Punkins and Apples and Sun, oh My!

What do these three things have in common?  A trip to Bellewood Acres, that's what!  A beautiful sunny Autumn day at the pumpkin patch and apple orchard was the perfect way to introduce Hunter to our favorite Fall adventure.  

He started out by getting pumped up with Uncle Jeremy about our afternoon.

He then experienced the Sampling Room and tried to rip every slice of apple out of Auntie Kiki's hands... but she's too quick!  And, thankfully, Happy Crab was there to the rescue.

We then taught Hunter how to pick apples.  He is studying these ones carefully because he wants to pick out the yummiest ones.

He found the perfect one!  But then he realized he didn't know how to pull the apple off the branch, so he had his daddy help him out a bit.  Just a bit though.  

He then asked like a million times if he could ride the goat horsey thing, and of course his auntie caved, so here they are, riding away!

So fun to share special times like these with fun people!

We then boarded the "train" to the Pumpkin Patch!  We had to scootch together to not get thwapped by a branch from the apple trees at times.  It was quite dramatic.

Then Hunter wanted to sit on a Pumpkin.  So he hopped up & we thought it might be a good picture so we decided to crash his party & pose for a picture with him.  Look at that smile!

He reeeally liked that Pumpkin.  So of course we had to buy it.  

I'm sure we're having a teachable moment in this picture.  Hunter looks like he understands.  

My its a lot of work to go to Bellewood Acres!  Our arms were full but so were our Fall-loving-hearts!

Surprise Guest!  Auntie Melissa showed up in the parking lot as we were leaving.  Had to make the most of the photo op.  

And there ya have it.  See ya next year, Bellewood Acres!  Or next week.  I guess we'll see what Hunter talks us into because after all, this IS his new favorite Fall adventure!

Oh Yes We Did

Oh yes.  We ran, walked, and perhaps even crawled like a girl.  Remember my previous post?  That was just to get you excited to hear about the REAL DEAL.  Here's a wrap-up of our half marathon weekend!

Every year there's been a pre-race dinner for Run Like a Girl, but for some reason we never got around to signing up for it.  Boy were we missing out!  Talk about a great (girly) evening!  We ate chocolate before dinner, enjoyed a wonderful meal, filled up a wine glass (and took the glass home),  cheered loudly in attempt for them to throw free stuff to our table, bought raffle tickets for the TONS of amazing items they were giving away, looked under our chairs to see if we were the lucky winners of the "Bag of Courage" (Rachel now has no excuse to not dig deep into her bag of courage!) and ate more chocolate while laughing the whole evening.  So fun!  All the while looking out into the Bay during a gorgeous evening.  Pretty wonderful.  I think the dinner event also distracted most everyone enough that when we went to sleep that night we almost forgot what we were about to do to our bodies the next day!  Okay well, almost.   

Here's who we shared a table with.  What lovely ladies!

Rochelle, Julie, Carol, Rachel, Cindy, Melissa, Kjirstin, Amie, and Martina!  

The Haugland Girls

Okay so its not all fun and games.  Wait.  Yes, it actually was!  The half marathon was a little over the top, a little cheezy, and a LOT amazing.  Did we get crowned with a tiara within the first two miles?  But of course!  Were we eating chocolate by mile four? Why yes.  Did we do a little disco dance somewhere along the way?  You betcha!  (It gave Kjirstin a chance to advertise for her Young Life Dance-Off in November. . . little plug) Did we get our picture taken with a SUPERHERO while eating yet again MORE chocolate?  Hmm... only at Run Like a Girl.  And after mile 6, we of course acknowledged Breast Cancer Awareness with the Ta - Ta Mile.  We were given a pink bracelet to help us remember. . . and without feeding Hunter for an extended period of time that day, lets just say that I didn't need a bracelet to be aware!   We then enjoyed some shot blocks to keep our energy up, and were given a lai at the Hula mile before we walked/ran/staggered across the finish line.

You think I'm finished?  Ha!  What girly half marathon would be complete without some handsome FIREMEN at the finish, ready to give us our medal and congratulate us on our completed goal.  Not this one! This was definitely a surprise and a fun new feature from past years.  This one still makes me chuckle a little.

