Harvest Fair at the Farm

What a beautiful autumn Saturday morning to meet up with Stacie (along with some other moms and kids) at Stratford Ecological Center for their Harvest Fair 2015.  The farm is an organic working farm and Nature Preserve.  I wish I had taken a photo on the drive to the entrance of the farm - such beautiful trees and trails. 

The Harvest Fair had so much for the kids to do. There was a toddler play area in which Eva wanted to commandeer the toy tractors from every other child.  There were also plenty of farm animals to see:  llamas to pet, donkeys and horses to ride, sheep and goats to look at, as well as chickens to feed.  We ended the morning by spending a large portion of time playing in the "games" area where Eva discovered a bin of dry beans to scoop endlessly.  

This is a must-go for next fall. We will have to save our cute handmade kerchiefs that Stacie brought for everyone.  

Addition(s)

We added on to the family lake cottage. It was a BIG project but such beautiful results. 

BEFORE

AFTER

Then the view from the inside...

BEFORE

 AFTER

Enjoying the lake views. 

We are also adding on to our little family in November. Here's the progress on that project. 

22 weeks along

32 weeks along

First Day of BSF and 17 months

Today was an exciting day. It was the first day back to Bible Study. I switched to the day class so I could take Eva with me. Last Friday, I got a call from her teacher. She called to explain that I could bring her sippy cup, an extra diaper, and wanted to know if there was any comfort item Eva might need for the morning. So sweet. Eva doesn't really have any comfort items but I mentioned if she get fussy that singing songs always help.

I arrived a smidge early so we could find the room. This was to be our "first" real drop off. There was a little name tag for Eva outside the classroom that said "God Loves... EVA". Tears started to swell in my eyes. I couldn't help it. The emotion hit me.

Unfortunately, there was another early-comer child who was already crying. Eva was too sympathetic to let that not affect her. Her lip started to curl. I handed her to her teacher as her teacher said many kind words to reassure me that everything would be fine as Eva learned about the love of God. I assured the teacher that Eva would calm down soon (though I wasn't 100% sure).

As I walked away, Eva looked at me with a look of Are you really leaving me, Mom?

I found my way to the sanctuary for opening. I felt excited to learn about the Book of Revelation. It all starts and ends with God. It is fun to anticipate that so much of Revelation relates to Jesus (but what doesn't?). I learned that from Genesis 12 through Revelation is about God restoring the broken fellowship we have with Him through our sinful nature. What a beautiful thing. More tears.

Then, we prayed a prayer. The leader spoke clearly as I reached for more tissues, "... and we pray for the children to feel the love of Jesus. We pray for the moms and grandmas who may have not been ready to drop off their little ones... ." Bawling.

What an exciting day. Love this little 17 month old girl and all that God has in store for her.

Ready for the first day of BSF !!!!

Hi! I am 17 months old today.