A Visit to the Pumpkin Patch

Home Life for Gemma

This post contains a few random pictures of Gemma engaged in typical home activities:

a.Paging through the most recent Wheaton Magazine (it has entertained her many times - she loves looking through it for some reason! A sign?)
b. Dressed for a cold morning walk.
c. & d. Actually going for a cold morning walk.
e. Pulling all of the Tupperware lids out of the cupboard (with great gusto - see the flying green lid to the right in the picture).
f. Eating a banana while "helping" Dad make pumpkin waffles.

A Stroll and Brunch

A walk through campus, then brunch at a Bloomington establishment on a recent weekend. It was very nice to get out and enjoy the autumn colors and weather.

Gemma gets excited about every dog she sees!



J and G at IU's famous Sample gates.

Good habits

Good habits start young (right?), so Gemma has recently taken the initiative to start brushing her teeth. Really. She gets very excited when she sees us brushing our teeth, and she will stare and laugh and gesture the sign for toothbrush - so we thought it was time to get her started. As you can see, she has a lot of teeth to care for, too: two small ones on the bottom, and two tiny ones on the top. (I couldn't get a photo of those.)

Here she is in action (in the tub)! Nice form!

Freeman Family Farms

Not too far from our home is the Freeman Family Farm, which opens its gates to visitors every fall for free. You can pick your own pumpkin, take a hay ride, and pet the animals (goats, rabbits, donkey, horses, a cow, a pony, and numerous dogs). We went with two couples from our small group, Wes and Erin Erwin and Justin and Sarah Heimer, and their kids. It was a beautiful fall day to spend with friends out in the lovely southern Indiana countryside (and it truly IS lovely!) and away from the "city" (yes, I know that B'town is not really a city but bear with me, sometimes it feels like it).





Gemma getting excited because she just spotted one of the farm dogs.


Gemma and Lilah Erwin, who is 6 weeks older.

Bloomington Art Walk

One of our favorite B-town events: art galleries downtown host an evening art walk on the first Friday of every month. The half dozen or so galleries open their doors and lay out an array of free finger foods and snacks for visitors. (Free food? We're there!) It was a lovely fall evening for strolling the picturesque downtown and taking in all sorts of art, from photography to painting to sculpture and woodwork. We think Gemma liked the metal gecko the best.

Gemma photo shoot

Lovely fall weather and colors, plus a borrowed digital SLR, helped us have fun "attempting" a few photo shoots of our 13 month old. It was a bit of a challenge, however, as she rarely stays put for long!

Down the slide - by herself

With somewhat cooler fall weather (though it has been in the 80s for the last week), we have been going to the park every day. Gemma has grown in confidence on the slides, and her favorite is the tunnel slide...

Don't worry - that is Gemma's look of pure joy on her face! She squinches her eyes and laughs. Now to go again!

Phew! Actually these types of plastic slides (in addition to causing major static, though that's not a problem for Gemma's 'hair') are pretty slow, so Gemma's slips down and then stops right at the bottom. Perfect.