Now you might think that an Out - And - Back style half marathon might be a little ho hum, but you haven't seen this course!  My Aunt Carol described it as a "Half Marathon Hike" because it is the most beautiful course any of us have ever been on!  It starts in a park and then goes along the interurban trail that overlooks the water, crosses creeks, passes moss - laden forested areas, and sweeps through magical trails draped with tree branches and beauty all around.  So we all agreed that seeing it for a second time only enhances your experience!

Okay back on track (I could talk about this all day).  Once we were done gawking being congratulated by the firemen, we were pretty much treated like royalty.  They of course provided the normal bread, fruit, and ice cream, and even the 10+ minute massages.  But, are you ready for this?  They also had salon studio artists come and give "Sweaty Up - Do's" to all who wanted.  Unfortunately I couldn't really find this as an attractive option for me, but it looked as though others were reveling in it, and they really did look pretty good after some good curling/spraying/up - do - ing!  Perhaps I missed out. . . but I had a cute little guy to go see and hug and he didn't care what my hair looked like!

Here's a few of us post - race

And yes, this year it brought out the muscle pose in us as well!

Melissa's are not real.

What a fun event to share with family and friends!  Seriously.  Come join us next year, or at least consider it!  If not, then well, I guess there's just more chocolate for me!

There should be some fab pictures posted in the next week or so.  Check 'em out at:  http://www.runlikeagirlbellingham.com/About_the_Event.html

Happy Half Birthday!

I can't believe our 5 pound little miracle has been with us for 6 months!  Almost every day (still) I have to pinch myself to make sure this is for real.  This crazy silly lovey boy has been the best thing that has happened to Jake and I, and I am SO in love with both my guys.  This past half a year has been like "the cherry on top" pretty much every day.  Yes.  Even if I didn't get any sleep.  Its been that cool.  Six months in terms of my life or even our marriage really doesn't sound that long, but I have to say that I'm not one of those moms who says it "just flew by!"  To be honest?  If someone were to tell me Hunter is turning One, I'd almost believe them!  (Perhaps thats because of that lack - of - sleep thing though)  So no, life hasn't really seemed on fast-forward since he was born, but I'm kind of happy for that fact!  Because since people DO say it is over in the blink of an eye (the whole baby-stage thing) I'm happy that at least during the process, I feel like I have been able to enjoy it, even the long days & nights!  :) 

Alright.  So.  Do we still have 5 - Pounder?  No way!  Here are some stats:

6 Month Numbers:

Height:  25 inches  

Weight: 14 pounds 10. 5 ounces

Head circumference:  17 inches

Percentiles:

Height:  5-10%

Weight:  5-10%

Head: 25%!

Anyone want the nitty grittys?  Here's some more Hunter-Habits!

Favorite Things to do:  

Jump on your lap 

Jump on your face (he really gets a kick out of this one!)

Sit up and do anything!

Put books in his mouth

Put anything in his mouth

EAT

Giggle!

Grunt

Play in the exersaucer

Pretend to walk

Smile!

Play with anything that crinkles or rattles

Get his diaper changed (he really doesn't mind!)

Be upside-down

Go for a walk or jog in the stroller

Rocking back and forth to music (especially at church!)

Getting tickled

Be in anyone's arms, as long as he's getting attention

Eat Rice Cereal!

Put his hands in my mouth

Say BaaBaaaBaa or MaaMaaMaaa

Hunter's favorite things to NOT do:

Go to Sleep

Tummy Time

Roll over (He tries to stop himself if I "help" him roll over even!)

Snuggle close

Be in the Ergo 

Be held like a baby

Be alone

Wait for his food for even a second once he thinks he's going to eat

Get his clothes changed

Take a bath (although he's getting better!)

Did I mention he doesn't like going to sleep?

I'm guessing you were going to ask about his schedule.  Glad you asked!  Here it is:

Wake up:  Anywhere between 7:30 and 8:30

Eat

Have fun with mom (me!)

