Fall Break

Pretty low key this year, we went to the pumkin patch with cousins


then came home and drank the whole tub.

I need some good ideas to keep a 16 month old entertained indoors. I'm getting a little apprehensive about winter being right around the corner. Ary lalalalooooves to be outside. Last year she was still tiny and I was working full time, so neither one of us got cabin fever. This year is going to be different and I want to be prepared.
What are your cold weather toddler tips?

First hair cut

My sister Mckenzi the residential stylist helped me cut Ary's baby-mullet off:




It's funny how just a teeny trim off the back makes it look like she actually has a style of some sort!

Huh?

September brought some funny things around here. One morning while Ary and I were eating breakfast Schroeder started to come unglued at the sliding door. He discovered these in our backyard:
The neighbors two doors down have chickens. Yes we live in Spanish Fork, but our neighborhood is definitely not farmland. That wall in the background is the only thing separating us from Highway 6. Ary was fascinated but I thought the dog might give himself a heart attack.

Bradley has made an unlikely friend with Bandit:
He is lots bigger and hairier than any of the other dogs that have lived with us, but he is a lover and an excellent walking and four-wheeling partner. Ary gets along with him well too and is not afraid of him.

I wonder if the dogs have rubbed off on her a little too much though:
Sometimes a fork is too tricky and little fingers just don't cut it anymore.

Other random things:
-Ary does summersaults on the bed. She started out just poking her little bum up in the air like a stink bug, then we would give her a little nudge over the top to tease her, but she liked it so now she rolls over on her own. Mostly she doesn't get quite over the top but more sideways, but she definitely knows what she is doing.
-September 24th marked 16 months old. At this age I think she's still pretty top-heavy making it fun to tumble on the bed.
-I am really enjoying being with her more. I wouldn't say it's any easier than getting up and going to work every day, but I really do feel more fulfilled. When I first went back to work I somehow thought I had it harder than the stay at home moms I envied. Well, I stand corrected now. I get just and worn out at the end of the day now and lots of times there's not anything to show for it. I haven't learned how to pay full attention to my daughter and be somewhat domesticated at the same time. I don't want to just sit her in front of the tv while I try to go about cooking, cleaning, laundry, etc..
-I'm slowly working my way back onto the treadmill. I get frustrated when my knees hurt so soon after I start jogging but I try to remind myself that it's not even been three months since surgery. It's getting easier little by little though. I've even had my first experience with the "runner's runs". Oh man, if Jed didn't think I was disgusting before he sure does now! Maybe if I could not eat so much crap that would help? I'll have to work on that...