Apple Prints in the Backyard

Gooey apple paint.

Dipping apple in paint.

Observing color.

Print!

Print...Print...Print

New paper, more prints.

sticky paint

mixing colors

serious work

Apple prints hanging on the line.

Eating a whole apple, peel and all for the first time ever!

That's because her cool cousin Deagan ate his that way when we went apple picking.

Mmmm, apples!

 We have been enjoying our apples. We made a pie and a big batch of applesauce and have been eating lots of them for snacks. We did some apple printing too. I liked the way they looked hanging on the line, like peace flags. The dress Pen is wearing in these pictures was made by my mom for a friend's daughter a long time ago. When Pen was a year it was passed on to her. It fits her now, and it makes me so happy to see her run and twirl and love wearing this dress. We have been very lucky to have this dress passed on, as well as two beautiful sweaters knit by Mom and and a darling jacket, all three made for my cousin Melissa when she was tiny. It means so much to me that Penelope can wear these beautiful things that were handmade by her Grandma Peggy.



Surveying the pumpkins.



Looking for apples to pick.

Picking an apple.

The bag before it weighed 30 lbs.

Penelope and Deagon.

Mmmm, jelly.......Jess and Deagon having lunch.

Penelope was a bit out of sorts.

Very grumpy.

Pretty.

Cutie.

Pretty pumpkins.

Really weird pumpkin.

Big sister loving her baby sister.

We went apple picking to celebrate the first day of fall. Steve's cousin Jess and her son Deagon met us there. It was a beautiful day, and there were lots of apples. Penelope was not having the best day, which was a bummer, but she remembers the day as having been fun, so I guess that's good. We went to Barden Orchard, which is where we always went when I was a kid. It is so pretty there, and it made me start wanting a farm again.  The last picture is after the farm when we were on our way home. The baby was crying and we stopped so I could nurse her and change her diaper. I love her pudgy little arms around her crying sister, it's such a sweet photo. After the girls went to bed Steve and I had a fire in the back yard and planned our dream farm while we watched the full moon peek through the ancient cherry tree as it rose for a whole 20 minutes, and then Violet woke up crying. So we just brought her out to watch the moon and sit by the fire with us. It was a good first day of fall.

Fall Leaves

Picking out leaves.

Leaves just beginning to turn.

Laying out her waxed paper.

Laying out her leaves.



Arranging them so they don't touch each other.



I love these pudgy little hands doing their careful work.

She loved doing this.

Leaves 1

leaves 2

leaves 3

Hanging in our window.

Penelope so enjoyed painting a pumpkin and I realized we have not been doing nearly enough painting/creating sort of fun since our new baby came. It is hard to really get into stuff like that right now, but as Violet gets into a more regular napping pattern it will be easier. I've decided to really make a point of doing something like this with her a few times a week, we both love it so.

It was fun to make these leaves. Violet fell asleep in the sling while we went for a walk around the neighborhood looking for good leaves ( the leaves have just begun to change, so we really had to search) and she slept through the whole thing, which worked out well. Penelope did everything except the ironing and as we worked we talked about all the things the trees give to us, from the air we breathe to the books we read, the houses we live in, shady spots to spread out a picnic blanket, the box of tissues Steve brought home when Pen caught a cold, the maple syrup we put on our pancakes, and the apples we are hoping to pick later this week. And we also talked about how lucky we are to live in a place where there are so many trees, and beautiful old ones at that. A pleasant way to spend a morning with a 3 year old to be sure.

Pumpkin Painting

Violet relaxing in the backyard.

Painting her pumpkin.

She choose pink and purple paint.

She took it very seriously, as you can see.

Lots of care,

and intense concentration.

Nothing says fall like a pink and purple pumpkin.

Penelope hard at work and Violet relaxing in the sun.

Sweet baby.

This morning Penelope painted a pumpkin that her grandma brought her last night. This is what I really love about Pen's age, the intensity in everything they do. They play this way, look at books this way, sing this way, paint pumpkins this way. They just really focus on what they are doing and really be in the moment and do it with all their heart. While Pen was painting she wasn't concerned with anything else, didn't care about what we would do next, what we would have for lunch,etc., she only spoke to me when she needed a bit more paint and to ask if it was o.k. to paint the stem too. I suppose this is why things can get so out of hand when she is left alone with the markers, but it is mostly a great thing to be able to become so completely absorbed in the task at hand and do the important work you have to do. And she is just to precious in those overalls and curly locks. She looks EXACTLY like her uncle Tom when he was a baby in the last picture.

A night at the carnival and Grandma's birthday.

Penelope is all about the fishing games at the carnival.

Prize number one!

Heading off for her long awaited bear ride with Grandma.

Wheee!

Riding the slowest train on earth.

Driving the fire truck.

Driving her flashy purple car.

I laughed so hard while she rode furiously round and round.

Beep Beep!

More fishing.

Fishing.

Choosing a prize.

Second prize!

More fishing!

Caught one!

Go Pen!

Pen and her prizes.

Grandma's birthday cupcakes, and the pumpkin she brought for Pen.

Happy birthday Grandma!

We celebrated Steve's Mom's birthday last night. Grandma came over bearing a pumpkin for Pen, which thrilled her. Penelope had the night planned, we all walked over to Sam's for pizza and had a delicious dinner. Then we walked to the carnival. Steve, Grandma, and Pen all rode the ferris wheel, but I got no pictures because the camera was in Steve's pocket :( . Penelope did a lot of fishing and came away with 3 prizes! She rode the train and went on the bear ride with Grandma ( she talked about doing that ALL day!) and she rode the fire truck and a car. I laughed harder than I've laughed in a long time at her on those cars! She was wildly whirling around and around and beeping the horn. She was so serious about it, checking out how everything worked. When we got home we had birthday cupcakes and then Grandma went home and we all went to bed. Today Penelope has a cold, she probably picked it up at the library on Thurs. I thought she might be coming down with something last night, and probably I shouldn't have let her stay out so late, but it was such fun. We'll have a quiet day at home today, maybe we'll do something with that pumpkin!