Nic on his own two feet

Loyal readers of the blog may recall this post from October, 2005, when Nora first tried out her walking car--a gift from Auntie Nessa on her first birthday. Now, three years later, it's Nic's turn to play with it.

He hasn't quite figured out how to keep it in a straight line yet, but he is awfully proud of himself when he is able to move on his own two feet!

Halloween Preview

Look out, Cottage Lake! Nora tried on her halloween costume today...this is Amber's old bumblebee costume, circa 1985.

No More Baby Food

Nic has just informed us of a very important decision: "Get that damn baby food out of my face! I won't eat it anymore!" At least that is what I thought he was saying when he pushed away the spoon for the hundredth time this week. He has officially graduated to eating anything he can pick up and shove in his mouth. And I mean shove. We learned quite quickly (how did we forget this in 3 short years) that we could only put a few pieces, of what ever he may be eating, on the tray at a time.

This morning Nic ate a whole applesauce pancake for breakfast. We have obviously turned a corner. Baby fat here we come! Stay tuned for the pictures of the rolls on his arms, legs, and tummy. Don't hold your breath too long. For some reason, we make skinny kids and it just isn't in the cards.

Nora's Four Year Stats

Nora had her 4-year checkup this afternoon. She courageously made it through three booster shots without crying. Sparkly band-aids seem to help.

Weight: 35 lbs. (50%)
Height: 41 in. (75%)

Happy traveler

Nic and Nora had lots of fun in the back seat of the car on the way home from the orchard today...

A day at the orchard

What a weekend!

Yesterday we celebrated Nora's fourth birthday with 42 of our friends and relatives. The theme of the day was "butterflies," and we had lots of butterfly-related activities for the kiddos. They made butterfly charm bracelets, butterfly ornaments, and even butterfly suncatchers to hang in the windows. It was a lot of fun to introduce some of our friends to others that, prior to the party, they had heard about only through stories.

After yesterday's huge celebration, today was decidedly low-key. We met Matt and Renee this morning at Cafe Flora in Montlake, a vegetarian restaurant which has become our new favorite brunch place. The food was absolutely amazing. Nora's pancake was shaped like a fish, complete with fruit fins and gills. The eyes were made of bananna slices with little raspberries on top.

With happy tummies, we got back on I-5 and headed north to the Skagit Valley. It's apple season in Washington, and we were on a mission to find the best ones we could. Our destination: the Jones Creek Farm, a "U-Pick" farm near Sedro-Woolley.

We were greeted at the gate with cups of hot apple cider and dispatched to the orchard with a cart and lots of plastic bags. There were hundreds of different varieties of apples, on trees that were low enough that Nora could pick them without any help from us. One of the most fascinating varietals that we saw today was the "Pink Pearl," a yellowish apple with a pink flesh inside.

The farmers encouraged us to eat as many apples as we wanted while we picked...and we certainly obliged. Nic rode along with me in the Baby Bjorn, and with every apple I tasted, he would crane his head up to look at me with his mouth open like a baby bird. I gave him little bits of apple and he did the happy food dance, smiling and kicking his legs up and down.

As we made our way up and down the rows we were treated to beautiful views of the Cascades to the south. Despite a gloomy forecast, the sun peeked through the clouds every few minutes.

At the end we filled up the truck with 64 pounds of apples and pears, a bag of beautiful tomatoes, and squash. What in the world does one do with 64 pounds of apples, you may ask? Stay tuned. We have quite a few ideas already...do you have any you would like to share?

Happy 4th Birthday Nora!