Chilly weather coming....

It's fall all of a sudden.  Last week we had a couple days in the 80s, and then suddenly it broke and the temps dropped fast.  This weekend we had a couple days in the low 60s with nights in the 30s.  Very comfortable flannel and sweater weather.  We've been trying to keep up with the Chopper's growth spurts and it seems like Sarah is constantly sorting clothes.  We already have  a bag ready to be passed onto the next newborn.

The leaves are changing already, too.  We talk a bit about how the drought may affect the leaves.  The consensus seems to be that we'll have a bit of a weak showing this year.  Regardless, we've spent a lot of time outside in the last couple weeks.  My job is keeping me pretty busy between 7 and 7, so we pretty much chill in the evenings during the week.  I'm getting better, with Sarah's support and Emmett's adorableness, at turning off work on the weekends, so we have been pretty pleasantly busy for the last couple.

Emmett lent his critical eye to Sarah's work a couple weeks ago.  The sweet alligator was an early gift from Zach's girls, Nora and Charlotte.

Two weeks ago Zhora, Jenn, and Bob went glamping at a local spot.  We dropped by for an evening.  It's nothing I'd want for myself, what with other people talking and hanging around and tents and fires set up by staff, but the fully stocked bar in the "lobby tent" was pretty sweet.  As far as bars go, it's pretty sweet.

There's no story with this one that I remember.  Emmett loves his jingly elephant.

Last weekend we had our first campfire of the season!  Unbelievable.  Between the new kid, the drought, and the heat, we just haven't gotten out.  Everyone was happy with this fire, including Jonas.

We got out for a walk on the Waterfront Trail and got really excited about doing more of it.  Looking forward to Mom and Dad H coming up soon!

The garden is totally overgrown and past its prime, but Sarah dug out 15 gallons of  potatoes and we got plenty of other produce throughout the season.  I'd say we did pretty well this year.

One of our favorite events is the Migration Celebration at Cornell's Lab of Ornithology.  There's lots of cool stuff, especially for kids, but our favorite thing is the live raptors that are on show.  

This is Sarah's favorite.  I think she's blind in one eye or something (the owl, not Sarah).  All of the birds are injured and living out very comfortable lives at one of the rehab centers on campus.

The new mural at the Lab is incredible.  We looked at it for quite awhile, and could have easily stayed for quite a while longer.

On that same weekend (I think), we went to the farm to table market at Caroline Elementary.  Zhora was selling veggies and flowers there.  We had some great food and juice.  Emmett is now big enough to face forward in his carrier.  I like to have him grab onto my fingers and pretend like he's driving me around.  He likes to chew and drool on the Bjorn.  Bob likes to make weird faces in the background of pictures.  He reminds me a lot of that one ventriloquist dummy from the comedy skit.

The Dude has been doing a lot of reading.  If he ever finds himself on the plains of Africa or in the Andes, he'll have words to describe the animals he sees.

This weekend Sarah got a new bike as an early birthday present from Moms H and B and Dad H and me and Emmett.  Emmett wanted mama to have a new bike so that she can tow him around and get some fresh air.

Our friend Anne surprised us with a gift of a hand knit sweater this weekend!  It is so cool.  It's soft and fits him pretty well, with a little room to grow.  He will definitely fill it out by the end of the winter.

I just can;'t believe that someone can knit a sweater!  We went into town Saturday morning to go to a winter gear sale at Mama Goose, where we scored a couple cool snow suits and some gloves and hats, all for Emmett.  Purity makes a great breakfast that we indulged in, too.  After that, we went over to Anne's to say thank you and hung out for a bit.  Then it was back home to unload, hang out for a bit, and then over to Willa, Sebastian, Erik, and Margaret's for dinner and fun.

Becky knows babies.  This is one of his favorite books.  He looks at the pages for a really long time.

So, the reason we surprised the mama with her new bike early is because there are several biking opportunities in the near future (and recent past).  On Saturday morning I was searching Craigslist, and lo and behold, someone in B-dale was selling a bike trailer for cheap!  I went and picked it up so we could hit the downtown for Streets Alive on Sunday.  It's a cool event where they close off some of the streets in Ithaca and only allow pedestrians and bikers.  We saw a few people we knew, and had a nice time, but in the end, we wanted more.

So we headed over to the Children's Garden and went for our first ride on the Waterfront trail as a family!

It was great.

Finally, we came home and made another campfire.

The days are just packed.

Emmett meets Ohio

We're on the road back home from a quick Labor Day trip to Ohio. It was high time that Emmett got to meet the great grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and the supporting cast from his folks' home state.  I'm kind of a giant stress ball right now, but was able to put the majority of that on the back burner while we enjoyed our visit. We drove in on Friday evening and stayed at Grammy and Pop Harrington's house.

Grandmas Harrington and Cressman came over on Saturday for a little visit after we had breakfast with Kurt and Denise and wandered through the market. At the market Sarah ran into some old friends and we got a chance to see just how much the farmers market has grown in Medina in the last few years. What was a few tables when we first went has grown to cover most of the square. 

Grandma Cressman has awesome rings!

The swing and the camp chairs got a lot of use this weekend.

Shannon and Marjie came over on Saturday, also.

That evening, we gathered around the campfire. We all agreed that it was one of too few fires this summer. That said, it was an especially pleasant time.

Dad and Sarah and Emmett and I got up early on Sunday and headed out to the flea market. As usual we found lots and lots of stuff, but managed to come home with just a couple of treasures. On Sunday afternoon Grammy H graciously hosted a picnic and all were welcome.

