back to their classroom they had a fabulous party. Look at that spread!
Beckham & Brenner's Fall Festival at their Mother's Day Out was a lot of fun too. They had a mini-carnival set up for all of the kids with all kinds of games to play... and of course, LOTS of candy to win. Beckham REALLY enjoyed it, don't you think?
Brenner, on the other hand, wasn't quite sure what to think of everything. In his defense, his nap time was quickly approaching. He was kind of in a daze.
He also got really upset when it was time for his class to go back to their room. (I think when he saw me at the carnival, he was thinking, "Sweet. I get to hang out with mom for a while and then go home!") Here he is with his precious teacher, Mrs. Connie. I know it appears as things are fine, but you can't see his face. He had a rough exit!
Last night we loaded up the kids and made just a FEW stops. It really was a few too many! I mean really, you can only dress up so many times in the same costume before it starts to get old. (Of course, getting candy never gets old for the kids!)

I feel pretty exhausted from all of the festivities... and we still aren't finished. Our church is having a Fall Frenzy tomorrow night! We actually are looking forward to it though. Costumes are not allowed, which is FABULOUS!!! It is really just a time for fun with family and friends. (Unfortunately, there will probably be MORE candy headed our way!)