Gilcrease, because it's fun!

 It's tradition to go to Gilcrease Orchards and pick out a pumpkin every year before Halloween. This year we got to go twice! This post I'll just share about a jillion and a half of the pictures from the time we went with our friends for play group.

They have to get married....we have too many cute pictures for their wedding slide show already!

August GQing it up.

 

A bunch of these pictures c/o Bethany. Thanks!

Fall is here!

I am loving this fall weather! We had a "cold snap" so we actually had to break out the jackets. The shoe thing we're working on...

 August is just a few days shy of 16 months. 2 months until nursery! He doesn't even talk yet! Except for "woah" and "ball". Every so often we'll get a mama and daa (still missing the "d" at the end). He signed a whole sentence once though! "Eat more, please." And if he's thirsty he'll bring you a cup and lead you to the fridge. 

August is just such a different creature than Scarlett. He loves balls, has monster feet, wants to ride everything, gives the best hugs, blows raspberries on everything (couch, your arm, anyone laying on the floor...), is blanky particular, and is super awkward. He will just stand and stare at people. No smile. No waving back. Nothing. Maybe I'm the one that's awkward...hmm.

August is also a pro climber. He looks even more pro when people at the park think he's less than a year old...poor guy is tiny. But not tiny enough to give his sister a hard time. He's definitely starting to stand his own.

Scarlett is our wolf in sheep's clothing. She looks all sweet and innocent, but man, she's a trouble maker! Can't you see it coming through in that smirk? 

Just this last week I gave her a small bucket of water to play in. August came inside soaking wet. Since August was then naked and her pants were wet, she wanted to play naked too. I made her keep her underwear on, but next thing I know I'm double taking it out the sliding glass door to a naked Scarlett sitting in the back of the cozy coupe. 

Me: Scarlett!! GET YOUR UNDERWEAR ON!!

S (5 min later walking inside): I need to wipe.

M: What?!

S: I need to wipe.

M: Were you peeing in the cozy coupe!

S: Yeah....

Yes. She peed in the "trunk" of the cozy coupe. My offspring are disgusting.

Scarlett is 3 1/2. Besides being super naughty, she loves princesses, singing, singing what she is doing, peeling garlic, swinging herself at the park (this is HUGE...even as a baby she hated swings!), pretending monsters are using the potty, putting on makeup, cutting paper into cute things then continues on to make confetti, her stuffed giraffe buddy and her my little pony Pinky Pie, drawing, coloring, and baking anything resembling a cupcake.

I don't know how people have insane amounts of children without ripping out their eyeballs. 

Two is good. 

Two is...perfect.

Wyoming: Part I

These days we only make it up to Michael's parents' house in Star Valley about once a year. It's never enough, so we have to cram a bunch in in just a few days! 

I freaked when I saw that the highs were going to be in the 50's with lows in the 30's. (Our lows in Vegas hadn't even reached the 70's). Thursday in Wyoming I don't think it even made it out of the 30's! So glad I bought August a coat at the last minute! 

We rode the horses. Scarlett would not get off. "Can I have one-a dees? We get a horsie?" Michael finally told her the horses had to take a nap and she couldn't be on it when it layed down.

And of course the trampoline was endless fun. August never could get up with all the kids jumping around, but he kind of preferred it that way! I had him jump by himself and it wasn't near as much fun.

Laughing at the chickens. And becoming brave enough to chase them.

"Where'd they go??"

No comment....

Michael had taken August for a motorbike ride earlier that day, found it while chasing chickens, and got really upset when I wouldn't take him. Michael took him up to the tractors and he loved them. He circled one 3 times looking for a way to get up into it. Such a little boy.

The infamous rope swing. 

And more motorbike rides.

I love having a place like "Gwamma and Gwampa's" house to visit. Scarlett played all day with cousins,  picked Grandma's flowers (oops), and had to wear her pink rain boots everywhere! It was a kid's paradise.

The ladder

Saturday mornings are usually "help Daddy in the garage" kind of mornings. 