Great Grandma harrington was there, and so was great grandma Cressman, Kurt and Denise and Alyssa showed up and Andy and Gail, too. Larry and Lynn stayed for a while and Linda blew through for just a few seconds on our way home from the Outer Banks. Veneta came with her friends Carolyn and Susan as well. Shannon came back and brought Ben with her this time. Nathan showed up, and so did Emily and Nakoa. 

We put some food out that we had picked up at the flea market that morning. It was way better than that sounds. Dad grilled some brats from the Piggery and we served some pulled pork.  The beer came from as far away as Belgium and as near as Ithaca and Cleveland. 

Grandma and grandpa Rockwell get there turn holding the newest great grandkid. 

Back in mama's arms after a long and eventful day.

We woke up this morning and made a leisurely time of it, sharing coffee and breakfast and stories, as usual. Pops took his turn with the chopper. 

One last family shot before we hit the road. Thanks to everyone who made our trip so much fun. We look forward to seeing you all again soon! Come on up and visit if you don't want to wait for us to come back.

Emmett update

Emmett loves Jingley Bird. 

Just kickin' it

Cry baby cinema with Momma

Working out with Momma. 

At a movie in the park with Momma and Pato. 

Chillin with Pato in the grass at Grammy and Pop's house. 

Beach Daze

As Dad is fond of saying, "Salt water cures everything." Or was that chlorine? Or swimming? Anyway, we're finding the salve to life's stresses and foibles here, in Ocracoke.  The time is passing too quickly of course, and I was trying not to write that, because it absolutely goes without saying, but there it is, so there you go.  We're already starting to quote Mom and Dad H, "We really should come in the off season and stay two weeks."

This picture didn't make it into the group from the boat.  Our shipmates took it for us.  We're a pretty content crew.

Sarah's been talking about getting a dragonfly tattoo on her ankle, but she thought she'd try it out first before committing.  I think it needs a unicorn and a rainbow to make it complete.

Woo!  Beach!  Woo!

Woo!  Eduardo's!  Woo!  Emmett has been a real good sport.  He goes everywhere, does everything, and as long as he's fueled up and clean, he does it without complaint... like the Element.

This year's house has two nice porches and is tucked back behind another property so it's super quiet.  The rocking chairs leave a lot to be desired, but we make due, and the porch swings are great.

It's been really hot this trip and the dogs have a rough time of it anyway, so we've taken them out for sunset and sunrise.  I've walked them around the neighborhood a few times, too.  They don't seem to be missing the mid day beaching and are grateful and happy to be along.  For what it's worth, I love this picture.

Eva, Jonas, Sarah with Emmett, Keith.

Somehow, it took me a minute to realize that if they make UPF outfits for kids, they probably make them for adults, too.  Unfortunately, I couldn't find a matching onesie, but I love not having to smear sunscreen all over all the time.  Plus, mine has a hood that makes me look like Storm Shadow.  The 8 year old me would be stoked.

Last night, or a couple nights ago, we went out to watch the sun set and the moon rise.  This is a picture of the latter, obviously.

Venus and Mercury (above) were in the sky, along with Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn.  I totally wish we'd brought the astronomical binoculars!  What were we thinking?  Oh well, it was still a pretty great adventure just to sit and look up.

Don't worry, everyone has been wearing sunscreen on their exposed parts.  With the exception of the top of Veneta's feet, we've had no sunburns!  Maybe a first.  We're all sporting SPF 60, wearing hats, some of us are in UPF clothes, and under the canopy... How times change.  

We've been getting some reading and relaxing in, also.

Yesterday we went to the Ocracoke Preservation Society and the Ocracoke Working Watermen's Association exhibit wear we learned about how the community came together to save the fish house.  That made our visit to the Ocracoke Seafood Company even cooler.  I wanted to grill some fish while we are here, and have been watching a lot of grilling shows to get ready.  It was cool to chat with the fish monger and she even gave us a couple tips about what and how to grill.  I have a pretty strict "No tertiary consumers" rule, but I broke it this time on the advice of the fish monger.  So in the end, we left with some shrimp, a pampano, and a mako shark steak!

The grilling went well enough that I think Alton Brown would have said, "Pretty good".  The steak was grilled very simple because I wanted to taste the fish rather than a marinade.  For those who haven't had it, it's pretty close to sword fish.

Sarah's still a bit timid when it comes to sea food, so I threw a couple pig dogs on the grill for her.  She sauteed some onion and summer squash that we brought with us and made a lovely coleslaw.  Veneta made shrimp that was just perfect.

If you look carefully, you can see a little piece of the shark on the left hand side, next to the slaw.

Wish you were here!

Dinner devoured.

Yesterday or today, I got up early (thanks Jonas) and decided that instead of trying to go back to sleep, which is usually fruitless, I'd take the dogs to watch the sun rise and the moon set.

Moon setting over the dunes.

Sun rising over the guard station.  Unfortunately, I can't look at this without thinking of Apocalypse Now.

Tonight we finally ate at the Flying Melon.  It was good and the atmosphere was fun.  We've really enjoyed cooking at home rather than going out, for the most part, and it made tonight feel like a treat.  Tomorrow I will have another snowball.  I've only had one so far this trip!  We're going to hit the coffee shop, then the little food truck, Graceful Bakery, and head to Hammock Hills Nature Trail before finally hitting the beach.  I will get a snowball when we come back for the heat of the day.