Gatlinburg, Oct 13-16

 Elli couldn't wait to jump on the beds!!!!

 We took a gondola ride to Ober Gatlinburg.  Elli loved the ride.  It was so pretty seeing all the trees and colors.

 Elli rode with Brent on the way up and me on the way down the ski lift.  Made me so nervous!

 The carousel at Ober Gatlinburg.  Elli was free but wasn't allowed to ride by herself.  Made no sense to us, but we bought a ticket so Brent and I could ride with her.  She of course loved every minute of it:)

 A look at much of the park from Clingman's Dome.  It really was beautiful.

 FREEZING!  At the top it was only about 40 degrees.

 Just one of the pretty trees.  So hard to capture the amazing color on camera.

 She really wanted a walking stick.

 A kind woman took this picture for us.  It was a rock cave.  Pretty cool.

 The walk was long, but Elli was glad to see this cool cave.

 Our second day.  The weather was a bit better.

 Elli wanted to help read the map before going into Cade's Cove!

 She found this dog.  The dog was treated like a child with sunglasses, a car seat, and the "mommy" carried her in a carrier just like a baby sling:)

 The first stop on the loop in Cade's Cove.  A truck parked in a way that blocked the road and caused a traffic jam when the hay ride couldn't get by.  So, while we waited, we got to run, see some deer, and play:)

 Lunch on the grounds at the Mill.

 We saw this mommy bear and her baby cross the road.  So cute to see this little baby hop right along after her mommy.

 Trying to get a shot of the trees as well as us!

 Following the river through the park made us want to stop at every turn.  However, we only stopped a few times.  We climbed out on these rocks to get this cute shot.

 Pretty.

 Tired of the hikes:)

 Laurel Falls.

 Elli was brave and wanted to climb these rocks. She was our "leader" getting us back up to the top.

After Elli took two huge falls with lots of screaming and crying, we saw this mama bear and her baby.  They were a bit hidden behind the bushes, but fun to watch.

On he way up to Clingman's Dome, I was dozing off a bit.  I just happened to wake up, turn my head, and see a bear in the trees.  Brent said he couldn't stop.  So, on the way back, we saw two bears in the trees!!!
Aside from the CRAZY traffic, we had a great time and loved seeing the bears and beautiful colors.  Good weekend.

Sat, Oct 8, 2011, Clifton Gorge

 Off to a good start.  Leaves were very pretty though they look mostly green here.

 Made it to the top of the Indian Mound.  Elli was on the hunt for Indians the whole time we were walking. She kept saying things like, "I bet they would hide in those rock", or, "I wonder if the Indians would wash their clothes in this part?"

 At the top.

 On the way back, Elli was a bit tired!

 Checking out the river.

 Standing here really brought back memories of all the trips I took while I was at Cedarville.  So fun to take my baby girl there.

 We gathered a whole vase full of wild flowers.  Elli loves flowers!

We also gathered many colorful leaves to make place mats.  Elli was very particular when she chose them.  She wanted this one for daddy's, this one for mommy's, etc.  So cute watching her work on putting it all together.

More Pumpkins

 Elli loves her pumpkin dress.  We got these pumpkins from Aldi.  So fun:)

 At the Pumpkin Barn, we saw this adorable baby donkey!

 Elli also found a cat that followed her around like a dog!  Elli was so sad to leave her there and said she was the kitty's mommy!  She found a good place for her and we left.  Elli is still having a hard time with losing Fergi.

 Baby pigs:)

My sweet girl.  Elli and I decided to go to the Pumpkin Barn on Monday after school since the weather was so nice.  Also, we didn't get any little pumpkins at Adventure Acres the day before, so Elli wanted to pick some out.  We had a great time, the weather was beautiful, and there were lots of animals!  I love this picture of Elli.

Adventure Acres Sunday Oct 2, 2011

 Precious:)

 Her sized sunflower!

 Such a sunny day for great pictures.

 Heather and Gary, with their little "pumpkin."

 Gonga and Papa with their grandkids:)

 They were a bit unsure of the mulch.

 Elli was running to get on this ride!

 Leah rode it with her.  She was so very excited!!!!

The boys weren't sure about the wagon ride either, but Elli wanted to show them what it was like.  Even though we couldn't pick pumpkins this year, we had a great time. and got some great pictures:)

Dedication Sunday of the New Sanctuary

I know this is hard to see, but Brent is in the choir.  It was such a great day of celebrating the work God is doing at Patterson Park Church.  So blessed to be part of it.

Happy 5th Birthday Caroline!

 The princesses of the true King!

 Elli and the birthday girl:)  Such a sweet little girl.

 They were pouring their own "tea" and eating off real china:)  Such proper little ladies.

 Caroline blowing out her candles.

The girls really enjoyed all the delicious food.  What a great morning.
Caroline had decided she wanted her gifts to be for orphans.  So, each of these little princesses picked out gifts off the "Show Hope" lists for orphans and brought them to the tea party.  It was so sweet to watch Caroline open presents for children we have not met and to hear the little girls saying things like, "so cute", "aww".  Elli seemed to really understand what she was doing and had a good time gathering gifts.  What a blessing to be part of this celebration.

Spirit Week

 Elli actually had cowgirl things to wear for Farmer Day this week at school, thanks to the cow-person parties we have been to lately:)  She was so excited to dress up.  She wore this adorable outfit for farmer day, her Rapunzel shirt for "movie character" day, and her pajamas on "Pajama" day. In this picture, she is obviously posing as if she is riding a horse!!!

Brent couldn't resist getting a picture with her.