Pumpkins, Pies

Was a full out Fall weekend at our house. Was one of those weekends where I realize the kids are growing up and we will start finding ourselves in Fall traditions that they look forward to and understand. I'm already seeing her father come out in Eleanor...she loves pumpkins - says hello to them in the morning, good night and I love you when she tucks them in.

We started off Friday night with the carving of the pumpkins - this is all about Matt. Pumpkins, mess, knives - he loves it. I've become my mother's daughter and don't want the goop and the mess. But this year with the two littles... I played ball - I have a feeling next year may look the same too. We cut, gutted, scraped, carved, and admired our work before Matt cleaned up the mess. Here's what I learned this year... the kids love a good tool - they did not like the wimpy spoons. They wanted big spoons and the spaghetti grabber. I'm not sure what Grady loved more - helping with the pumpkins or standing on the table. This worked really well until he started slipping on pumpkin guts and started falling all over the place. We even let E "color" her little pumpkin as we needed a little entertainment while Matt and I worked to finish carving the faces. Grady was content eating the pumpkin pieces that we carved out.

On Saturday, Matt and E baked pies. Every once in awhile Matt gets an itching for baking - which is fine but it's not messy and it's also the reason we installed the rule, bakers do their own dishes. They made apple pies together - E kept eating the apples and the dough but it did come together well. That night we went to the Pumpkin Unparade at the Patch... our official last visit for the year to the patch.

Sunday morning, E helped us make pumpkin pie pancakes (we had fresh pumpkin that Matt had harvested) E had 5 pancakes - which is a lot for her and considering I had 4, Matt had 6. It's not often she outeats her brother who I've seen eat two tacos, corn,
grapes, and a 1/2 gallon of milk at a meal. That afternoon, he finalized the pumpkin theme and made pumpkin pie too. E helped and rolled out a cinnamon sugar crust. We had it for supper, I think she overworked it a bit.

All getting into the car.
MJR: SO what is this?
ALR: It's an unparade, we are going to drive through and look at the jackolanterns.
MJR: How do you know it's a drive through?
ALR: It said something about paying by the carful.
MJR: Do we need to put shoes on the kids?
ALR: Nah.
Get to the Patch.
MJR: Why are they telling us to park?
MJR: Why are there people walking around outside?
ALR: Um....
MJR: I have a feeling it's not like you said.
ALR: Um....
MJR: We don't have shoes or socks for the kids. 
ALR: If we go back home and come back, they will fall asleep.
ALR: Let's look through the car and see what we have.
1 pair of mittens and 2 blankets.
ALR: Okay, we'll put the mittens on Grady's feet and wrap them up in blankets in the stroller.
MJR: I see we are going to parent of the year awards here.
ALR: We are going and we will have fun.

Ultrasound, Screener, Leaves, Bandaid

Awhile back we took our family pics...there was 1 pic that I wanted to do with just the four of us, while it was still the four of us to celebrate the growing family.

We found out this week who won the tug of war. 

It's a girl!

Things just got really real. Like we almost have our name nailed down. We have a nursery theme I want to start doing. I have a paint idea. We told E and G. G didn't care and kept trying to take off his sock. E is having trouble figuring out who the brother is and who the sister is. Afterall, she's Grady's sister but he's not her sister... and she's getting a sister, as is Grady. So that will mean that she will have a sister and a brother but Grady will only have sisters... it's all being sorted through her brain. But we have made progress. If you ask her what's in Mom's belly, she will say a baby and if you ask if the baby is a brother or a sister, she will tell you a sister. I'm not sure on the level of comprehension BUT all the answers are correct.

We had our Right Track appointments this week with both kids. These are always good for us. Immediately, our screener was impressed with Eleanor's vocabulary and how she strings words together. AND Eleanor was full of stories for her! She scored very high and her behavior isn't abnormal for the terrible twos. We talked some strategies we could use but our screener commented on how quick her mind is and how she's going to probably be steps ahead of trying to figure us out.

Grady was in a great space too! We need to work on blocks and stacking with him, which she acknowledged was a hard task but Matt and I've known we just need to dedicate time to it. Grady even showed off and gave us some utterances - Uh-oh (which is his signature, go-to word) and Ball came out too when he threw the ball across the room. I've heard it a few times when we read stories at night but that's the first time I haven't had to coach it out! After Wendy, our screen, left - it felt so good to know our kids are in a good place and starting to master their worlds. 

