Just Like Heaven: Pumpkins and Fake Whoopies.

Columbus Day weekend has come and gone. G and I survived an entire week by ourselves while Terry learned all there is to know about running a Books-A-Million (BAM) at his training in Alabama. (Suffice to say, thank goodness for Gabby the Rottweiler. Whether she knew it or not, she successfully guarded the house and provided a little bit of ease to my "what was that noise" paranoia.

I will not make eye contact.

Not so impressed with lunch

The weekend was gorgeous. Indian Summer had finally decided to arrive, bringing temps into the 80s, which made the leaves turn their brilliant reds, oranges, yellows and browns. Saturday was spent doing not so fun errands, like getting two new tires. Here's the thing about doing errands like that with a toddler. When the guy behind the counter tells you it'll be an hour and a half, and you're stuck without a vehicle at a little strip mall, there's a slight degree of panic that courses through. However, it's hot out and lunchtime. So we make lemonade out of lemons and head to lunch.

After lunch, we still had about half an hour to kill. Cooks Corner has a great wide open clean space for little people to explore. So explore we did. Much like his momma used to, G found delight in sticking his fingers into any available slot to see what he could find. No ice cream was found here.

Exploring my new box o' toys

Someone handed me this huge whiffle bat.

Sunday proved to be a beautiful day to spend at an old favorite, Fort Williams park at Portland Headlight, in Cape Elizabeth. Terry and many of his former Borders crew were meeting up to celebrate the end of an era and to hear from Terry what new adventure BAM would bring. There was food galore and a view that couldn't be any more spectacular. Per Terry's request, I made what I call fake whoopie pies. Recipe to follow. They're decadent, chocolatey, and oh so delicious.

It was a long hot day, and we were so proud of the Boo. He lasted hours without a nap or a complaint, and had fun being the only pint-sized to wander the party. His charming moments included running through the picnic shelter only to stop dead in his tracks and assume the downward facing dog yoga position. He also had great fun in scaring us all by trying to fling a toy football over the rocky ledge and wanting to go after it. Always the daredevil.

Monday was Columbus Day and while the College was open, daycare was not. So I took the day off, packed the G into the car and headed for Kennebunk to visit with Grammie and Grampie. It was another beautiful day, so we went to a nearby playground where I discovered a few things about G. First, he's definitely become more and more curious about playgrounds and exploration. Yay! Second, picking up and throwing the chips, rocks, or gravel is actually his FAVORITE thing to do. And third, he LOVES going down a slide.

Hungry hungry hippo.

The succession of throwing is as follows: Pick up, pull back, let goooo!

Back at Grammie and Grampie's, a giant pumpkin was waiting for him on their front porch.

Close to our day winding down, G decided to empty his bag of toys right in front of the door. I guess he found that to be his special place to play. (We had a wardrobe malfunction and had to change. Thank goodness mommy always packs a spare!)