Our weekend in Madison

We had a great time in Madison last weekend, visiting Grandma Reinsel. We arrived on Friday evening - Jack was pretty much asleep an hour after we got there, but Andy had fun for a few hours playing with toys he hadn't played with in a long time. On Saturday we went to a pumpkin farm - we got to go on a wagon ride pulled by a tractor, picked our own pumpkins, played with some toy tractors, saw some farm animals, and navigated our way through a corn maze. Andy went through the corn maze twice, leading us both times. First time through we made some wrong turns, as expected, but second time through was perfect - he remembered exactly where to go at every turn. We were so impressed!! We had a snack, which included some delicious apple cider and then headed back to Grandma's house. Andy fell asleep on the way home and slept for another hour after that. It was the perfect opportunity for Chris and I to go for a long run. We ran through the arboretum, one of my favorite spots to run when I went to college at Madison. It was 70's and sunny :)

We watched the Badgers game (disappointing) and then went to the park where Andy and Jack had a great time. On Saturday night, Andy had a blast playing with flashlights and going down into Grandma's "spooky" basement. In convincing us to go down there with him, Andy told us "You're not afraid of kooky (Andy's way of saying spooky)stuff!" We headed home on Sunday and cheered for the Packers (too bad they lost) and the Brewers (yay!!!) It was a great weekend with Grandma Reinsel - both boys (and Chris & I) had a blast. Being in Madison in fall always reminds me of our college years :) Maybe Andy and Jack will want to go there some day!

Vacation Day Friday - 80 and Sunny in September

We don't get too many 80 degree sunny days in September, especially that happen to land on a Friday, so I decided we had better take advantage of it. I took a vacation day from work which means it's a 3 day weekend now! Andy and I had a special adventure morning planned, so Jack went to school for a half day. Andy and I started out by going to the Children's Museum from 9-10:30. We were the only ones there for awhile so he got to drive the crane, firetruck, and airplane all he wanted. We did a couple of art projects and then decided it was time to play outside at a park. We went to the rocketship park in Neenah and had fun there for an hour - ate a snack outside and played on a cannon by the water. Then, for the practical part of our trip, we went to the store for some diapers & baby food (jack will be starting more solids soon!). Andy got to pick out a toy since he was so good and he picked out a couple of Star Wars action figures - I told him daddy will love playing those with him! Lastly, we went to lunch at Culvers where we split a kid's meal - Andy eats what he wants, which is usual 1/4 of it, and then I get the rest. All in all, a great morning. I really enjoyed the one-on-one time with Andy where he got to do pretty much whatever he wanted to -without a baby to worry about. He was very ready to go to school to get Jack after lunch though. When we got to his classroom, Andy gave him a big hug.

We picked up Jack and then headed to ANOTHER park - this time Jack got to go in the swings next to Andy for the first time, and loved it!! He had lots of fun. Once we got home, Andy decided he needed MORE time outside. So (for the last time this year probably) we made some water balloons and Andy splashed them all over us. Jack was laying on a blanket outside and was working on his rolling over skills - he is VERY good at rolling over from back to tummy now. And now, as I type this, Andy is playing very quietly because he's tired due to our no nap day, and Jack is sound asleep. I feel like we did so much in one day!! And it's not even officially the weekend yet!

Apple Orchard Day

On Saturday, my parents came to visit us for the day. We decided to go to an apple orchard since the weather was beautiful. Poor Chris had to stay home to work on an exam for his class - but we managed to pick plenty of apples without him, and brought him home some good ones! Before Grandma and Grandpa Graham arrived, Andy and Chris got their hair cuts done right away in the morning. Chris sat nice and still (haha!) but Andy was a little more squirmy! We also went to the Farmer's Market and walked around.

Here's Jack and Andy with Grandma and Grandpa Graham. Andy was anxiously awaiting their arrival for about the half hour before. Happy boy, chewing on EVERYTHING!At the apple orchard, Andy got the hang of things right away.
Jack had a little nap in the shade.

Here's Andy picking a good red one! We went with the McIntoshes.

We even convinced him to try a bite (Andy is not really a big fan of apples)
And then later, we found him sneakily taking another bite under the tree :) I wouldn't be surprised if a few of the apples in our bag have tiny little bite marks on them!
The orchard also had pumpkins (not pick your own yet - still too many green ones) But they did have some really good looking big ones sitting out in the front lawn. Andy took awhile picking out his favorite, but we do now have one sitting on our front porch. We'll be making another trip out to a big pumpkin patch in early October, hopefully, where Andy can get another and Jack can pick out his!
I think Andy's favorite part was finding the little lady bugs that were crawling all over the pumpkins. Here he is having a little conversation with one of the ladybugs (no, I'm not kidding!) It went something like this "Hello little lady bug, what are you doing here? Do you live here? What's your name?"

We stopped at a park to play for awhile. Jack was happy with his Grandma and Grandpa while Andy & I played.


I've already made an apple pie which Chris and I finished off yesterday and apple bread which turned out pretty good. Maybe applesauce is next... We've also got some good caramel sauce to dip the apple slices in. Yum!

4 Month Stats for Jack

Jack had his 4 month appointment today and it confirmed what we all know - he's a big guy! But, he is very well proportioned. Here are his stats:
Weight: 18 lbs, 14 ozs. - 97%
Height: 26.5 inches - 91%
Head Circumference: 44.1 cm - 89%
Overall, Jack checked out great and was very well behaved. He showed off how well he can hold his head steady, smile, and make eye contact. He got 4 shots, cried a bit afterwards, and has been sleeping it off today. He was crabby when his tylenol wore off, so I gave him a bit more. Here are some pictures from the past couple of days...

Soon after getting home from his shots...
Sleeping it off...

After a nap and some Tylenol, Jack was in a happy mood again!



So serious

Not so serious!
Playing some soccer with Grandma Graham
Kick it!
New halloween jammies

Reading a book before bed.
Playing with a new tape measure...
Jack loved Andy's new halloween pajamas - I think the bright colors attracted his attention!