Pumpkin Patch

Last Saturday we bundled up and headed out to our favorite pumpkin patch. Despite the gray and gloomy weather, we enjoyed the Haunted Forest, corn maze, hay ride and games. They were almost completely sold out of pumpkins so we wound up buying just one pretty green one. Next year we'll be sure to head out there earlier in the season!

Rob, Haley and Jake "lost" in the maze.

I spy a little pumpkin!

Jake takes in the view from the hay truck.

Ooh! So spooky!

Ghosts and goblins beware - Jake is not afraid of you.

Haley pulls Jake and our pumpkin to the car.

Fall Pictures

Today we headed out to one of our favorite parks to take some pictures...I didn't get the perfect shot of all 3 kids together as I was hoping, but we had fun anyway. Tomorrow we head to the pumpkin patch - I LOVE pumpkin/children pictures so be ready for the photo onslaught!

Friendimony

Our very good friends, the Barnes', came to visit last weekend on a spur-of-the-moment trip to Minnesota to visit family. It had been over 2 years since we'd last seen them, but we all just picked up where we'd left off. The kids disappeared and would have played for days, and we stayed up later than we should have talking and catching up. We love you, Barnes family!

The girls - Morgan, Haley, and Abbie. Haley and Morgan have been friends since they were just a few months old.

They were excited about the "sleep-over"...and did eventually sleep.

Abbie...

April and Dave, and Alex.

MinneSOtah...and MingMing too!

Last weekend was scheduled to be our annual Minnesota Renaissance Festival weekend. Rob's sister Katie and cousin Melissa were flying in to meet us at Minneapolis and we took advantage of Haley having a half day of school to leave early on Friday. Jake woke us up at 4:45 that morning because he was so excited, and we were on the road by 6:30. I don't know if it was the early rising or not, but Jake and Alex had a full-blown cold by the end of the day.

When we woke up the next morning and saw that it was rainy and cold, we decided to skip the Ren Faire and keep the kids dry and warm instead. We spent the morning at Ikea and the afternoon and evening at the Mall of America (or "Mall-a-ca-merica" as Jake calls it). The kids were able to ride rides to their hearts' content, and Rob and I enjoyed some shopping. Haley also got to spend her hard-earned and long-saved allowance at the American Girl store; she was literally skipping with happiness. Although we were sad to not spend the day with Katie and Melissa, they did join us for dinner and some of the rides that night. Next year we'll be sure to go earlier in the season!

I see so much Breckon in him in this picture.
We got lots of comments from people with Alex and Samantha in the stroller like this.

This is Rob and the kids on the log ride...

We were excited to see MingMing from the Wonder Pets show - I love how Jake was peeking around the corner at her.

Jake was just barely too short to go on some of the bigger-kids rides. He is now making quite an effort to eat his vegetables so he can ride the bumper cars next time.

Summer's End

Autumn has come and gone - we are expecting our first snowfall on Saturday! Hopefully it will melt quickly and we'll be able to visit the pumpkin patch without our snowsuits on. Here are some random pictures from the last few months.

Firsts

Haley's new teacher sent home a poem about how first graders are different from kindergartners in that they are no longer in between the baby years and school years; they are officially Big Kids. Haley was 4 months old when we moved here, and last week she started FIRST GRADE! She was a little bit nervous because the move to our new house last spring meant she had to change schools, but she has adjusted very quickly, has a great teacher, and has made a lot of new friends already. Haley has accomplished so many things in the past few months that fully qualify her for Big Kid status:

The kids both got new bikes at the beginning of the summer, and although we kept meaning to take the training wheels off of Haley's, we just never got around to it. A few weeks ago she decided she was ready to give it a try so Rob took them off while I was on a walk with Jake and Alex. On my way home through the park I saw them riding toward me and I didn't realize at first that her training wheels were off. She was riding like a pro from the first and hasn't looked back since. I was so amazed! This video was taken the night we took her training wheels off:


The morning after her training wheels came off, Haley said, "Hey Mom, watch me tie my shoes!" And she proceeded to tie perfect bows on her tennis shoes. Once again I was amazed. I much prefer velcro to laces when we're not in snow boot or flip-flop season and we hadn't pushed that skill on her very much. But Rob had reminded her how to do it and she picked it up right away this time. I'm sure many school teachers are happy when kids conquer this milestone!

Haley has always liked baby dolls and princess dolls and Polly Pockets, but she has recently become obsessed with the American Girl Doll collection. I gave her my Samantha doll from when I was little and she's had fun shopping for her when we go to Chicago or Minneapolis. But until recently I'd always recycled the catalogs that came from them without her notice. Not any longer...she pages through them over and over, reading the descriptions of each item, and making and re-making lists of her favorite items. Chrissa's birthday picnic table or Chrissa's craft table? Rebecca's bed or Kit's? Molly's Christmas dress or Felicity's Tea Lesson gown? The possibilities are endless and agonizing and wonderful, especially to a 6-year-old.

Anyone who has glanced through an American Girl Doll catalog lately knows it's not an inexpensive collection. As much as we'd love to provide our darling daughter with everything she desires, it's just not feasible nor do we think it would be good for her. So we decided she could start earning an allowance by helping out with more chores, and she could save up for those pricey doll items. So far so good...

