September

September came and went. I keep vowing to post more frequently, then break my promise. So to my very few, yet very important viewers, I apologize. 

Our baby was eleven months in September. He became more and more of a lovable little pill with every single day. 

Owen and I took an impromptu trip to New York to join Randal on a business trip. We met up with a number of good friends, drove by our old house, shopped at our favorite grocery store (Wegmans) and embarrassed Randal by bringing a case of spaghetti sauce home on the company plane, in front of his boss. We had a great time. 

We picked apples and pears. Tons actually.

I'm not exaggerating. The kids are picking machines. We did pick tons. I had to bottle them all week last week as a result. We're set for a while. Trust me. 

And how this kids managed to be covered in glitter at an apple orchard I'll never know. The nut.

The Lake and BBQ

Labor Day weekend we did some camping. In a tent. Of which was off limits while Owen napped. So Ethan improvised:

It was blasted hot. And humid. So the lake was a welcome relief. 

And we proved once again we have a baby prodigy...one who can swim.

Just kidding.

No one around us started fires. It was that hot. But we would have starved without one. (We are not as equipped as the RV-ing crowd.) The smores more than made up for the extra degrees. 

Look at what the humidity does to Owen's hair. So cute. He did awesome camping. He ate more sticks and grass than I cared for him to eat, but after a while I gave up. If it was organic material I stopped fighting it. 

This weekend we decided to brave the heat again and hit up the BBQ festival.

Delicious.

And we met a bona fide Pitmaster champion: Melissa Cookston. 

After plunking down a significant bit of change on BBQ, we let the kids empty our pockets on an activity of their choice. Addie chose some crafting. 

Ethan chose some jumping.

And then he tried to talk me into bringing a puppy home from the Humane Society booth. Randal even did a little nudging... 

...I mean look at them...

...how cold does one have to be to deny a boy of a dog?... 

...But I resisted...

Bet you thought for a second there the two of them talked me into it.

Nope. I'm a jerk. 

August End

School Started.

A couple of weeks ago, actually.

The kids are off to a great start. Ethan is a fifth grader. Addie is in second. Even still, Addie carefully sets out her school clothes the night before, right down to the underwear. Ethan, I keep reminding that the pants with the holes in the knee are no longer for school. Boys and girls are so different that way.

And Owen is 10 months. I'm late posting because I'm too busy chasing this little guy around. He is crawling now. And he's already into a ton of trouble. (I think Randal and I are in for it.)

Coaxing him to "pose" is next to impossible. Trying to get a decent picture mostly looked like this:

And a little like this:

So this was the best I could do:

 

It's just Owen and I most of the day now. He misses the kids. But he busies himself opening drawers and putting anything in his mouth he can manage. He claps a lot, and waves occasionally. Baths are still his favorite time of day. And, of course, the kid can eat. He eats just about everything we put in front of him which is so unlike our other two. We're so amazed we keep sticking strange things on his plate just to see what he'll do. And mostly he eats it all up.   

I sure love these kids!

UT/ID

We've been in Utah and Idaho the past month, something we look forward to all year long. Although there are a lot of pictures, there is still a shocking lack of representation. I'm a bit sad about that, so if you have any pictures to share--of girl's day, the Rimington reunion, anything with Mom and Tammy in it, etc...send them my way.  

That said, this post has plenty of pictures. So get comfortable.

Here is Owen carbo-loading the night before the plane flight. 

By the way, he did great. 

He even earned a set of wings. 

Which he put in his mouth. 

So I took them away.

And it made him cry.
Making everyone on the plane give us the stink-eye.

Owen turned 9 months. I know some remarkable things happened, it's just hard to remember a month later. The 10-month milestone he's just hit really has us hopping though. I'll post it tomorrow. Or the next day. I cannot fully commit to being productive 2 days in a row.

Ethan turned 10. We celebrated in increments throughout the trip. Cake and ice cream were in Idaho with tons of family around, which was the real treat. More on Ethan coming soon. He's quite a kid and deserves a post of his own.

Abby really delivered as the excited cousin. 

Owen was doted on by cousins too.

I mean really, there isn't anything cuter than these boys with Owen is there?

Although let's not forget Cinnamon. Her patience with all the "love an attention" deserves a cuteness honorable mention. I couldn't get a better picture since this was her preferred distance from Owen, unless she was busy licking up his spilled breakfast, tickling his thunder thighs with her tongue.

We floated the river. Here we are at the beginning--before we got stuck on sand bars and before we floated 3 hours to a quartet of, "Are we there yet?" 

Super cute of Addie with Grandma and Grandpa.

Beautiful. 

And yes, I was there. Rarely documented in pictures, but always there.

We had a great time at Grandma and Grandpa's. We always do. Thank you for all the fun! 

But before we leave Idaho, I must throw in this picture of Randal and his parents. It truly looks like Randal has a beautiful, long, flowing, curly...mullet. Shame on the photographer.

Next, we braved the blazing heat and goat-head weeds (which, by the way, is the worst weed on the planet) to shoot off rockets with Grandpa Rimington.

Uncle Mike and Addie loading the first to go.

Ethan at the launch pad.

And the big finale X 10. 

Bekah was so sweet. She was afraid Owen's legs were getting too much sun so she used her top to cover them. Cute, little momma!

Thanks, Grandpa! We had a great day.

Adelaide tried roller skating for the first time.

My first time too--in ages. What a pair!

We look forward to seeing the Haights every year too.

And we were lucky enough to see our friends from New York who are now living in Taiwan. Small world. 

Grandma and Tammy are trying some alternative measures for treating allergies. For 24 hours they were not to even touch a raw vegetable. 

So we made it impossible for them to enter their rooms. Te-he-he-he. 

And then there was Bear Lake. Aka, the best place on earth.

Thanks to everyone for making our visit such a wonderful one! We loved spending time with you. Hopefully the memories will tide us over another year. Love you all!

Sewing

Adelaide has been wanting to sew some more. I wish I could say I was a great mom and have been giving her plenty of opportunities, but then I'd be lying. Monday I did finally come through. She sewed this all by herself:

And she looked so darling in her creation.

With the machine out I knew I needed to knock something off my looooooong to-do list if I still wanted to feel good about myself that day ;).

I had this fabric Ethan "tricked" me in to buying on one of my rare, energetic days. Sewing him pajamas is no longer cost effective given I have to buy more fabric. I must have been feeling really peppy because I justified it by thinking I could get a pair out of the scraps for Owen.

That fabric has been sitting there taunting me from it's Hobby Lobby sack for weeks now. So I decided to silence it and get it off my list. Besides it may be the only time these two can wear matching anything. 

Ethan hadn't wanted trucks or puppies on his jammies. I didn't blame him. But the flames and planets seem so funny to us for little Owen. And adorable. I love seeing them together.