Our State Fair is a Great State Fair!

I'll be darned if the fair didn't come around again this year. We had such a good time last year that we figured we'd better go again. We weren't disappointed! Ethan got much more of a kick our of it this year what with being able to recognize the animals and such. We also chose a weekday evening instead of a weekend day, which meant it was a lot less crowded and hot. So basically we chowed down on some delicious fair food, including (between the 3 of us): a bbq sandwich with slaw, a polish sausage with fixins, a chicken pita, a lemonade, homemade ice cream and a funnel cake. Yum-O! You may ask, "Didn't that cost a fortunate?" And the answer is: Yes. Let's just say we were pretty much eating beans for the rest of the week after I examined the budget...But it was worth it!! At the expo center we got to see the huge pumpkins and a whole bunch of animals. Ethan was delighted. We've been talking about the baby piggies ever since. The event was very stimulating as a whole. I already can't wait till next year!

Hanging Rock State Park

A few days ago we went on a little camping day trip out to Hanging Rock State Park in western North Carolina. We met a few of our friends there and we all had a blast with our kids. The drive was about two hours and well worth it! The weather was perfect, the leaves were gorgeous and the food was yummy! It was an ideal little trip for our Fall Break. Eric and I took Ethan on a itty bitty hike to a waterfall. He was so excited! He had a great day splashing around in the water, playing in the dirt, eating hot dogs, and playing trucks with his little buddies. Check out the footage!

Is My Son OCD?

Well, Ethan is really kinda funny about things. For instance, lining up his cars and trucks. Most of the time playing with his cars (his favorite toys) consists of lining them up. On the couch, on the floor, on mommy's tummy, wherever. The cars must be aligned. I think this is hilarious. He will spend decades arranging his cars, then rearranging, getting them in the order he wants. I find them lined up everywhere. Another thing: it really bothers Ethan when things are dirty. If he falls down at the park and there is so much of a spec of dirt on his hands, he runs over to me yelling, "Dirty, gross, yuck!" and wipes them on my pants. (Never his, always mine!) Driving down the road, reading a book, watching something on Sesame, he always points out when things are dirty. It is hilarious! About 2-3 times a day Ethan will bring his trucks or cars to me and say, "Dirty, mommy, wash!" So we go over to the sink and wash each of his cars. I find cars in the sink waiting to be washed all the time. (When they fall down the disposal it bugs.) After I wash the cars (sometimes they need to be washed twice or three times), I give them back to him and he drys them on a towel. Using towels is also essential to Ethan. If he gets wet, or one of his toys, he runs panic-stricken to the kitchen shouting "Towel, towel!" I get the biggest kick out of it. This week he even went so far with cleanliness as to put Elmo in the tub with him. Elmo is a hand puppet, not dirty, and not meant to get in the tub with 2 year olds. But he was concerned about Elmo's eyes being dirty and gross. Poor Elmo. So are all kids this quirky? I certainly did not expect that my two year old very-boy-like-son would be so incredibly worried about sticky, dirty, yucky. It didn't come from me. I still do not, nor do I think I will ever believe in germs. Maybe the thing he is a little OCD about are just coming out at an early age. Who knows?

Ladies and Gentlemen, I've Been Tagged

Three Joys

1. Naps
2. Venus Razors
3. Long fingernails

Three Fears

1. Drowning
2. Burning alive
3. War movies

Three Goals

1. Keep my house as clean as possible
2. Get Ethan to take a nap everyday
3. Not spend all my husbands money at Ross

Three Collections/Obsessions

1. Birdhouses--making them and painting them
2. Taking lots of pix of Ethan
3. Blogging

Three Surprising Random Facts

1. I like meatloaf
2. I try to watch Jeopardy every night
3. I think Donny Osmond is something else
   

Does this Big huge tummy make me look fat?

Baby Girl Pelfrey is more than half done! Here I am at about 25.5 weeks.

Beautiful Day at the Park

Ethan wanted to go to the park yesterday so we headed to Forest Hills which is not too far from my house. The weather was perfect. Warm, but with a cool breeze perfect for playing hard. When we got there, there was a huge group of joy schoolers already playing. We had a wait for a bit because Ethan just couldn't compete with them on the steering wheels and slides.

Here he runs toward the playground with anxiousness.Here he runs away from the playground with anxiousness.

At last the field trip went home and Ethan played and played and played. He must've gone down the slides 25 times. It was difficult to get him to leave, but he took an awesome nap afterword!

"Six Quirks of Natalie Pelfrey" Tag

Please, if you are my friend, remain my friend after reading this. If you are in my family, there is nothing you can do about it. I have so many darn quirks its hard to choose six, but I will try to share the ones that my husband probably considers the most odd.
1. Top sheet? No thank you. I never, ever sleep with a top sheet. They are incredibly uncomfortable, scratchy and cold. I do, and have for about 18 years, slept with the blanket that my Gramma Dearden made for me. Is it big enough for Eric? No. He has to fend for himself.
2. Disgust of dishrags. Dishrags stink, smell, odorize my home and make me ill. After I touch them, my hands smell nasty for hours afterward. How do I wipe my counters, etc? Sanitizing wipes. Thank you modern conveniences.
3. Crossword Adoration. I would pretty much prefer to sit down and do a crossword to anything else. I have a huge omnibus of Sunday-sized ones and they keep me busy. If Ethan takes a nap or Eric is watching a game I bust out my CW book.
4. Cheap, cheap, cheap. I am cheap, what more can I say? I don't remember the last time I didn't buy the cheapest thing available in the selection. This is very rarely not the case. The only shoes I own are from Good Will. I do not spend more than $3.50 on a shirt. My kid plays with hangers and rocks. GreatValue and generic brands are my friend. I'm just a dadgum tightwad I guess! (My husband tries to balance me out.)
5. Fingernail Freak. My nails are nothing to write home about, but if one of them gets a snag, I can't cope. I always have a file with me. If I don't, I pretty much chew the whole thing off. Bleck!!
6. Newspaper Refusal. I will not touch newspapers because they get my hands black. Its disgusting. Plus I think they are a waste of trees and setup for paper cuts. Eric just started getting the Wall Street Journal...this will take some getting used to. Just as long as I never have to pick it up and it gets recycled....
Like I say, if these aforementioned items happen to distress you, please try to forget about them. I don't think they will cause any of you harm, but let me know if they do. Also, if you have stuck with it and read this, consider yourself tagged. That means YOU, Darrell, Loralee, Camille, Shark, and all my other blogging chums!