Meet Jack

Compared to last year, Marie has been much more interested in all of those fun fall activities this time around. She has been talking about pumpkins and jack-o-lanterns since September.

A couple weeks ago, we caught up with our friends Brian and Laura and their two little girls, Rosie and Lilly on a Sunday afternoon. Marie and Rosie are close in age and got to go to the pumpkin "patch" to pick out pumpkins. The "patch" was a bit comical to me seeing as how we needed to ride a wagon to what turned out to be an open grassy area where others had placed already picked pumpkins. No stepping over vines and the like this time around. But, the girls loved it all the more because then they could run around chasing each other without being hindered by plants, ruts, or holes.



The following Sunday, Marie and I decided to give our pumpkin a face. She knew exactly what "Jack" should have, two triangles for eyes, a square nose, and a big WIDE smile. She even helped to scoop out some of the slimy pulp...though most of that job was reserved for me. By the time we were finished, it was starting to get dark, perfect timing for lighting a candle. She was so excited to see the "glorious sight" and ran to the end of our driveway to make sure that she could still see "Jack" from there.




Marie has really been enjoying our walks lately, seeing all the colorful leaves that have fallen, and making them go "crunch, crunch" beneath her feet. We've been having some rain lately, so puddles are an added bonus. Thank goodness we found some rain boots on clearance a few weeks back.

Joey is continuing to grow. He's got two solid teeth on the bottom, but nothing on the top so far. He is pulling himself up more and taking a few steps along the furniture. He LOVES the stairs and can go all the way up (with mom or dad following closely behind). He has even started to figure out how to come down...sliding down on his belly. He seems to have a little bit of an ornery streak...he knows he's not supposed to go up on his own and laughs in delight when we have to come retrieve him. He loves balls and tackling anyone who happens to be laying down on the floor. He's also started to realize that he can get things if grunts and points, a skill that he tends to use when he wants toys or the ever-popular Cheerios.