pate life

Today was Homecoming Day- and FULL for the Pate family! Whew! But it was also a wonderful day.

It started with Griffin sleeping until 8 am!! What?!! I am not sure of that has ever happened before, but it was awesome. To celebrate, he and I watched Madagascar 2 when we got up, which was cuter than I expected.







Then we headed to the BCM's Alumni vs Students Flag Football game. Mr. Pate helped start this event last year and didn't even have enough to really play. This year there were tons of players on both teams AND people there to cheer them on! Yay! Griffin was a little shy at first, but he played a little and had a good time.



















Then Griffin and I headed over to tailgating with my work. Griffin was in a great mood and just ran all around happy as could be.

Then Griffin took a nap in the van while daddy and uncle d spent some time at the BCM and headed to the game (and mommy played on her phone in the van!). He actually took a 1 &1/2 hour nap in the van surprisingly! Then we met daddy an uncle d at the football game. It was pretty windy up there, but we still had a good time. Wish WKU would get it together and start winning more often though!







We left after halftime and came home to thaw out and get dressed for our last event of the night- the Monster Dash. Daddy had the idea for the boys to be "ketchup, mustard, and a hot dog". So stinkin cute!! I was a part of Gammy Becky's Bunko Party. We got to walk around and trick or treat, which Griffin ended up really enjoying. Yay!










It was quite the busy day, but really fun too! And I must say that Griffin Pate was the best behaved, most fun to be around kid all day long! AND he used the potty all day and kept his pull up dry, even with all the running about. All day people. So awesome!!

- Mrs.Pate via my iPhone

It's Homecoming Week once again on the Hill! After work today, Mr.Pate and Griffin met me on campus to watch the Homecoming Parade. We figured Griffin would absolutely love it, considering his obsession with all things Big Red. And he did!

It was quite chilly, but it was beautiful too. Griffin loved all the different Big Reds he got to see on the floats, as well as other random animals. The chick-fil-a cows walked through, the WKU Barking Band went by (with lots of dogs), and there were some very large tiger stuffed animals.

It was a great little short treat, and Griffin came away with a bunch of candy... Just what we need around here.... :-(

Oh- and apparently we have a new mascot??? A white squirrel named Wally.










- Mrs.Pate via my iPhone

I cannot believe it's already pumpkin carving time again! Wow this year is flying by! We headed to Becky & Gary's tonight to do our annual Pumpkin Carving Extravaganza. It's one of my favorite traditions of the year. This year we were a few short due to some sickness and injuries, but we had a great time. Griffin and Jesse were the cutest things running around with each other. Here are some pictures, enjoy!
















































And just for fun- a look back at then and now, pumpkin carving edition ;-)









- Mrs.Pate via my iPhone

(I wrote this post awhile ago now, but was waiting to add pictures from the real camera... But at this point it doesn't look like I'll make time for that before Christmas! Ha! So something's better than nothing, right?) 


Last Fall we took a weekend and visited Uncle Shelly at EKU, and we had an absolute blast. So we couldn't wait to visit again this Fall!

So a few weekends ago, Mr.Pate, Uncle D, Griffin and I loaded up and headed to Richmond. We stayed at the Red Roof Inn again, and I tell you they have the best customer service ever. Highly recommend them if you are going to Richmond. Plus their EKU rate is so cheap!

It was fun to see how much older Griffin was this trip. He LOVED the elevator. Might have been his favorite part. Too cute. Friday night we just got dinner at Cracker Barrel and then hung out at the hotel.

Saturday morning we got up and headed to the airport with Sheldon. (For those who haven't read for long here, Sheldon is in school studying Aviation and works at the airport) This was the part of the trip we were all soo excited for! Mr.Pate and Uncle D were gonna fly with Sheldon!

So we played around the airport a little, griffin got to get in a plane and play some, then the guys took off! Poor Griffin cried like crazy for a few minutes bc he couldn't go up too, but he rebounded quickly. They got to fly over Richmond and see campus, our hotel, Sheldon's house etc. they even did a few tricks ;-)
























Then we headed to the park to play for awhile. Griffin even sang an assortment of songs for his swing buddy (a mix of God's Not Dead and "windows down cruz" to show we like to keep people guessing). Then we ate some super yummy food at Madison Square and discovered that Griffin Pate liked wings. Then griffin and I napped in the car while the boys played some disc golf. After that we headed to the hotel and swam. Their pool was as warm as bath water! Griffin did really well in the pool, and loved being with the boys playing ball and racing. Then we grabbed some Mexican and did a bit of shopping at TJ Maxx.























Sunday we walked around campus some, then went to church with Uncle Shelly. Griffin sang during worship and it was the most precious thing I have ever heard. Then we headed home.















It was a fabulous weekend and was a great mini getaway for us. I love our family!


- Mrs.Pate via my iPhone