Raspberry Picking

We went Raspberry picking with some friends from our branch last week. The whole time we were picking berries, Shae kept asking when we were going to eat ice cream (since the place we went picking in VA had delicious homemade ice cream that we got every time we went). He didn't seem to really like this idea of picking berries with no reward other than the berries themselves, but he actually helped me pick more than he ever has before which was a pleasant surprise. (Just for the record, I couldn't stop thinking about how delicious homemade raspberry ice cream would have been).

Look at all those delicious berries!

After we were done picking we went back to the barn store. Right out front they have some big tubes and hay for the kids to play in. Isn't this just the cutest little store? The drive out there was also absolutely gorgeous. I already can't wait to go back! Which we'll probably do sooner rather than later because I got a small bag of apples while there too and they are probably THE best apples I've ever had. They were so juicy and flavorful. They smelled amazing too! I didn't realize what a difference buying apples straight from the farm makes. They have tons of different apple trees at this farm so we'll have to try our hand at apple picking next time.

She sits! At least when there aren't any objects around her to grab, if so, she immediately flops over and starts making her way over to whatever is she is eyeing.

Mmmmmm, yummmy...bleh! Not so yummy grass.

 

Love how they turned this one into a slide. 

And with that, I think I'll go eat a raspberry muffin.

Flat Rock

Yesterday we spent the afternoon at a Chilean Independence Day party that we got invited to last minute. Darin tried his first "real" empanadas (aka: ones that I did not make). We ate mil hojas (a thousand layer) cake (my favorite chilean cake) and churipan (grilled chorizo in bread. I never ate this in Chile but ate it just about every other day in Argentina). Talked about Chile, thought about Chile, wished I was in Chile. It was great and so sweet of our friend of a friend to invite us last minute even though we had never met. Since I got 0 pictures of that event, I'll share some pics from last Saturday at Flat Rock. 

The weather wasn't really ideal for a "play in the water" day, but we really only get one day a week to do fun things with daddy and we wanted to get here before the fall weather really sets in, so we ignored the clouds, the breeze, and the rain and went anyways. The water was initially pretty cold, but we got used to it quickly. I already can't wait to come back to this place next summer (or maybe next week if we still have any warm days left and I'm brave enough to do it without Darin to help with the kids). 

Flat Rock is basically exactly what it sounds like, a bunch of flat rock...with a couple inches of water covering it, and shallow pools of water in between the rocks. Shae was content to walk on the rocks and find little rocks and throw them in to the little pools of water. He loved it.

You can't tell from the picture how deep the water is, but we walked across this whole thing easily. The water really only came up to my shin in a few places. Perfect for kids to play. 

It did start to rain while we were there so Darin booked it to a tree to protect the bebe.

While Shae and I continued to explore.

You can see better in this picture that the water is all pretty shallow.

Quick Trip

About a week and a half ago we took a quick two day trip down to PA to see Anna one last time before she left for school. Really I don't have a lot to write about our trip, just wanted to record the pictures and that it happened :).

We tried to go to two different pools, both of which were closed since school had started that week. Shae wasn't heartbroken thanks to the sprinkler that we pulled out for him back at the house.

Braving the super cold water.

We called up Scott while we were home so that Anna could "meet" Rylan and so that he and Shae could not talk to each other. He's such a cute kid. It was fun to see him run around and hear his little animal noises...and his super adorable little voice! Anna and I couldn't get enough of his cute voice.

We're so excited for Anna to start this next chapter of her life. Good luck girl!

Six Months

Baby Bae turned six months last week!

Six months seemed like such a milestone with Shae. "I am still alive," I remember thinking when Shae hit the half year mark. I felt like I deserved a party, a vacation, some sort of celebration because I had managed to live in a zombie state and keep my child alive for six months.