Scarlett loves it. 

From cleaning and organizing to fixing cars and shelves that break off your walls that have had that crap on it for the past 2 years but somehow choose to come down now *breathe* to squishing bugs, picking flowers, and fixing ladders.

This is Scarlett's version of Michael fixing our wooden ladder (he added the rungs on the paint can step/holder thingy)...drawn on the ladder, no less.

It's clearly completely accurate. 

Here's the reenactment:

I have to remember treasures like these. 

....especially when I am repeating the same thing for the fifth time and she still pretends to not hear me.

...or when she takes things away from August. Again.

...or when she cries very dramatically when I turn off her My Little Pony marathon.

Oh, terrible threes, you are a beast!

Labor Dabor Day

We took a quick jaunt down to California with the Barnette's and Wach's for the 3 day weekend (and took a whole week's worth of pictures). I was expecting everything to be crazy busy (because, you know...we were going to be there...) but it was awesome! (I love needless parentheses).

We spent some time at the beach...

Scarlett was the same age as August when she was introduced to the beach. 

However, August wasn't quite as timid. But it also wasn't as cold as Oregon!

August went body boarding.

Then, turned into this malnutritioned neckless pygmy. I promise he eats.

August's favorite was finding rocks and throwing them in the ocean. He'd try to find them where they landed but got really confused when they weren't there anymore.

My thighs finally met the sun for what seems like the first time all summer.

Stop looking at my thighs.

Scarlett did a little boogie boarding.

But the nervous nellie decided it was more fun to just pull the boogie board.

We chilled at the pool. Which I highly recommend after going to the beach...no sand in your car!

When looking at the picture Scarlett  said, "That shark is eating my snacks!"

August learned how to jump in the pool...and I found out I make crazy ugly faces...

August was apparently thirsty. He was sucking the chlorine out of his tube. *barf*

Monday we beach clubbed and paddle boated it up.

This sweet guy was so tuckered out.

How come having fun is so much work? I was so tired Monday night I woke up in the middle of the night on the couch. I definitely fell asleep in bed and have no recollection of how I got on the couch.

The weekend was that good. 

August, the month, not the baby

I can't believe summer is over, and all the school kids are back to the daily grind! Man, summer went by way too fast! I like to call August the "month of cakes", also hailing this month practically non-existent. Where the crap did this month go?!

So, we started off the month with my grandpa's 90th birthday party.

He requested German chocolate, the ugliest of ugly of cakes. I spent quite a bit of time trying to figure out how in the world to make a German chocolate cake not look like a flaming pile of poo. I think it was a success.

I had to sneak this one in from the party. He's becoming such a little man. *tear* Happy 14 months, dude!

In between Grandpa's party and my next adventure (read: 1st wedding cake ever) came Girls' Camp! I thought once I turned 18 I wouldn't make another camp banner...totally wrong.

I was only able to spend a day, but I had so much fun! I could have easily stayed all week and wish I could have.

The day after camp August spiked a fever. 102.7°. Good thing I didn't stay. Poor guy wouldn't sleep all day, and of course I had to bake enough cake for over 250 people for said upcoming wedding cake. I'd put him down to sleep, go mix batter, bake, he'd wake up still tired, put him back down, wake up in time to take cakes out, cry crazy hard when I would leave him on the floor to take cakes out, rinse and repeat ALL DAY. Then, he wouldn't go to bed. This was our solution:

By morning the fever broke and August was more like August. Thank heavens! Although he is the best cuddler :)

I was a huge ball of stress the rest of the week until I birthed this...

That middle tier took 2 hours to pipe! I am so glad I didn't watch them serve the cake!

This madness would not have been possible without chinese takeout (seriously, I ain't cookin) and an awesome friend who helped me out Friday night.

Cake #3 was for Sterling's birthday! The inside looked like this. 

Cake #4 I didn't even take a picture of. But I am sure you're as sick of cake as I am! I made a sugar free cake for my mom's birthday, rounding out a complete month of cakes!

The chaos is over.

*sigh*