Signs of Fall: Apples, Pumpkins, and...Dirt

It's fall here in So Cal.  In many part of the country this means that the temperature is dipping down, the leaves are changing colors and falling to the ground, and winter is just around the corner.  When you live in this neck of the woods however, fall is just a season where everyone does their best to put on their "pretend hats".  It's Saturday, time to put on our pretend hats so we can pretend its cold when it's really 90 degrees.  We wear long sleeves and drive up to the mountains along with all the other city slickers.  We take pictures of our kids so we can pretend along with the rest of the country.  We buy apples at unimaginable prices.  Mind you, these are apples that would make a native Washingtonian cringe and say, "That's all you've got?"  And yes, we do it.  Because somehow pretending really does help mark the season and get us to warm, sunny, Christmas in one piece.

Smile for the camera

It's pretend AUTUMN!

13 Months old and in no hurry to walk on his own

Since he turned one, Cade has graduated to being allowed to play in the dirt pile.  He is generally good about keeping the stuff out of his mouth.  We play in the dirt nearly everyday which means I do a lot of laundry and the bathroom generally looks like an atomic dirt bomb exploded.

But then you see a face like this and you know that any extra work, any extra inconvenience to me is totally and completely worth it.  Dirt = little boy happiness.

Waaaahhh....there aren't enough trucks in here.

Waaaahhh!!!!

During the day, Cade is an ultra daddy's boy.  He very much prefers to be with Dave.  BUT a switch gets flipped somewhere around 7pm every night where nothing in the world but Mama will satisfy.  He just wants endless snuggles.  Ahhh...it's like payment at the end of a hard days work.  My cup overflows!

Dave had an hour free earlier this week so we did a quick pumpkin carving.  As Jack gets older, it is more and more fun to enjoy holidays and family traditions through his eyes.  He loved scooping out the "pumpkin guts".

Although, when Mama and Daddy got down to the work of carving, Jack filled his time with some Sharpie art.

Yep, that happened.

Finished product

Bulldozer for Jack

Traditional Davis carving for Cade, one tooth for the one toothed wonder

When Jack was two months old, I spent a month in WA with my family while Dave did an away rotation as a senior medical school student.  During that time, my mom and I knit this adorable puppy costume.  When Jack wore it (two years in a row) he always had a bit of a sad look to him.  Thus the costume is named, Sad Puppy.

This year it was Cade's turn.

Would he be sad enough to rock the costume?  Would he live up to the excellent standard started by his brother, carried on by his cousin Josie, and now his moment to shine?

Task, completed

The Original Sad Puppy

Jack

2011

Sad Puppy Returns

Jack

2012

We've established a bit of a Halloween tradition and were thrilled that Dave got off of work just in time to meet us downtown Redlands to trick or treat at the local businesses on State St.  I hadn't remembered how packed it is with kids where you literally wait in line to go up to each business.

Jack wore his firefighter dress up clothes outfit and of course Cade was sad puppy 4.0

Sometimes Cade's cuteness makes me nearly fall over.  I mean...come on!

After our time downtown, we made our way to our church, Reformed Baptist Church of Riverside for our amazing Reformation Night festivities.  It begins with a short skit in which our junior high/high school kids act as several of the most famous reformers.  This year I wrote a little Reformation Jingle that a group of girls sang several times throughout the skit.  Afterwards, the crowd moves to an amazing carnival set up in our fellowship hall.  The games include:

Diet of Worms - bean bag toss through several of the reformer's best known books
Katie's Convent - ball toss into buckets.  Extra points if you get your ball in the bucket containing the barbie doll in a nun's habit.
Papal Bull Toss - wad up your papal bull and try to toss it into the raging fake fire
Wittenburg Church - build and decorate your own Wittenburg Church
Tyndale Translation - Using the code provided, translate given symbols into a scripture verse
Calvin's Great Escape - typically an obstacle course, this year a bouncy house slide outside

And the list goes on.  There were many more booths to visit and learn all about the Reformation.  At each station, kiddos earned tickets to redeem for candy, small toys, and prizes.  This was the first year that Jack was totally into it thus no pictures as we were too busy following him around.  It is one of our favorite events of the year and we are so grateful to all of the volunteers who make it happen.