Halloween

We had so much fun celebrating Halloween this year! Jackson is at the age where he doesn't really understand Halloween, why we dress up and why people would give him candy, but that didn't stop him from having a blast!

We started celebrating Halloween last weekend, with an event in our local town center. Jackson and Sophie were dressed and ready to go! A yummy meal of a burger and fries of course needs to end with a sundae!

The streets were blocked off and all of the shopkeepers were there with candy to give to the kids.


Jackson would not let go of his treat bag - he had one mighty grip on that candy! A couple times he had to stop, take a break and check out what was in his bag.

We also had a chance to take a hay ride around all of the stores. Jackson loved it!

Then, this weekend we were excited to attend a Halloween party on Saturday. I had planned all of our costumes around the hamburger theme. I was Wendy and Josh was the Hamburger Helper.

The party was a lot of fun and since we had our costumes, I figured we better put them on again on Halloween night. Here we are all ready for some trick-or-treating!
We were gone for around 30 minutes, and the bowl of candy that I left at our door was empty, of course, by the time we returned.


Josh was a good sport, but he was ready to get out of his costume before we even started. Jackson loved Halloween and at the end of the night he had only a few pieces of candy, but it was enough to give him a fun sugar high right before bed!

We're already thinking of costume ideas for next year. What you dress up as for Halloween?

Pumpkin Patch

Jackson has certainly been making the most out the fall season this year. Over the past 2 weeks, we have been to the farm and the pumpkin patch.

The farm we went to was an adorable place with all sorts of fun activities for kiddos. For the first 20 minutes, Jackson would not do anything but the giant slide. I was thinking, "Buddy did we really drive 45 minutes for you to play on a slide? We have those a block from our house!"



He hung out with animals, real and fake...




Then we picked out a pumpkin to decorate...



I didn't think Sharpies and staple guns were the best choice for a toddler art project, but it worked out just fine!

After a hay ride and a visit inside the tepee, we were wiped out from such a fun day!

Then, a few days ago we headed to the pumpkin patch with Josh. The farm was huge, with more pumpkins than I have ever seen.


Jackson learned that a pumpkin patch has a lot of tripping hazards...


He LOVED the bouncy house and the ride down the big slide with Dad.
We encouraged him to pet the sheep, then we read the sign. Oops.



Forget running through the hay maze, he had to run on it.
We picked three huge pumpkins off the vine and had a fabulous day together.

Fall Rewind

Wow. I can't believe its been over a month since my last post. I have a lot to catch up on, so here we go...

Much of the reason that I haven't been posting is that I've been super tired lately. I usually blog during naptime, though recently I've been using Jackson's nap to get some sleep myself. Here is the reason....

Jackson is going to be a big brother! Yes, many of you know this already. I'm now 14 weeks along, with the baby due on Earth Day, April 22. My first trimester was horrible, with a lot of morning sickness (all day, every day) and exhaustion. I'm now feeling a whole lot better, but still have my bad moments. We've got a lot to do before the new little one arrives, so I'll be keeping you posted on our updates. And yes, we are going to find out the gender this time. I already can't wait!

Other than the baby news, we've been busy with family visits, weddings, girls weekends and much more. Here are a few photos from the past month...

The playroom is pretty much complete, and our new favorite part of the house.

But now we have some other obstacles I didn't expect...Jackson's new favorite lookout spot.

My mom came to visit for 2 weeks and we spent some time Aspen just as the leaves were starting to change. It was gorgeous! Jackson had a ton of fun with his Nana!

Overall, life is pretty good for this little boy and he is living it to the fullest...

just check out his ride!

Soon I'll share some pics of pumpkin patches and Halloween fun!

First Haircut

I took Jackson for his first haircut today. Jackson has had these adorable blond curls for a while now that stay cute and curly for about 5 minutes. After that, his hair goes all wild and crazy like, making him look like a cross between Benjamin Franklin and Doc from Back to the Future.

I had made an appointment at a kids salon nearby that was recommended by friends, but I really didn't know what to expect. As soon as we put him in the chair (plain with buckles - the fun airplane and race car chairs didn't have buckles, which I thought were necessary) the tears started flowing. Big fat ones down his cheeks.


We tried a few diversion tactics. Dora on DVD? No. Cars and trains? Nope. Cheddar bunny snack? No, thank you.

I think the main problem wasn't the place or the haircut. He seemed to not like the stylist interfering with his personal space. He just needed a little more time. The good news is that he didn't make any jerky movements, so the end result was an adorable haircut that confirms my baby is now a little boy.

And while we waited for our commemorative photo (comes with the 1st Haircut package), Jackson played a little telephone ("Heyoh?") and relaxed a bit.

All in all, it was a fun experience. And yes, they saved some of curls for me to add to the memory book.

Gettin' Dirty

Jackson's new favorite activity is digging. He has finally discovered two pots of dirt that for longest time have been on our patio waiting for a plant. As soon as we head outside, he's in the dirt and it can occupy his time for so long.

When he is 'working,' he gets the cutest look on his face. So serious and in the zone.

I think its time I put actual sand in his sand and water table this fall so he can get more use out if it. And of course he had to take a moment to give Sophie some love. (Yes, that is dirt around his mouth... we're working on that.)