Pumpkin Patch Round One!!!

I can't believe it's "pumpkin season" again! We went to the Pumpkin Patch with Mimi and Grandpa the other day! Sorry I didn't get more pics of Connor, but he was not being cooperative in terms of posing! They had a petting zoo and rides, and Connor was NOT into sitting and posing for a picture of any sort! ;) We had fun, and got some beautifully colored pumpkins. I love the new pumpkins and gourds they are growing these days--warty, brilliantly colored, and striped...so much fun! We got quite a few to decorate with. I think we'll go to the other Pumpkin Farm this Sunday, as the weather is supposed to be sunny and in the low 60's...perfect pumpkin weather! Much better than last year--when it was 91 degrees and we literally BAKED in the sun!

Brooke had her 6 month check-up on Monday. She is now 16lbs. 13oz. (70%) and 26 inches (50%)...she's definitely our little chub! :) You should SEE these thighs...talk about ham bones! Ha! We love it! Connor had his 3yo check up a couple of weeks ago and is pretty much in the 25-30% for height and weight, so I'm enjoying this chub while it lasts!

Here are some pics from Sunday at the Patch...hopefully Mr. Connor is more cooperative this Sunday so I can get some sweet pictures of him!!!





Connor and his Mimi (we had to bribe him to get him to sit here!)



And, Brookie with Mimi!



She loved those gourds...yummy! ;)

A Few Cute Pics.....

I'm sorry--I'm over the top with posts these days! I have this new camera, and I'm having so much fun playing with it! Only, I turned off red-eye reduction, and I have an old vs. of photoshop that is too annoying to do anything with...so excuse the glaring red eyes!! ;) Brooke is sitting up by herself (until she goes kerplunk :), and is starting to crawl. She goes a couple of "steps", and constantly rocks back and fourth in the crawling position. A few more days and she'll probably be all over the house!!! Uh-oh, time to start picking up all those little toys Connor constantly leaves around the house! :)

I'll have a little "dress-up" with that, please....

The other day I was making a spinach salad. Connor was eyeing it, so I asked him if he wanted a bite. Crazily enough (the kid is not a fan of veggies--I'm always trying to "hide" them in food he likes), he took a couple of bites and LIKED IT!!! I said "Connor, would you like me to make you your own salad?" He replied, "Yes Mommy, with "dress-up" on it, please! :)

She's a Walkin' Fool...(Move over, Exersaucer)!! :)

Okay, so she's not *quite* walking, yet....without the help of her little friend, the walker! :) Grandma and Grandpa found this at a yard sale a couple of years ago, and yes, my friends, it's an old school walker. Despite all of the warnings and recalls, Ms. Brooke looooves this thing! It gives her a new sense of freedom and independence.

For the record, we are very careful when she's out and about--keeping doors shut, gates up, etc., and, you must watch your ankles when she's on the move. I've been slammed right in the ankle bone a handful of times now....not so pleasant! But, I loooove the walker, too, as it gives me a whole new sense of freedom and independence! (I say this while Ms. Brookie-pie sleeps in the ergo carrier against my chest as I type)! Ha!

Fall is in the Air!!!!!!!!!!!!

Oh my goodness, what a glorious day!!! (And happy birthday to Papa on this glorious day, by the way! :)

The kiddos and I went for a walk and soaked up the sunshine and the crisp autumn air...bright blue skies and perfect 70 degree temperatures....ahhhh!!! I love fall!

PagWag and Weezie (r.i.p. little weezie :)

Nana and Papa gave Connor a check for his birthday, and I promised him we could go to the toy store after his doctor's appointment on Tuesday. While in the waiting room, Connor was (as always) sooo entertained by the aquarium fish. He gets such joy out of watching those fish, that he *almost* forgets where he is....*almost*. :)
As we were leaving the doctor's office, and he was begging once again to stop and see those "fishies", I was struck with the idea to forego the toy store, and go to the pet store instead!

Some of you might remember our devestating story of the goldfish we tried to get for Connor's 2nd birthday that died an untimely death due to a "tap-water" incident...sorry little fish! And, the fish that I had in my room when I was three who I thought might want to try some of my "snoopy snow cone" juice...apparently "Chulie" and o.j. didn't mix. So yeah, our track record with fish hasn't been the best...so this time, I made sure we did everything right, or by the "goldfish" book!

