A Fun Weekend

October 23rd & 24th

One of the gyms up the road in Concord holds 'Open Gym' hours, which we sometimes go to when it's on the MOMS Club calendar. We decided to go on a Saturday morning and bring Aaron so he could see how much Charlie loves to run down the long trampoline and play with the hula hoops. We didn't take any photos this day, but it was a good start to a family weekend.

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After Open Gym, we headed down to the Halloween Open House at Nini Bambini, where we go to weekly music classes. Charlie was a bit confused as to why we were there, with lots of goodies and snacks and more toys out than usual - and even went to sit in "our spot" and wait for class to start. Haha.


Aaron got to see where we spend our Tuesday mornings every week and Charlie had fun playing with all the great toys (though she was scared of the interactive dinosaur!)

Here she is playing with the play kitchen, which she does every time ... she will be very happy to see one of these in our living room on Christmas!

Nina pulled out the bubbles just for Charlie - she loves this part of class.

This was the start of a lollipop addiction. I keep a couple in my bag at all times - hey, whatever keeps her from standing up in shopping carts!!

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On Sunday, we decided to go get some hot apple cider donuts at a place Aaron had heard about. They were SO good. Charlie enjoyed running around the little country store (inside and out!) and seeing the donuts come fresh off the line.

We got a 1/2 dozen and before we even left the lot, were down to one donut, so Aaron went in to get more!

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When we lived back in Syracuse, there was a Hibachi Steakhouse that we went to ALL of the time with our friends. We always try to recreate their rice at home but nothing compares. There is one up the road in Concord (same name as the one in Syracuse!) that we decided to try it out ... with Charlie. She loved the huge salt water fish tank that was there when we walked in and did really well throughout the meal. She loved the entertainment, got a little freaked out with the huge flames, but always enjoys fried rice.

They gave her some kiddie chopsticks, with the rubber bands, and she liked these. We were very surprised that when the food was put in front of her, she was trying to use them, correctly, to eat her rice and chicken! WE were using forks, so she wasn't imitating us! She surprises us often.

The Angry Napper

Well, Charlie has never been much of a napper. You know those newborns who do nothing but sleep, and people can pass them around all day and they don't wake up - nope Charlie wasn't one. You know those babies who take a couple of long naps a day - nope, not Charlie. She's always done only one or two half an hour naps - rarely does she sleep more than one hour.

This particular day in October, she decided to wake up from a short nap in her crib. I brought her downstairs and she wouldn't let me sit with her, stand with her or put her down. So, I let her throw a little tantrum on the floor until she figured out what she wanted ...

... MORE SLEEP!

She did wake up after about an hour on the floor and decided to throw another tantrum, which I let her do until she was done.

And she was down and out for another 30 minutes or so! Crazy, crazy girl. Sometimes, her lack of napping just catches up to her!

Neighborhood Fall Festival

October 16, 2010

Our neighborhood is the best - it really is. We talk about a bigger house someday, but I'm not sure we could ever move away from here. Every year (though we missed last year), our neighborhood closes down part of our circle and throws a fall festival. We were so excited to be here and join in this year - I was part of the planning party, which is really an excuse for us gals to get together with some vino! There was pumpkin decorating, bag coloring, sack races, donuts on a string, great food and snacks ... and good spirits for the adults, of course! The kids had a great time even though it was cold. We can't wait for next year!

The cupcakes Mom and I threw together in 3 hours!

Little Minnie has arrived - let the fun begin!

The Honeys - can't live without them!

Little Owen and Charlie

Lily trying to bring scared Charlie to the big dog (Charlie doesn't like dogs much)

She loved the tricycle after Daddy taught her how it worked

The adorable neighborhood kids

Aidan just loves Charlie

Time for a break!

Best. Neighborhood. Ever.

Fall Weekend in Vermont

October 8th-10th

Another fall weekend in Vermont. We were hoping to catch a babysitter somewhere over this weekend for Aaron and I to be able to go out and celebrate our 3rd Anniversary, but everyone was busy the whole time!

We did stroll through the mall a bit and Charlie is now showing interest in the rides. Well, Aaron decided to pop in some quarters on one HE thought looked fun - one with a racing screen she could watch. She was a bit nervous when it started moving, but got right into it and gave us a good laugh.

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This year, Charlie was old enough to pick her own pumpkin from Great Grandpa Bowler's Garden! He had them all out on his deck and we let her loose. She looked at them for a few seconds, went to one and rolled it around to check it out then checked out another before going back to her first choice. And a good choice it was! Thanks Great Grandpa Bowler!!!

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On the drive home to NH, we always stop in Randolph for a break - as we pulled off the highway this time, the sky was AMAZING. Nothing but purple hues and a calming feeling. I ran across the road to grab some shots and as I turned around to walk back to the car, I noticed three other cars pulling over to capture the moment on their camera as well. There are no words ...

Animals, Corn Mazes and Ice Cream, Oh My!!

October 2, 2010

The fall festivities continue. We love this time of year! We took a short drive up the road to Beech Hill Farm to enjoy a beautiful day doing their corn mazes.

We started out by checking out the animals on their farm. Charlie wasn't so sure of these. She loves to see them in books and make animal sounds, but seeing them in real life freaks her out a bit. Or maybe it was just the smell of the animals ... haha.

After the animals, Charlotte checked out all of the pumpkins. She ran from one to another, trying to pick each one up.

After checking out the pumpkins, it was time to hit the corn mazes. Since Charlie loves to run free, this was fun to just let her go on the trails. The corn was tall, the sky was blue, and we were having fun together.

They also had a great sand area with trucks - Charlie enjoyed watching the other kids play with the trucks and quickly learned how to do it too.

And no perfect-weather-day is complete for Charlie without ice cream. They had great ice cream and it was the perfect end to this family field trip!