Pumpkin Fun!

Last week I had the pleasure of being off for two days during the week.  The Mr. was off and then got an unexpected "snow day" on Saturday, so all together we were off together from Wednesday night-Sunday.  We tried to take advantage of the great weather and teach baby JQ about the fall season.  

Big boy was a bit of a pout pout fish-not sure if it was a growth spurt, sleep regression, intro of new formula or what.  He kept us on our toes much of the week/weekend with 1-5 AM play time/roll over sessions.  Finally on the seventh day (last night) he slept, so hopefully he's over it for awhile so the rest of us can recover!

Here are some pictures from the weekend!

On Friday we checked out a smallish, local pumpkin farm.  

Baby JQ was really interested in the animals.  He especially liked the goats.

Checking out the great pumpkin.

Happy boy!

This Chevy is for sale.  The Mr. would love nothing more than to buy something like this and fix it up with the little guy some day.  

On Sunday, we gathered for the annual pumpkin carving contest.  This year a chili cook-off was added.  It was bittersweet without our patriarch, as his presence was certainly missed and the pumpkin seeds were not toasted.  

Our family's pumpkin entry won first place! Yay!  I'll admit that we were looking to sway the little kid vote with our tinkerbell pumpkin, but hey it still turned out great!  

A Fun Week(end)

Sometimes I feel like you need a good weekend to really re-charge your batteries.  You know what I mean?! When you feel like things at work are really blah and chores are piling up at home and you haven't been out in a while.  You just need a great weekend to look forward to.  

I had been looking forward to last weekend for quite awhile. A couple of my aunts came to town and the rest of my family was able to get together after not seeing each other for some time.  Eric was home for a long stint and the baby is SO MUCH FUN right now.  Everything just seemed to come in to place.

Here are some photos from the weekend.

Baby J met Aunt Debbie.  He also wore a ridiculously cute Halloween outfit with a pumpkin on the booty.

It bowls me over with how alert the baby is right now.  I feel like his little brain is absorbing anything and everything!

Eric also took Baby J. to visit all of his great-grandparents.  Yay for great-grandparents!

On Saturday we ventured out for a family reunion of sorts in Grafton.  It was a little chilly, but Baby J. had a great time (and was very warm I might add!)

He was LAUGHING!  I love his laughs.  They are literally the best sounds in the world!

The Big Baptism

My big boy got baptized this weekend, alongside his cousin E. Both babies did a great job with zero crying during the actual baptism (and just a few tired tears from little man afterwards.) 

These are just the photos from my iPhone, so the quality is pretty sub par.  I miss the camera on my Galaxy!

Ceremony candid, enjoying those fingers

Big boy with Father Jeff

Apparently Eric's clan was not quite ready for this picture, but I think it's pretty hilarious.

This one's better.

The bebes with their parents and godparents

My side.  I always laugh at the massive difference in height between my little grandma and tall grandpa.  Fun fact: Grandpa turns 91 today!

Proud parents.  Tired baby.

Boss godparents

Sweet lady cousins.  Good to know that little man is in good hands.

Beautiful baby E and me.

Huge thanks to Eric's mom for hosting the after party.  I think a good time was had by all and the food was delish!

Apple Farm 2014

So my baby is here, but not like I've had time to post about that yet.  Rather than continue to wait on sharing recent pictures until finishing his birth story, I'll go ahead and write on recent events until I get a hot second to write about his birth.  

He is adorable. Like one of the cutest babies I've ever seen. Not that I'm biased or anything :0)

Anyways, here are some photos from little man's first trip to the apple farm!  It was absolutely the most perfect fall day and he LOVED it!  Apple prices weren't bad either!

Anniversary apple farm trip.  5 years in the making.

My boys.  Aren't those mums gorgeous in the background.  I love mums.  I need some mums!

First apple picked!

Riding the tractor!

Be still my beating heart, he found his fingers!

32 Weeks and A Mini M Update

Apparently Jozie and I had a hard time getting our stuff together for the weekly picture.  As you can see we weren't really in sync. 

Yesterday I had another ultrasound and doctor's appointment. I wish I could have ultrasounds weekly because I just love seeing my little guy.  

He seemed so much bigger this time-which he was, weighing in at a healthy 4 lbs 14 ounces! Aren't they supposed to double in size in the coming weeks?! He's almost five lbs now.  Lord help me.

We also found out that he's head down, so it's comforting to know that he's not breech.

This is going to sound crazy, but I think he looks like Eric.

Week 31

31 weeks.  

I wish I could say it was happier.  A student at my school passed away unexpectedly from a brain aneurysm.  She was only 14.  Death and dying are enough to deal with as an adult, but try explaining it and being the strong one for a class full of kids wondering why their classmate died.  Will I have to explain this to my own kids someday? I certainly hope not.

Too young, too soon.

The insomnia is also back with a vengeance. I think there were a couple times this week that I woke at 2:30 and couldn't get back to sleep.  Perhaps it's Mini Meyer preparing me for months of sleeplessness.

On a high note, my boyfriend finally conceded to getting a "new" car for himself. He's been driving his '95 Accord since we met in high school. The Red Baron, as I call I, has been to the moon in mileage and hasn't had working AC for a long time. Most concerning was that it was two-door, meaning it would be a huge pain getting Mini in and out.

Here it is!  I'll have to come up with a name for it. It's an '03 Accord. Still stick shift, meaning I don't know how to drive it (sometimes I think that's why he likes manuals so much.) It has four doors(!) and has been very well maintained.  We also paid in cash so we got a great deal.  Overall it's a vast improvement from the last car and we both feel much better about carting our miniature beloved around in it.

Arty Mood

Lately, I've been feeling an itch to incorporate more art into our home.  The problem?  Art is expensive! Thank goodness for places like Etsy that allow us common folks to buy cheapish prints.  However, you still have to figure that shipping and frames will cost extra.  In short, more moola.  

So, I've been trying to use some of my favorite prints and pieces as inspiration to create my own art.

Inspiration 1: Pinterest collection of Etsy art.  Specifically number 3 and 8.

Results:  I think they turned out pretty good for my first attempt at painting since my high school Fundamentals of Art II class.  Method: I eye-balled the originals then used craft paper, cheap canvas, and acrylic paint from Michael's. These are currently residing in the kitchen, but I'm not sure they'll stay.  I have hopes of doing an art gallery wall, but I'm not sure where at this point.

Inspiration 2: More Etsy art.  The "&" sign specifically.  It spoke to me. (Definitely in love with the sky scene too, though!)

Results.  I traced a wooden ampersand that I had then played around with different sizes on the copy machine.  Also, I changed the colors since gold is my current jam.  This lovely is residing in the guest bathroom.

No inspiration pic here.  This glass orb needed some spiffing, so I used a gold (more gold!) paint pen to edge the top.  Instant improvement and super easy.

What art projects have you been doing around your house lately?