Pumpkin Patch and First Haircut!

Last weekend, while Aleks was out of town, my friend Chelsea, her son Owen, Maia, and I went to the local pumpkin patch! We had so much fun! Maia loved being out in the crisp autumn weather.

The sign says "Mini pumpkins: 2 for $1"

Also, Maia got her first haircut last week! Maia was a trooper and didn't even know what was going on. Her haircut has really made her seem more grown up now, it's kind of amazing.

(After)

(Before)

We're all doing really well. Maia continues to entertain and keep us super busy. She's learned to shake her head back and forth, I think she might be dancing. She shakes her head and bobs up and down when she hears music or when she gets really excited. Still no teeth or crawling, but it's so easy having her stay where I set her down, that I don't know if I ever want her to crawl!

Next week, Aleks goes to CT to defend his dissertation...

6 months old and a birthday!

Maia is now 6 months old. At her doctor's appointment today we found out that she is 27.5 inches long and weighs 15 pounds 5 ounces. She now knows her name, can sit up on her own, sleep through the night (!!!), say "ba ba ba" and "da da da", and be really cute.

Aleks celebrated his 29th birthday on Oct. 3. This last year has been a big one for him. He became a dad, got his first teaching job, and got hearing aids, to name a few events. It's been a great year and this next one is going to be just as exciting. He's finished his dissertation, passed all the mandatory testing and will be defending his dissertation in the last week of October. All signs point towards a December graduation. Heaven help us, he'll be making us call him Doctor Sternfeld-Dunn the minute he passes his defense.

Here is my handsome 29 year-old husband:

For Aleks' birthday, he decided that he wanted to cook for some friends. He's been really into cooking authentic Mexican food and has been making recipes from Rick Bayless cookbooks. These recipes include drying his own chilies. For his birthday he made chicken en mole, tortilla soup, salsa, and homemade tortilla chips. It was all really good and we had a great time with his friends. In the spirit of a Mexican feista, I made a pinata. I was going to make a replica of Aleks' face, but thought it could get weird when we tried to break it. I made one of Voldemort instead. It's in the spirit of the Potter Puppet Pals Voldemort.