 

Daycare was closed Thursday and Friday so they spent some time at Grandma Di's, even had a sleep over. Matt had them on Friday. Over the weekend, we raked leaves. Grady finally figured out how to play in the leaves.. he wasn't as good at it last time. He's starting to grow into his belly laugh! It was a beautiful weekend and the weather was bright and sunny. Actual Fall Weather. Not just pre-winter uck. 

We spent some time with other family too this weekend - Auntie took Eleanor to the Pumpkin Patch. So she was excited to talk about that and add to her pumpkin collection. She likes to reorganize the pumpkins on the steps - so inbetween helping with leaves, that's what she did. And on Sunday we headed to Wes and Kristi's for soup and football - their kids played so well with Eleanor and Grady, was so nice!

EER and GRR get flu shots.

EER tells all about her bandaid

EER sitting on potty

EER: Mommy, see my bandaid?

ALR: Yes, I see your bandaid.

EER: That's my bandaid.

ALR: I know, honey.

EER: Brown bandaid

EER continues to point at bandaid which is serving as visual representation of battle scar.

GRR walks into bathroom.

GRR looks at EER

GRR reaches down and rips bandaid off.

5 full seconds of quiet and shock.

GRR walks out of bathroom.

EER looks in horror.

EER begins to cry.

EER: Grady took MY BANDAID!

Leaves, Ceiling Lights

The kids are getting autonomous. At one point this week, they were actually playing both quietly... alone and for like 7 or 8 minutes. We've busted them playing "together" but that's not always harmonious and ends up with pushing, poking, hair pulling, clothes pulling, and the occasional unwanted bite. It's better than when Grady plays alone tho - his new favorite game is to crawl on the couch and run around. Why this is exceptionally fun is he knows he's not supposed to be doing it. So he laughs and laughs.

 

The weekend finally had a break in the weather. The sun came out and we actually could spend some time outside and raked some leaves. E caught on pretty quick, G didn't care. They played in the leaves until we found a turtle in the window well that was part of the Remynse catch-and-release program.

The rest of the weekend was pretty lowkey. The kids are loving the apples that are easily accessible to them in the garage - like a grab and go snack. It really has become a pick your battle thing. When we had lunch on Saturday, Grady wouldn't even set his down. It was like he figured if he set it down it would be gone forever so he ate and drank only with his left hand while his apple was death gripped in his right. On Sunday, I went out to work cows with Mom and Dad. It was fricken cold and the blowing wind and the friggin snow didn't do anything to make it feel warmer. Ugh.

I get home to a big hole in my ceiling. I was only gone a few hours. Like 6, 7 hours tops. Matt determined it was time to take a look at the kitchen light as he was concerned. At least the new one went up rather quick.


MJR: Well, I found out some things about our children today.
ALR: Oh?
MJR: Eleanor either hates or is scared of camouflage and Grady doesn't like when I'm up on a ladder.
ALR: How do you know she hates or is scared of camo?
MJR: I was cleaning up my hunting stuff and every time I'd put something with camo on...she'd yell and scream and tell me to take it off.
ALR: I don't blame her. And the ladder?
MJR: Well, I was working on the light and I had Grady in his chair facing me. Every time I'd get up on the ladder, he would scream at me.
ALR: What did you do?
MJR: Get down and talk to him hoping he'd forget.
ALR: Did he?
MJR: Not yet.

Snow, Licked Tomatoes, Pheasant

It's a good thing we went to the patch when we did... the snow seems to have received an early flight in. I wasn't prepared at all! The leaves are covering the deck and under the leaves we still have flip flops out! The garden has barely been picked up... we haven't even tilled in the old, we haven't done the yard leaves or even taken the cushions off the patio furniture. I'm not ready for winter. And the past week seems that if it's not snowing, it's raining and gloomy. The sun hasn't been out for days.

With the snow, E and Matt went outside. It was the perfect occasion to show her her Peppa Pig boots - we'd picked them up a couple months ago and I couldn't remember the size - the saddest thing ever when we pulled them out. They are the same boot. We have two right foot Peppa Pig boots. I could have just bawled. I know she didn't care but now we can't take her in public with them. They even light up.

