Outdoors in October

Fall is by far my favorite season.  While I love apple picking and cider and apple cider donuts and foliage and pumpkins and leaves and crisp cool mornings... well, I could go on... All things I've loved about fall since I can remember, I now also love playgrounds in the fall.  Spring can be to wet and summer is too hot, but fall is a really enjoyable playground season. I have to say, I never imagined how many hours I would spend at a playground once I had a toddler, but I love to watch her have fun.

MiniM.E. kept wanting me to take her picture as she came out of the slide

swinging like a big kid!

Our new favorite place to visit in the fall is Ellm's Farm.  We have been there twice since our first visit.  I thought maybe we'd get bored the second time... or the third... but I'm pretty sure MiniM.E. could spend all day, every day there for at least a week.

on the zip line!

MooMooChooChoo!!

bounce-a-bounce 

woo! roller coaster!

 The third time we went we went on a "Flex Day" with our "preschool group" of toddlers and moms.  Just as good.  PLUS, we got free cider and donuts and a pumpkin for each of our kids!

MiniM.E. as a spider

choosing a pumpkin

Out and About

I think I may have gotten spoiled by the summertime.  MiniM.E. is pretty much done with our house and all her toys (thank goodness her birthday is only two and a half weeks away!) so we spend as much time as possible outside and at locations other than our house.  I have to take advantage of all the mild weather before it starts getting cold.  As it is, the two hours in the morning where it's below 50 and I don't feel like putting on a hat to take her outside are PRETTY LOOONNNNGGGG... 

Here's what we've been up to:

Swinging at Ben & Jerry's (no ice cream, it was too early!)

Admiring the flowers

At an "old-school" playground

"Look at me!"

Peek-a-boo

pumping!!!

The Last Weeks of Summer: Saratoga

Fortunately, having an almost-two-year-old means that we're not going back to school, but we do have almost as many extra-curricular activities as a middle-schooler and they all start next week.

We've been trying to make the most of the warm weather and the summer-only activities.  We went to the Peerless Pool a few more times, went to the farmer's market, and spent a whole morning at West Side Rec where MiniM.E. FINALLY enjoyed the spray ground.

Sadly, MiniM.E. is sick, so part of our last empty week is being spent cuddling on the couch... but I don't get enough cuddles these days, so I feel bad for MiniM.E. but I'm secretly enjoying myself.

A Blogging Hiatus

Wow.  Should I even begin to make excuses about why I haven't posted in weeks?  Probably not.

But I will anyway.

First off, we had house guests.  C & H came to visit for a week during C's spring break.  It was awesome to see them, as always.

And... well, we've been busy.  Enjoying being outside in the warm, sunny weather.  That's it.  Who can sit in front of the computer when it's gorgeous out?  I will do my best to post over the summer, but with my outdoors-crazy toddler and short naps, I can't promise anything.

So let's go back a while...

MiniM.E. turned a year-and-a-half last time I posted.

The weekend before our visitors, we spent a lot of time outside.

Sniffing the flowers and searching for acorns

 At Kelley Park with Baby E.:

swinging!

a contemplative ride on the tire swing

 And at Gavin Park with S.:

And we visited the Saratoga Winery to see Rich Ortiz play.  It was a great place for the grown-ups to sit outside and drink wine, and it was pretty kid-friendly too!  (No playground yet... we should propose one!)

dancing queen!

must have: baby adirondack chair

We will definitely be back to the winery!! 

18 Months

I really cannot believe MiniM.E. is 18 months old.  She's definitely not a baby anymore...

She wants to do everything "all bine self" (all by myself), including walking down the stairs.  She carries on conversations with us and narrates our days, beginning to end.  She's extremely strong willed and has preferences for everything from food to clothes to stuffed animals.  I'm loving (almost) every minute of it. 

Sometimes she terrifies me because she's so fearless (like when she wants to go down slides and stairs "on tummy" or when she went down this slide all by herself).

I'm so proud of her for helping- putting toys away, cleaning, sweeping and mowing the lawn.  She even helps me make my coffee in the morning! (How much longer until she can make me coffee all by herself?)

She's becoming much more independent too.  Which is nice.  Not that I don't love having a toddler glued to my leg 24/7...

MiniM.E. feeding the ducks:

And chasing the ducks:

Just taking a walk:

Loving slides, mulch and teddies:

It's so exciting to watch her grow up!

Hello Spring!

I think I can officially say that spring has arrived.  The snow is melted, the bulbs are sprouting and the weather is WARM!

Gone are the days of trying to fill every indoor moment with exciting activities.

(painting and reading books, we still love you... we'll just need you once or twice a day instead of all day)

And here are the days of spending the whole day outside.

After toddler yoga, MiniM.E. couldn't pass up the chance to play outside.

even a bike rack makes a good jungle gym

"smiling" for the camera

 We went to Congress Park to see the ducks.  The ducks are getting to be old news though, and MiniM.E. is finding other things at the park to entertain herself (not the carousel yet though... not until MAY!!)

waving at her shadow

contemplating how to catch one

just walking

eating the duck food (Cheerios)

tresspassing

 MiniM.E. is always asking to "go in outside" when we're home too, so we've been spending lots of time in the yard.

"Dolly wear mittens! Dolly swing too!"

"Monkey swing too!"

aren't they cute?

"sweeping" the yard

"mowing" the lawn

Then over the weekend there was a Daddy-daughter playground visit.

is this "smiling" for the camera?  and is that Daddy's shadow taking the picture?

 Then we all went to a "different playground", Kelley Park in Ballston Spa, which is awesome.

more "smiling"

 Sunday (the coldest of days in our warm streak) we decided to have a BBQ.  It was a little too cold for my liking... but it was fun to try.

so that's where she got it...

discovering a love for dipping

and a love for "saa-saa"

 And yesterday we went to still another playground, Gavin Park in Wilton, where MiniM.E. would have stayed all day if I hadn't convinced her to come to the car where there were cheddar bunnies waiting for her.

LOVING the weather.  Unfortunately it appears there's going to be a bit of a cold rainy spell coming up... and MiniM.E. doesn't understand that cold and rainy is NOT fun playground weather... wish me luck!!