Fowler's

A local chocolate company, Fowler's, does a factory tour once a year on Columbus Day weekend. You didn't have to ask me twice if I wanted to go! Dave wasn't too disappointed that he had to stay home and study (lame!). I keep hoping that Addison gets my love for chocolate and doesn't take after Dave's insistence that vanilla is the only way to go.  When we got there they wanted everyone to wear a fancy hair net. Poor Addison thought her life was over. We settled on putting her hood on and the net resting on top. The factory itself was rather small, but they manage to do a lot in there. We got around 10 samples of different kinds of chocolate! I handed Addison a piece of a caramel apple and she licked the caramel off and then chucked the apple! The sponge candy I think was both of our favorites. Addison let the candy melt in her hand first and then started to lick it. She was very worried about all the mess on her hands:) We left with stomach aches, but they were well worth it!

Fall Festivities

We ventured over to Brown's Berry Patch this weekend to kick off the cooler weather. The Quinn's invited us to join their family and we had a great time. Poor Addison survived despite the fact that we forgot just about everything she needed. She got her pants soaking wet twice, needed a diaper change with no diapers, froze her little hands and face off and the list goes on! She had plenty to distract her and keep her happy though. We went apple picking first and did more eating than picking. We picked a few really sweet ones to turn into caramel apples. We snacked on a few raspberries on our way over to the pumpkin patch. Addison wasn't too sure about the berries at first, but ended up loving them. The pumpkins were ginormous and we ended up picking out a twenty plus pounder. All Addison wanted to do was sit on all the pumpkins. Listening to her try and say pumpkin was priceless. It was a jumble between a really loud "P" and a kin at the end. There was a little grill there that we grabbed some chili and fries at for lunch. Addison chose to pull the wagon around the trees instead of eating. There were a whole bunch of kid rides and animals that we took Addison over to. She still has a fear of ravenously hungry goats, but did like pointing to the baby goats. There was a giant slide that you had to climb a rope ladder to get to. I have a giant fear of heights so when Addison started pointing towards it I felt my stomach turn. I conquered my fears several times and Addison loved the fast slide. At one point Addison got ahead of me and slid down sideways. She still had a smile on her face in the end! There was a huge bouncy pillow shaped trampoline. I took Addison up on it since Dave said his shoes had too many laces to undo...lame! I got up there and realized how scared I get jumping. I begged Dave to get his butt up there and he did. He ended up jumping for a long time! Addison was mostly scared, but liked being in her dad's arms while jumping. We grabbed some apple cider donuts and enjoyed them on the long drive home. 

We also got to listen to conference this weekend. I always forget how much I enjoy this weekend. Addison gave us the best present and took her long nap during the Sunday morning session. It was really peaceful and  I got a lot out of it. We had some friends over for chili and dessert in between sessions. Addison's bff Will kept her occupied during the afternoon session and Dave stayed awake! We ended the night by skyping our families which has turned into a Sunday tradition. Here's to cooler weather and fall festivities! 

Frogs

My parent's stopped on their way back from Boston this week. It was too short of a stay, but we will take what we can get. They got here on Monday evening just in time for a hot meal. I have been in the mood for soup lately so we have eaten a lot of it. I tried a new recipe called baked potato soup. It was a thicker consistency, but still really good. The next day I took my mom to D'Avolios for a lady lunch while Addison took a nap. It was AMAZING! We split a salad and pizza and tasted a bunch of oils and vinegars. I picked up a oil mister that I had been wanting as well. Grammie and I took Addison out for a wagon ride when we got back. Grammie found a frog along the way and picked it right up! I about died!! Addison liked to look at it in Grammie's hands,but not so much in hers. We put the frog in the wagon across from her and she squealed the whole way back. Dave studied for a little while and then we went to Anchor Bar to try their wings. We hadn't been there yet and had heard good things. The service was not so great and the wings were okay. I think we are Duff's fans through and through. Addison had a great time showing off for everyone and drinking out of a big girl cup. My dad helped me with the kitchen I am making Addison for Christmas for a while on Wednesday. We had lunch and then they headed out.

Keeping Busy

The beginning of this week Addison still wasn't feeling very well. She got a lot of cuddling time and a whole lot of Elmo...again. We still tried to keep ourselves busy in hopes of "distracting" the little lady. I have been going to an aerobics class on Tuesdays that I love! Addison roams around with the other kids and I work my buns off! Addison is still sleeping in later than normal so I have been a very pleasant mommy:) We went to a few playgroups this week so Addison could be with her bff Will. Dave was busy with clinical and studying as usual. He managed to let me sneak out for a fun night of ladies bunko. I had a really good time and didn't make it home until after 11! I won a really cute Halloween treat basket. We tried a few arts and crafts this week. Addison does NOT like to get messy. She got that from her daddy and I hope and pray she grows out of it. I got her some markers and she liked looking at the animal faces on them better than coloring. Her masterpiece is proudly hanging on the fridge. I picked up a pumpkin at the farmer's market this week and let Addison paint it. She really liked doing a few brush strokes and then got some on her finger. She started to freak out and pointing her finger saying, "Hep, hep!"(help). I cleaned off her little purple finger and she did a few more colors. We put it out on our porch and when we get the mail Addison likes to roll it around. 

