My Little Monkey

I just love watching my little monkey on the monkey bars! There's just no way I could swing across the monkey bars like it's no big deal wand smile at the same time.

Clifty Falls, IN

We spent our last day in Madison discovering the Clifty Falls area. It's soooo pretty! I can't believe we've lived within an hour of this place for the last 8 years and had never heard of it. We will most certainly be going back there for another weekend getaway. Not sure how many miles of trails there are, but there were quite a few. Some were more rugged than others, but every trail we went on was beautiful. We saw 4 different water falls too - very pretty. I'm so out of shape though and my legs were a major kind of sore for several days after we got back!



A very rare picture with all of us ... I prefer having my hind-end on the other side of the camera!

We stopped at this creek and the kids just played and played. It really is true that just some running water, a stick or two and a bunch of leaves can keep kiddos occupied for a long time!

Hamburgers

One of the memories I have of my childhood is going to the sale barn with my dad. It's funny because just thinking of the sale barn conjures up memories of various smells, from bad smells to good smells. On the not so good side (think cow and horse you know what) mixed with dust. On the better side it is of hamburgers. Yummy hamburgers. The best hamburgers I've ever had kind of hamburgers. My better half didn't grow up going to the finer places in life like the sale barn, but he has heard me mention 'sale barn burgers' for years now. Anyway, while strolling down main street of Madison, IN last weekend I caught a whiff of a familiar scent and told Brian "I smell sale-barn burgers" and he just laughed. We walked some more and I told him that seriously, I smelled sale barn burgers. But yet I wasn't smelling the other side, the bad side so I knew we must not be in sale barn territory. But lo and behold if we did not happen upon this little place - Hinkle's Hamburgers. Oh my goodness, mighty fine little hamburgers if I do say so myself. Not quite a sale barn burger mind ya', but close enough.

A Skunk & A Tiger

Happy Halloween from the Hunter clan!

The heart on the hind end fittingly says 'Lil Stinker'. And yes, she IS a little stinker!

Emma wanted to wear her skunk outfit from last year, which was fine with me. Everyone she visited had made a big deal out if last year so I think maybe she wanted that again. You know, our kids just do not get enough attention around here! haha. And little Rebecca, for some reason she talks about tigers all the time. Where they sleep, what they eat, do they come in the house - many, many tiger questions. So when I saw the cute little tiger outfit I knew it had her name written all over it. Brian thinks I'm scarring the girls for life by not dressing them as princesses. But, I'm just not a princess kind of mom so hopefully they will turn out fine despite my non-princess ways!

The 'Genie' outfits were a last minute purchase for Howlin' Halloween at Emma's school last night. It was 78 degrees when I got off work yesterday and I knew that Emma especially would burn up in the skunk outfit. I thought they looked adorable, but it took some serious bribery to get Emma to wear hers. I think she may have been swayed when we made such a big deal over how cute Rebecca looked in hers!

Heritage Trail - Madison, IN

These were taken on a little hike we took on a the 'Heritage Trail'. I never did exactly figure out what the trail was, but it was a beautiful walk. We started out going down an old rail road track and then up a fairly steep hill. The trees were absolutely gorgeous and some of the leaves the girls picked up were HUGE! It was so nice and peaceful. There were very few people out and about and it was just a plain ol' relaxing walk with the fam. It just doesn't get any better than that!

Weekend Getaway to Madison, IN

We had the best time on our little weekend getaway to Madison, IN. Thankfully it was only about an hour away so we were able to get there easily on Friday and then back home on Sunday night. We spent Saturday roaming the main street of Madison, sipping on hot chocolate for the kiddos and some yummy mocha latte for me. The little shops were fun too, there were music shops for Ryan and Brian, antique shops for me and the cutest little toy store for the girls. I was even able to pick out a Christmas present for Rebecca. Lots of fun! The afternoon was spent walking on the ‘Heritage Trail’ that went up a hill and had gorgeous views of the Ohio river. It was a great day for enjoying God’s beautiful creation and spending some much needed family time together.

These were all taken downtown Madison.

Fall

Fall is by far my favorite season, the air feels so good and the colors are so pretty. I caught this shot of Ryan while we were in Madison, IN this past weekend. I have more to share ... and more to talk about, but for now - here's Ryan!