Before and after

7 days later...

OK, fine

Gus can wear his Vikings sweatshirt now.

He received it as a gift from his Aunt Steph and Uncle Mike last year so it's just been hanging in the closet until it fit, which is now. Perfect timing, Vikes.

His purple pride attracts the ladies.

Even after he had enough, they kept throwing themselves at him, practically chasing him around the block. Clearly Gus gets this from his dad.

These are a few of my favorite things

Gus' favorites, that is. Pretend driving with Gpa Dave,


reading books with Gma Vickie,

and corn.


There was a plentiful harvest this year you could say! This corn was picked by Patty (thank you) and transported and cooked up by Vickie. We have a few pounds of sweet corn in the freezer, ready for the long winter.

Also, my corn husking abilities improved over the weekend.

Dirt, water, mud. In that order.

Gus re-landscaped our yard this afternoon and most of the soil made it onto his head and face. All I could think while taking these picture is how much he resembled Frida Kahlo.


Then the skies opened up and the rain came down. I stood and observed from the garage.


I convinced him to use the umbrella but that only lasted for about 2 minutes.

A warm spot for the winter

This morning while doing our usual frantic dash out the door, Gus decided to take advantage of the fact that his mom was loading up the car and find a nice warm spot to settle in for the upcoming winter.

I knew it would only be a matter of time until he discovered he could climb in there.

Fall Festival

Fargo Park District held its annual Fall Festival last weekend and we were there. Gpa and Gma Steve and Debi were in town, too, so the weekend was full of excitement. We went to this same event last year but Gus wasn't really old enough to enjoy all the perks then. He did this year.

First stop was cookie decorating in the barn.



Second, a stop at the pumpkin patch.




Next up was a horse ride with Gpa Steve.

Then we hit up all the games.

Bball, duh.

Ring the pumpkin was fun.

Feed the scarecrow was by far the easiest game of the day, but still cute.

Gus sprinted around in the straw maze forever.


We headed indoors for some refreshments and when we stepped inside, we heard some beautiful music. Gus tracked it down to a harpist sitting in the corner. When he walked up to watch her, she stopped and told us she is a kids harp instructor. Get a load of this, she pulled out a mini-harp and let Gus strum away. That was almost as entertaining to him as the straw maze.

When we got home, he crashed but not before posing with silly pumpkin that he constructed with Gma Debi. He loved that thing! Until he bit the eyeballs off it yesterday.

Thanks for a great weekend visit, Steve & Debi!

A real haircut

Gus had his first hair cut about 3 months ago but had his first real haircut, in a salon, last weekend.

At first he was not interested in the cape that Nancy brought out...

..until we gave him a sucker. Hey, I'd like to take this opportunity to ask why someone didn't tell me about this sucker concept earlier? I love it! Life with a toddler is so easy when I'm armed with Dum Dums. I suppose he will get cavities so I should lay off some, but it is nice.



He opted, this time, for the same style which is just a little off the back.

Friendly neighbors

It seems this nice weather makes the kids want to play and eat. So they do.

Apples with Mya, Gus' best friend on the block. He adores her.





Dairy Queen treats for everyone!

2 months until he's 2 years

Where does the time go? We've only got 2 months until Gus hits the big 2-year mark. He's been pretty busy lately. So busy, infact, that he won't stop to let me take his picture. Here's what I've managed to snap over the past week.

He likes his new easel with chalkboard.



This shot was posted to give you an up-close shot of his thick hair. Never thought we would see this!


Dancing while wearing a hat and diaper is way more fun than dancing in just a plain old diaper. The hat is courtesy of my friend, Kristie. Yes, we all went to the Britney Spears concert, again, and this hat is my souvenir.


And now for the educational portion of this post. Gotta get your ABCs!