Out for a hike

Gus and I went for a little hike today.  The fall colors made for a beautiful day to take pictures.  He is getting so good at climbing rocks, logs and trees.  Last spring we would take hikes in this same area, but now he can navigate it so much better.

We found a log that was hollow and thought it made a good peek-a-boo tree

Silly face

Serious face

He likes the smooth bark on the Manzinita trees

Hoping is so much fun.  He can get so high.

New Blanky

Now that I have a little free time, I have been working on some quilts.  The first one I made was for Gus.  It isn't anything fancy, but it is nice and snuggly.  Basically, he needed a blanket that was his size.  He has out grown most of his baby blankets.  So this one is bigger but not too big.  It keeps him covered no matter how much he twists and turns all night.  I put a special Yellow Piper Cub airplane (his favorite airplane) patch on the back side so he would know it was his special blanket.

Daddy and Gus testing the face snuggly value.  It got a 10!

Running his hand through the super soft material

Happy as a clam

Sometimes he prefers the burrito wrap

Getting ready to read a story before bedtime.  Mommy likes the blanket because it keeps her warm too.

Still potty training, first snow, and fun inside

We have been working on the potty training and this has to be my favorite picture of the whole experience.  Don't get too worried, it is not a girly magazine he is reading.  It is an airplane calendar that he loves to look at (upside down).

 

We got our first snow for the season last weekend.  It didn't stop Moto Gus.  It may have slowed him down a bit because the snow kept getting stuck in his tires, but he kept on going.  I suggested that we get him some ice tires.

After that we decided to invent some new indoor games.  So I took some green painters tape and made a drag racing strip down our hallway so he and I could race matchbox cars.  Thor gave me the idea because he had put tape on the floor all over the living room carpet and up the couch, chair and daybed.  He made a "track" for Gus to race around on.  We have been having lots of fun.  We will get all of his matchbox cars and race every one, then Gus will "clean the track" using his bulldozer to bring the cars back to me.  Then we get to do it all over again.  Who needs TV when you can do this for 2 hours?

Another indoor game we play is "taking a bath with your sunglasses on".  Gus decided it was too bright in the bathroom and needed to shade his eyes.  He was washing himself up like it was the most natural thing to be doing while wearing sunglasses.

Halloween 2011

When I asked Gus what he wanted to be for Halloween, with out really thinking, he said green tractor.  This also happens to be his favorite toy of all time.  So I said, "a green tractor it is!"  I started searching online and found some great ideas.  I stole a little from all of them to make this costume.  Of course, when it came down to keeping it all together, Daddy helped out to put the finishing touches on it.  It was truly a family project.  He finished off the costume with his green tractor hat and a john deere hoodie.

He was a big hit at our local Halloween parade.  The whole town shuts down so the kids (and many parents) can trick or treat down the main road while the businesses give out candy.  Idyllwild doesn't really have any neighborhoods and no sidewalks.  This is the safest for the kids.  It usually has a turn out of about 1,500 people.  This year was a great turn out and the weather was a wonderful autumn day.

The headlights really worked thanks to tap lights.  They were very helpful as the sun faded.

Caution triangle and all..

He refused to take the tractor off when he was tired, so he would just "park it" for a few minutes to take a rest.

Our friend, Teagan as Buzz Lightyear and Gus

Our friends, Monica, Collin and little Orion as a punk band.  Collin actually attached the drums to the stoller so Orion could play them as they walked in the parade.

One tired little boy and Gus was tired too!