1 . 5 hours after he wakes up, almost to the minute, he's ready for his first nap.  

We either:  Take a Jog in the Bob, or put him to sleep in the swing

How long is this nap, you might ask?  Well.  I call it the "Pathetic Nap" because it is anywhere between 20 minutes and 1 hour, generally falling in the 30 minute range.  Yes.  a little short, but it works for him!

Wake Up

Eat

Have fun with mom (me!) 

Perhaps do an errand or to with me, depending on the day

1 .5  hours after he wakes up.... again, almost to the minute, he's ready for his "Real" nap of the day.

This can last anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour and a half.  

Wake Up

Eat

Play/Go to a Cross Country Event/Anything else thats going on

...and then ANOTHER nap comes along, ranging somewhere between 30 minutes and 1 hour.  It must depend on the dreams he's having.  If he's in Hawaii on the beach, perhaps it will be 1 hour.  If his mom is making him do tummy time or take a bath, its the 30 minute kind I'm sure.

Wake Up

Eat

Play!

Then, the rest of the day is what I like to call "the Crapshoot."

Because, really, that's what it is.  Hunter's got his own little schedule going for the evening time, and we get to just be a part of it!  :)  It is getting a little more predictable, but every day is just a little bit different. Might there be another nap? Maybe!  Might he cry for an hour to get to sleep?  Perhaps!  Might he giggle for 30 minutes and go down easy? Oh yes, its possible!  But in general, he will be asleep anywhere from 8:15pm to 9:30pm.  Not bad, but.... we're gradually shifting him to an earlier bed-time!

Midnight Madness:

Oh no, it doesn't stop here!  There's the night-time schedule!  And well, haha, I guess that depends too.  We just did away with the swaddle not too long ago, and that took away most of the predictability of his night-time, but it still seems like a step forward, as we don't want to swaddle him for the rest of his life! (I'm pretty sure CPS may get involved somewhere along the line).  So lets just say that Hunter wakes up anywhere from 2-4 times a night to eat, but the average is 2-3 times.  I attempt to get him to fall back to sleep without eating, but its generally to no avail.   Once he sees me, its like walking into that aromatic restaurant and even if you weren't that hungry when you walked in, you know you'll have a plate of food with your name on it before you leave the place!  I guess its kind of like that.  So yes.  I get to see a lot of Hunter at night.  But he's pretty precious, and its the only only time he falls asleep in my arms so to be honest?  I kind of love it.  

Any teeth?  Nope.

Any hair?  Its getting longer!

Hunter so far pretty much loves... people!  Are you surprised?  He doesn't really show too much favoritism yet, and really loves being with anyone who will give him a smile.  Try it, he'll give you a gummy grin back!

How does he sleep?  The huge question!  Of course, with a blanket close to his head to he can snuggle in and block some light.  If anyone knows me very well,. . . you know he's my son!

And Diapers.  You've been wondering this all day.  Do Jake & I really use cloth?  Yes, and we love it!  

I know some of you didn't think we could follow through. . . but here we are, 6 months in, and going strong.  Although we use a little more water & a little more electricity, I really do think we save tons of money and a little room in the landfills every day!  So.  Its been a very positive process.  

Some of my favorite things:

Seeing him when he wakes up from a nap.  Those smiles are priceless!

Watching Jake and Hunter together.  Jake loves his little boy!

When he REALLY giggles, not the "I'm tired" type.

Watching how inquisitive he is.  He has so much to figure out!

His expressions!  He has so many different looks, they crack me up!

Being a mom.  Oh how I look at things differently.  

Hunter, your daddy and I love you so much.  May God bless your every day, and may we always love you the way we should.  Thank you for being our little man, our 6 month old baby boy!

