Weird but fun

 This weekend the weather was supposed to be crummy, so we've stayed around the house. It turns out that the weather has been great, so some of our home time has also been outside.

Last weekend, we filled the days with some out of the ordinary activities. 

Saturday, we went to the St. Louis Renaissance Festival. It was weird but fun. It felt disorganized and chaotic, but I really think it was probably planned very well. It's just in the middle of a park and the mud was a bit distracting. Apropos, but still. 

Here are the king and queen cheering on their champion for the joust.

Sunday, we went to the immersive Van Gogh exhibit in the Galleria parking lot. That was a bit surreal and weird but overall cool.

Anyway, it was nice to get out and about. However, it really made the weekend go by rather quickly to have actual plans and things to do. I'm definitely not quite up to doing that all the time just yet. 

It's been nice, this weekend, to just relax and stay in our cozy house together. 

Retired Worm Hunter

As I took Leo for his walk on this lovely, wet autumn morning, I saw three big, fat earthworms.

I had a tiny moment of excitement and a flood of memories around days just like this one. On a rainy day, when it was just a little chilly, Sophia and I would go out with a container and our eyes open for worms. If you look closely at the bowl she's holding, you can see at least one earthworm getting saved from being squished on the sidewalk. Whether the bowl of mud and being handled by a small human are preferable, I wouldn't know.

As I had a moment of excitement about the worms, I realized that our days of going out in rain jackets to hunt for and "rescue" worms are probably over.

Sophia still loves being out in the rain. She still loves getting dirty. And, as a matter of fact, I could probably interest her in a worm or two. So maybe my worm hunting days are not completely behind me. I'll let you know.

Pickle Springs Hike

Last weekend was such an idyllic fall weekend. Crisp, overcast but not gloomy, and very cool. Our little family is pretty active, but a majority of us hate being hot. One of us hates it to the point of intense whining. (It's not Erick.)

So when the weather creates the perfect opportunity for being outside without boiling, we take it. Pickle Springs is down by Hawn State Park, between Farmington & Ste. Genevieve. Beautiful area.
We hiked and hiked. Sophia climbed, which also kept her entertained.

Another reason for the hike was to test out our puppy sling. Once Leo got past the point of being able to get over all the rocks and such, I carried him. Yes, I carried him. And he loved it, so I will definitely do that again.

Green Demons

Here are the dominant and sportsmanlike Green Demons! 

Christmas Spirit

We bought season passes to Silver Dollar City this year. It may have been optimistic, looking back. However, the Christmas festival really makes it all worth it.

We went on Friday night, and the weather was perfect. I have to assume that most others are not yet ready to embrace the Christmas spirit because it wasn't crowded. Oh well. I'm so glad we went and enjoyed it.

See? Christmas spirit.

This was the first time that we've been to Silver Dollar City that Sophia took part in what was a childhood tradition for me. Dipping candles. The experience is almost identical with one very significant change. They now have instructions for making a rainbow! I remember many failures at making striped candles. I can't believe it took them so long to do this. Regardless, it's brilliant.

Another new thing this time around. Sophia is too tall for the double rider swing on the big twirly swings. She has actually been too tall for it for a couple visits, but we've been able to sneak her in because she wasn't ready to do it. This time, she's both taller and braver. Here she is with a big exhale before we take off.

Fact: I have always loved taking pictures of myself and others at Silver Dollar City Christmas.

Evidence from this visit:

Feeling Christmasy yet?

Just the beginning...

This fall has been perfect. Temperatures just right for taking lots of walks with our new little Leo.

Of course, "walking" might not be completely representative of what we do with Leo all the time. There is a lot of running. And a lot of snuggling. 

New Digs

It's all rather similar in our new place. Familiar but different. I'm loving my work space here, and the kitchen is simply wonderful.

We're all settling in nicely. Even Gabriella doesn't seem to have much to complain about.

It's the perfect time of year in this neighborhood. The trees are changing and the temperatures are just right for open windows. I'm grateful for our new home, which could possibly even be our old person's home one day. We haven't had that possibility for a while, and it makes me happy!

Weekend Recap

I don't think I've actually brought up the fact that we're moving. That's probably because it was so sudden and it's not a long distance move - just through the alley.

In spite of all the madness that comes with a move, we managed to have a lovely weekend. My parents came to visit - partly to help out with packing and partly so Erick and I could partake in LouFest. Both wonderful reasons, I might add.

Sophia also had a nice time at LouFest on Saturday. I love taking her to places like that so she can experience something new and different. And so we can make great memories together.

Another great thing this weekend was Sophia's first soccer game. She hasn't been sure about the whole thing, but it turns out she loves it, especially when she's goalie. That should make for a very fun fall.

 Next post will either be from our temporary home in The Cheshire or from our newer, smaller, all ours place. Until then!

My Halloween Post

I have a very busy week, and I doubt if I post again. Since I have yet to post anything from Halloween, I'm throwing this out there to tide you over till Crazy takes a holiday...

Halloween was a success in spite of the dreary fall day. Sophia is posing here with her friends the wicked queen and a Flying Wallenda. She is Ms. Frizzle from Magic School Bus.

As we prepare to Trick or Treat, she shows off the red highlights that complete her disguise.

Per usual, Erick and I got in on the action. Wouldn't want the spirits to recognize us, now would we?

There was some rain. Not as much here at the beginning, but the girls were prepared.

I love the Halloween walk around our neighborhood. Sophia had her joke prepared. We went this year with some friends who are not from St. Louis, or from the U.S., for that matter. They didn't know about the joke tradition. Only five houses in, though, and Sophia had taught jokes to her friends so they could enjoy the full experience.

