toadally cool

The weather stayed beautiful many days into October-- 

and

the adventures of little boys ensued:

this kid knows how to ENJOY life. 

his wonder is so easy to capture on film. 

and if you listen carefully, you also catch the sweetest commentary. 

here he was simply whispering, with much glee, "He hops!"

i love that he's my dirt under the nails boy.

the other one would never think of picking up a toad with his bare hands!

catching leaves with his bare hands-- now that's another story.

it involves skill, competition, and results!

definitely right up his alley.

fortunately he caught one in this round-- 

or this pic would have been much different.

both my boys are contemplaters. i love to watch them take in the little things in life.

 like an airplane high in the sky, or the way the rake handle feels on the back of the neck.

they are both so creatively adventurous-- 

though the littler monkey is always the first to initiate a climbing challenge

fortunately bigger monkey has problem solving skills.

this one was so happy and content to be "high up".

this one just wanted to get down!

They are so different ... so unique in their boyhood ... and yet both ALL boy. I love them so strongly, in all of their intricacies, more each day, and can't imagine ever looking at falling leaves or hopping toads the same way again.

oops, it's thanksgiving

i guess i need a reminder on my computer to blog once a week-- i'm REALLY not sure why it's so hard to remember! Sorry boys! In fact, I have NO clue at all where November has disappeared to! Even though there's a whole 10 more days of it-- it might as well be over-- thanks to the Christmas invasion that seems to start it's encroaching earlier every year. I must admit, however, that this year IS the first where i've actually been thinking about Christmas long before Thanksgiving. Maybe it's because I am anticipating the magic of the season for my little cutie pies. But mostly because I'm a total cheapskate, and when i see a deal on ordering FREE Christmas cards the first couple of weeks in November, I'm suddenly Santa's most conscientious elf. So here i sit, one day before Thanksgiving, with all of my Christmas cards piled in front of me, some of them already addressed. And now I don't know what to do with myself. It feels...wrong. So in response, and perhaps in an effort to mask my shame, I am refusing to listen to any Christmas music before Friday, I scoff at the wreaths on every lamp post downtown, and judge everyone who already has their Christmas lights up.  But really, I'm getting excited in my heart... even though next week is going to still be a clash of the seasons in my mind.
So...while it IS still Fall, and there are still yellow and orange leaves adorning our trees, let's do a quick recap of all things Autumnal.