Pumpkin Patch

This photo of the kids cracks me up. It captures each of them so well.

Owen, Cashion, Sadie and Seville

We visited Sweet Berry Farm to pick out our pumpkins this year. We love picking strawberries there in the Spring, but this was our first Fall outing. It was fun but crazy busy! Tons of families there on a Saturday. There were lots of photo ops and we took advantage of a lot of them. We were hoping the cool morning temperatures would hold out, but it got hot fast. The kids dutifully posed while we snapped away, though maybe not quite enjoying it. The sun was really bright. But, mission accomplished: pumpkins - purchased, hayride - riden. We headed to Bluebonnet for lunch, which was lovely as always. In fact, so lovely that Sadie, Cashion, Matt and I returned for breakfast the following morning after spending the night at the lake house. We rounded off this fun Fall weekend with s'mores (sorry Cashion, you were to sleepy to roast marshmallows with us.)

Tangerine Dream

We enjoyed another wonderful October weekend at the Tangerine Dreamhouse in Port Aransas with some dear friends this year. The number of kids doubled from last year, so it was busy and loads of fun with 6 kids. I love the weather this time of year down on Texas beaches and it is not busy at all. Cashion had his first experience with sand (not too tasty) and Sadie was a little bit braver about the waves (just a little bit.) She was really into sand castles and looking for shells, which was fun to watch. Cashion took lots of naps, so we only stayed at the beach for a little while at a time. I loved getting to spend so much time with our friends and their children. It is such a luxury to get to play all day and then put the kids down to bed, then still get to have a great meal and conversation with great friends. These days restaurants are so hectic with so many kids and we don't really even get to talk to each other before we have to leave to put the kids down, so I really appreciate this time together. I hope this will continue to be an annual event!

Cashion at 8 months

Wow, this has been an amazing month of change! Cashion is now crawling all over the place and pulling up on the couch! He still falls backwards sometimes and bumps his head, but usually recovers pretty quickly with a hug and a kiss. He is really interested in toys. He bangs things together with both hands and still needs to "taste" everything. Speaking of tasting, he has learned to love food. He now eats 2 jars of baby food at one sitting. He eats quickly and without much mess, which is a huge change from last month. He still loves his bottle and likes to drink it facing away from you so he can rest on your chest. I started this when he didn't want to take a bottle from me initially, thinking it would be better if he couldn't see me and it has kind of stuck. He fusses everytime the bottle is finished. He drinks it so fast it hasn't had a chance to hit his belly yet! He uses one finger to poke and point at things. Cashion is starting to pick up the Graduates "puffs", but still has trouble getting them into his mouth since they tend to get stuck in his hand. We have moved him into a rear-facing toddler car seat since he has outgrown the infant seat. Cashion loves splashing around in the bath. He is such a water baby.

New York City

We had an amazing trip to NYC to visit Dana and Ian. We covered a lot of territory by subway and on foot. No taxis here, except for the car service that provided the car seats. The stroller that Bebe found for us that held Cashion in front and Sadie in back (either sitting or standing) was great. I don't know how parents do it on their own in the city. There are many subway stations that only have stairs, so you have to somehow get the stroller and both kids down. Thankfully, we had at least 2 and sometimes 4 adults to maneuver ourselves and our stuff down the stairs. The first night, we wandered around Dana's neighborhood in Brooklyn. We met Dana and Ian back at her apartment where we narrowly missed the Brooklyn tornado. Seriously, there trees pulled out of the ground. Amazingly, we had beautiful weather the rest of the weekend. We headed out to Coney Island on Friday morning. It was pretty deserted, but fun to imagine what it used to be like. I loved all the kitchy painted signs and backdrop of the old carnival rides.

Then, we headed to Little Italy for the San Genarro Italian Festival where we met Ian on his lunch break. We were too full from our Nathan's Hot Dog to partake in the street food, but it looked delicious. Then, we shopped while Cashion napped in the stroller and Matt carried a sleepy Sadie on his back in the Ergo carrier. Next we went to the building where Dana works and met all of her work friends. They loved Sadie and gave her a lip gloss and a bag to carry it in. Then, we headed downstairs to FAO Schwartz where we saw everything from Barbies to Legos. Dana bought Sadie her very own personalized puzzle with her picture and Tiana from "The Princess and the Frog."

Saturday morning we had a delicious brunch at Rothschilds (which we had all to ourselves) and headed up the Bronx Zoo, where we took advantage of the free admission thanks to Dana's work who was having a corporate family day. It was huge, but we got to see the lion cubs and enjoy the lush, vegetation-lined paths. The kids fell asleep on the subway on the way home, so we grabbed a bite at Bark (gourmet hot dogs) and headed back to the apartment to watch the UT game.