Things have felt so different this time around. So much easier. Not that I'm bursting with energy and joy when I wake up in the morning, I do still wake up at least one to two times to feed the girl and help her go back to sleep, but it all just feels much easier than that first time. These past six months really have flown by.  Belén has been just what I needed in a second child. Easy-going, happy, patient (Darin can wake up with her without her freaking out, immediately demanding milk like her unnamed brother still does). She doesn't cry when she wakes up in the morning, she just lays there cooing until we come get her. The only time she cries is when she is tired and needs to sleep. Sometimes she goes down without a problem and then there are days like today where I spend 40 minutes trying to get her to calm down to sleep. Maybe I put her down too soon? Maybe too late? Who knows, but she definitely shed some tears over it. But that is really the only time she cries (or the occasional time that Shae drops a toy on her...)

One of the biggest things that has happened this month was that she started eating real human food. We weren't in a rush to give her solid foods, but over the past two weeks she has really shown interest whenever we were eating and tried to grab at our food, so we went ahead and started. She now sits at the table with us for dinner and chomps away at whatever we give her. It's been nice to have our whole family at the table.

We are sort of doing a make-shift version of Baby-led Weaning. We have given her some pureed foods and will most likely continue to do so, but for the most part we try to give her chunks of things that she can chomp and suck on. She has had avocado, tomato, whole-wheat baguette, peppers, banana, lots of watermelon, and black beans. I've really enjoyed doing this so far. It is much easier than making and freezing purees like I did with Shae. It's also easier for us to enjoy our food while she eats her food next to us. Pretty much, it's just easier all around and I like that she gets to experience different textures/flavors from the start. I was a bit worried about gagging, and even though I still feel a bit nervous if she does get a bigger chunk of something and gag a bit, I've learned that the gag-reflux at this age is there to help them not choke and is teaching her to mash up her food a bit more before swallowing. 

She is scooting/rolling herself all over the place. I love to watch her fixate on a toy and not lose her focus until she has figured out how to get it. She no longer likes to be on the floor with no toys. She is content as long as there are toys around her (much to the chagrin of her big brother who really struggles with her touching "his" toys). 

Her two little teeth have finally broken through. We had a few rough nights of sleep and fever (poor girl!), but they are finally here! Only 18 more before she settles in with the toddler twenty for a few years. #teethingsucks

Her favorite position to sleep is with her head face-down into the mattress with her little hands under her face. She tends to wake up with red finger marks across her face. She's been doing this ever since she started rolling a few months ago. When she was younger it made me nervous that she wouldn't be able to breathe and I would try to turn her head, but she apparently really likes it, so I don't worry anymore. If she couldn't breathe I have no doubt that she would turn her head. And I kind of adore the red finger marks across her face when she wakes up.

She had a couple days this month where she slept from 8 to 4. I was really hopeful that it would continue but lately she has been back to waking up around 10:30 p.m. and again at 3 a.m. Her wake up time has also moved up. We usually start hearing her coo around 6:30 a.m.

She is so close to being able to sit up on her own. She'll sit for a second or two and then fall forward folding her little body in half, or kick out of excitement and fall backwards...she's getting there.

We are currently loving how she is starting to communicate more. If we sit at the table to eat without her, she starts squawking, making it known that she wants to be a part of meal time too. We love how she talks and talks while playing on the floor and how Shae can make her laugh so easily. 

Six months never looked so good!

Ithaca Farmer's Market

Besides all of the hikes and trails, everyone we talk to tell us that we have to check out the Farmer's Market. That is just what we did for our Saturday exploration last week. 

It is in a really nice location, running right next to the lake. Next time we go, we'll try to get there earlier in the morning (and bring the baby pack rather than the massive double stroller). It was insanely busy.

We got some delicious Cuban food for lunch. The chicken was fall-off-the bone amazing. The fried plantains were also pretty killer.

My model of a husband.

I was impressed with the venue. I imagined little white removable tents like the Williamsburg Farmers Market. This was legit.

 Right by the lake.

Parking was crazzzzy. Pretty happening place.