Getting Into It

Jake and Payton both had a great time with Halloween this year. From carving pumpkins to trick-or-treating, they both had fun dressing up and enjoyed the day. We hope everyone had a Happy Halloween!

Wait for it..........

Sooner or later the rain is going to start and never stop. Or at least not until spring. We welcome the breaks that we keep getting in between rain showers. If we look outside and see the rain has stopped, or even looks like it might stop, we drop everything to put on coats and shoes as fast as we can and go out. This weekend we had an entire afternoon without rain so we spent a good long time at the park. We'll enjoy every last bit of dry weather we can get.

Step to It

Payton's been practicing her cruising skills for a while and has great balance when she stands without holding on to anything. But she hasn't been interested in trying to take steps on her own.......until Friday. She took three steps, promptly sat down and started crawling again. She hasn't done it since. She's more than happy to crawl around or cruise the furniture and toys because she's fast at it. Forget this walking thing.

The Chair

Do you see this chair? This chair is a single representation of all the differences between Jake and Payton. At 14 months, Jake would sit in his booster at the table with us and eat using utensils. And then there's Payton. Now granted my sweet baby girl is only 13 months, and could make major strides in table etiquette in the coming 30 days. But I think not. Payton, too sits in her booster at the table with us for meals. And the similarities don't end there. She also uses her utensils. But not for eating. Nope. She'd rather see how far she can fling her sweet potatoes. And when they make that splat sound as they hit the window or wall, it's downright hilarious in her book. She also delights in seeing how much milk she can pour out of her cup before anyone notices, and waits just long enough for someone to see that she's going to dump her plate on the floor before she actually does it. Our mealtimes are filled with "Payton, you didn't" and "No Payton, no"! And she delights in her antics. We can't help but laugh because she thinks it's so darn funny, too.

Pumpkin Carvin'

Carving pumpkins was quite a process at our house this year (a multi-step process that took multiple weekends to complete, mind you). Jake had his plan all laid out and was meticulous in carrying it out as long as he didn't have to touch the "goo". Payton, on the other hand, was more than happy to touch the goo, eat the goo, fling the goo, and cry when we had to be done with the goo.

First up was painting the pumpkin. We've done this in years past when Jake was too young to appreciate the time intensiveness of carving pumpkins (how's that for a cop out!). This year he wanted to carve his painted pumpkin, too. So next up was drawing the face he wanted on his pumpkin, which Dad helped carve out. He was happy with his creation, and even more happy he didn't get one single iota of pumpkin guts on himself. He was totally freaked out when Jason and I pretended to eat the goo, and had to capture the moment in a picture for himself.

Party Pics

Here are a few more pictures from Payton's birthday. This park is really cool. It doesn't have traditional park toys. Instead it has lots of things that spin and twirl much to the delight of the kids (and to the chagrin to the green faced and dizzy adults!). It's also right on the water, so there's a spot to throw rocks in when it's not high tide. A true kid's playground all the way around!

Pancakes

Today was the annual pancake breakfast and fire truck rides at the local fire department. We've been going since Jake was 1 and we look forward to it every October.

Payton loves shiny things. We're in trouble!

Goofy kids.

Two of a kind.

So, I'm not really sure what Jake was doing in this picture. It kind of looks like he needs to make a mad dash to the bathroom. And Payton was dead set on getting that fire hat off his head. But hey, it's a picture of three of us. And since Jason and I haven't had a picture together in probably 5 years it's about as many of us at any one time that we'll get. And as a bonus, no one was picking their nose, turning away from the camera or crying. A success in my book.

Pumpkins

We go to the pumpkin patch every year after the pancake breakfast and fire truck rides. It's a blast! We spend a fair amount of time trekking through the pumpkins, weaving through the hay maze and riding on the very rickety old trailer pulled by an even scarier looking tractor. Here are some of our favorite moments from the pumpkin patch. (An editorial note: Sorry for the utter lack of pictures with Jason. It's not that we don't love him. We do. Immensely. It's just that he had the camera today and gets credit for all of the great pictures!)

P is for.....

Party. Or specifically Payton's party. I will move right on to the fact that we had a great time at the park to celebrate Payton's birthday and try to forget that our baby girl is already one. Otherwise I might get all teary-eyed and such.


We had fun making butterfly cupcakes, which Payton thoroughly enjoyed.



The party crew. This is at the beginning, before the kids were practically asleep on their feet from hours (and I do mean hours) of non-stop running and playing.


We took tons of pictures (lest we not capture one single second of the momentous occasion) so more pictures to come............