BUBBLES! ! ! ! !

Bathtime just gets better and better! No one told me that you can put bubbles in the water...this is great! I mean, at first I thought mom lost her mind, pouring soap into the water, but whoa! The more I splash the more spherical delight! OH JOY!

......and she is off!

FALL

I noticed that our trees have been fully stripped of their foliage.......this typically catalysis within me the groans of the doldrums associated with the tedious battle that rages between man rake and November winds.....AAAARRRGGGHHHH. But this year was different. My first thought was not typical to years past, my first thought was......how COOL. Jack and I can go play. So, we pulled out the blower and rake and created a pile of leaves that storied about a foot higher than Jack. After about 20 minutes of prep, the official first annual Piland family pile obliteration party began. Fun was had: Jack and Dad = 1, leaves = 0

FREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE at last

Maggie has decided to camp out under the table. She is acting like Columbus upon stepping onto the dry land of the new world (I know Bahamas) she too will soon realize that her new spot is not as great as she first thought. Movable chairs and peoples feet have a tendency to strike out and get you when you are least expecting. It will be exciting to watch her seek out new discoveries and at the same time heart wrenching when she bumps her head, knocks her nose and pops her lips. All part of the fun......camera (check), ice bag (check), band aid (check)...we're ready!!

Jack attack!

Big brother on the bed.....one of the things hindering Maggie from staying still. By the way, a haircut has been received by the aforementioned bouncy brother.

Its BOW time!

It was an exciting Sunday around the Piland house as Aimee decided that Maggie finally had reached "critical hair mass" and could support a bow. Apparently, the addition of a bow is worth commemorating (I dunno, I just do what I am told;). We took about 20 pictures.....this is the only one to turn out....of course the hair brush was integral to accomplishing the task of getting her to stay still. Anywho, the more important thing (no photographic evidence of course) is that Maggie successfully crawled across her bedroom floor yesterday morning. It was quite beautiful and accomplished, yet Jack (fulfilling the role of the "Russian judge") gave her a 7/10. He said it was wobbly. Soooo, this weekend will consist of continued baby-proofing and crib mattress lowering. She is certainly fearless....and that is quite frightening!

Mom & Mags

Rub-a-Dub-Dub 2 kids in a tub

Jack was finishing his bath last night when Aimee decided to throw Maggie in the mix. It continues to amaze me how much she has grown! She thoroughly enjoyed her time in the tub and continues to frighten Aimee and me with her daring and lack of fear. I had her on the bed after the bath and she bolted for the edge. Looks like the next few months are going to be a little interesting.

Dirty Steaks are AWESOME!

Well, after about a year of thinking about it then immediately forgetting, I finally got up enough gumption to try a "dirty steak". A "dirty steak" is when you cook the slice of bovine directly on the natural lump charcoal. You get your charcoal white hot, make sure your steak is dry then lay it directly on top of the coals. Your first thought is that you just ruined a nice piece of meat, but 3 minutes per side later you are rewarded with a perfectly cooked steak. No charcoal sticks to it and it is not burned (some char, but WOW is it good)!!! I encourage you to give it a try, or you could simply buy two 2 inch thick rib-eyes and I will be over directly!