First Snow of the Year!

Really?  Snow?  Already?!?!   Yup, Eric drove to work today in flurries.  He called me on the way into town to give me this fabulous news.   I looked out the window and smiled.  Ha!  No snow!  But, within two hours, the white stuff was blowing around in my hometown (we're still at Nana Karen's, helping with the guest inn).

Ramsey probably doesn't remember snow..?  We set him on top of the radiator's wooden shelf so he could see outside.   (The pictures don't really show the flurries very well.)

He smiled and smiled.... and pointed at this new glorious wonder!

Hey may have licked the window once or twice too.  Just maybe.  :-)

The Haunted Forest... on a Saturday Afternoon

Every year, Storybookland has a night time haunted forest tour that's sure to scare the dickens out of just about anyone (think scary clowns with chainsaws, bloody axe murderers chasing people, zombie hordes).   That's a bit rough for kids.  So, the themed park offers a matinee tour with candy for the littler rugrats.  
We put Ramsey's Halloween costume on him, and then headed into town.
Daddy had gotten called into work, so, it was Connor, Ramsey, and me!

The lines were LONG... really long... I'm amazed that all three of us had the patience!   Admittedly, it took about an hour and a half of waiting in line before we got to start the tour.   Connor and I took turns holding Ramsey.  If we let him down, he'd run off; he wanted to explore!  There were so many kids there in darling costumes.

I'm not going to lie... the bottle helped!  ...so did the "PBS Kids" app on my phone!!!

When it was our turn for the tour, we followed our tour guides through the grave stones and skulls in the cemetary, creepy tunnels with zombie brides, the haunted forest, and psychedelic rooms and collected goodies along the way.   Ramsey RAN for much of the tour (zig-zagging), stopping, of course, for sticks and rocks.  We fell behind of our tour troop and got passed up a time or two.  Oh well.  lol    Hence, I wasn't able to snag any pictures; I was too busy running after my toddler (in heeled boots, no less - lol)!

Ramsey needed to be carried again for about the last half mile of the tour.  Luckily, about the last quarter mile, our nice tour guide Andy (a student at PC) offered to carry him.  THANK YOU ANDY.

AWESOME PART: I got to spend the afternoon with my two super awesome boys!

Lessons learned: TAKE A STROLLER NEXT TIME.  And, wear comfortable shoes! (I swear, I had NO idea what to expect!)  ha!

Chillin' at Nana's During Hunting Season

Ramsey, Riggs, and I have been in my hometown during the week since hunting season started (to help Nana Karen with the hunters - and so Nana could still watch Ramsey during the day).
It's a lot of hard work (working the job, making beds, laundry, etc) and, being away from home, we miss Connor and Daddy.  But, its a second home and Ramsey has made himself comfortable.

Tons of pillows - check.  Singing and dancing stuffed puppy - check!  Favorite trucks and matchbox cars - check!  Kindle - check!  Not a shabby set-up.  :-)

Every day, we had a routine.  I worked, Ramsey played, and after work, we'd go for a walk and to the park... Ramsey, Riggsy, and me.   For October, we really had some nice weather, which we were very grateful for.

Riggs started out on his leash, but did so well, I took it off and just let him run.  He behaved himself very well!  Plus, Ramsey was on a leash during the walks (he is SO FAST! I'm afraid he'll run into traffic - haha... traffic in my home town - funny!) and they were getting tangled up.  What a sight! 

Riggsy was loving the park.  He got to run loose and retrieve his duck. 

Ramsey was having a great time trying out all of the park equipment like a big boy!

And, of course, every few steps, he had to stop and examine sticks and rocks.  During our walks, we couldn't go ten steps without him picking up a new favorite rock!! 

Man, he's a little daredevil!

Um ya...not going to happen buddy.  :-)

...getting dizzy on the round-about.

This little stinker loves the tornado slide and apparently thought he was big enough to do it by himself! Not.. yet... buddy.  :-)    I went down it with him about a half dozen times before he finally diverted his attention to the next thing. 

Running... and running... and running.   I wish I could bottle his energy.   He loves the freedom!  :-)

It was a windy day, can you tell?  

Then, after the walk and the park... make a quick supper, then back to laundry, bed-making, cleaning, and helping Nana.  Repeat daily for the week... and the next week...  :-)

The Love of the Game....

Connor's gone football crazy!     He loves to play catch with Eric, watch it on TV, play Fantasy Football, and talk plays. This year, he's playing as an Eagle wide receiver (all local public middle schools/junior highs play together against other towns).

It seems that he's found a new camaraderie among his teammates which has deepened his friendships with them.   It's been great to see him so happy and excited for the games!

Here's our handsome kiddo!

And, here are shots from his last home game against Nana and Bumpa's home town.   They drove down to see him play too!

\

Unfortunately, they lost this game, but they got a pep talk from the coaches afterwards.  They have ONE more game on Thursday before they have to turn in their pads.

Until next year...!   Good luck Connor - we are proud of you!