While the two of them were outside, Grady and I started going through winter clothes to see what I had for the kids to get them thru the season. I found hats, ponchos, coats, and some gloves. I probably need to spend some serious time going through again but I hopefully will get us through the next little bit.

We've also started processing. As a family. Which is not as fun and harmonious as it may sound. E was okay to help put tomatoes in the mill - but G was crabby because he wasn't part of the process. I ended up putting him in his chair and giving him a seat at the table for closer observation. That still didn't appease him - I had to bring in a prop so he felt part of something. Parenting is not for the faint of heart. We did huge flats of tomatoes. I lost count of how many Eleanor ate or how many she tried to have Grady eat. She would eat them like they were an apple.

MJR: Eleanor, quit licking the tomatoes.
5 minutes later.
MJR: Eleanor, take that out of your mouth.
2 minutes later.
MJR: No, we don't bite the tomatoes.
4 minutes later. 
MJR: Quit eating them!
1 minute later
MJR: Why don't you go help Mom wash tomatoes?

We are probably 1/2 way thru and still have a bunch to do. We did a TON of applesauce. We will probably make another ton just to get through three kids next year.

Opening pheasant was a good one for Matt - we went to Grandma and Grandpa's to play and he shot at birds. That night we went to Alice's birthday party, a week early.
The next night we had pheasant fingers for supper. When Matt told her what we were eating, she was shocked! Like she understood but didn't know how it was possible.

EER coming inside from the cold.
EER: I make a snowman.
ALR: You did!
ALR thinking there wasn't enough snow to do that.
ALR to MJR: A snowman?
MJR: It's going to be a long winter.
ALR: What do you mean?
MJR: Her "snowman" is making a snowball and throwing it at you. That's fine if it was just snow but it's also leaves and whatever else she grabs.
ALR: Well, that's to be expected with her coordination and mittens.
MJR: It feels less snowman-y when she takes garbage from the garden to throw at you.

Pumpkin Patch, Jumping

The fall weather has totally sunk in and Matt is loving it. He's going around humming praises, taking deep breaths, doing all sorts of weird things. It's his time, I get it. The nice part is, it's pretty easy to convince him of things especially if I can relate them specifically to fall activities. The pumpkin patch, now that's an easy sell.

Last year, Grady was very little and basically slept the entire time. This year he was more mobile taking on the corn crib, the slides, and the train. E was all over but her favorites were the car at the pump station and the large train that she could ride on with all of us. She even made it on the little train this year without a cry or meltdown. We went at a perfect time, the air was a little cold but the sun was out and it was a beautiful night!

The most interesting part was when it was time to pick out pumpkins. The Fall-sensationalist looks at the kids and says, "What pumpkins should we take home to carve?" Which means nothing to them, they don't know what carving pumpkins means. Yes, E did it last year but I have a feeling she doesn't have a vivid memory of the experience. So she starts picking pumpkins and they are huge! And Matt just keeps loading them up into the wagon.
And then you have Grady, who is all about the pointing right now. He wants more milk, he points at it. He wants a piece of toast or food, he points at it. So there he is, wandering about the patching pointing at pumpkins - while his Dad's wagon is brimming full. And then they look at me, "Um, I'll take the one that's as big as a snowball." AND what happens, they get like 15 of them! Aasta, a good friend, was there as she's been the coordinator this year - so she took our family pic. It was a good time and the kids didn't even notice it was way past their supper time!

We closed out the weekend with a cold snap and some playing inside. Eleanor's new favorite thing is to jump on her dad. At first it was just from the ground and then she grabbed one G's footstool and counts down which often is like this: 1,2,5,8,4,8,3,6. Following the countdown, she jumps... the best part is that even though there's a countdown you never know what the final "number" is going to be. At least you get a signifier of the counting that jumping is coming. I'm not wild about this "playing" but she does know that she can't do it with me... only her dad. I won't lie though, I laughed pretty hard when she jumped so hard that it knocked the wind out of him.

He didn't find it funny and the two of them found a new game to do.

MJR: Grady's it's the best time of the year.
GRR: Bpp.
MJR: Fall colors, crisp air, best beers, college football. 
GRR: Mpbbb.
MJR: If you breath hard, you can smell the death of the leaves in the air.
ALR rolls eyes.
GRR: BLP!