Run Like a Girl

Oh yes.  Its almost time to bust out the tiara, sport the tattoo, eat chocolate and espresso beans like a mad-woman, all this while busting my buns on the 13.1 mile course with a hundred other women!  I am more than a little excited about this event, can you tell?  In exactly one week, I will be doing my annual (as in this is year 3) marathon called Run Like a Girl.  Its slogan is "Run, Walk, or Crawl" to the finish line.  Ha!  Love it.  I love how when I sign up for this event, I actually forget that I am about to go THIRTEEN miles at once!  All I usually think about is the people, the themed miles, the Hawaiian lays, the free stuff, and the ICE CREAM and MASSAGES awaiting me once finished with the madness.  I am also over-the-moon-happy about this because I wasn't sure how anything would "work" post-baby, and now that the time has come, I think I'm going to be okay!  I am very thankful for this, and I'm trying not to take it for granted!  I have definitely been able to have some stroller/pavement time, if you know what I mean, so I should be ready to take everything in and take it all on.  

Here is a picture of Run Like a Girl 2009.  Doesn't it look like we're actually running? ha...

. . . and here's us running like a girl in the year 2010.  Apparently the pre-race photo brings out the body builders in us.  In fact, a little teensy Hunter is giving his best flex inside me in this photo!   

This year I am looking forward to it for a few more reasons.  Not only will I have a few dear friends alongside me, this year my mom, mother - in - law, both sisters, second cousin, and perhaps even Hunter will be joining the festivities on the trails of Bellingham!

So, I have one week to train for this event, which is why I am sitting here eating ice cream as we speak.  Hey, I don't want an upset stomach next week by surprising myself with dairy deliciousness!  Perhaps I'll hit the trails as well, but I'm not concerned with the outcome.  They'll ask me what I want my time to be & that's what they yell out when I'm done.  That's how cool this event is.  I'm pretty sure you want to join next year.  You might just have to train with me, especially now that I have a homemade ice cream maker . . .

Jump - a - holic

It only took Hunter about 5 seconds before he realized that his parents had put him in the COOLEST invention on the face of the earth!  

He Bounced, . . . 

. . . and he Bounced. . . 

. . . and he Bounced!

The next day, when we put him in the same 'cool contraption'. . .  No amount of convincing could get him to jump.  All he wanted to do was SWING!  He tried to wiggle his legs a little on the ground, but he couldn't quite put it all together to make a jump.  However, he had just as much fun swinging, and even giggled much more than the jumping day before!  What a silly, silly boy.  

Don't you wish we all could be entertained by a small piece of fabric & metal hanging from a door frame? 

Oh, the FAIR

Fairs are the best!  And its SO fun to go with lots of friends so you can enjoy the food, the smells, the animals, the crafts, and the atmosphere all together!  

However.  Jake almost gasps at my claim that when it comes to the fair....  "Less is More."

I'm so bummed at my realization, since if I had it my way, I'd do most everything with ALL my friends all the time. . .  but in all honesty, our fair time was a little hectic, one might say.  

It wasn't that we really planned it this way....  but after just a few conversations and after perhaps just a few mentions of the word 'fair', we had about 14 people who we were going to try to "enjoy the fair" with!   

Well, I DID have a great time the fair!  But... I'm pretty sure we stood in the entrance (with the enjoyment of the fair at an arms reach!) for a good 25 minutes before one person even mentioned moving forward to the blissful fairland.  Then, once it was mentioned, everyone concurred we should forge ahead.... but then of course, we found someone else we knew from church, someone wanted a corn dog instead of the pulled pork, some wanted to see the pigs, some wanted to just cry (at least Hunter did! Maybe more?) and it was hard to hear because of the performance going on in what seemed like my ear canal.   Phew!  Needless to say it was a little hectic and the FUN friends who I came with all seemed to realize at once that this wasn't going to work.  

SO.  After we pared ourselves down to a few groups, we were actually able to do some fairish things.  (But of course I was always wanting to know what the other groups were doing so there were many texts & calls & distractions so it was still a bit laughable)

We never even got to the picture taking with everyone, so here's my meager supply of photos of our fantastic fair adventure.

The MOO WICH!  Traditional fair dessert meal.

An ode to the Fowler family holiday meals (perhaps I'll post about this another time)

Hunter hanging out at the Young Life Food Barn

A few of the boys waiting for rest of the group to get their MOO-WICH on!