Sunday morning we went to Chinatown to have Dim Sum at the Golden Unicorn (along with about 100 European tourists and lots more locals.) Sadie wasn't a fan, but we all loved the dumplings and crispy duck. So, we did what everyone should do when they have eaten way too much chinese food...go get a doughnut. The Doughnut Plant is well-known for their creative take on doughnuts. We tried several, all delicious.
We walked through Brooklyn Flea (Market) and bought a few vintage children's 45s in bright colors. Apparently, Zac Braff was there, but we didn't see him. We did see "Felicity" (Keri Russell) down the street from Dana's apartment, which is funny because I have seen her in Manhattan before. (Ian saw Padma from Top Chef while we were there, too). Dinner was amazing at Frankie's in Brooklyn. We sat outside and enjoyed the crisp September evening with delicious housemade pastas and antipasto. When we were walking home, Sadie saw a star and wished for ice cream. Not two doors down did we pass Blue Marble Ice Cream. And as Matt said, "How often does a Dad get to make his daughter's wish come true?"
Monday, Dana took the day off from work and went shopping at Zara with us before she headed off to an interview. We hit H&M and then took a break in beautiful Bryant Park while Sadie slept in the stroller. Dana met up with us here and then we went up to Alice's Tea Cup. It is such a sweet little tea room that has the kid thing down. After the "fairy dust" they sprinkled over her that required a bath before we contaminated Dana's apartment with glitter forever, they offered wings for Sadie to where and a plastic tea cup. All in all, we felt very welcome with our kids in tow this trip. It still amazes me how families navigate this city on a daily basis, but there is so much to do here we could come back again and again. Thanks to Dana for letting us invade her space and to Ian for taking her in. It certainly would not have been as successful a trip without those two. Love you guys and see you next month here in Austin! Click on the NYC slideshow to see more pics from the trip.

Cashion at 7 months

I love this look that he does. He tucks his lips in and says "Ooooooh."
Coming up to sitting

Everything in the mouth

Cashion's favorite book and if you look closely, you might be able to see the 2 teeth on bottom.

Cashion just figured out how to come to sitting from a crawling position today! I am always so amazed to watch typical development in my own children. It really is miraculous. He is just starting to figure out how to crawl on hands and knees, but he sure can motor around on his tummy now. He is sitting fairly well now, though he does occasionally still lose his balance. He still does not love baby food. I am not sure how much he actually swallows, between him spitting it out and getting it all over himself as he is constantly grabbing the spoon. His favorite book is "Where is Baby's Belly Button?" He giggles at the babies as you lift the flaps. He coos the sweetest sounds and is more of a snuggler than Sadie was. He is my sweet boy.

Sadie the Ballerina!

Mommy teaching Sadie "first position"
Sadie is the one without the skirt

With Miss Trish at the "Teacher Barre"

OK, so if you know me at all you know that I almost couldn't wait until Sadie turned 3 to put her in dance class. I was definitely more excited than Sadie was, but she thought the leotard, tights, tap and ballet shoes were pretty "cool" (as she has been saying lately.) What makes it even more fun is that she gets to take dance class with Miss Trish. Possibly the sweetest woman ever put on this planet. She taught Dana and I as well, which makes it so special. She is in her eighties, but very spry. She has a helper teacher now, but she was right in there getting up and down off the floor with the little girls (and one wild boy who ran around the room the whole time.) On the first day, Sadie learned to tap her toes and heels and march in her tap shoes., after her initial hesitation where she sat in my lap for the first 5 mintues. Then, they changed into ballet shoes and did a "princess dance" with mood-setting twinkle lights and wands. If that didn't sell her, I don't know what will. Next time I won't get to stay and watch, so here are a few pics of the first day.

Fruits of Summer

Sometimes I feel like the stories I tell on this blog sound a little like bragging, but honestly I am more surprised than anyone when things like this next one happen. We just got back from Central Market, where I dragged both kids to get milk and a couple of other essentials. I usually avoid going to the grocery store in the heat of the day with both kids, but these were desparate times. So, I strapped Cashion into the Ergo and buckled Sadie into the cart and off we went. Sadie has always loved vegetables, beans, and fruit. I never had to push her to eat them. In fact, she will eat broccoli before she eats pizza, hot dogs or mac and cheese, when given the choice. So, we were walking through the produce section and she got so excited. She started picking out things to put in the cart. "Broccoli, let's get that!" "Yellow peppers, can we get some?" "Can I try a tomato?" "We need blackberries." She even picked out the multi-colored heirloom tomato pack and asked for some when she got home. She chose a mango, even though I have never bought one before. We didn't need this much produce since we will be at the lake this weekend, but I didn't want to say "no." So, we bought a little of everything and I will parcel it out over the next few days. I wonder if she will be a vegetarian someday.