living large

Fall Happenings

 so caroline has LOVED her 2 day a week preschool class this year...that is all except for music class. for some odd and unknown reason she has been prone to tearfulness at music time! my suspicion is she enjoys sitting on her teacher's lap the entire class and this has become her ticket to do that:) in any case....after several attempts on the boys part to coach her through why music was fun, the fact that she might get the "super singer" award, etc. we finally resorted to bribing her. yep. i am that mom. all it took was one lollipop and folks....may i present to you our most recent super singer!!

 if dad happens to be out of town on a wednesday night..you will most likely find us here enjoying kid's night at firehouse subs:)

this fall we took our first "school" field trip to hunter farms where we enjoyed pumpkin "picking", a hayride and the petting zoo!

 and what would fall be without one more camping trip!! this time, ben and evan took the kids to star, nc for a stay on ben's family's land.

here is a picture of the cabin ben's grandad, papa built many, many years ago...

though a bit run down, it is still in the woods where ben spent many a day shooting guns and just being a boy! kind of neat to see the kids hanging out here too. 

 the boy's bravely entered the kid's pie eating contest at our church's fall festival this year. no winners...but a valiant effort!

 on tuesday afternoons we get to have drew, kurt and annascott hang out with us! needless to say...the fun abounds!

playdoh ice-cream anyone??

Sixth Annual Anderson, Emmrich, Wright Beach Trip!!!

wow...it is hard to believe this was our sixth year of vacationing together as a family!! ben david was only 7 months old on our first trip to ocean isle beach with the whole gang. we have come along way since then..added on a total of 3 more kiddos to the group and the fun just continues:)

we were blessed with gorgeous weather the entire week...not a drop of rain, blue skies, mild temps and lots of sun. we stayed in a super place called "the great escape" that suited our group well with its oceanfront setup and pool. 

breakfast was always a wild time!!

storytime with poppie was caroline's nightly routine

lots of sand cupcakes and ice cream cones were made

of course james found a few fish

a sweet sibling moment

some great body surfing

doing some ab moves...the plank on the beach is always a great one

not to be left out...for one, single moment

sweet girls

best buds

surf board in the pool...why not? only seconded by using the picnic table and/or walkway railing as a diving board. 

prepping for family shots...what a stud!

the whole gang

our miss c

3 little monkeys

handome boys

you can dress them up...

classical engagement pose...we don't look any older, right???

all the grands with grandmommie and poppie

the couple that made it all possible!

like mother, like daughters 

where oh where is my little sand bunny?

exciting fishing boat trip this year!

flying high!!

A Camping We Will Go!!

the beginning of fall can only mean one thing around here...

CAMPING!!!

on the first day that had a hint of coolness (and by hint i mean 80 degrees), the wright and anderson clans (minus the mommies:) headed to the mountains. this year they tried a new campsite at lake james and enjoyed the private beach, campfire meals and all the other fun/semi-dangerous things that the mommies never hear about and are glad they don't know about. this was miss caroline's first venture with the gang...judging from the pictures, i think she did just fine:)

The End of an Era and...the Beginning of a New One!

This summer was packed full, and i mean that in the most literal sense!! after eight wonderful years at swinford place, we made our move. it is an interesting feeling to pack up eight years worth of belongings, sort through old baby items, pictures, things that are just "stuff" but hold so many memories. swinford place was the place we brought all three of our babies home to and was such a special, sweet place for our family. somehow this marked a transition into a new season of life for us. moving out of the baby stage

 and into the "slightly older kids" stage:)
bittersweet i must confess.  however...the nostalgia was combined with a growing excitement as we launched into a new project: building a house!! after purchasing a lot in june of 2011, we forged ahead with the process of building. ben and i had a lot of fun creating our home together and the entire family enjoyed watching the daily progression. here are a few pictures of the different stages...from woods, to cleared lot, to finished home.