The Great Hunters

October 10th was the first day of pheasant hunting for state residents.   As Riggs was only a year old at this time last year, 2015 was his first official start as an adult.  Riggs has been doing well during his training, so the hunt had been eagerly anticipated to see how well he would do, being from "champion hunting blood lines" and all.

 Before the hunt...

I wish I had an "after" picture of the boys with their pheasant limit spread out in front of them.  But, alas the birds just weren't "out" that day - they didn't see any (ODD for this time of year in this part of the country!).

Riggs needs some time in the fields in order to acquire the scent for birds.  He was mostly just really excited this time and trying to figure everything out.   Once the boys down a bird and he's able to find it (therefore understanding what it's all about), the final piece of the puzzle should fill the void of what he's been bred to instinctively do.

On an ironical note, Eric said that while they were waiting for noon to come (when they could start the great hunt), they were in a field, playing with Riggs.  Dressed in their high-vis orange, a Canadian goose flew just a few feet over the top of them, apparently not dissuaded by their bright color.   Eric said he was so close, he could see the goose's tongue as it honked at them.  But, they didn't have their guns ready, so no goose jerky to speak of just yet!  There's still plenty of hunting time ahead though.   In the meantime, I'm anticipating my jerky marinade and new wild game bird entree recipes!  ;-)

The Great Pumpkin.... Ranch

We found an existing little treasure in our area; The Pumpkin Ranch, which is just a few miles from our home.

To preface: The weekend before last, I wanted to take Ramsey to the pumpkin patch at the fairgrounds to get pumpkins for both him and Connor (Connor was at his Mom's that weekend), but, on the way home from church, we drove into the lot, and it started to pour down rain.  The line to the patch was seemingly a mile long, so, sadly, we drove out of the parking lot and just came home.  Wuh wuh wuhhhhh

I decided this past week that I'd would look into the nearby acreage that sold pumpkins.  Much to my surprise, I found that it was a more interactive and fun environment for the family.  The Pumpkin Ranch has a few acres where you can pick all of the pumpkins, gourds, little jack pumpkins, and squash that you want - for a very reasonable price.   They also have provide hay rides for everyone, plus take the kids around in the little pumpkin train.  (Connor's really too big for the train and Ramsey was too little to go by himself - he'd probably jump out!)

So, Connor and I strapped on Ramsey's harness (oh yes, he loves to run and he... is... FAST - so, as crazy as it looked, it WORKED to keep him among us) and grabbed one of the wagons The Pumpkin Ranch provides and went about our search for The Great Pumpkin.  :-)

They have acres of pumpkins in many different colors, gourds in lots of shapes and sizes, plus a few different types of edible squash.  Yum!     Ramsey headed straight for the little white jack pumpkins.  Connor was in search for the biggest pumpkin he could find!

Ramsey wouldn't look up for a picture; he was far too engulfed in his precious little white jack pumpkin.

And in his little gourd here....

And looking at ALL OF THE OTHER PUMPKINS and scenery here....

And probably more pumpkins on the ground here.  Literally, this kid was entranced by the surroundings!   If he wasn't picking up gourds along the way, he was playing in the dirt, picking up sticks, and crawling on big pumpkins.   When we were heading back to the barn, the kid was covered in dirt, like Pig Pen from Peanuts!

Connor  found his Great Pumpkin.   Connor thought (and I happened to think so too) that it was the largest one they had. And, it was white to boot, so... cool!  :-)

When we headed back to the barn, Connor took charge and pulled the heavy wagon back.  But, Ramsey wanted to help too.  It was a very sweet; precious moments!

Now, we're trying to figure out what to do with the pumpkins.  Should we paint them?  Should we carve them into jack-o-lanterns?  Should we carve intricate scenes or faces on them?  Hmmm....  We have some time to think and do.

But, nonetheless, we are looking forward to doing this next year!  This will be a new family tradition.  :-)

Child Genius?

Ramsey LOVES to play with his blocks (among other toys).   One evening while he was playing in the living room, Eric called to me (I was in the kitchen preparing supper) and said I needed to see something.   When I came into the room, Ramsey had this laid out on the couch:

 

Purely coincidence or do we have a true Baby Einstein?
We enjoyed a good chuckle!!

Our Little One is Growing Up!

Oh how time flies.  Really.  Pictures and memories are the only ways to preserve the precious moments we have with our loved ones... especially the loved ones who grow and develop miraculously every day.   Our little Doodlebug is growing by leaps and bounds!

Here's Ramsey at 20 months, donning a new outfit, getting ready to take a trip with me to town (to get his flu shot - ouch! and go grocery shopping).   We should have booked a trip to see Godmomma Shana to get a haircut.  lol

Here he is on a day that we took Riggs for a walk and to practice with his throwing duck.

After we played with Riggs, he puttered around on his little trike.

Coming home after church....  We were going to stop by at the pumpkin patch, but it was raining!  Bummer.

Later that day, it was BATH TIME.  Those two words make Ramsey bolt for the tub, clothes and all!