Addison's vocabulary has really taken off. She repeats almost everything that we say. Some of her new words are: hep(help), on, mill(mail), side(outside), baa(bath), moo, push(after she rings the doorbell), sit, shoeah(shoe), sock, feet, toe, how(house)...and the list goes on. She is a little chatty Cathy (wonder where she got that?)! These days she loves to play with her doll house. She sits in her chair and plays with all her little people and giggling at them. She runs around the corner yelling, HOW for house. The weather has still been pleasant so we have been continuing our wagon rides. I am afraid we are going to have to move it in the basement come winter time. 

I brought out a little bit of my crafty side again this week. Addison loves to wear my watches and put my hair elastics on her wrist. I found a pattern for cute felt velcro bracelet. I made a few and she likes to smell the flower on it and rip it off. She then grabs it and tell me to put it "on." She thinks she is pretty fancy. We tried to hit up a few garage sales this weekend. Not much luck, but a friend gave Addison a little dolly blanket. Addison likes to wrap up her baby and rock it over and over. It really melts my heart and I love watching her play. She is going to be a great big sister some day:) 

Dave had a campout this weekend so I had a girl's night. I had my friend, Kait over and we got Thai take out and watched Twlight. Addison loved running around with Will til almost 10! Dave came back the next morning and let me sand Addison's hopefully nightstand that will be a kitchen. I scooted off to the women's broadcast while Dave and Addion ran some errands together. We are loving Fall and everything that comes with it. I just got Addion's Halloween costume! She is going to be so pretty!  

Sick Chicky

Poor Addison has been sick this past week. She has been sleeping in really late (which I was enjoying!) and acting fussy. I ended up taking her in and she has a bad UTI. It was so sad when they had to catheterize her. The nurses made me leave the room and I think I am more traumatized than she was.  She is cuddling a whole lot and we hope this passes sooner than later. We have watched more Elmo than I ever thought was possible. Never has this little lady sat on the couch curled up for a whole 45 minute show.The medicine they gave her has really curved her appetite. We have tried just about everything and haven't had a whole lot of luck. I was grateful that Dave was able to give her a priesthood blessing today after church. We took her on a wagon ride this afternoon and she managed to give us a few happy smiles:) Yesterday we watched her friend Will. She had a blast with him! It was the happiest she had been all week. She actually wanted to eat a snack when she saw him eating. The two little trouble makers pulled out all of the tupperware and and kept poking each other in the eye and giggling. Adidison walks around say, "WILL!" She says it in a really high pitched voice. It is really cute and she says it all day long. Thank goodness for little friends!
Over all this week was pretty busy. We didn't do anything really exciting, but I felt like I was running around every day. I signed Addison up for a toddler open gym on Fridays. I didn't know how she would like it or act since she was sick. She LOVED it. She rolled around on the mats and scooted around on some of the toys. A few of her friends from church attend as well so she was in good company. We finally made it to the local farmer's market. I have been wanting to go for weeks, but couldn't get there during the hours. We got broccoli, potatoes and apples. I hope to make it back a few more times before it gets too cold. Recipe exchange was this week and it was amazing! We met at a fancy olive oil and vinegar restaurant. They did a private taste testing and had a ton of samples for us. It was great to get out for a bit. Dave did a whole lot of studying this week and got a little cold towards the end of the week. On Saturday  Dave went with the young men to the temple. We ended the weekend with a dinner alone to a new Mexican restaurant. Addison survived without us and I only called once to check up on her:) 

Naval Museum

Dave got Rosh Hashanah off of school so we took advantage of a study free day! We had bought a groupon  earlier in the year for the Navel Museum. It was a pretty cool place. I think that Dave could have spent an entire day there. Addison wasn't so sure about having to be carried through the tight spaces. We got to tour 2 ships and a submarine. My favorite was the USS Sullivan. It was a self guided tour that had little descriptions at various points along the way. I am grateful that I will never have to be a cook on a ship for 10,000 hungry crew mate! It was a good afternoon and even better that Dave didn't have to study!

Trip Down to Pittsburgh

Aunt Jenny had a free couple of days so Addison and I scooted on down. We went to this cute little fall farm close to their house. More importantly it was by a Jersey Mikes:) I promise that was NOT the only reason I went down for a visit (just an added bonus of course). I bought a handful of animal feed for Addison to give to the animals. She was not into it. She got really scared and started to cry. It surprised me since she is usually really into animals. In her defense the sheep were out of control crazy! They had little wooden house that Addison really liked going in and out of. We hit up the little market on the way out and Addison got a cookie as a treat. I love fall. I think it has to be my favorite season and I am loving the cooler weather that we are having at night. Addison enjoyed chasing Harley around for a few days. She likes to stick her hands in his mouth and poke his eyes with her finger. He tends to run away the second he see hers. Her favorite spot at Aunt Jenny's is Harley's dog bed. She throws out all of his blankets and pops a squat in there. The drive home took us forever! It poured hard rain the whole way, but Addison was an awesome road warrior.