Lastly, I'm remembering when Haley was tiny and so reluctant to try anything new or exciting (she was terrified of most of the rides at Disneyland at 2 1/2). So I'm still sort of incredulous at what a bold little monkey she's become. This girl will climb ANYTHING. We've had a long-standing rule that she's only allowed to climb as high as she's comfortable getting down from herself, and I don't remember the last time she got stuck somewhere. She scales walls, fences, ropes, swing sets, lamp posts, basketball hoops...often before I notice and run over to scold her for climbing without a spotter. We recently went over to the local climbing wall and I have a feeling we'll be spending a lot of time there this winter. The video below is of one of her favorite climbing feats.

We love you, our Big Kid Haley, and hope you will always continue to astonish us, work hard, and keep climbing for the stars.

Above: Haley on the porch on the first day of school; taking a flying leap at the park. Below: Haley at gymnastics this summer.

Trip on a Whim - Seattle '09

"It's a funny thing about coming home. Looks the same, smells the same, feels the same. You realize what's changed is you."

-From The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

A few weeks ago I was on the phone with my mom when she mentioned that my sister and her family would be visiting Seattle that weekend, which meant that everyone would be together - except for us. After hanging up, I turned to Rob and said, "If we left on Wednesday, we could be there by Friday...wouldn't that be a fun surprise?" I'm not sure that "fun" is the word that immediately came to his mind, but after pondering it for a day - and after trading in our Subaru for a minivan - we decided to go.

It was a mad scramble to get everything ready and we couldn't decide if we were fun and adventurous or just plain crazy (Alex was only 2 weeks old, after all). But thanks to the DVD player in the van and a leisurely schedule, we all enjoyed the drive. We also really enjoyed surprising everyone when they found out we were coming. It was wonderful to catch up with everyone, watch the cousins play together, and introduce Alex to the family. We avoided all of the crowded SeaFair activities and enjoyed lots of good food and conversation instead. Of course we wanted to stay longer, but were grateful for the time we did get to spend with everyone. (Remember, you're all welcome to come out HERE anytime!!!)

I had a favorite book when I was a little girl called The City Mouse and the Country Mouse, of which I'm reminded whenever we visit a big city. I could wax poetic about the beauty of Seattle for pages and pages - the velvety green hills, sparkling lakes, stunning glimpses of The Mountain - but I will spare you. On this trip, although I was still head-over-hills in love with my beloved Emerald City, I found myself noticing some of the drawbacks as well. I kept asking myself (and Rob), "Were there always this many people here before? Where are they all going? And in such a big hurry? Can there really be a large enough population to support this many stores?" After a few days of such ponderings I realized I sounded exactly like the "country mouse" from my childhood book. It was humbling, and I came home feeling so grateful for the life we have built here in our small town on the prairie. Sure it's cold, and we wish we could have our family close by. I do a lot of my shopping online and we have to be creative about finding things to do. But the kids can still ride their bikes around town, the commute is a dream, and we know half the crowd when we go to the Saturday Farmer's Market.

I was full of dread when we moved here six years ago this month. I was leaving everything familiar behind and Rob knew what a big sacrifice and leap of faith it was for me. We turned north from Fargo at around 9:00 pm after three days of driving, and were stunned by the beauty of the surrounding fields at sunset. Everything was soft and glowing and peaceful. We will both always remember the moment when I turned to him and said, "It's so beautiful." Rob very rarely cries, but his eyes filled with tears to know that maybe we could be happy here after all. I may always be a city girl at heart, but I have changed, and maybe being a bit of a country mouse isn't so bad after all.

One (wonderful, busy, fun, sleep-deprived) Month

I've been meaning to get around to this post for a week now...I just can't ever seem to make myself put Alex down in order to do it. I could stare at him for hours - and sometimes do, to the detriment of my housework and blog.

Now one month old, Alex is finally outgrowing his preemie-sized clothes and is noticeably filling out. He still likes to be swaddled and snuggled and eats ALL the time. He does not like baths or loud noises or being cold. He's awake for longer periods of time now and I'm trying like crazy to get him to smile at me. Although he's had some fussy periods (no more chocolate or Diet Pepsi for mom), he's hanging on to his Mr. Mellow title. Watch for millions of "Alex-is-smiling" pictures coming (hopefully) soon!

I love these wraps that the hospitals use now.

Peanut with his dad.

This is how the kids stayed entertained in the hospital room - watching movies on Rob's laptop.

Coming home from the hospital - his "going home" outfit I'd gotten him was so big on him.

A tradition in our home - the first jam session with Daddy.

Such a snuggle bug!

Not warm enough to swim, but always warm enough for popsicles.

Like all siblings everywhere, Jake has to try out the bouncy seat.

He also decided one day he wanted to wear one of Alex's outfits, and I thought for a minute and then said, "why not?" This is what a 0-3 month outfit looks like on a 3-year-old... "Loohk aht my muh-scles!"Conked out after his bath - those really wear him out.

Shortly after Alex and I got home from the hospital, Rob's parents flew up to spend a week with us. Haley and Jake loved the extra playmates, and Rob and I thoroughly appreciated the help with dishes, laundry, cooking, and holding baby. Haley even planned a "tea party birthday" for Grandma - right down to the decorations and Sweet Zucchini Cupcakes. It was a fun week and we're so glad they were able to come!