Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! Since we're on the road, no pictures this time, but next time, I might have one or two (I've been seriously slackin') in the photog department!

Hope you're stuffed full of Turkey and all the trimmins (mmm, stuffing...)

I can't believe that I'm saying this, but tomorrow I'll be up early, shopping Black Friday sales (at IKEA). The only time I've ever been in or near a shopping establishment on Black Friday was when I worked in the mall. The thought of those lines and crowds ain't pleasin', but it should be fun - I'm going with 2p (Black Friday was the only day we could get together!) and we'll be kid-free for the day. That should be odd. :)

Anyway, wish me luck! And to all, a good night! :)

Our Little Leify

Our Little Leify:

:: he calls the Oriole on his baseball cap a "woodpacker" which makes me laugh every time.

:: has taken to chasing butterflies, giggling as he tries to grab them.

:: loves to vacuum, dust with his little duster, and do dishes - May the love of chores last forever!

:: asks our neighbor who is going through chemo, "How are you feeling?" without being prompted. He answers, "I'm fine, thanks" when asked how he is doing. And when introduced to our neighbor's family, he says, "Pleasure to meet you," and as we leave, he calls back to the neighbor, "I love you!" and I'm pretty sure that would make most anyone's day!

:: He says: "Daddy's the Big Man, I'm the Little Man, and you're," pointing at his Momma, "the Woman!"

:: he has suddenly discovered Crayons (wasn't much in to them before), but seems to think they're single-use items. He used a whole box (64 crayons!) to create a birthday card for cousin Izzy, but now refuses to use them, saying, "they're old. I need new ones."

:: If he had to make a list of his favorite things to do, Playing Outside, Biking, and Going for Walks would be his top three while Eating and Sleeping would come in dead last.

:: But most of all, he loves his Daddy, and being in his arms is by far his favorite thing to do!

Random Thoughts

Leif holding the binoculars ('noculars!) while looking at the sights from our family room.

A few random thoughts:

: Grandmom and Granddad left on Saturday, and we were very sad they left. It was a lovely visit, though, with beautiful weather, good food, and lots of fun. Luckily, we'll get to see them in a few weeks, along with the rest of the clan, when we go up North for Turkey.

: My house is looking all cozy and clean, and the stormy weather outside is only amplifying the coziness of our little home. Don't you just love when your home feels particularly homey, as if it is just welcoming you to come sit, drink some hot tea, and read a good book? I love it. I tried to take a picture so you could see, but the light is too low (it has been very dark here all day due to stormy skies (Ida!) so this is the best I could come up with:

Blur central, but it really does look lovely in real life.

: We had a fun, impromtu visit from Nana today. She brought us groceries from civilization, so now we don't need to go until next week! :) She also brought me some things I'd been needing from Whole Foods, from when she'd been down that way last week. Sometimes, my life really does sound way too pioneerish! But it was a nice visit. She helped me take care of the dishes that had been piling up (I've had a stomach virus or something icky for two days straight, and spent a good part of those two days being lazy because that was all I could be!). The two of us made quick work of the kitchen and then sat down with tea to watch the rain come down (and listen to it as it hit the metal roof!) It was a wonderful part of the day to have my Momma come and visit!

: I've been noticing in the past 6 months or so, that I am beginning to lose my "Mommy Brain" - meaning that I think some brain cells have grown back and I am at last able to contemplate things more complex than dinner, diapers, and babybabybaby! I thought I would never again have any thoughts more complex than that (as they seem rather complex with Mommy Brain) but voila! here I am. I've been reading - a real novel - not just magazines (Thanks, Mads, for the inspiration!) I finished up a 4-500 pager in about 3 days, and I was totally enamored. I had read the book before, but this time, I understood it more, even though I had nothing more to grasp it with than I had last time I read it. I thought deeper thoughts - I went beyond the storyline and into philosophical issues. What a shock - I haven't done that since Grad School! It was pleasant to have a bit of the "old me" back, I must admit. I've even did some research beyond the novel, and have been trying to teach myself a little bit of Ojibwe, which is rather funny. Anyway, it has spurned me on to try to read a few more similarly themed books that I'll be picking up at the library. Who knows - my brain may be coming back to stay for a while. :)

Leif helped Grandmom prune around the house (Grandmom and Granddad did a tremendous amount of yardwork while they were here, and Leif was with them every step of the way!)

