Fall Colors

As much as I miss being in the Upper Peninsula for the fall colors (nothing beats it) we did have a fairly good show in our backyard!






Mike did a great job capturing the sunlight coming through this tree.




All the fallen leaves gave us a great opportunity to shoot some fun photos!








He loved the rake (and no I did not rake the yard - I am not a glutton for punishment - I just had to make a fun pile to play in)


This is quite possibly my favorite picture to date. This face epitomizes his personality - life is silly and fun!





******WARNING******
The Following Picture is not for the Faint of Heart

Proceed at you own Risk








Welcome to the SNOT rockets B has been having for the last THREE weeks! He has been on antibiotics for almost a week and his sinus/ear infection seems to be improving but his sneezes are capable of producing amazing amounts of mucous!!! EWWWWW!!!!!

Fall time fun

Fall is definitely here with 40 degree nights and crisp winds - it's my favorite season. Over-sized sweaters, hats and scarves, taking a walk through colorful fallen leaves and returning to a warmed home are the best. Not to mention that it's the beginning of great treats like chili, soup and hot cocoa (I just had a grilled ham and cheese sandwich that was so much more satisfying than on a 90degree summer day). This year we decided to take a trip to Robinette's for an afternoon hayride and wine tasting. We went with our usual gang and then headed to Val and RJ's new home for dinner.


Robinette's Apple Haus & Gift Barn
Saturday, October 4th

Two Belgian draft horses pulled our trailer - man, their heads are huge (and their teeth)!! I was a little intimidated standing next to them!


B was in a cuddling mode


He wasn't afraid to touch the horses though!


B and B waiting in line for the hayride


The six pack (plus Kris - actually, an original member!)


There were 2-3 trailers being pulled at any given time and this group pulled over to let us by. We went thought the apple and peach orchards and then doubled back. It was probably a 20min ride and it felt great to be outside with the smells of autumn.


RJ and B waiting in line for doughnuts and cider. B fits perfectly in RJ's arm.


Bridget and Andy


We're really happy here because mom shared a few small nibbles of a doughnut with B! After the first taste, he was leaning forward with his mouth wide open for more! I had to be quick and finish my piece so I could show him it was "all gone!"


The wine tasting...$3 to sample 6 flavors - some were oh so delicious (I bought two bottles of the Demi-Sec) and some were a bit powerful (like the apple dessert wine with brandy - wow!)

After Robinette's we went to have dinner at Val and Rj's new home and as usual we had tons of fun and laughed until our sides hurt. I really cherish our times with our friends - we seem to always have a blast and the is no drama!


Bennett's New Tricks

While watching his "reading" videos he likes to turn the television on and off. He knows which button to push and doesn't bother with the others. Just on, off, on, off...


He also likes to climb along the banister which scares me every time to the point of nightmares of B falling through the railings to the basement stairs below.


I don't want to impede his freedom but I don't want him to be tragically hurt either so a couple of days ago we put a "fence" around the railings (plastic coated chicken wire. We couldn't think of anything else - short of a new banister- and now B ignores it completely giving us great peace of mind).


Climbing on me while I do some dishes

Teeth!!

We noticed B's first tooth on Sept 30th! It was discovered accidentally while I was babbling B's lips - he grabbed my finger, put it in his mouth and I felt a poke! There it was! This is an unsuccessful attempt at taking a photo of his tooth.


Monday Oct 6th, B came home early from daycare because he was unusually fussy - he popped a second tooth! We got a picture this time by using food to open his mouth!

A zoom-in of the above picture. It's difficult to see but there are two teeth on the bottom!

I Can Feed Myself



"I conquered you!" This poor bowl suffered the wrath of Bennett




Unfortunately the Chicken and the Squash were both fatally injured in the making of these photos.




Breath Right

Ben had his first cold - runny nose, sneezes and nasal congestion. Since medicine is pretty much off limits at this age, we were willing to try anything that might help B sleep. Enter, the Breath Right strip for kids.


The breath right strip was a real life-saver when I was pregnant and couldn't breath through my nose at night - and it seemed to work well for B too. We also had a plug-in herbal vaporizer (lavender, eucalyptus, chamomile...) and the baby Vick's vapor rub. His room smelled like a hippie-shop.


But, he was finally able to drink a bottle without stopping every 2-3 sucks to breathe.
Now he is doing much better, no more runny nose...but he seems to be in the habit of waking at 3am....actually right now, at 2:43am, I can hear him...naughty boy! He's not standing up (yet), he's just talking so we'll see if he can manage to put himself back to sleep.

Getting Stronger

This table has the perfect handles for little hands to pull up on




"You're going to ruin your eyes!..." Can he be any closer? He is watching his colors/numbers video but once he's up on the cabinet he has a difficult time getting back down.


Mike just may be oblivious to the fact that B should be learning the color red...he probably believes B is beginning a genetically-linked lifetime obsession with Ferrari.


Tearing apart a catalog

A Visit from Nana



He was quite snuggly


Ben frequently and yet gently taps his head on ours - we interpret this as an "I Love You" bonk.

Hot September Days

This day was gorgeous! We had to be outside and yet the sun was so intense! I found an umbrella that clamps onto a chair and tightened it onto B's walker -roo.


"Where did the sun go, mom?" He was fascinated with the umbrella.


What a boy!



Lake Michigan, Grand Haven

We went to Grand Haven to see Lake Michigan for the first time this year! It was a perfect beach day and Mike, B, Morgan and I enjoyed the warm weather. Bennett loved the water. It initially felt cool but we quickly adjusted and I wished I had my suit on to go swimming. Slowly Ben's clothes came off as he wanted more and more to go in the water. I was surprised that he tolerated the temperature as well as he did. He liked to splash and feel the sand under the water. Squeezing the wet sand was great fun too! We walked along the shoreline and then trudged through the sand up to the pier. After a stroll on the boardwalk we headed home.

Well, that's how we spent the last few days that I had off from work. I also went to Bridget's for dinner and a movie (I can't believe we hadn't seen each other in 2 months! That seems impossible we are that busy but it's true). I work the next three nights and then have the weekend off. Hopefully we'll make it up to Robinette's for a hay ride with the gang!

P.S. B is still awake, talking, yelling, laughing and playing with his glow-worm. He is really building a good memory - for each of his toys he knows exactly which button to press - and with his little pointer finger extended (usually his left hand) he presses the glow-worm's belly to turn her on!

Coffee Anyone??

Too much time at work?? I swear we are hard workers. Tonight I had my first cup of coffee. I'm not talking about my first cup for the night, this is my first cup ever! Yes, I have tasted coffe before - I have never cared for coffee ice cream or coffe jelly bellys - but tonight, Maryrose had Almond Chocolate Fudge creamer and - Yum! - it smelled so delicious I had to try it. Which led to another try and then lead to me making my own cup...before I knew it, the cup was tipped up as high as it could go with me ravenously slurping and the edge of the cu pto get every last drop...!...I am quite giggly now (is it legal to drive now?) and my belly is tingly. Wow. People at work are laughing at me. Am I naive? This is great. Who needs wine. Me. Ha! This message has been puncuated by random spurts of laughter. This could be terrible. I ahve no idea how many calories are in that cup....will this lead to the blasted Starbucks epidemic with me gaining 5lbs each year from seemingly mysterious calorie intake and and slow yet steady decrease in my bank balance? I think not. But it has been fun so far!!!

The blessed creamer. Mmmmmm.

A regular coffee drinker (there may be something else going on here...)