Trick or Treat!

Here is Gus and his friend Max (who happens to be our daycare lady's grandson) hamming it up for the camera. As you can see, Gus picked out an Elmo costume this year. Matt and I were trying to persuade him to pick Cookie Monster, but Gus was adamant about Elmo. He had a great time going from house to house with Dad and saying "Trick or Treat" followed by "Thankyou" and "Happy Halloween"... he made out pretty good with the favorite item being two new jars of pladoh.

I had to stay here and give out candy. It was a busy night, but not as busy as it has been in the past.

Leaf Time 2007

We take pictures of Gus playing in the leaves every year. Its harder and harder to make him sit still as he gets older. But he is having so much fun, I don't mind. We have a beautiful maple in our front yard that provides us with ample subject matter (and work).

Hopefully the leaf fairy comes again this year. We raked and bagged our leaves last year- approx. 25-30 XL yard waste bags absolutely full of leaves, and set them in the driveway. When we were away one day, some nice person came and took all the bags, saving us a trip to the dump. The year before, a lady asked if she could have them for compost, and so we have never had to actually haul our yard waste. I am crossing our fingers that our luck will continue this year.

Our Pumpkins

My Guy

Gus came crawling upstairs this morning to coax me out of bed. I pulled him into bed to cuddle for a little while. Dad came in and flipped on the lights. So we ducked under the covers, making a cozy tent. Gus said, "Shh. Its raining!". Then he popped his head out, and then quickly back in and said "Hair is wet!". I love the little adventures we have when we follow Gus's imagination. On Monday mornings in particular, I wish I had all day to imagine and explore with him.

Gus, meet Mr. Jake

Many congrats to Jake and Andi who came into Spokane last weekend for a lovely baby shower. Gus and Jake have the same hair in this picture. A handsome style, for sure.

Camping at Beaver Lake

Gus and Grace at the wash table
Because just 1 grill is never enough
Story time. Mr. curly head had more important things to do.

Two weekends ago we went out for a last hurrah, end-of-summer type camping trip with a group of Matt's coworkers. There were 5 families (10 adults) and amongst the children there were: 1 fifth grader, 2 fourth graders, a six year-old, a four year-old, 4 two year-olds, a seven month old baby, and a partridge in a pear tree. We had a blast, the kids behaved themselves, and the food was excellent. Thank goodness for wet wipes, juice boxes, and granola bars. And the wire fence Tim built around the fire.

A New Favorite Photo

Thanks to Brooke for snapping this great photo of Gus. He looks like a big kid. He is a big kid!

Edmonds Report part II

Checking out Great Grandma and Grandpa's house in Edmonds. (Where Grandma Connie grew up)

Visiting Great-Great Aunt Dot.

We had a nice lunch out with Aunt Dorothy when we were in Edmonds two weekends ago. Aunt Dot took us to Arnie's, where we have had many lunches and dinners over the years. Gus charmed her by eating his chicken and fries, as well as handing his plates to the waitress when he was all done. Aunt Dot said, "that takes the cake!" Matt was able to crane his neck and catch the Seahawks game as we were adjacent to the bar. We all had a good time.

Hanging with the Ike clan in Edmonds

Ryan, Brooke, and Cora. They even look good with Ferry hair.
Gus playing in the Edmonds fountain at the round a bout.
Here we are at the Woodland Park Zoo.

We just got home from a wonderfully long and relaxing weekend with our friends; Ryan, Brooke, and Cora Ike, who reside in beautiful Edmonds, WA. My Mom grew up in Edmonds and my grandparents are both deceased, so it was really bittersweet- more sweet than bitter- to go back to the gorgeous place I visited so often when Grandma and Grandpa lived on 2nd. street. (right by the sound).

Brooke and Ryan have a beautiful home and they are both quite the chefs. Brooke cooked a soufle- yes, a real soufle- with gruere and chard- for breakfast one morning and it was tre manifique (sorry if I butchered the spelling just now). Ryan cooked traditional homestyle japanese cuisine. We had chowa mushi (custard egg soup) and suki yaki (grilled meats and vegetgables in special sauce), and it was divine (complete with sake and Asahi Super Dry).

Besides all the eating, there was a trip out to Langley (on Whidbey Island) and a trip to the Woodland Park Zoo, a lunch at Blue C Sushi (Gus called the conveyer-belt style sushi bar a sushi choo choo), a wonderful family dinner with Ryan's parents; Elaine and Andy Ike, cruising the Saturday market in Edmonds, and dining at Arnie's for lunch with great Aunt Dot.

So yes, there were a lot of calories consumed, but we did hike all over Edmonds and the zoo so we burned a bit of it off.

We were also able to pop out to visit Robin and Wyatt in West Seattle. They are expecting baby any minute and we couldn't be more thrilled for them. It was so fun to see them and say hello at this exciting time in thier lives.

Thanks Ryan and Brooke for your hospitality and the great time! Kiss Cora's buns/cheeks/fingers/ toes, etc. for us!

Big Boy Stuff

Fishing with Dad on the Kettle River (Labor Day Monday)
Helping Dad take down the crib.
Wow, look at Gus sleeping in his big boy bed! I took this pic quickly tonight right before saying goodnight. No more crib for this big kid.