: Little sprouts are starting to come up in the garden! I see Arugula growing...and perhaps some of the beets, but time will tell exactly what the sprouts are (hopefully not weeds!)

And here is the little guy taking in the panorama close up.

: Shrimp Gumbo for dinner tonight over rice, better get to it while the little lad sleeps!

Enjoy your beautiful day!

Leif takes Sammy for a Walk

Here, Leif and Sam prepare to go for a walk with Grandmom.

Pointing and Laughing - he sure does love that dog!

Sammy started to walk away and Leif held him back with all his strength.

Short post today - have a good day!

This Week, We:

Leif with his new bed that Granddad and Leif built.

This Week, We:

:: are enjoying a visit from Grandmom, Granddad, & Sammy.

:: are so happy that Leif has a new big boy bed. Leif helped Granddad build it - it is a very simple design, and is not totally finished. It still needs some paint and also has a surprise feature that Mommy will build in to it. Leif is so very proud of his new bed!

:: Planted a Winter Garden, late...again. We planted Snow Peas, Chioggia Beets, Cilantro, Sage, Thyme, Lemongrass, Red Beets, and Arugula. We also planted some Mesclun Salad on Oct. 25th, and that is growing right nicely. We would like more winter greens in the garden, so we'll be picking up some leafy green seeds next time we're in town! We still have plenty of room in the garden...any suggestions for some winter crops?

:: are ecstatic (well, Momma is) that the Wood Storks are back in town! See photo below. There are three of them grazing the mudflats for breakfast - these are the first Wood Storks I've seen since Grandmom and Granddad visited in Feb. and I took that black and white photo of the W.S. as they were going out on the boat.

:: are still excited over the bed. It is tall enough to hold four large baskets underneath it, which hold toys now, and eventually, clothes. His crib mattress fits nicely on top. We told him that if he keeps it dry for a week, he'll get a nice big pillow to go on it.

:: have big plans for Leify's room. If I could ever get Jason home for more than a few minutes at a time, we'd have it done in no time. As it is, I'm lost without his carpentry skills!

:: have decided that we are definitely going to Maryland for Thanksgiving. It was up in the air for a while, but now, well, Sea Glass, here we come! :)

:: are loving this Fall weather!

Leif's new bed in the morning light.

Aren't we supposed to be having a Fiesta?

Leif and Katy beating the dirt with bamboo sticks until we told them to stop. The Chicken House, as Leif calls it, is behind them.

On Sunday, Leif and I drove to Avery's house (as Leify says) for a shindig to welcome DaMomma back from her European Pilgrimage. It was the first time most of us had seen her in a month! It was so good to see her again and rub her fuzzy head. :)

Scott and Spring whipped up some homemade pasta with Bolognese Sauce and a lovely simple salad with olives and cukes. The olives were so good, after the party I went directly to the store and bought three cans of them! Mmm...(and yes, one can is already gone from my snacking).

Caryn brought Pecan Bars and Raspberry Bars which were like little blasts from the past. Ally brought Flan, which was promptly devoured.

Of course, I didn't photograph any of the yummy food or anything. I forgot to bring out the camera until after the meal was done, so no food pics, sorry.

My lack of decent photos from that day may have something to do with a certain unruly toddler I know (dirt-throwing, spitting in people's faces, bouncy ball whacking, bamboo stick hitting child - ugh!)...or not.

Anyway, following are some rather cruddy pictures, sans one of Willie that is rather adorable, that I took that day. This next one of Emma was very nearly amazing, but not quite (through no fault of Emma's!) I can't believe how big and grown up she is getting. Makes me rather blue.

