Pumpkin Painting

We had fun painting some "baby" (that's what the boys call them) pumpkins.  They love the paintbrushes and always want more paint even if they have a bunch.  Painting is fun at our house.

Chase carefully uses his brush to paint his pumpkin.

Owen chooses to use his hands to paint the paper, rather than the pumpkin.

Another day we were bored so I stretched out some butcher paper on the table and we had a blast smearing, making hand prints, etc. They like to use the paint rollers to roll paint on the paper.  I was going to use the paper as wrapping paper, but I put it outside to dry and it got rained on.  Oh well. 

The boys love arts and crafts-probably because I do and have always involved them in some sort of craft to help develop their brains, fine motor skills and creativity.  They can sit for quite a while and create art.  They've been doing a lot of project at daycare and are so proud to show me their work when I pick them up at the end of the day.

Chase dips his hands in the paint.

Owen makes hand prints-which resulted in some splattered paint.

"Look Mama!  "

"Mommy look at my hands!"

Two boys and 4 red hands.

Baking Halloween Cookies

Over Fall Break we made our first cut out cookies together.  It was so much fun!  The boys had fun pressing the cookie cutter into the dough and Mommy had fun trying to peel the cookie off the sticky mat.  (I didn't use enough flour like you taught me, Mom.)  Owen made the bat cookies and Chase the ghost cookies.  They were a mess of flour and dough.  Owen had fun watching the cookies bake in the oven and they enjoyed eating them afterward.

Chase and the ghost (and the outfit he picked out)

 

Owen and his bat, preoccupied with the dough.

The other day I put Chase to bed and I told him I loved him. Then I asked him something I had never asked before, I said, "Do you love Mommy?" While sucking his thumb, he looked me in the eye, smiled with them and shook his head yes. My heart melted.

The next night I tried the same thing with Owen. I said, "Mommy loves you, do you love Mommy?" Owen looked me in the eye and then leaned in put his cheek to mine and hugged me. I'm pretty sure the answer was "yes". :)

Language continues to expand daily.  Chase now says "here Mommy", Owen and Chase call little people "guys" and Owen says "yeah".  There are always a lot of weird words, Owen's favorite is "keekee".  My favorite thing is when I ask Chase to say a word like "bug".  I tell him to look at my face and I saw the word.  He then says something like "dookaaa".  I love it when it comes out nothing close to what I was trying to teach him!  Owen doesn't usually try unless he knows he can do it so I don't get as many funny responses from him.

What Do You Like to Read?

Owen likes to read Daddy's old seminary books about other faiths.

At the Car Wash

The boys had fun helping Daddy wash the car a couple weekends ago.  As you can tell, it must have been nice out, Owen is in his undies.  Chase started out working with Daddy alone and was so proud to be washing the car.  Owen and I came out and he wanted to help too.  They worked so hard.  What big boys.

 

Chase washes the front wheel, Owen the back.

 

Owen works hard to shine the wheels.

 

Chase squats and scrubs that wheel.

 

My little workers.

Uniform

 

Don't you love it when your child insists on wearing 1 thing and 1 thing only?  Owen LOVES this jammies ensemble.  We got these jammies as hand-me-downs and I really think they are probably girl's jammies.  I don't even know if the top and bottom match, but Owen loves them.  I thought they were cute so I put them in the drawer and they have been Owen's "uniform" ever since.  He used to have a melt down if we tried to put him in different jammies.  He currently is not doing that as long as we have striped pants to put him in! :)  So funny. 

Help

Jeff had help from Chase (and Owen, who is behind Jeff) last week while doing dishes.

Hiding

We were playing Hide N Seek a couple weeks ago.  I was in the kitchen cooking and the boys positioned themselves on the coffee table.  A moment before this picture was taken, Chase was down in the fetal position like Owen and it was so funny!  That was how they were hiding from me.  So typical of this age and soooooo funny!  Of course Owen is in nothing but his undies. 

 Have I mentioned this?  When we get home from the day and when Owen has to go potty he goes and then he has to take all of his clothes off, including his socks. He will wear his undies, but nothing else.  It is a major fight to get him back in his clothes so we just let him be nudie.  He goes outside like this and all the little neighbor girls get to see Owen in his undies. I'm sure he won't appreciate this in the future.  One of my neighbors said, "Owen is just in his undies, wow, didn't you make him put his clothes on?"  I just looked at her and said, "You pick your battles."  She agreed.

Owen's tantrums have pretty much subsided so we are one big happy family again! I'm not sure what was going on, but Owen is his happy funny giggly self again and I'm sooooo happy for me and him! :)

Up North

We made a fall trip "Up North" to visit Nana and Papapa on October 1st.  We had not been to Leech Lake in the fall and it was beautiful.  We went during peak fall leaf color time and saw some great colorful trees.  Chase and Owen had so much fun playing outside, rolling in the leaves, digging in the sand, running up and down the dock, throwing rocks in the water, throwing bread at the fish that never appeared and playing with Nana and Papa.

Jeff and I had the opportunity to go out for dinner to celebrate our anniversary a little early.  We went to the Chase Hotel and had a great meal.  It was so much fun to be out to dinner with my hubby and have time to ourselves.  Of course we did get home in time to watch a movie-we can't stay out too late, we are getting too old.  :)

 

Owen had fun one morning cuddling with blankets on the couch by the window.  He was just loving his own little spot.

 

Grandpa and Chase taking a walk down the lake

 

Chase giving me a big "cheese"

 

Chase and Owen were having fun yelling into the poles on the dock.

 

Jeff and Chase

 

Daddy and Owen

Nana and Chase

 

Throwing rocks

 

Owen enjoyed wearing Nana's mittens

 

Owen and Chase carried wood to help build the fire.

 

Chase helping

 

Papapa cuddling in the morning.

 

Grandma cut Owen's hair

 

She also cut Chase's hair.

 

Look at all that hair!

Quatro

 

Four Years Ago, 

 

On Friday, October 13th,

 

at Wooddale Church,

 

I married my love,

 

and it was,

 

and is,

 

a wonderful thing.

Fall at the Orchard Continued

These are follow up pictures from the first blog post about the apple orchard.  I had too many cute ones!

                                                     Chase and Owen ride in the wagon

 

Chase fell over the pumpkins and was goofing around having a good time.

 

Chase was trying really hard to pick up the pumpkin, it was just a bit too heavy.

 

So, he called Owen over to help and the two of them heave hoed, but still couldn't lift the pumpkin.

 

Daddy and his boys

 

Owen had some fun falling over the pumpkins too, they thought this was so funny.

 

Mommy and stylin' Owen and cute Chase

 

Eating the first of 2 apples

 

Jeff, Chase and Owen ride the flatbed wagon.

 

We picked apples in the orchard, it was so much fun!

 

Owen decided he would pull Chase and he did such a good job!  He was strong.

 

Daddy decided to pull the boys back to the car, Owen was too pooped.

 

Owen takes a big bite of his apple

 

Chase tears off a bite of his apple

 

Owen watches the llama.  Actually I think he was just having fun climbing up and down the fence.

 

This is what Chase was doing as we were all walking to the car to leave, he wasn't quite ready.