Second Annual Fall Rake Up

Today we braved the cold and held our second annual fall rake up. I hope you're all ready for a picture overload. Camilla has been looking forward to this day for a very long time and talks a lot about Fall and raking leaves and how fun it is to jump in the piles. We tried to wait until most of the leaves had fallen, but the snow came a little earlier this year so we all had to bundle up with toques and gloves. The air was refreshing and gave the children the cutest rosy colored cheeks and noses.

Hyrum toddled around most of the time following Daddy or I with little interest in jumping in the piles. He had a lot of fun watching his sister though!

Mr. Stannix looked super handsome while he raked and I couldn't resist snapping a few pictures of him! He's such a great Dad and was so patient with Hyrum while they raked leaves together.

Camilla had a blast jumping and rolling in the leaves! She was also a great helper when it came to filling up the garbage can to make our giant leaf pile in the back! I loved hearing her giggle and watching her play. Even though it was chilly, it was fun to be outside together.

Hyrum really liked to be a big helper too! For some reason everything has a motor though and the whole time he pushed around this shovel his lips were buzzing away.

My job at nine months pregnant was to fill the garbage can and move the leaves to the back. The snow shovel worked great for pushing the leaves into the can. It was a nice little morning work out (my legs thanked me later).

Every time a can was full Camilla would run to the back and wait for it to be dumped on top of her. She would giggle away as leaves fell on her head and covered her (and her baby doll). Sometimes when I would come to dump the can out she'd toss her baby on top of the pile and ask me to cover her.

When we finally finished it was time to have some fun! This year Camilla wasn't afraid to jump at all and was really good at it. We snapped a few good action shots and had fun playing in the leaves.

 "Watch this everyone!"

"Wanna see my sticking-leg-out jump?"

"Watch me be crazy, Mum!"

 "Wanna see my twirl jump?"

She got some awesome air with Daddy and loved it!  Soon Hyrum also wanted in on the action. He laughed hysterically the whole time. He wouldn't dare jump without an adult, but he tried to be brave. He would run to the very edge and then stick one foot over before pulling it back. Then he would scream with his hand out until someone would take him.

At nine months pregnant I even got in on the action. Definitely had to land on my feet though, so it wasn't quite as much fun as it was last year. My knees and everything else ached, but after some hot chocolate I felt much better!

 We ended with a family picture and a trip to Timmies to wrap things up. There is nothing that I like more than spending time with my family. Despite the chill in the air, my heart was extra warm! I loved every second.

A few things we learned this year:

Make sure you stretch before you rake, or you might have a sore arm after

Excessive jumping in leaf pile while pregnant may not be such a good idea

Leave Camilla's baby inside so she doesn't get lost in the leaf pile over and over

Until next year...