October Stuff

Life keeps moving on here at the McCombs residence. We have been having a great fall this year. The leaves have been ever so amazing and we had a few warm days among the rainy and foggy days. And, of course, there is nothing better to do during the glorious fall days than taking family pictures! Plus I got to wear my boots. Oh how I love fall for it's fashions: boots, scarfs, sweaters. And for the feeling of fresh, crisp air without the bitter coldness that bites you to the bone, which is so true here in New England, but we will have to see if it's the same by the Ocean. We will find out just a little too soon. Back to the photo shoot. In Portland, right across from UNE there is a park that is called The Mayor Baxter Woods. It is a woody area with paths on it. when you step in it, it is as if you are not in the middle of Portland anymore. The sounds of cars and people just disappear and we find ourselves totally immersed into the woods. It is so peaceful there, only the occasional dog walkers or runners snap you back to the reality. It was a perfect time to take pictures, right after Kelton's feeding. He is always the happiest when his tummy is newly full. We don't have the greatest camera, but I think that we do have an eye for good composition, especially Cameron.

Kelton alert: He turned 5 months on the 23rd! He is such a big boy (or so it seems to me). But his one pound weight gain in the last month alone shows how much he is growing. We have actually started feeding him rice cereal last week. I had tried giving it to him a few weeks prior to that and he absolutely hated it. But last week he loved it. He loved it so much that every time I took the spoon out of his mouth to scoop more cereal off the bowl he would get a frown on his face until the spoon was back in his mouth. Sometimes he even cries in betweens spoonfulls. I joke with Cameron about needing a bigger baby spoon.
Kelton started reaching to hold his bottle this past month as well and we let him hold it on his own whenever there is an opportunity. And he has gotten very good at it. The skill isn't perfect yet, but he can hold it in his mouth if we help him put it in. Sometimes he even puts it in himself as he reaches for it with his head. Very soon he will need no assistance.
Kelton has always been fun, but it seems with each month he gets more and more fun. It makes us feel so loved when he smiles, giggles and reaches for us. One instance comes to mind when after his going to bed routine instead of being the usual hyper, he got all cuddly and let Cameron hold him with his head on Cameron's chest. At that moment I hugged my boys, of course, and we all just enjoyed a few minutes of tender loving as both Cameron and I kissed Kelton's cheeks. I love my family!
Every month Kelton also amazes me with his smarts. He has such a good memory. Often, when he is playing with one of his favorite toys, if it rolls of to a side, he remembers exactly which way it went. Even if he can't see the toy anymore he still reaches for it until I either help him roll to it or pick it up and let him reach for it. He is so alert and I can just see him think and make choices. He gets so excited when we read him a book. Sometimes he talks as if he is trying to read with us too. He is developing likes and dislikes. If there is a toy that he likes more than one that is already playing with, then he will reach for the one that he wants. His other likes include being naked all the time. No joke. My baby thinks that it is summer time on the Bahamas. But how can we not let him be naked when he is such a munchkin. He is especially cute when he does his version of Tarzan chest thump. I think that we laugh so much every time he does that he has learned that if he does it then he will get attention. So he does it pretty often and waits for a reaction.
I especially love his sounds. He is so talkative. It seems like he knows that we are talking to him and he responds back.
Kelton makes me laugh so much. He is a sunshine in our home! We love it when we wake him up in the morning for the day and he just has this full body excitement with his legs and arms dancing in the air. And his giggles and smiles when he sees us for the first time for the day.

Us on a walk.

He loves his thumb!

I went apple picking with my friend Kendra Hutto on October 23, which was also Kelton's 5 month mark. We had so much fun there. It was the first time I went apple picking and I will definately go again. It was such a perfect day for it too, chilly with sunshine. The place that we went to is in Cumberland and it is called Orchard Hill Farm. I love fresh picked apples, they are the tastiest. I m planning on making pies and apple butter out of the ones that we don't eat up.  

Kelton with Joel in a cart that the orchard had us pull them in.

Kelton with the apples.

I love this one. Kendra is very good at taking close ups.

Round and About

Last weekend we went to Vermont again. Cameron had a three day weekend for Columbus Day and it just happened to be the General Conference weekend as well. The drive to Vermont was especially beautiful with the changing leaves. It made us talk about how lucky we are to live in such a beautiful part of the world. My favorite was when we were driving through New Hampshire where the elevation seemed higher and we could overlook nearby rolling hills. The image of all the different colors filled our view and it was stunning! The deep purples paired up with lush yellow and orange with a few greens in the midst. The unfortunate part was that we didn't have our camera with us and the pictures that our minds took will be the only ones for now.
We had a lot of fun in Vermont. We always enjoy our time there. It is nice to visit my mom and talk to her. We had fun going through some boxes with my old things and deciding what needs to be thrown out and what must be saved as a treasure. I am so grateful for the fact that my mom has saved my stuff over the years. It will be fun to show it to my kids when they are old enough to care about sentimental objects.

My goal the past few weeks has been to capture Kelton in videos. He is just growing so fast I don't want to miss any moment with him.  Taking videos is fun and it gives us a chance to also see just how much he is changing and developing. I want to share a couple of the favorite videos now:

 

I like the above video because it makes me laugh every time I watch it.

And the one below is special because Kelton smiles every time I play it for him.

Life in Portland is so fun. We really like it here. Over the weekend we went to a very cool restaurant it's called "Duckfat" Their specialty is ... are you ready for it ... nothing other then duckfat! They are most known for their fries that they fry in duckfat. And they were good. Very  original and even tasted good cold too. I also had one of their delishious milkshakes. It was made with caramel that they used duckfat instead of the traditional butter to make with. It was probably the best milkshake I have ever had. Cameron and our friends, the Hermansens, each had a sandwich which they each liked a lot. 

Just looking at this picture makes my mouth water for some of that milkshake. And, yes those are mason jars on the table. Duckfat is so cool! And, yes that is Kelton in the stroller to our left. He just slept the whole time we were there. I couldn't have asked for a better baby. 

Kelton had his four month appointment and he is doing well! He is in the 50th percentile for his weight, height, and head circumference. Here are a few pictures of my buddy:

His eyes are still blue for the most part, but there are specks of brown. We are anxiously waiting to see what the final color will be. My bet is light brown, like his Dad's.

Look at my boys!