Daniel has been our fastest baby in terms of mobility. The other boys were at least 12 months before they were standing up on their own, so I'm not quite sure what I'm in for with such a little guy on the move! Here he was practicing some walking steps at Grandma's house and then later standing behind a walker toy in the backyard while the rest of us were working and playing.

Occasionally when Dwayne is putting the boys to bed I'll hear lots of laughing, wrestling, and other such goofiness. When I downloaded the pictures a little while ago, I found a series of pictures like these from one such evening.

We went to a pumpkin patch on a preschool field trip and Stuart picked out these pumpkins.


This was a priceless moment of brotherly love and laughs.

We found several free apple sources this fall. Here's the technique--Look for apple trees while driving around. When you see one that has lots of fruit on the ground, ask the people who live there if they mind if you picked some apples. When they say, "Please do, they're all just going to waste!" (all three tree-owners we talked to said this), pick some! (hint: the ones higher up and in the sun are usually less blemished and wormy, so rig a hook onto a long pole if necessary) Using this method, we got enough apples to can about 40 quarts of applesauce and a few pints of apple butter. Tons of work, but somehow satisfying and the boys enjoyed helping. Daniel has eaten down our supply quite a bit already.

Simon is attending a two-day-a-week preschool that is a cooperative effort between four moms (myself being one) from church. We each host/teach one week per month and follow a basic schedule with lots of room for creativity. The kids get along pretty well and are learning a lot. Stuart enjoys participating when it's at our house. Here they are on Simon's first day in September.

One of our favorite features of our new home is the screened porch. When it's warm, it allows you to enjoy the weather without the bugs. I think we're enjoying some BLTs in September with garden-grown tomatoes. One of the great things about summer!