Connor picked out two little fishies...both orange, and small. The fish cost $.49 each, and our total bill at check-out was $27.00, so really, I tried to get everything possible to keep these fishies kickin! He was sooo excited, and fondly named his fish "PagWag" and "Weezie"....I totally don't know where he ever came up with these names, but I think they are pretty hysterical! We got their bowl all set...I added BOTTLED water, pretty rocks, the little fake plant, and even special drops to help *de-stress* the fish (yep, those $.49 fish sure do require a lot of pricey accomdations :). And, so swam PagWag and Weezie...happily residing in there new little aquatic habitat.

Until the next morning. Tommy was carrying something in a spoon over to the toilet. Dear, sweet Weezie. He bit the dust, bless his little heart. So, PagWag was left to swim in his little bowl all by himself, and Mommy was left to explain to Connor what happened to his beloved fishy. Thank the good Lord for short attention spans, and lack of complete comprehension! I explained to Connor that "Weezie went to be with Jesus in heaven, so now there would only be one fish in his bowl". He was completely unaffected, and was just as excited to see PagWag! Now he spends his days creating play-doh sculptures of the departed Weezie, who went to be with Jesus in heaven! ;)

I'd take a picture, but the bowl is all cloudy already. I forgot why I don't like little pets...one more thing to maintain!! It was all my idea, though, so I can't complain about a thing! Ha! :)

Our "Baby" Boy is THREE!

My Connor. Words can't even describe how tremendously you have blessed our lives. I remember the first time I saw your beautiful little form. I was in the OB's office--my very first prenatal appointment. I was 10 weeks pregnant, and still trying to grasp the reality of it all. Our doctor was talking to me about my job, which led to her telling me about her artistic daughter, etc., etc.,...she dimmed the lights and began the ultrasound procedure...and all of the sudden, everything in the entire world stopped. There you were, on that little computer screen, dancing around in my belly. Your tiny little arms were moving, and your little legs were going. I had never seen anything so amazing or cool in my life. We counted your limbs, and looked at your tiny little heart beating away, and right at that very moment, you stole MY heart forever. Those 10 minutes of "meeting" you for the first time are minutes that I will never, ever forget.

Daddy and I have learned so much from you, precious boy. We were sooo clueless when you were born! Petrified to clip your tiny finger nails, and nervous to give you your first bath. But, we did those things, and many, many more things, until they became second nature! Of course, sending you off into the surgery ward when you were exactly three months old taught us one of the hardest lessons a parent can learn...that no matter how much we try to control everything that happens to you, and protect you from the scary things in this world, ultimately, we are not the ones in control. We have been given a gift, a precious, beautiful, and wonderful gift. We are reminded of this each and every day, and each and every night, we give you back to the One who made you, as we ask Him to bless your every step. We are so very thankful that God created YOU to be a part of OUR family, little Buggy. Happy, happy third birthday. We love you more than words can say, precious boy.

Cute Pic!

My friend Steph posted this on her blog this week, and I have to steal it since it's such a cute pic!! This is Connor and his friend Sophie (who belongs to Steph) at the "Great Picnic" which happened two weeks ago. It was crazy--over 2,000 people in our downtown. They blocked off Broadway and set up tables--every table had a theme...well, except ours! Ha! ;) It was still very pretty, though, and we had a great time!

Pool Time!

We've been having so much fun at the pool this summer! Anna and Brad were in town this weekend, and while the boys golfed, the girls and kids hung out by the pool. Here are some pictures that come November, we'll be drooling over! :)


The kiddos sure do looove their Auntie Anna!


Anna taught Connor how to swim with his speedo jacket on...he was so proud of himself!









Connor and his favorite friend, Brad! ;)


Brookie and Grandpa after lunch on the patio...silly camera is going crazy again--counting down the days till my b-day so I can get a new one!


Mimi and Brooke


Steph and Sophie

Sweet Baby Ben!

Here are a couple pics of my dear friend Lyndsay's sweet baby Ben! They were in town this weekend, and it was wonderful to see them! Ben is absolutely precious...as you can see from the pics!

I think I am OCD (slightly).....

I have major issues with obsessive compulsion....and I'm a bit of a hypo-chondriac. All my good friends and family know this about me, and most of them laugh with me, not at me (cause I'm not laughing)...well, sort of laughing, maybe. Anyway, lately I've been afraid of spiders--brown recluse spiders, to be exact. I'm pretty darn sure that I have seen them in my house, and in my parents house. I went to throw a load of laundry in the other day, and a very suspicious looking specimen scurried out of a dirty towel...I did the only thing I knew to do--grabbed the dustbuster and suctioned the darn thing up. I left the suction on for a long time, and then put it back into the charger--sincerely hoping that the hole is now plugged. This, my friends, was two days ago. I am petrified to check and see what kind of spider is looming in that dustbuster. I need to dump the contents and see if this little guy has the identifiable "violin" pattern on it's torso, or thorax, or whatever it's called in "bug lingo"...but I can't.

