VERY big boy and YUMMY cookies!

What a great weekend at home! Several times this weekend, Jason and I exclaimed to each other "what a big boy!" These pictures can't possibly explain it all, but hopefully they can a little.
We took him down to the school playground in our neighborhood and he loved climbing on the contraptions and going down the slides and across the bridges. Even more than that though he likes hiking it across the big parking lot to where a couple of school buses are parked. Every time we drive or walk past these he points and yells out to them so it must have been a real treat to see them up close and touch them. Oh yes, and notice the new big boy shoes with hard bottoms. The cold wet grass was too much for the robeez and crocs....this was on a Sunday afternoon when he decided to dress like a frat boy.

Speaking of new shoes...Paw paw and Grammy got him some knee boots which he really loves...

Alder has also taken to doing something that really makes us laugh...he often walks toward either of us and exclaims "Ay Mama!" or "Ay Dada!" over and over until he reaches us. Not sure if he was doing this in this pic, but this is what it would look like! This is on a chilly Saturday morning when he decided to dress like a VCU art student.

He even sat Jason down and talked to him about how we would have to move to Canada if Sarah Palin ever became President...we couldn't help but agree with that logical and thoughtful face.

Alder is also getting a bit more independent and testing his limits. Even at daycare, he had to be separated from his best buddy Ethan (2 months older) because they are playing and talking during naptime! Now he naps with a younger, quiet girl...we think he is not happy about this....

Ok, so the excellent (and fairly healthy!) cookies...

Low Fat Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies

by Michelle Jones (whoever that is...)

1 can pumpkin
2 egg whites, whipped
1 c brown sugar
1.5 c all purpose flour (I used half whole wheat)
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cloves
3 cups rolled oats
1 cup raisins

Preheat oven 350 and prepare cookie sheet(s).
In a large bowl combine wet ingredients. In another bowl combine dry ingredients, including raisins. Mix all together just until moistened (will be very dry at first). Use a tablespoon and drop cookies onto baking sheet 2 inches apart. Bake for 15 minutes.
Remove from cookie sheet immediately after you take them out of oven and let cool on a rack if possible.

This makes ALOT of cookies and we have already eaten most of them, although we did give some to some friends....



Ah yes, and Alder gave them the seal of approval and has eaten his fair share! and yes...he got another haircut...

Carolina Beach...last week

We returned from the beach last Sunday and were slammed into a crazy week such that I am just getting to a post today. We are excited to be spending this weekend at home after what seems like forever. However, we miss the Kriedenier's terribly!! Thanks guys for a wonderful, albeit rainy weekend. Alder called Daniel 'Pa-Pa' all weekend which never ceased to make us laugh since Alder's real Pa-Pa has no hair from the neck up and, well, Daniel does....

Despite the rain and wind, we braved the beach on several occasions. Ellen and Arriana were super brave and did not complain at all about the conditions!


Popcorn was a special treat one afternoon. Yum, Yum my favorite snack of all time!! The girls were so great with Alder and we look forward to seeing them continue to grow together. Ellen just turned 7 and Arriana will be 6 in Feb. It is exciting to think about Alder being older and interacting the way the girls do. They are so smart and sweet!

Oh, yeah - we had to take Alder to the urgent care clinic because his sucking thumb had become grotesquely infected and swollen. Jason and I almost decided to poke a hole and drain the infection ourselves, but decided against it. It was a traumatic 20 minutes (lance and squeeze), but he was fine in no time. He has had his thumb bandaged up all week and has become quite fond of his pacifier. We had all but put these things away since we had not used one in many months, but he could not suck his thumb so we had to break them out again. Oh well....

Worth a Quick Post

Michael Pollan, Author of

and


and


(See more on these here. )

has a nice piece in N.Y. Times mag, called "Farmer in Chief". Basically he outlines why food is one of the most important and cross-disciplinary issues that we are facing right now in terms of the economy and our collective physical AND social health and well-being, yet not even a topic in for the presidential candidates.

Check it out

...HIGHLY suggest this guy...

Pumpkin Patch and a 'Camping' Trip

Last weekend, when Alder was really getting comfortable walking, we went to a small pumpkin patch in the yard of a local church. He LOVED cruising around, stacking, climbing, and talking to them.
This past weekend we headed out Friday afternoon on an ambitious, much needed camping trip. The weather is wonderful and cool, the leaves are just starting to change! Mom and Dad are overworked and want QT family time away from home. We had been recommended an isolated spot along the Cowpasture River in Western VA. We arrived around 5pm and Alder was cranky! He had woken from a nap with a fever! What to do...we did not want to go home, we had a dog and did not want to find a pet-friendly hotel, we did not know if camping with 40 degree weather would be good for Alder with a fever...

Douthat State Park was 30 minutes to the west and so we headed that way. We rented a one-room cabin (2 night minimum) and crossed our fingers that Alder would get better and not worse. He woke several times that night burning up with fever and then awoke Saturday (and for the rest of weekend) a very happy boy. So our isolated, rustic weekend turned into a rather cozy and comfortable getaway. While we were able to sleep indoors, we spent as much time as possible outside: cooking, eating and exploring. There are 40 miles of trails that extend from the park into the National Forest and we did not see many people despite the fact that it is a busy time of year. It was really great!


In preparation for heating our house with wood again this winter, we were sure to talk to Alder about the 'hot' fire as we have been doing for awhile now. He loves to sign for simultaneously say 'hot' in the exact same tone that we say it - very cute!

Thanks Jen Jen and Dave for Alder's great sleeping bag - we finally put it to good use!

Bed head and muffins in the morning!

On the way home we stopped at Goshen Pass Natural Area Preserve and played in the rocks along the river. Alder was not very good at tossing pebbles into the water, but he enjoyed climbing around.