Jack-O-Lanterns

Scary, eh.

Sunday afternoon we decided to carve some of our pumpkins. Rick was really into pumpkin carving and put a lot of thought into his pumpkin designs. I have to say they turned out quite good.







Here he is carving. Vivian was sleeping at this point and had no idea what fun was waiting for her in the kitchen. Sleeping did not last long though and soon she was wide awake and helping with her pumpkins.







See - we made her carry them and everything. Actually, she turned out to be a real good helper with the cleaning out part.











I guess she likes the taste of pumpkin - I think I would prefer if she ate it as a pie or something. This kid was orange from head to toe by the time we were done.




Here she is checking out her likeness, ah-la-Daddy (who designed the binky pumpkin for her). I think she liked it, she was just upset that he would not let her hold it.

Finally, we turned off all the lights and let her check out the pumpkins. I took this picture on aperature priority and it took forever to collect enough light to shoot. As you can see - a very blurry (and active) Vivian is touching the pumpkin. Kind of neat to play around with the lighting in pictures.

A good time was had by all. I am really starting to enjoy Vivian's Second Holidays - Baby's Firsts are fine, but I really enjoy Vivian now since she is her own little person seeing the world in a new way. Stay tuned for Halloween costume pics - she is going to be a BEE.

Vivian in the Fall

#1

While we were out and about on Monday, I wanted to get some good pictures of Vivian in the leaves. So, I took along Vivian's brown polka dot dress and hoped for the best. It was really a lot of fun to take her picture and I think she really enjoyed being in the leaves. Out of over 100 pictures, these are some of my favorites (although each time I look through the pictures I find different pictures I like).

Let me know which ones you all like. I need to pick out a few to have prints and enlargements.

#2

#3

#4


#5



#6

#7

#8

Of course every time I take several pictures of Vivian, it is somewhat of an adventure. She loved eating the leaves and she almost fell off of a log. Rick did a really good job getting her posed and making her smile. He also got some good pictures of Vivian and me - here is one (the leaves were so awesome it almost looks like a background at a photography studio).

I tried to get a good picture of Rick and Vivian too - this is my favorite.

It was certainly a great day to take pictures - I had a wonderful location, good light/weather, and a beautiful little girl - all I did was push the button. We will treasure the memories of this day always and have the pictures to remind us of Vivian's first birthday road trip.

Ten

Its Tuesday and I remembered:

1. Happy Anniversary Elizabeth and Michael!!! Two years down - forever to go:) I wish you nothing but happiness and I cannot believe it has been this long since we have seen each other last. Your wedding was fun and I was so happy to have been a part of it. Do something fun kids, you have earned it.

2. Thanks so much everyone for all the good birthday wishes you sent Vivian's way. She has really enjoyed her first birthday.

3. Routines - we are slowly finding our way back into one and it has not been without some road bumps along the way. Rick starts back to work tonight so hopefully we can get this all figured out.

4. Speaking of Rick, it is nice to have him home. I am really enjoying his help with Vivian (particularly in the mornings) and she is too.

5. Pictures to edit - we took a ton of pictures of Vivian yesterday in the leaves. I am anxious to sort through them and hopefully can post some later in the week. I think we got some good ones:)

6. Fall is very awesome. I really like the woods this time of year. Although I choose not to shoot things as part of my enjoyment of the outdoors, it is nice to be out and smell the air and enjoy all the colors around you.

7. Unfortunately fall leads to winter and I hate winter. Cold weather is not a friend of mine.

8. I have a million things to do at home and not so much to do at work. It is frustrating.

9. The blog. I did not realize just how connected the blog keeps us until I met up with the girls in Charleston. We were talking about stuff, but it wasn't like we were really catching up because we were up to speed from the blog. Pretty neat. As I was thinking about Elizabeth's anniversary, I did not realize that I have not seen her in two years because it feels like we are connected from far away. Although it is no replacement for meeting in person or a phone call, it is really nice to keep up this way.

10. Sorry I did not call you back Katie after I called you. My phone was missing for part of the weekend. I will call you soon. Krissy P. - I need Hawaii pictures - I finally started checking your blog regularly and I need new material:) - seriously, I hope all is well and that you are having fun exploring the island.

One

Today my baby turned one. It is such a strange feeling when you stop to think that just one year ago Vivian was a tiny little baby and now she has grown into a little girl full of personality. I am completely in love with her.

On Sunday afternoon, we had a party for her over at the church (our house would not have been big enough). It was a beautiful day to turn one. We went to church that morning and then had to hustle to get the downstairs decorated in time. The party had a Pooh theme/1st Birthday theme and I think it turned out good. The night before the party, I sat down with my pictures from the last year and made a movie about Vivian to show during the party. For those of you who missed it - here it is: http://www.mydeo.com/videorequest.asp?XID=7358&CID=225661

Here is the scene at the party (Katie was very right - 1st birthday parties are hectic so I did not get the opportunity to use my camera much).

