festival.festival.festival.festival.

What is it about fall festivals?  They pop up all over the place in September/October as we all celebrate harvests and cooler days (usually...), beautiful colors, even gourds.  We take the time to enjoy some tasty delights and present precursors to the best part of the year - the holidays.

A couple of weekends ago the Harrolds participated in a fall festival weekend!  It began when Adam planned a surprise excursion to Hartsburg, MO for the annual pumpkin festival!  You may not be aware, but this is a big deal.  Cute little Hartsburg, population hovering around 100, explodes into pumpkins and crafts, funnel cake and a corn maze, and 50,000 people!  The town is just a little jaunt southwest of Columbia along the Katy Trail, boasting farmlands, a winery or two, beautiful rolling hills, and incredible trees.

Caden got his own pumpkin.  Really excited about it.

These are more fun, HUGE PUMPKINS!

Don't worry guys..I got this.

Caden rolling the pumpkin

The next day we went to Arrow Rock with both sets of Grandparents.  Have you ever been to Arrow Rock?  Another Mid-Missouri gem.  This little town is located between Columbia and Kansas City.  The entire town is a national historic landmark.  It's neat to visit anytime, but the second weekend in October they have a big crafts festival and all the vendors and townspeople dress in period clothing.  We went a few years as kids.  It's always interesting to go back to a place that you remember as a child.   A child's mind puts such a magical spin on everything.  That's one thing that is so fun with Caden is now we can experience everything through his eyes.

Here's one I can actually pick up!

Ahh...Fall!

Fall!

We have had some perfect weather this past week, and I am looking forward to more this month, there is so much fun that can happen in the fall!  Last weekend I took Caden to MU south farm showcase to check out some farm animals, take a hayride, and see some tractors.  I wasn't sure how he would respond since he is still a bit young for hayrides and farm animals but he smiled and pointed at everything so I think he enjoyed it!

The past couple of months with Caden have been so fun, he has a new trick everyday and it is a blast to watch him discover and understand more everyday.  He is walking much more than crawling now, waves hi and bye, claps, has 6 teeth, and currently loves to take everything out of a bag/container and then put everything back in.  And take it out again.  And put it back again.  etc. etc.  He's so funny when he plays because he does this and also will carry objects from one side of the room to the other the whole time huffing and puffing like he is working so hard.

This weekend we went up to Cainsville, Adam's parents have the house where his Mom grew up there.  It's the in the country in Northern MO, near Iowa.  The big boys did some hunting and we hung around the house and introduced Caden to country life.  He had a blast!

Hip Hippie

I think I am turning into a hippie. 

Well...not completely but I find myself leaning that way.  Since becoming a Mom?  Maternal instincts promote hippie behaviors?  There could be some truth to that.  Think about it.  I gave life.  I sustain life.  I mean, all through God the Ultimate Life Giver and Sustainer...but I am a vessel of this through pregnancy, childbirth, and breastfeeding.  My body is lifegiving.  That is a profound and beautiful miracle and I think it has opened up this desire in me to cultivate and allow for more life and beauty.
So how has my new hippie attitude presented itself?

- I cloth diaper.  Yep, cloth and diaper next to each other.  On purpose.  And actually I love it.  Maybe more on this in a future post.

-I am growing my own herbs - rosemary, cilantro, parsley, thyme, and basil.  I actually tried this last summer and failed within a month, but this year I am more enthusiastic and I am planning on gathering and storing them so they will last longer and produce more.  If I could..I would grow more things.  Perhaps when I am no longer in an apartment.

- My interest in cooking, and more specifically in cooking fresh, local vegetables and fruits is growing.  I actually get rather excited about it.  I would love to be part of a CSA (community supported agriculture) but I don't think its in the cards for me right now in my apartment state.  No freezer space.  Scant dry storage space.

- I am researching and hoping to make most of baby Boy's food.  I am trying to be realistic with the facts that a: I am a working Mom and don't want to overextend myself and b: I don't have a lot of freezer space.  At all.  Again..someday...


I have just been finding myself being drawn more and more to the simple.  The natural.  The beauty of our world.  I want to find ways to minimize my "carbon footprint" and promote growth.  I also desire to live in a way respectful of other people and their needs, trying to curb my consumerism.  I'm not always great at this.  It's a process.  But a new exciting path for me. 


Peace.

the continuing debate and a venture to the creative

Well I still haven't "gone public" with this blogging idea - or even ventured with another post until now.  I guess I'm just feeling odd about posting my inner musings for all the world to see...if they found it anyway.  But as I continue to ponder I will also continue to post.

Over the summer Adam and I purchased a camera.  I mean a nice digital SLR camera.  Neither of us really had much experience, but we both had an interest and since we were planning a: a trip to Alaska and b: the birth of a child, we decided it would be a good time to invest in one and just learn as we go.  So initially I had been experimenting just a little..with the easier for beginner settings.  Just been enjoying the fact that my pictures have a much better quality than with my point and shoot and that I am so much less dependent on the flash which just looks nicer.  However in the past week I have really been wanting to explore photography more - learn even more about the camera and delve into my creative side.  So I read through a few tutorials online, skimmed through some cute photography in the random blogs I have stumbled upon, and pulled the camera out to do some experimentation. 
Mainly I have just been working on getting a feel for how much the image changes when I tweak things like ISO, shutter speed, and aperture setting.  I want to further understand white balance and lighting composition.  I feel like I am getting to where I can get a good photo but I want to learn how to manipulate these settings for an artistic effect...and of course further develop my compositional skills.  I'll have to post some of my more recent shots soon but don't expect anything too spectacular just yet.  Any tips of the trade?  Sources I should look into?  If you're a photog feel free to leave input!

My little dude is my main subject and he typically makes me look good!  That is until he is over my zeal and just wants me to play with him.  He is getting so fun to play with as he interacts with us a lot more and goes nuts over some of his toys.  I'm not convinced yet, but I am somewhat suspicious that he might be teething...I've noticed some increased fussiness and some rather aggressive munching on the toys.  But still, as long as the kid gets his naps he's a pretty happy guy.  I'm learning he can be quite the sleeper!  He rarely makes it over 2 hours between naps these days.  I guess his little body decided that being on a nap schedule is cool and he much prefers them over his old doze in and out days.  I'll have to post about our current sleep routines and sleep philosophies..but I'll save that for another day.

To blog or not to blog...

I am considering starting a blog.  Well...clearly it has gone beyond that point.  I am considering keeping and updating this blog which I just started tonight.  I never thought of myself as the "blogger" type, but it seems I have developed a habit of creeping onto others' blogs with a fascination at this glimpse into their lives.  With my own blog, this behavior may be justified.  Plus now I have this really cute kid and this would provide me with one more outlet to use as a proud Mommy.  :)

This is reminiscent of the days of Xanga..remember xanga?  After high school, my really great friends and I all chose different colleges to attend, and xanga really helped to keep us connected with each other.  Then facebook came along and xanga went by the wayside.  So now I see this new opportunity to keep in touch with those I love and share what is going on in my life.  I try with phone calls and emails...I really do.  But let's face it - we're busy people.  I do not want my blog to replace phone calls and emails, but it may serve as a place to share the day-to-day details that get forgotten in those phone calls that come too far apart.

Consider this my trial run in the world of blogging ladies and gentlemen.  My posts may seem goofy; my title undoubtedly cheesy; my layout plain and my design lacking.  Cut me some slack - I'll learn the ropes.  Or I will abandon all efforts and send the whole operation to lay beside my xanga page in cyber cemetery (HappyJones I believe?)

In the meantime, I know one tactic that is sure to win rave reviews: