Autumn in Indiana

Modeling her October outfit

This weekend, we went to a tailgate party for Purdue and had our first obligatory family portrait for the Christmas letter I intend to send this year. I've intended to do one every year since we got married, but it may actually happen this year (cross your fingers). Of course, if you are a regular reader here on the blog, you already know most of what's happening, so you don't need the letter. However, if you want to make sure you are on the list, drop me a line with your name and address. I honestly have no idea who reads this other than a couple of people who mention it from time to time. 

Saturday, Ellie comported herself well at the otherwise all adult party. She did slobber all over herself and watched more tv than she has up to now in her entire life. But, she enjoyed herself. There were plenty of people to flirt with, BIG dogs (greyhounds), and she got to spend lots of time with Dad.

Later Saturday, she semi-stood up by herself from the potty. Dad was blowing bubbles - which is her new favorite thing to do on the potty - and she wanted to "do it herself". She stood to reach for the bubbles, Dad reached for her, and half the bubbles ended up in the carpet. This further reinforces our idea that she'll walk before she crawls.

Another thing Ellie has started is a little recreational "drug" use. Part of the nursing routine now is that after she has sated her immediate hunger (about 4 minutes in), she pops off, sits up and points imperiously at the nightstand which holds her Vitamin D drops and her Orajel tube. After thinking she was a genius a couple times for recognizing what the Orajel is for, it has since become her first game of pretend. Instead of applying the gel, I simply hand her the tube and ask her if her teeth hurt. She then puts the pointed lid end in her mouth and gently "applies" it to the offending gums. She does this a couple times and I tell her that's great and her teeth must feel all better now. At that point, she generally loses interest and drops the tube on the floor. I hope this doesn't turn her into a hypochondriac....

Sunday, we went to the local arboretum to have our first family portrait. The photographers were a husband and wife team. I think they did a really great job. The husband showed us a few of the shots and they looked pretty nice without any editing. We'll see all of them Friday when we go to preview the shots at their studio. I'm hoping we have lots of great pictures to choose from.

Ellie can't take her eyes off the trains.

Although she was a little worn from an hour of posing and being adorable (it's harder than it looks),  we still swung by the railroad garden that we've been meaning to see all summer. I'm kicking myself for not trying harder, now. It is AMAZING! We did the whirlwind tour so we could get some lunch before nap time, but I plan on taking Ellie back another time this fall if the weather holds up. She was pretty interested in all the moving bits. I loved how carefully they scaled everything. The landscaping was incredible. Neither P or I were crazy about the tacky spiderwebs and random Halloween decor they junked it up with, but the underlying structure and vignettes were very well thought out and executed.