We used the Scene Setter Add Ons by themselves on the walls - it worked out okay and Vivian really liked them. She had her own little cake and then the big cake was Pooh holding a honey pot.


Vivian did not get too messy in her cake. She scooped off some icing and ate it and then put her sippy cup in the cake icing too. She poked a finger into the cake and tasted it but that was about it.

After the party she was showing us how old she is (okay not really, she is just pointing).

Needless to say, after the party we were totally worn out. Vivian started playing with her presents when we got home and then we got the rest of them out for her today. It was a good way to start her birthday by playing with all her new toys this morning.

We also took her out to breakfast at the Korner Shop where she had some eggs and biscuits and gravy. After that we came home and watched a movie and then headed outdoors. We went up on Goshen to take in the fall scenery and take some pictures.

This is the view from the top. The far mountains you see are the Virginia/West Virginia line.



Then there were Grandma & Pop's cows - this is the summer pasture for them and I have to say this is a great place to hang out. Rick grabbed some corn ears to take along and feed them (Pop has spoiled them already and when you come to the mountain - you must bring corn now).

Vivian liked checking out the cows. With the corn in her hands - she was quite popular.

She was not about to let go of the corn until she decided whether she liked it or not, so after she chewed it a bit....

She had them eating out of her hands.

Happy Birthday Vivian!!! We hope you had fun. Love Always. Mommy and Daddy.

Visiting Friends and Playing in the Park

After Rick graduated, we headed over to Katie & Dave's house for a long overdue visit. I was very excited to see Katie and meet Miss Jordan for the first time (and Dave I missed you too). Jordan is a little over a month older than Vivian and is a very sweet and cute little girl. The girls played really well together and I think they enjoyed each other's company.

Vivian was particularly fond of Jordan's rocking duck. She even helped rock Jordan in it.

Vivian was also very interested in Maddy. She enjoyed watching her run around in the house.


When I told Katie I was coming down for the weekend, I had hoped we could get together with folks from our law school class. Several emails later - the Charleston girls planned a picnic in the park. The park was perfect for our crew of kiddos.

Vivian had a blast on the slide with Daddy.

And with Mom too. It had been a long time since I have been down a slide.

Vivian was not so sure about the tunnel, but she could peek out so that was okay.

Then there were the swings. Fun for all ages.

Kim had to swing alone because Sophie was amped up playing on the slides and in the tunnel.

Andrea and Emma were taking in all the excitement from the comfort of the swing. Ethan was busy playing with Sophie.

Jackson is still too small for playing on the playground but he had fun hanging out with his Momma Jenny.

Then there was the impossible shot of the kids. Vivian was not cooperating, she kept wanting to crawl away and then she wanted to crawl over to Jackson. The kids from left to right - Vivian, Ethan, Emma, Sophia, Jordan, and Jackson.

Then there was the big group shot. We have Katie and Jordan; Andrea and Emma and Ethan; Kim and Sophia; Jenny and Jackson; and Carrie and Vivian. We had a really great visit and thanks so much everyone for getting together. I know this was nothing like the tailgates of old, but I think it is cool and so crazy how much our lives have all changed over the course of five years.

He is Finished!!!

On Friday, Vivian and I ventured down to Charleston for Rick's graduation from the Basic Officer Police Training at the WV State Police Academy. As I explained to Vivian, enough was enough and we were going to go pick him up and bring him home.

Evidently they are required to look extremely mean during their graduation.

Here he is getting his diploma and other official papers.

Vivian was riveted. Okay, not really she was just snacking on some puffs and checking out the scene. Actually, Rick was looking so serious that even when she saw him she was not too interested. She was sort of confused by all the clapping - when people were applauding, she was sitting quietly just smiling - I do believe she thought all the fuss was for her. Seriously, she was on excellent behavior.

So, is he done now? No, no he is not. After the graduation - we had to go from WV State University to the WV State Police Academy for a marching demonstration. My husband had difficulty with marching at the beginning of the academy and I really think he was nervous about this part (good news was he already had his diploma, so the pressure was off).

And after the marching, I got my husband back.

We took this picture right after they dismissed his class.

Several folks made the trip to take in the graduation:

This is Rick's boss - Sheriff Andy and Jennifer the Chief Tax Deputy.

Rick's Dad and Brother came down.

Rick's Mom made the trip with her husband Arnold and Rick's Aunt Teresa was also there.

After graduation, Rick gave us a tour of the Academy and showed us where he had been living for the last 16 weeks.

His dorm reminded me of Boreman North at WVU except this place had air conditioning. Anyway, we snapped a few more pictures on the grounds.

This picture was taken after Vivian's wardrobe change. I had a t-shirt made for her to wear that says "I am Proud of My Daddy Deputy Pownell" on the front and "He is finally finished" on the back. I think he liked it.

Rick wanted a picture in front of one of the floor patches. I do not understand floor tiles that you are not allowed to step on, but whatever. This patch is on the floor in one of the classroom buildings.

It was a nice day and we were really glad to be able to celebrate this accomplishment with Rick. I am proud of you and happy to have you back home. Congratulations. Love you.