Pretty (and WARM!) Autumn Day

Autumn time in the Midwest is so beautiful. We’ve had more unusually warm weather this week (in the high 70s) and we’ve gone on lots of walks, enjoying our pretty surroundings. We stopped at the golf course to look at the different kinds of leaves and run around a little. Last night we finalized our pumpkin carving templates for this year (a spider and a Mickey Mouse). Initially though, Eli told us he wanted, “A rabbit stuck in a tree and a firefighter rescuing him.” That would have been a complicated pumpkin to carve :)

Charlie is still so cuddly and is like a little koala, always wanting to be up in my warms, hanging on my hip. He is sweet and soft, but throws so many fierce tantrums. Including any time I try to buckle him into the booster seat at our kitchen table. He does NOT want to sit in that seat with the tray and a bib. It is a big fight. But he’s too short to sit in a regular chair, and Eli is often possessive of HIS chair. I usually strap him into the booster seat, then he starts screaming, and if there is any food on the tray, he’ll throw it. So now I know to wait to put any food on there until after the tantrum, which can last up to 10 minutes.

We may have to get Charlie his own chair like Eli’s so our mealtimes can be a little more peaceful (We bought Eli’s secondhand, but it’s an old version of this one from One Step Ahead and much cheaper than the awesome but pricey Tripp Trapp chair).

Eli was making bunny ears with some leaves that he found :)

Charlie was throwing a tantrum on the ground… he’s always very dramatic when he gets upset.

Charlie was mad because I stopped him from exploring the forest area after he picked up an old beer can that someone had tossed into the woods and put it up to his lips. It was empty, but still! I’m not letting him play with that.

Back on our walk in the stroller, the boys happily munched on their usual snack, apples.

We walked to the beach, where I unsuccessfully tried to get a shot of the two of them near the art center. Charlie was not in the mood for a group shot.

But cheered up when I let him wander around on his own.

Somewhat.

We walked down to the beach and played at the water for about an hour. It was such a beautiful morning and we almost had the beach to ourselves. It’s crazy how every time we go, I think this will be our last great beach day. But then the weather surprises us and it’s yet another perfect day to spend at the beach.

Eli’s shorts were soaking wet after not too long. He loves running in the water!

Throwing sand is always fun too.

Ohhhhh Eli…

My friend Krista met up with us with her youngest little one, Anderson, who is 9 weeks old. Isn’t he so sweet? Her two older kids were back at home with her husband.

Charlie borrowed a pink bucket from some other kids on the beach and it was fun watching him fill it up with water and struggle to carry the heavy pail onto the sand.

Here’s Eli’s hand full of sand, ready to launch into the water -

Blowing bubbles (not drinking) in Lake Michigan -

Charlie’s shorts were wet and heavy, so I stripped those off and he was much more content there at the edge of the water.

A one more of sleeping Anders -

I am still kicking myself for not being done with the darn photo blog. It’s one of those things where I wait to work on it at night, then it takes a little time to get back into where I last left it, and then I’m interrupted or I have sessions to edit or things to do for church. BUT I plan on finishing it this week so I can post some samples of what I’ve been up to over the last few months!