Yes.  It was AMAZING!

Family Reunion!

I am sure most of you have been to a family reunion or two in your life...  You all find a spot to spend one to two days together to catch up on the past few years, or 5 years, or 10, however it goes.  Perhaps there's some activities planned, and of course, there will be food, and probably lots of it!  You'll mingle around and maybe only stay for a few hours because you have somewhere else to be by evening's end.  If you're lucky you get to spend the night and have breakfast together before you all go back to your lives as quick as can be. 

I thought this was how most reunions were (if families even held them)....  until....  I met the Haskins family.  I have been going to their reunions for at least 5 years now, and it wasn't until this year that I realized how amazing the weekend truly is, and how crazy the family is for taking this big venture on EVERY year! (granted, my Minnesota family has one every year but its been 10 years since I've been and I don't remember it being this full! ...but it was a long time ago so I won't discredit that reunion!)

What started as just a Saturday/Sunday gig has now turned into a Friday/Saturday/Sunday gig.... and this year there were plenty of people coming Thursday, and some staying through Monday!  So not only do the days get filled like crazy, the entire weekend is seeping into the rest of the week!  Move over, August, the Haskins Family Reunion is coming to stay!!

So we started with a little bit of this:

Pappy with all the kids while the rest of us golfed 9 holes  (Jake golfed too)

Waiting at hole 6!

Then, we had our annual post-golf DAIRY QUEEN trip (no photo included...too busy eating my Cookie Jar blizzard to even think about a camera...)

I'm sure we then took a break to play with Hunter back at the reunion site.

A new toy:  Pappy's hair!

We then greeted more and more people as they arrived at the farm in Rochester, set up our tents, ate dinner, and crashed for the evening.  

Saturday.  A CRAZY Day!  It all started with an enormous shared breakfast of pancakes, eggs, meat, and various fruits.  

Then the fun begins.  

SOFTBALL GAME!

These are just the watchers!

Here are the actual players

BABY SHOWER!

New babies added within the year.  Not sure they were all ready for this pic...

CRAFT TIME!

A little homemade tablecloth that everyone needed to "sign"

And what's a Family Reunion without a little COMPETITION?   

Team Dick Haskins

Team Ray Haskins

Team Bob Haskins

After a HUGE dinner where we're supposed to bring food items the same color as your team, there were actually team competitions!  (the teams were split up though... but the HASKINS CUP was very intense!)  No photo again... but there were tons of stations that everyone had to go through... and first team to finish wins!

Team Blue hanging out by the french fry maker (best place to be!)

And.... another picture of Hunter just because I adore him

Okay.  So perhaps you're not terribly impressed.  But then they added a little of THIS!

So much fun for all who dared to join the SLIP 'N SLIDE!

Alright.  Sunday morning.  Started out with a lovely CHURCH SERVICE. I just love that we do this.

Then, there's the super competitive EGG TOSS.  

My partner and I decided our egg was destined for failure when we STARTED with a crack!  :(

Then all the kids jumped for joy & into the big pile for their CANDY IN THE HAY search!  No photo included, but in case you're worried... Hunter did NOT join in this year.  Jake was a little disappointed but I'm sure he'll be out there next year, bringing candy home for daddy.

Then, there was the TRIVIA.  Oh my.  Always a big hit and I'm always clueless.  I'm lucky if I get everyone's names right who's there, much less the people that aren't there, and the previous generations!  Whew!  So great to have so many people care about the family who came before them.  

Then, we wrap it up, eat (again) pack up & mosey out of there with hugs and drawn out goodbyes.

Just another photo of our sweetie

Even writing this post makes me tired!  The trampoline, the goofball, the tents, the dirt, the river, the naps!  Add all of these things together, with 95 people, so many kiddos running around, so many conversations to be had, so much food to eat, so many games to play, its a truly amazing idea that it "just works" so well!  However, a lot of work by a lot of people goes into planning this event, so for that I am thankful.  

I hope we'll be ready to take it all on again next year, because its OUR Ray Haskins Family turn to plan the events of the weekend!