Ikea is Awesome. Being Sick is Not.

In case you didn't know, I love Ikea. And I live right by one so I get to go all the time. It's so awesome. Yesterday we decided to go after Ingrid's nap because I knew they had paper rolls that Ingrid could color on. We picked up one of those, and they had cute kid chairs on sale, so we picked up one of those, too.

She wore her crown while coloring, it made me feel good.

And we got the greatest fabric.

Yesterday we went downtown Dexter to go trick or treating at the businesses. Ingrid was so tired, as it was naptime when we went, and she didn't really get the whole idea of it.

It was a good thing we went yesterday because today both Brendan and I are getting sick, and there is no way we could take her walking anywhere. Both of us have been popping ibuprofen and laying around, telling Ingrid she has to be a good girl and change her own diaper. She responded by pooping on the floor...I really hope this is a short lived cold and not the swine flu or similar.

Wow, We Won!

Our blogger friends Heather and Penelope won this cute dress by Kookie:

There was a giveaway on Kookie's Facebook page for a dress just like it, and guess who won?! We get this dress for Ingrid:

Cute, huh? What a great note in my inbox "You are the winner." Sweet.

Traditions

It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown was on last night. I remember watching that every year, and so does Brendan. We recorded it and let Ingrid watch some of it tonight after dinner. She never gets to watch TV before bed, so she was a little confused at first. But she cuddled up on Brendan's lap and I watched another generation starting the Charlie Brown tradition. She is getting so big so quickly!!

I made a couple crowns today. I'm loving these!! They are so cute. I was hoping to get them done for Ingrid's playdate with Allie today, but it didn't quite happen that way. I got them done after she went to bed. So, they are for next time.

Anyone Want to Win an Ergo?

Samantha over at MamaNotes is hosting a giveaway for an Ergo carrier! That is amazing. Those things are expensive and I've heard they are the best carrier ever. Ingrid is getting a bit big so her days of carrying are numbered, but think of all the people I could pass this down to when she's done with it!

http://www.mamanotes.com/

Check it out.

Bacon

It's official, Ingrid loves bacon. We got her to say it again tonight at dinner. She said it PLAIN AS DAY. Then I said, "can you say I love mama?" She blankly stared at me and then said, "no." Thanks, babe, love you, too.

Li'l Ladybug

This afternoon our friends had a Halloween party. It was a gorgeous day, perfect for a backyard get together! We put on Ingrid's ladybug costume, which of course looked adorable. She even kept the hood on, which is unheard of!

There was tons of food, goodies, and balloons. Ingrid loves balloons. And goodies. She had an Oreo in one hand and a frosted brownie in the other. I seriously never thought I'd be so nonchalant about sugar with my one year old...She got a good choco-face going.

Kristin and Dave have a kid's paradise in their backyard--swingset, play house, play castle. Ingrid had fun playing with Cowboy Ben and Dorothy Allie. It was a great afternoon!

Blast from the Past!!

Today I found a card from an old camera. I put the pictures on the new computer, not having a clue what would be on it. It was pictures from when Ingrid was first born! A whole 17 months ago...I love to look at these and marvel over how small she was, how immobile, how NOT talkative she was.




For the record, today we SWEAR she said "I love bacon!" Brendan was feeding her bacon and he said "do you love bacon?" and she said plain as day "I love bacon!" He was like did you hear that?? Yes, I did. Our daughter can't say she loves us, but she loves bacon...

A Lovely Fall Day

Today was a warm, sunny fall day. Ingrid played out on the porch this morning, dragging the dead plant around.

Then it was off to Jami and Ben's for a playdate. My zucchini bread+coffee+toys=great time for both mamas and kids. We ended up outside on the tire swing, but I don't think Ingrid's quite there yet...I'm sure she'd forget to hold on and go flying off the swing.



Heather even came with baby Olivia! That girl has the cutest dimpled cheeks :)

On the way home, the little miss fell asleep for about ten minutes. Usually I can throw her in bed and she'll fall back asleep, but today, because I was DYING to lay down, she decided not to. I got really mad and yelled, which of course did not make her want to go to sleep. I calmed down and got her out of her crib, we ate lunch and took Cody out, then I tried again. Nope. Sheesh, lady, you really need a nap! I REALLY NEED A NAP!

No nap.

Dinner was short and sweet and then tubby time was short and sweet, reading books was short and sweet and by 6:30pm she was tossed in bed. Ahhh, a long day over at last. Time to go veg on the couch with bad tv.

Carving Pumpkins!

Last night we finally got around to carving our pumpkin. We moved the dining room table, spread out a sheet, and got to work. Ingrid thought it was pretty cool to be standing in a place where our table usually was.


Brendan drew a face on the pumpkin, and Ingrid helped. She really really wanted a permanent marker, but had to settle for a mechanical pencil that had no lead.


She scooped out the guts and helped put the seeds in a bowl. We're going to try to roast them today. Yum.

And this is the finished product! Ingrid didn't really know quite what to think of it. In the dark with the candle lit she was kind of creeped out. However, this morning she kept singing over and over again "pumpkin, pumpkin!" So it's a hit!