If I find that this is, in fact, a brown recluse, I will never, and I mean NEVER sleep again. My children won't either because I will be too scared to let them into their beds--one of the most common ways to get bitten is by rolling over on a spider in bed! So, the spider sits in the dustbuster, and then I don't have to freak out and know for sure. I was forced to stop googling "brown recluse spiders" and "brown recluse spider findings in our town (which, by the way, didn't turn up any relevant information), by my dear husband tonight, who lovingly called me "crazy"...but mind you this was only seconds after he calmly asked me to grab a tissue and turn on the light. He was tracking a spider who somehow scurried away--I adamantly asked if it was a brown recluse he had seen...he didn't even respond to that one! And, to add insult to injury, I was getting a relaxing foot massage right before that dumb spider sauntered into our living room.

So, now I'm waiting to go to bed and praying that I won't dream about these silly spiders. These brown recluse spiders that I've never even heard of being spotted in this part of the state. But, if there's one to be found, believe you me, I'll be the one to find it! See, I told you all, I'm a little OCD....yikes! ;)

We're back!!!!!!!!!!

We had another fabulous vacation up in Michigan these past two weeks! Aside from the excruciatingly long car ride up (the usual 7 hour trip somehow became a 12 hour marathon adventure, with a hysterical baby, tired kiddo, and very spent mommy and mimi), it was just perfect!

We had so much fun with Auntie Lynne and Auntie Teah the first week! It was so wonderful to catch up and just to relax and enjoy being together! Poor Connor was the only male for many days, though, and after awhile the testosterone began to build up in his little system. When the cable guy came to the cottage on Thursday afternoon to make a simple sales call, he had no idea what he was in for! Connor instantly caught wind of another male on the premises and was on him like one of those biting black flies we were dealing with the entire vacation. It was pretty hilarious, actually! :) I don't think the guy knew quite what to make of Connor asking him to look at every toy he could find in the 2 minute time span he stood at the door!

By the time Daddy and Grandpa got in on Saturday, Connor was ready to do some fishing! They had so much fun down at the dock fishing for hours and hours, they caught many perch (or "porch") as Connor so fondly refers to them, and also quite a few "stupid sunfish", as Grandpa not so fondly refers to them! :) A large pike loomed in the shallow water by the dock, and although he did finally bite the line, he snapped it instantly and got away with a poor little "porch" used for bait. I'm quite sure he swam away with a full belly thinking "suckers" as he barely had to work for that breakfast! ;)

Brookie had her first taste of cereal, and began rolling like a champ! She is almost crawling at this point...YIKES!!! I don't think I'm ready for all of that, yet. All in all it was an awesome trip, and we can't wait to go again next year. Now, for your viewing enjoyment, a whole schlew of pictures....... :)

See Ya Later.....Alligator(s)!!!! :)

We're leaving tomorrow for two glorious weeks of vacation at the cottage in Michigan! Yay! We're leaving Tommy at home the first week (poor Daddy has to stay here and work..yuck! :( But we'll all be up together for week number two! Teah and Lynne are coming up this week though, and that will be sooo much fun! We're really excited...now, I just have to PACK...ugh! Who knew that packing for a family of four (well, really three, since Tommy will pack for himself) could be so difficult? Eye, yey, yey! I'm putting it off by sitting here on the computer...but I'd better get to it. The good thing is, even if I forget something Tommy and Grandpa could bring it up later in the week...that's a little reassuring.

Because we're leaving Daddy at home, we got him a little present to keep him entertained. It's called a rip stick (click on the word, to see a pic) and Michael (Tommy's brother) and his kids have them. Tommy is like a teenager riding this thing, so we figure this will help him stay entertained at night with no Connor here to say "play with me Daddy!" "No, on the FLOOR, Daddy!" We just hope he stays sane and doesn't hurt himself too badly! :) Yikes!!!!

Hopefully we'll be able to post a couple of times from up North....yay!!!!

Here are a couple of pics of Brooke and Grandma to leave you with! ;)

Brookie Stats!

Brookie had her 4 month apt. today! She's growing really well--14.6 lbs. (50-75%), 25.25 inches (50-75%), and her head is actually only in the 25-50%, so she's definitely not taking after her big brother in that area! Ha! The doctor said she's just "perfect" and was really impressed at what a happy, alert, and strong little girl she is!!!! We love our Brookie-pie! :)