Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Static, anyone?

Baby hair is so fine--look how the static from the slide made Luke's hair stand on end! It was hilarious!

You could really see how long it was, but I am still not going to get it cut! I love when little boys have long(ish) curly hair!

This is what I like about fall...

I love lovely fall days (in the low 70's) that are sunny and blustery--like yesterday!

Here's Norah at the park, enjoying being outside.

Monday, October 3, 2011

Turtle!

On the way out of the garden, we saw some people that had found a turtle, so we went to take a look. The turtle was trying to get away, but turtles are slow so we were able to get some pictures! I wonder where this little turtle was going?

Takin' a break

Norah got down and sat next to Luca on his "bench." His bottom was pretty muddy after this little walk!

Luca's turn to walk

We moved away from the scores of people, and I let Luca out to burn some energy. He walked around the rose garden and had fun sitting on the little border bricks of the garden. When he starts crawling, you know he is ready to be put back into the stroller.

Hay maze

They had a maze set up out of hay bales, and Norah and the other kids had a blast climbing on it and jumping from wall to wall.

There was also a band there that were playing folksy tunes. They had some cool instruments in their ensemble, including a washboard, and a "bass" made out of a drum, a huge rubber band, and a soda can. You have to see it to believe it. Norah loved watching and listening to them!

Bulb Festival

Yesterday, we went to the Bulb Festival at the Botanic Garden (can you tell we love this place?) It was all decked out for fall, and looked really beautiful. They had a giant pile of pumpkins and gourds--it was about 10 feet high!

More petting zoo

James took the kids into another petting area, and Luca and Norah got to pet baby pigs, a calf, and some more goats. Luca just loved actually touching the animals! He was surprisingly gentle, too.

Tractors!

We took the kids over to see some tractors that were parked nearby. Luca had fun sitting in the seat. Then, James noticed that the keys were in the tractors, and we thought that maybe they weren't meant to be climbed on by young children. If Luca was 1 or 2 years older, he would have had that tractor on in about 10 seconds!

Pony Ride 2

Here's Norah after her pony ride--she was thrilled!

Pony Ride

I can't believe my daughter is old enough to be put on a pony! She had so much fun! Her pony's name was "Banana" and she thought this was a funny name!

Fall Festival

We went to the local Fall Festival on Saturday, which was the first sunny day in over a week! The ground was a little squishy, and Luca fell many times and got pretty dirty, but they had a really good time petting the baby animals and seeing the horses, taking a pony ride (Norah), and a wagon ride, too.

This is fun!

Norah was having a blast going around the track! They had to go around 10 times for 10 stickers, and then they got a water bottle as a prize.

Trike-a-thon

Norah's school held a trike-a-thon last week to raise money for supplies, playground equipment, etc. Here's Norah trying to bust her way out of the pack!

It was a miracle that it wasn't raining for the event; it rained pretty much every other minute between Monday and Friday of that week!

Norah-sized bench 2

Grandpa took a turn on the Norah-sized bench, too!

It was a great day at the gardens, and a great visit overall with Grandma and Grandpa! We did lots of things: the gardens, downtown, the Shedd aquarium, stuff around our suburb, etc. Come back any time!

Norah-sized bench

Norah and Daddy were taking a rest on a cute little Norah-sized bench in a small alcove in the garden. Notice her treasures--things she picks up here and there around the garden--which eventually end up in my possession!

So independent

Norah's physical skills are getting better and better day by day. I think after she broke her leg at 22 months, she was left a little behind in terms of running, jumping, climbing, etc. Now, she is a good climber and a great runner and jumper. She climbed up onto this rock and commanded me to take a picture!

Grandma and Norah

We all went to the "sensory" garden, where you are encouraged to use your senses. Norah and Grandma took a break to have a photo taken.

Railroad Garden 3

Daddy and Luca

Railroad Garden 2

I couldn't get a good shot of them looking at me--they were always looking at the trains!

Railroad Garden

We took James' parents, who were here for a visit, to the CBG and we all went into the Railroad Garden. Norah and Luca LOVED it. Luca kept running from place to place saying, "WOW!" which is one of his "words" It was really cute. Here is Norah in front to the San Francisco part of the garden.

My Little Ballerina

Norah started ballet lessons at the Park District in September. Here she is on her first day--very excited!