It's a bird, it's a plane..

It's Superman! Or Superbaby I guess! And his trusty sidekick Superdog of course!
On the move...
Superbaby was VERY thirsty after trick or treating.
This Superman is going to stick with walking for a while as he's not a huge fan of flying.
Happy Halloween!

No news is good news

Sorry for the lack of updates lately. Nothing too exciting to report and not a lot of picture taking going on either...we're still trying to get Jackson's face rash taken care of. The latest is that it could be a Staph infection so he is on antibiotics for 10 days and if that doesn't clear it up, our doctor will refer us to dermatology to see what they say. It's getting a little frustrating, but at least it doesn't really seem to bother him. Otherwise, Jackson is thriving and so are we! All is well and we are loving our Fall weather. If I can find a babysitter tonight, Todd and I might have a date night. The Vienna Boys Choir is actually performing at the college here and we'd really like to go. Hopefully we'll get something figured out. So off I go to make some calls!

I'm a gangsta, yo!

Jackson has been obsessed with hats lately so he was putting Todd's on the other day. Notice the hip sideways positioning. But this is what made me laugh really hard...as he was walking away, I noticed that his pants were totally falling down completing the whole gangster look. Now all we need to get him is a blingin' grill and maybe we have a Halloween costume!

Progressive Dinner

I had some of the yummiest food I've had in a LONG time on Saturday. We were part of a progressive dinner that we did with our friends, the Rosenbooms and the Raines. Shanelle, Michele, and I were all talking one night about how we never get to use all of our fun entertaining things so we decided we'd go all out and have one fun big night at all of our houses, sans kids (which, despite all of the really good food, might have been my favorite part of the evening!).
We started out the evening at our house with appetizers. I made a rosemary goat cheese dip and three types of hummus-plain, black bean, and roasted red pepper. After appetizers and cocktails, we headed to Darin and Michele's for the main course, which I will not even attempt to pronounce or spell because I wouldn't do it justice because it was all Italian-y. But it was SO GOOD! Darin made steak rolls that were stuffed with pine nuts and raisins and were cooked in a wine sauce for a long time so they were nice and tender, then there was spaghetti noodles with cheese and pepper served in cheese bowls that he made himself also and roasted asparagus. I was so sad that I couldn't finish all of my food. But I was getting really full and I knew what was waiting for dessert so I had to pace myself! After a wonderful leisurely dinner, we went to Ryan and Shanelle's for dessert. Shanelle made a pumpkin maple cheesecake that was perfect, no cracks or anything! I'm quite impressed with my friends cooking abilities and am looking forward to enjoying it more often!! I took some pictures, but I'm sort of disappointed with how crappy they were and how few I took. I tried to post them but something was wrong with blogger so it wouldn't do it. I'll try again later, but don't get your hopes up- they're not that impressive. Sad.

Happy Birthday John!

It's my brother-in-law, John's, birthday today and I'm a pooper because I forgot to call and, as always, I'll be late with the card and gift. John, this is my attempt to let you know that we didn't forget about your birthday completely. I hear you are sick and I hope you are better by your party tomorrow. Wish we could be there to celebrate with you. I always loved the wine and cheese party!

Before and After

Jackson's first trip to Pumpkin Land was actually one year ago-almost to the day. A little trip down memory lane for YaYa (my mom), who had just come to meet her new grandson. He was ten days old on his first trip...
This year at Pumpkin Land...
Last year at Pumpkin Land...Seriously, I have no idea why I felt the need to go to Pumpkin Land ten days after having a c-section, but it made cute pictures! I can't believe how tiny he was!

Pumpkin Land

We made our yearly visit to Pumpkin Land a couple of nights ago. I've been wanting to go for a while, but really wanted it to feel like Fall so we had to wait until a cooler night. It finally came along, so the three of us bundled up a bit and headed out to the farm. Jackson has been loving wagons or things that he can ride in of any sort lately so he was pretty excited about getting pulled around in the big wagon. We made a stop at the little petting zoo area too so Jacko could get his first up-close glimpse of some animals. He checked out the goats, bunnies, roosters, peacocks, and puppies. He liked looking at all of them from a distance, but really didn't want to get any closer.
In the barn there is this height chart that says, "How tall this fall?" so we tried our hardest to get him to stand next to it, but this was the best we could do. He was trying to push it over. Nice, trying to get us kicked out of Pumpkin Land.
This just made me laugh because it looks funny. Jackson wouldn't stay put long enough for the picture and Todd was trying to hold him there. Maybe next year.
It was a really fun evening and Jackson loved walking around the farm and he even picked out his own little pumpkin.

Things turn up in the strangest places...

So lately Jackson likes to carry objects around until he finds just the right place to put them down. These are just a few of the most recent hiding places he has found...blocks in the printer...
shoes in the tub...I swear I clean my tub-it's just old and stained. Don't judge me, people!
and farm animals in my running shoes...I'm surprised the sheep still has a smile on his face. But it looks like his backside may have fallen off because of the smell.

Another reason I love my small town...

This afternoon I was faced with a long evening since Todd would be working until midnight. As I was wondering what Jackson and I would do to pass the time until bed, my friend Shanelle and her daughter Rae came a-knocking. So we sat around and talked for a while since her husband and son were "out in the fields" and wouldn't be home until later in the evening too. Then comes another knock...and in comes another friend, Gina, and her daughter Ella. She needed some paint color opinions and saw she could get a two-for-one deal since Shanelle was over too. So we gave our input and they stayed for a while and talked and played and then left. Shanelle and I threw together a quick, easy dinner for the four of us and after we ate-what do you know, but here comes another knock on the door! Another friend had stopped by to drop off a party invitation for next week. It was all such a fun surprise and totally helped pass the time. By the time Shanelle and Rae left, all we had left for the evening was bathtime, a walk, and then off to bed for Jacko. Not half bad for a night that I was sort of dreading.

Lilly's Baptism

Lilly Vogel was baptized on Sunday at Covenant Presbyterian Church. It was wonderful to be able to witness such a momentous occasion in a family's life. I always cry at baptisms, and this one was no different. Lilly looked so sweet in her baptismal gown that has been handed down through the generations.



Seriously, look at that adorable face!
Jackson has really been enjoying his new-found freedom now that he is a walker. He was trotting around the pews after church and this totally made me laugh...makes me think of what's to come in about 18 years when it's senior picture time!

Weekend in STL

Saturday morning started out with the whole Vogel family going to brunch at the Ritz. We had never been before and decided-"hey, why not! We've got money to burn!" Not really, but it was really yummy and the staff was so polite and professional. At the end of brunch, our waiter brought Jackson a balloon and a little gift bag with a stuffed animal in it. I wish I had had the camera ready because his face was absolutely priceless. He had never really seen a balloon up close before so he was quite in awe. This picture was so funny too-it sort of shows how giddy he was about the whole thing. Saturday evening we had round two of Jackson's birthday party so we could celebrate with family. Jackson very much enjoyed opening more fun presents. Check out his pointer fingers going to town...
Oh, sinful child that doesn't want to share with his cousin! They learn so early that whole "mine" thing.
Mmmm....cake! Noticing the eyes beginning to glaze over.