Pumpkin Carving

On Sunday, Doug and I decided to carve our pumpkins to get ready for Halloween. Garrett wanted to help, but since he's too young to wield a knife responsibly, we put him in his highchair to color while we worked. As you can see, not only did he get the marker on the paper, but on the tray as well. Then, Garrett starts saying, "Hair, hair." And I look up and he has the marker on his head.

Yup, he colored his hair. Sorry Nana.

After we got his pumpkin carved, he really enjoyed playing with the top, taking it on and off. HIS "putt-in" (pumpkin) was his favorite.

Big cheesy smile!

Daddy carving his pumpkin...

"Off!"

Smells good, huh?

Daddy's pumpkin...

Mommy and Daddy's pumpkins...

Mommy, Daddy, and Garrett's pumpkins...

Mommy, Daddy, Garrett, and Baby's pumpkins!

Boo!

Fun Fall Day

Thursday afternoon, after Garrett's nap, we decided to have some fun time outside before Doug came home from school. It wasn't TOO cold out, but Garrett wanted to wear his hat at mittens too.

Of course the lawnmower had to be played with. We walked up and down the sidewalk for about 10-15 minutes, then went around the cul-de-sac. We ended up mowing the neighbor's lawn.

After playing with the lawnmower, we played in the leaves that were piling up along the curb. I made a pile in the grass and he laid in it. Looks so peaceful, huh?

After Doug got home we went to Post Family Farms to get some pumpkins. There was this kitten that fell in love with Garrett and vice-versa. Here's Garrett giving the kitten a hug.

And pointing out that kitty has a tail...

This cat was cool. It kept sitting on the pumpkins and posing by them. Too bad it wasn't my cat I was taking pics of!

Garrett and the pumpkins...

Here's a cute (but wild) video of him running through the leaves on the curb. He thought it was so fun to kick the leaves all over!

Remember the obsession with the vacuum?

Here's the updated version. The lawnmower.

Too stinkin' cute!

Are we or aren't we?

That seems to be the question of late.



"Are you going to find out the sex of the baby?"



Well, I would like to. Last time, I actually was content to wait, like Doug wanted. Although I did want to know, I thought it would be a fun surprise. So we waited... and waited and waited. Now, I find that I'm actually hoping for one sex over the other. And for all you booing me at the moment, you know that when you say "all I want is a healthy baby", although it's ALWAYS true, that's never the answer to the question.



That being said, I would love for Garrett to have a little brother. Of course I would love a little girl too. But there's something about knowing Garrett might have a best bud and constant playmate that makes me melty inside. I never had a sister, and my brother never had a brother. My ideal family is NOT one boy and one girl. Since my relationship with my brother is virtually nonexistant, I feel like I'm missing out on a lot. I also hope that if this baby is a girl, that she and Garrett will be close, like David and I once was.

I think that because of this, I want to know. That way I can try to be as prepared as possible for whatever may come.

We have teeth!

So FINALLY after 6-7 months of getting no teeth, we have 4 more! The last weekend in July before we shipped Garrett off to Muskegon for the weekend, I saw something shiny and white catch my eye in his mouth. I stuck my finger in there and there they were! He finally got his 4th lower front tooth and a lower molar popped through too! Then just last week, again, something white and shiny caught my eye while he was laying on his back laughing. Two upper molars! We're finally on our way to discovering more foods, but unfortunately he's asserting his independence and refuses EVERYTHING! All in good time, I guess...

My little dancin' fool!

Okay, so this video is about a month old, but I couldn't resist putting it up anyway. I just love it when he dances!

A day at the park...

Yesterday, EB and I decided to get the kids together to play at the park, since they don't get to see each other that often anymore. We initially tried to go to Hager Park, but the Discovery Center (the only structure suitable for toddlers) was closed for annual maintenance. So I mentioned a couple more nearby parks, and we decided to go to Rush Creek Park, the park where Doug plays softball every summer. They had a blast! This picture was kind of sentimental for me because the last time he was in this exact swing, was on our 4 year anniversary and he was only nine months old! Check out the old pic at garrettdegraaf.blogspot.com February 2008 postings... I can't believe how much bigger he is!

Here's Garrett and Carolyn enjoying the double slide. They can both go down all by themselves!

Sharing leaves...

Carolyn was so excited to help Garrett blow bubbles. I love the face that she's making too!

It almost looks like Garrett's going to eat them!

A little blurry, but by far my favorite picture!

All boy!

The big boy slide

Exploring a tree

It was such a great day at the park. EB and I were commenting on how cool the day was and it felt like Fall was about to show itself. The smell of the air and the laughter all over made it a very special day. I was very grateful to have a special morning for Garrett to enjoy!