It was a lovely time - I only wished the pictures were, too!

PS: the Title of this post is a movieline - anyone know the movie? Bonus if you can tell me the name of the character who says it!

PPS. After looking at the posted pictures, I've realized that 98% of them are blurry shots of Leif. Do know that everyone made faces at my camera that day, so unless everyone wants to see themselves with their tongues out and half closed eyes, blurry Leif pics it is!

Emma Sue watching the cornhole game.

My view from the porch where I was pleasantly plopped. I thought the light was pretty in the sky and on the oaks.

King of the Mountain, er, Mulch Pile.

Getting pensive (wistful, even!) on said Mountain of Mulch.

Don't I take the best pictures? The back of everyone's head, loads of movement, no real focal point - excellent.
Anyway, this was everyone after the meal on the porch.

Caryn works her magic with the kitty cat - not sure who this one is.

Silly genes run in the family (Uncle Andrew and Anna).

Leif was mesmerized by the giant TV...thank goodness!

The best picture (by far) of the day: Willie D. on his sweet ride.

Blurry, but I like the browness of the photo paired with his yellow shirt and happy smile.

Happy Halloween!

SuperLeif!

Happy Halloween! We had a lovely evening out about town with Leify, who was a Superhero for Halloween. I didn't tell him it was Halloween until the last minute because he had been running a temperature yesterday. Today, though, his temperature and any fatigue was gone, so I was comfortable taking him out for fun.

When he put on his costume, I told him he was a Superhero, but he shook his head, "No, Mommy. I'm just Leify." So, of course, I smothered him in kisses. :)

His costume is actually jammies that I bought for him - they're the fuzzy footed kind, since I thought it would be cold (boy, was I wrong!)

Aunt 2p gave him the cape for his birthday earlier this month, and the shoes are acutally slippers that I bought for the impending cold season. I bought the red kind so they'd work with his jammies for Halloween - they have a little bit of sole so that he wouldn't be padding around town with barely covered feet. I bought everything a little large so he would have room to grow in it - Hopefully he'll have at least another year of his SuperLeif costume to play in around the house, and of course, sleep in! The shoes were particularly big, so he looks like bigfoot...his poor little foot was swimming in the size 12 slipper! But still, he pulled it off marvelously (I'm a bit biased in my opinion, I know) and had a great time tonight. And I'm just happy that he gets to keep wearing his costume for play for a long time at home.

So, below are some photos I took tonight (sadly, the only photos I've taken this week!)

Enjoy!

And Happy Halloween! Aaa-O0000oooo0000!

Clinging rather fiercely to Daddy - Leif was looking at a real man all zombied out in a coffin. It was totally creepy - it looked fake at first, but then -Ack! a REAL guy! He was rightfully terrified. Jason just enjoyed the extra snugglage!

Superhero-ing in our driveway before we left for town.

We stopped first at our neighbor's house - and they had the nicest little gift for him: a Halloween pumkin cup filled with candy, animal crackers and an adorable little bear dressed up as a cat for Halloween, so cute!

Our first stop downtown.

He was pretty shy and timid (aka scared out of his wits) when it came to going up to the people to get candy.

Around here, everyone sits out in front of businesses and homes, all dressed to the nines (and most dressed to scare), and the kids all come by get their candy. The whole town comes out for it (and then some) so you see everyone (and their costumes!) which is great fun. Some of the treats are localicious, too: some of the restaurants give out french fries and fried chicken, complete with ketchup packet and drink (You can guess, then, what Leif had for dinner!)

A lot of people drive around a bunch of kids in the backs of trucks, or on trailers loaded with hay for seats and make the rounds that way. Sometimes you see minivans with both slider doors open to make for easy popping out for candy! It's a pretty interesting and rather fun way to do Halloween, so I'm glad Leif recovered from his sickness in time to participate!

Going up to meet a witch for some candy.