The Pumpkin Farm

I love Fall! It is always great when the weather changes, we can layer up, and sip a hot cider. As Halloween approaches, the family made an annual trip to Goebbert's pumpkin farm to pick out a pumpkin and enjoy the Fall festivities. Goebbert's has a petting zoo with a giraffe and a tiger, and despite my cries of animal cruelty, we headed out to take advantage of the entrapment of wild animals and perhaps grab a pumpkin cookie.

In the style of Baby Nate, Nate kept to himself and stayed snug as a bug for the large portion of the excursion. It seems that this is the trend, and every outing has a picture of him keeping cozy in the stroller. Stella, on the other hand, can be gregarious when out on the town. She has no fear, and trots off with the spirit of exploration.

Stella fearlessly rode her first pony, and was all business about it (she has plenty of practice riding on Uncle David's shoulders, shouting, "Giddyup horsie!"). She also climbed around with Eric on the various trains and wagons at the pumpkin farm.

After it was determined that it would be cheaper and easier to buy a pumpkin from the local grocer, we settled in for a gigantic pumpkin cookie, hot chocolate, and hot cider. Stella killed off one of these same cookies last year, again proving that her sweet tooth will always triumph over Mommy's objections.

Aunt Elaine was in town from England, so the kids had the opportunity to spend some quality time with her. As always, she showered them with gifts and cuddles. We took a trip out to Sushi Station, and snapped this sweet group shot. It is fantastic that Stella has the chance to see Elaine so often and that Nate got to meet her.

Today we head off to the doctor for check-ups, and I am excited to find out where Nate is on the growth curve. He has been a hungry little dude, and he appears to be as tall as a toddler. We may have to cut the feet off of his 9-month pajamas so that they will fit! He is going to be a tall kid for sure, and he is already the cutest baby alive. He recently started babbling, and is quite grabby. He is getting the hang of eating, and much like his sister, loves sweet fruits. He is Mommy's snugglebug, and Stella loves to sneak in for a hug with him as well.

Stella's New Ride

We took Stella out on her new Powerwheels Little Quad that she got from Jack and Colleen (after buying a helmet, of course). She isn't all that great at steering, but loved to make it go. She yelled, "Faster, faster!" Here are some pics:

Happy 2nd Birthday, Stella!

"I'm not a baby; I'm a big girl!"

Happy 2nd birthday to our big girl, Stella! Mommy and Daddy are so proud of our beautiful and amazing little two-year-old. We had a wonderful couple of days to celebrate the milestone birthday. On Friday, Grandma Louise came over with some little Sesame Street characters for Stella and a pair of overalls. Stella loved the overalls because they have a ton of pockets for all of her little buddies.

We then headed over, pockets stuffed, to meet Daddy and the Stahlmanns at a restaurant for dinner. Stella was able to indulge in her favorites: pizza, mac and cheese, and the biggest bowl of ice cream imaginable. Once she had eaten it all, she turned to Dave and asked, "Can I have some of yours?"

After dinner, we went home to open another gift. Grandma and Granddad had given Stella a desk/easel for all of Stella's coloring. She has since created several pictures, which she then crumples up and throws on the floor. A perfectionist at two!

Saturday was Stella's birthday party. We held it at The Little Gym in Glenview and invited fifteen of her closest kid buddies and thirty adults. It was a massive event. The venue was great; the staff ran activities, served the food, and packed up the presents. All of the kiddos appeared to enjoy themselves. Stella was a bit obstinate (she is two, let's not forget) and didn't feel that she needed to follow instructions on her birthday, but she had a hoot of a time jumping, running, and swinging about. Uncles Jack and David stole the show with their floor routines and general perpetual eight-year-old behavior. It was a lot of fun.


Stella's party was robot themed, and wouldn't have been complete without a giant vegan pink robot cake, made by Mommy. She had been snagging tastes of the frosting every time we opened the fridge door. When snapping a photo of the cake, Chris caught Stella in the act! She also had RoboStella buttons, and RoboStella cupcakes. We ordered in pizza, sang, and blew out candles!

We hauled the loot home with the help of Jack and Colleen, and boy, did Stella make out like a bandit! She has a very generous group of friends and family. So generous, in fact, that Mommy had to stash some of the goods away to release on a future date. There were just way too many toys to put out all at once. Here are some of the highlights: Lots of cute clothes, a toy ipod, a toy phone, puzzles, a play dough factory, some great books, videos (including the Elmo Potty Time video), Sesame Street stuff, a faux fur vest and outfit (like a rockstar!), my little ponies, a baby princess, a leap frog game, a vet clinic, her first Barbie (a mermaid for the bath), a rocking electric guitar, and a POWERWHEEL ATV. Craziness, right!!! What a spoiled little queen we have. We have many thank you cards to write, and I hope someday Stella realizes how much she is loved!

We had a great time over the birthday weekend, and are so thankful for those that celebrated with us and continue to support and love our children. Also of note, I can now say that we've survived two under two! Love and thanks to you all!