Seeing the Family

Well, Lady's Road Trip was a success! Sort of. Ingrid and I headed out in the morning, with a bag of Tim Horton's bagels and donut holes. We listened to a mix cd I'd made that morning, Ingrid sat quietly and looked at all the pretty trees and sunshine, and we stopped a couple times to get out and stretch. She took a little nap, and then we got to our exit off the interstate, as the rest of the trip would be on small highways.

I have never driven this way to my mom's before. She lives in Fremont, where my aunt and grandma and countless relatives live or have lived. I've been going there since I was a baby, but I always came from the same way. This time was different--I was coming from the east side of the state and to be honest, I have no idea what's between here and Fremont anywhere off the interstate. I followed my mapquest directions to a T but somewhere along the line I got totally lost...My directions said to turn onto a street, which I did, but they failed to mention said street would curve around five times and change names. It was all farms and pure country, I had NO idea where the hell I was. Mom called and asked where I was and I almost started to cry. I don't know!!! Luckily she looked at a map and helped me find my way to a major road to make it to her house. I need a damn GPS...

But we made it, and Ingrid was so excited to see Gramma! We went over to my Grandma's house, where cousins, kids of cousins, and aunts and uncles were all hanging out. We had chili, stood around a bonfire, and the kids played. It was cold, but great to see everyone.

This is how big Ingrid was last time she was around the whole family.

She's bigger now.

Night time while traveling is always something I dread, but Ingrid surprised me and went to sleep right away. Then an hour later she woke up alone in a strange room and screamed like nobody's business. She got herself all worked up and I couldn't calm her down for an hour? Two? I don't know how long it was, but by the time she fell asleep laying across my neck, holding onto my sweater, I passed out, too. It was very draining. Then at 6:30 am who wakes up to "Mama? It's Mama! Hi, Mama!" and little hands pulling my hair, patting my face, and hugging my neck. Ahh, kids.

We had fun with Gramma for the morning, then headed home. Ingrid watched some Charlie and Lola on the travel dvd player and then fell asleep for the rest of the way home. I'm so glad to be back here, where I have Brendan's help. I am so lucky to have such a great husband!

Lady's Road Trip

We are leaving for Fremont in a couple hours, just Ingrid and I. Brendan has tons of work to do, and my family is all having a get together over on the other side of the state. So, perfect time for us gals to take a road trip! It's three hours away, which is a long time. For some reason, though, it doesn't seem like that big of a deal. I think it's because for so long a three hour drive meant driving through Chicago and all the horrible traffic, but this three hour drive is just a straight shot across boring old Michigan, no traffic and just some pretty fall trees to look at.

So...we have the dvd player and Charlie and Lola packed up, and we're off to see Great Grandma and Grandpa, Gramma, all the aunts and uncles and cousins. Should be fun!

On a crafty note, these are some of the first ornaments I've made for Applesauce Crafts. I still don't know how I feel about them. Should they be stuffed? I have a bunch cut out waiting to be sewn and I think I will see what they look like with a little fiberfill in them. Either way, I think they're pretty cute. I just got like five more yards of felt yesterday so I will have plenty to work with :)

Black Bean Soup

Yesterday I made the BEST black bean soup ever. Recipe:

2 cans black beans, rinsed and drained

1 can veg broth

1 carrot, shredded

1/2 red onion, diced

1 green pepper, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp cumin

dash of cayenne

Saute the veggies in oil and spices a few minutes, then add broth and beans. Cook on low 25 minutes, then let cool. Puree in blender. Serve with a squeeze of fresh lime juice and a dollop of sour cream. YUM.

Brendan wrinkled his nose and refused to eat it, but he missed out. Ingrid and I ate two bowls apiece! We made corn muffins to go along and it was a great meal that was really filling. Tonight is lentil stew with homemade bread, another thing Brendan will probably refuse to eat. Please do not pass that on to Ingrid, she is gung ho about eating ANYTHING!!

Here she is eating her soup last night. Bath time was directly after dinner time.

Wednesday Already??

Wow, this week has gone by so fast! Yesterday we got to visit our friend Heather and her new baby, Olivia. It was fun to hold a two month old. She just hung out and slept, and cried, and ate a bottle. They are so tiny and immobile, it's so strange to see that now that I'm used to the tornado that is Ingrid. I had a very strong urge to NOT have another baby when I was holding Olivia and Ingrid came up whining and pulling at my leg. No fun!

We got our pumpkin today at the grocery store. The ones at the farm were overpriced and none of them had stalks on top, so we got a nice big Kroger one. Ingrid had fun playing with it. We're going to carve it tomorrow--that should be messy and fun!

Ingrid likes to say "cheese" now whenever the camera comes out. She used to just stare blankly, but now she's getting the idea. About time, I've only had the camera shoved in her face since she was two hours old...

I made some Christmas bibs for the etsy shop. They are huge, which is great for a messy toddler like Ingrid. I had one on her today simply for catching drool. She has got a mouthful of teeth and yet she drools as much as a teething baby. What's the deal with that???

Not much else going on over here. We thankfully are not having winter weather like so many others are. It's been fallish and crisp, not too cold. Perfect scarf and sweater weather, and the trees are gorgeous and orange and gold and red. I have to get some pictures of a nearby tree that looks like it's on fire it's so bright red. Fall is my favorite time of year :)