Gus has done really well moving into his toddler bed. It was sort of bittersweet to take the crib down, but hopefully in the near future there will be another someone in that crib.

We are headed to Edmonds to visit the Ike's for a nice long weekend. We are so excited to see how big Cora is now and of course do some fun city things with Brooke and Ryan.

Caterpillar

I think that this is just the cutest thing. But of course, I am his mom so I am a little biased. Gus says "cat pe dep pe dep" for caterpillar.

Fun at Greenbluff

Gus was a natural on the pony.
Mmmm. Donuts.

We thouroughly enjoyed the Peach Festival Harvest days out at Greenbluff a couple of weekends ago. I am not sure which topped the list- pumpkin cinnamon donuts, pony rides, or the myriad of tractors, but Gus was having a really good time with it all.

Updated Blog

The Gus blog has a new look. Take the poll and let me know what you think. Happy Friday, everyone.

And happy 5th anniversary to my dear hubby, Matt. Has it really been 5 years? Wow, hun!

Lost Lake

Two weekends ago the three of us spent a wonderful weekend camping at Lost Lake, about an hour out of Oroville (due East). This place was so relaxing, we did a whole lot of nothing; hiking, sitting around the fire, playing in the big tent 'taj mah tent' and finding good sticks for marshmallow roasting. The lake was like glass on our morning walk.

Last weekend Matt worked on a fire all weekend. It was a real drag for Gus and I, but we made do. While daddy was battling a 1500 acre blaze just south of town, Gus and I went to the farmers market, took a train tour, played with Jake and Kaycee, did some shopping, and played at the playground. Dad took a pretty bad fall and hit his lip and teeth with his shovel handle. Unfortunately, he chipped his tooth pretty bad. I won't post pics. But let's just say he looks like Jim Carey in "Dumb and Dumberer". Yeah, its a sexy look. He blends in with our redneck neighbors. Okay, maybe I will post a pic for your enjoyment.

Shay

Happy Birthday, Reilly!

Reilly just celebrated his big number 2 birthday. Gus and Reilly are only 7 weeks apart, and Matt and I love spending time with the McManus clan because: a) we have so much in common, b) our houses are both well equipped for all things toddler boy, c) Katie is a wonderful hostess, and d) Joe can cook. Really really well.

Reilly's favorite things include: Baseball, tractors, Elmo and Cookie Monster. He isn't as train-crazy as Gus, but knows how to hit a t-ball like nobody's business. It's funny how they each have their certain "thing" that makes them tick. They played really well together this time. A patch of dirt in the backyard occupied these boys for hours.

We had a great time with them last weekend. Happy Anniversary, Joe and Katie! Reilly-guy, Happy #2!

Older Woman

Gus was just smitten over Hailey, one of Reilly's many cute cousins. Here they are sharing a book and cup o' milk on the couch at the end of a long play day. Hailey and her big sister, Abby, looked after Reilly and Gus while the grownups did their thing. Reilly is so lucky to have such helpful (and cute) cousins.

Dad Fishing (in logs?)

Here is Matt fishing in the aftermath of the Nov 06 flood event that forever changed Mt. Rainier. The high amounts of rainfall caused the land to slide away and take massive amounts of trees downstream with it. Pretty amazing stuff. While we were trying to change things in the House and Senate (election time), mother nature decided to make a few changes herself.

O'Brien Family Reunion at Mt. Rainier

Hey Gus, check out the view! "But Dad, there is a rock on the ground!"
Grandpa Dick landing a dink. He did win the fishing derby this year- if there are fish to be caught, Dad and Matt can smell them out.
Mmmmm. Corn.

A couple of weekends ago we enjoyed a wonderful trip to Mt. Rainier for the annual O'Brien Family Reunion. What a wonderful bunch of people to go camping with. Family came from Sequim, Port Angeles, Spokane, Hermiston Oregon, Tri-cities, Walla Walla, Missoula MT, and of course Oroville. Hmm I might be leaving out a few..

Anyways, we had our usual laid back good time. Aunt Leta told stories about Grandma Della (Gussy's great-great grandma) raising her four children (Leta, Gene, Melvin, and Jack) during the depression in Walla Walla. Aunt Leta remembers so much- she could tell us about her 3rd grade teacher like it was yesterday.

The weather was absolutely perfect at Ohanapecosh campground- while the rest of the state suffered 100- degree temps- we were comfortable in the shade at about 80. It was a great trip, and we are looking forward to going back to Mt. Rainier sometime in the future.

Momma's Vino

To all of my loyal readers: Drink this wine! I am posting this beautiful label as a friendly reminder. This is actually a current favorite of mine, and the pros. It has been written up more than our other wines. With my co-worker Amy's leaving, I am now the Sales and Marketing Director- doesn't that sound official- and so my #1 priority here at the winery is to sell more wine. Okay. I gotta get back to work..... p.s. goes great with barbeque!

Cookie Man

Too many flowers to water... But this cookie is too good to put down. Guess I'll just hold it here in my mouth!