It was a Happy Halloween. Plenty of candy, but Sophia isn't in it for the candy. She's in it for the later bedtime and the chance to make friends...

More Birthday Fun

This weekend, it was our turn to celebrate Grandmary's birthday!

Lots of playing with Sophia is what was most desired by both parties. Of course, we also needed to do something special. In this case, something special turned out to be Eckert's Farm. The weather was just starting to turn, and it made for some great pictures. The sky was so pretty.

We all had lots of fun celebrating Grandmary. Couldn't have "picked" a better way to do it. Get it? Picking apples. It's funny.

Silly Sunday

It was a beautiful day yesterday. We started it outside with some grass weaving. I helped braid, but the primary braider was Sophia.

She was in such a good mood that I got an actual smile out of her. Beautiful smile.

The middle of the day was filled with football watching, resting, card games, imagination games and such. We got a little bored but had determined we were not going out. So, what did we do? Face crayons, of course.

In case there was ever any doubt, Sophia marked me. "Clown."

We are very serious about our makeovers. Intensity suits our moustaches quite nicely, yes?

Frame it.

It's impossible to make Sophia look ridiculous. Not sure I'd really try, but seriously. That face.

Happy Halloween (yesterday)

Halloween is a lot of fun for us right now. Sophia is at a great age for it, and our neighborhood really takes it seriously. As I said last year, the kids who trick or treat in St. Louis have to have a joke ready when they get to the door. Sophia loves the extra minute of face time this gets her. I imagine it's a good confidence booster even for the less outgoing kids. Since they're in costume, they all seem to be a bit braver to speak up.

Sophia's joke this year as she put it: What do you get for crossing Bambi and a Ghost?     Bam- BOO!
She got lots of laughs this year. And plenty o' candy.

Erick and I decided to get festive this year too. I like just pulling things together to see what happens. Erick went with the Leprechaun look... Sophia dressed as Gabriella from the movie High School Musical. It's also where our cat  got her name. Here we all our with our carved pumpkins behind us.

Another one of our favorite parts about Halloween is the neighborhood party. Hot dogs, drinks and cupcakes, all while looking at our neighbors in costume. It was even more fun this year for Sophia because with school, she has many more neighborhood friends, so she could join in the games of chase that preceded the Trick or Treat all clear...

Anyway, it was all great fun. I'm not a huge fan of Wednesday night Halloween, but what are you going to do?

Fall Frolics

 It's been a busy few days full of fall awesomeness. We've spent a lot of time outside, in spite of the thirty degree drop on Thursday after her field trip.

Friday, we were back at her school for Garden Day. Every year, Sophia's school invites the parents and kids to come winterize, weed and plant some hardy flowers. Sophia and I had a lot of fun with friends.

I'll be surprised if these flowers make it too long, but we shall see...

Yesterday morning, Sophia and I carved our pumpkins. This year, she was more than willing to get her hands dirty with the guts.

After carving, Sophia insisted on bundling up so she could go outside and read for a while. Since I completely understand the desire, I was more than willing to oblige.

Once it got dark, we lit up our pumpkins. This friendly ghost and a bat are now welcoming people to our building.

If there was ever any doubt that Sophia is a cold weather girl, this weekend would do away with it. This morning after finishing her leaf project for school, she asked to go outside to practice her swing. She loves being outdoors with chilly temperature.

It has been one of those great weekends. Erick has been nursing an injured back from his own golf outing yesterday, but we have still managed to have a marvelous time together. I love fall.

Climbing Trees

It seems like for weeks, I've been saying, "This is probably the last nice day that we'll have, so we better go outside." If I bothered to check a forecast, I might have known that we would have one of the most continuous and pleasant falls that I can remember in recent history.

A couple of weeks ago, Sophia had a friend over for a play date. One of the things her friend wanted to do was to climb trees in the park where Sophia had her birthday party. Sophia has never climbed trees there before, or anywhere else for that matter. She would never climb the tree in our front yard in Columbia even when her cousins were nearly at the top.

Because she had never done it before, she wasn't dressed quite like a climber. The tutu and sparkly hat impaired her skills just a smidge, but she had a blast. Most importantly, she was incredibly proud of herself for trying something new and conquering a fear.

 

We have been back a couple of times because Sophia had so much fun. She gets higher and more confident every time. One of my absolute favorite activities as a kid was climbing trees. My legs were never without a scrape or a bruise. I have to admit that I actually had a tear when Sophia got her first scrape. Maybe that's because she didn't whine about it. Hard to say.

 

Now when we head to climb trees, Sophia dresses like a climber. A fancy climber, yes. But a climber.

 

Autumnal Fun

I guess I'm determined to get my money's worth out of this year's costume because Sophia donned it once again for another trip to the zoo. Grandmary came to visit this weekend, so we all headed back to the zoo for Spooky Saturday. More crafts and treats and such. The animals were supposedly out, but we didn't see them. We did however, ride the train and Sophia and Mary took a trip on the carousel.

 

We are accustomed to being out-fancied by Sophia, so we weren't surprised when she strutted out of her room this morning ready to go to breakfast - like this.

 

After breakfast, we went to the St. Louis Art Museum because Monet's three huge Waterlillies paintings are there in a special exhibit together. They are here until January 22nd, and I highly recommend making the trip if it fits into your schedule. Admission is $10 for adults. But if you can make it on a Friday, admission is free for everyone! I imagine we might make another visit on a Friday before they leave.

The chill of fall is rolling in this afternoon, and we enjoyed the view in Forest Park, where the trees are still beautiful shades of red and gold.

 

A lovely fall weekend in St. Louis.