Goodbye Summer, Hello Fall!

We've had a fun-filled week! Friday night, the Childrens' Museum in Portland had $1 admission, so we headed down to check it out. Ethan was beside himself when we let him loose in the toddler room. His face turned bright red, as he looked around at all of the cool things to play with and all of the kids that were the same size as him. We had a wonderful time rolling around on the soft floor, playing with the beach balls, and what we think was Ethan favorite exhibit at the museum, checking out the Oakhurst cow- he hugged the life size plastic cow as though it were his long lost friend, and got the biggest smile on his face!

We spent Sunday with Bob, Margo, and Dylan. We picked apples at an orchard up the road from them. Ethan was very proud that he could hold and eat an apple all by himself. Just a year ago, we visited the same orchard, and Ethan was tiny- about a month old. Amazing how much can change in a year! We rode on a wagon pulled by horses at the orchard as well. Ethan didn't take his eyes off of those horses and after the ride was over, we got to visit the horses and pet their huge snouts. Ethan was unsure at first, but eventually decided that it was okay and pet the horses a few times. I think we may have a budding farmer on our hands!

On Labor Day Monday, we packed up and took a little road trip down to Ogunquit beach. We ended up having such a wonderful time there, and Pete and I kept remarking on how we felt like we had stepped into a vacation. The weather was gorgeous, and Ethan had a fantastic time splashing in the water, playing in the sand, taking in the views during the ocean walk that we did, and of course, eating ice cream! It was a great day- I guess one of the last true days of summer!

We are having more and more fun with Ethan as he is able to do and understand more. He is a little ham to the fullest! He adores Barley, and has now realized that the best way to keep Barley close, is to share his food with him. Somehow, Ethan knows that Barley loves cheese. Whenever I give Ethan cheese, he inevitably offers it to the dog. Very cute! This week, they are beginning to play together a bit more. Barley will drop the ball for Ethan and Ethan will toss it for him. Eventually, they will become the best of friends!

Ethan is everywhere and into everything! He loves opening cabinets and pulling out their contents, he loves climbing the stairs and boy is he getting good at it. If the gate isn't up, he'll crawl over to the stairs, climb up a stair or two, and then wait for someone to discover him. Once he sees that you see him, he tries to climb up those stairs as quickly as he can!

These days, Ethan is loving bath time. He'll go into the bathroom even when it's not bath time and try to climb into the tub! When we are having our nightly bath, Ethan happily sits and plays with his fish, boat, and other toys until his little fingers and toes are prunes. I have to admit, bath time is one of my favorite times too. As I sit and watch Ethan playing, I realize what a big kid he is!

We are sad to see summer coming to an end, but know that fall brings all sorts of new and fun activities! We are looking forward to experiencing fall through our little guy's eyes! We are discovering that everything is more fun with a baby- and it's a great excuse to do all of the fun "kid stuff!"