Jack turns water baby

Hello, hello! So it seems that October has passed us by and my have we been busy. Jack and I just got back from a trip to visit family in California and what a great vacation it was! I love doing trips with family, because of all the extra help with Jack, it really DOES feel like a vacation. We went down to Palm Springs and enjoyed checking out the Living Desert Zoo, the local street fair, resteraunts, and of course hanging out in the pool.

Pretty much felt like we were on safari!

Note to self...DO NOT wear a straw hat in goat pen!

I swear he had fun!

When not out exploring Palm Springs, Jacks next favorite place was the hot tub. He earned himself a new nickname "Tadpole" as he loved the water and literally threw a fit each time we took him out. I've never seen anything like it. Jack liked that yellow floaty for about 20 minutes then decided he needed some freedom. The seat in the hot tub was just his height so he could stand with his head above water and walk around. Of course he had to push his luck and walk off the edge, when he went under I pulled him up and we waited to see how he would react. You would never guess what he did. He looked at me and SMILED! Is that normal? Don't get me wrong I'm not complaining but I would have expected some tears and crying. Same exact thing happened every time. If I didn't know better I would say he was part fish. Justin was very bummed to have missed out on all these fun things but I plan on bringing him next time. Nice of me I know~

Now we are home and Jack was so happy to see his dada, did I tell you he started to say that? Justin of course loves it, I keep pushing for Mama, however Jack just looks at me and makes his motorboat noise! Figures. :)

Jack has been very busy since we got home, rediscovering his toys, playing with the new stuffed doggy his dada got him, and watching the birds on the back porch. His great-gramma has a bird feeder at her house and Jack loves watching the birds when he's over there. So I thought it would be nice to have one at our house too. I was bummed though when no birds showed up... great-gramma said to give it a couple of days and then they would come. She was right, we have blue jays, a flicker, sparrows, and finches that visit our feeder. And as much as Jack loves watching them, I have to admit I love it too.

Next up on our agenda, pumpkin carving, roasting pumpkin seeds, and maybe a costume!

Daily Jack

This is what happens when he feeds himself. He thought he did pretty good!

A boy and his dog

We've had a busy day today; Jack took a walk with Henry, helped mommy put up a bird feeder, saw a Praying Mantis trying to fend off Henry, and snacked on some yummy melon. Yup, like I said pretty busy, and we loved every sunshine filled second of it! What did you do today?

Jack loves his Henry dog!

Jack's New Ride

I'm doing a Monday stand off if anyone wants to join me. I've always thought of the weekend as 3 days, but really anymore we only have one free day all to ourselves. This weekend or "weekend day" was really quite enjoyable. Jack's Nana came by for a visit bringing with her some new toys that Jack just loves and I have to say I'm enjoying them too. The weather was amazing, sunshine in the afternoon, so of course we all took a leisurely walk. Well actually Nana and I walked, Justin and Jack rode their bikes. Jack really likes his in case you were wondering.

Justin and I also watched the Oregon Ducks game. GO DUCKS! In case you are not a crazy Duck fan like myself, they were playing Stanford, who is ranked 9th in the Pac-10. Aren't you impressed with my college football knowledge?? :) That is about the extent of it, but I almost had ya fooled right?

So that was our weekend day, what did you do this weekend?

Daily Jack

Jack turned 9 months this week. That means I am only 3 months away from having a 1 year old. Yikes! Jack has been very busy since we've moved, he's been trying new foods, hanging out with friends, and been out on some adventures. Here are few pictures to catch you up on the little mans antics.

Jack has discovered Cheerios

And he LOVES them!

He was in the middle of a conversation with himself when I interrupted him to take this picture.

Jack and his friend "powder", bet you can't guess why thats his nickname! :)

Yes, another DIY project

I love fall, but unfortunately our number of clear fall days is much smaller than our rainy fall days. We have an outdoor fire pit area but no matter how amazing a fire is, its not much fun when you are soaking wet.

While perusing through Apartment Therapy I came across another DIY project, a personal fire pit. The materials only cost $25 bucks, This is totally one I CAN do and is perfect for under your porch while the rain drums outside! All this needs is a couple of friends and a cup of hot cocoa.

(via http://www.theartofdoingstuff.com/how-to-make-a-personal-fire-pit-for-cheap)

Yes, I do believe its officially fall

Dear Friends and Family,

We are still alive! The last couple of weeks have been incredibly busy as we moved our store and then our house! If any of you have done the moving thing you understand what a truly huge undertaking it is. This is our 2nd move in the last year and while we purged of un-needed items in our last move we still have quite a few belongings. I don't think our friends will help us move again anytime soon, and if for some reason Justin would mention such a thing I'm sure our belongings would end up "lost" in a ditch somewhere! That being said we are VERY thankful to have such great friends.

The house we just moved back into Justin has owned for some years now and we have been working to rennovate it. It is a great place with plenty of outbuildings and "man caves" for Justin. I'm enjoying the expanded cupboard space and many windows and Henry is loving his larger yard. But the best perk has to be its close proximity to the grandparents!

Little man Jack has had quite the time adjusting to a new home, room and huge expanse of wood flooring. Standing in footed jammies on a wood floor has resulted in a few slips and slides and head bumps, however he has thoroughly enjoyed exploring the new crawling territory. I promise to post some new pics as soon as I find my camera! Jack has been crawling for about a month now and is becoming more and more...confident, dare I say...at pulling himself into a standing postion. He frequently looks at me as he daringly takes his hand off the couch and stands alone for a few seconds, I love that he thinks he is such a daredevil!

Oh, I almost forgot his new thing to do is tilt his head to the side and hold my phone up to his ear. He loves "talking" to his daddy on the phone and gets quite perturbed when I take to long to talk myself. Precious!

Yesterday we went to the Oregon Ducks game. It was classic Oregon fall weather, drizzle and more drizzle! But as all Eugene people know, "It NEVER rains in Autzen Stadium!" This being said, we were in high spirits as we walked the ramp to Autzen stadium.

The U of O has really benefitted from being the starting place of Nike, as Phil Knight who is the co-founder of Nike and attended the University of Oregon, has donated a lot of money to the school. If you ever visit Eugene you really need to check out the campus, the newly built Jaqua Academic Center for athletes is amazing. We stopped in with some relatives to check it out and it is a stunning piece of work.

(via topboxdesign.com)

We had the game in the bag from the start. Oregon scored in the first 5 minutes and the resounding "O" from the crowd was awesome. It was clear that Oregon was much quicker on offense and defense and I kind of felt bad for Portland State as their QB got sacked quite a few times. The final score was 69-0 and while the game itself lacked the intensity of a close game we had a blast. I'm hoping we have the opportunity to make this an annual trip, but with perhaps some sunshine next time.

Football, rain, and pumpking spice lattes all herald that fall has officially arrived here in the northwest. I can't wait for pumpkin patches, Jack's first Halloween, and a crackling fire with some hot cocoa. What are your favorite fall things?

Well thats about it for now, Jack is napping, Henry is looking for squirrels, Justin is working, and its back to unpacking for me! Be back soon.