Fall Festivals

I met some friends at an Italian festival in a suburb of Denver this morning while Blanden stayed home for some more time with Dad. When I got home, after Blanden's nap, we decided to check out Oktoberfest downtown, for Ed to enjoy his annual liter (yes, liter :) )of Oktoberfest beer, then we decided to head back to the Italian festival so that Ed could check that out too. We almost had the full family along for a Tuscany wine tasting -- if you look closely in the photo, you can see Belle's leash, but we couldn't get her to sit still long enough to capture her and Blanden together (we'll have to work on that). (Ella stayed home to do what she does best: guard the house. It's really her speciality, and what she's happiest doing.) We all came home happy, tired, and well fed -- and stocked with dinner supplies for tomorrow: homemade pasta, sundried tomato pesto, a loaf of bread, fresh tomatoes, and canolis.

We are attempting to put Blanden to bed early, so we'll see how it goes. He absolutely will not nap during the day unless he's being carried around in his sling. He used to sleep in his car seat in his stroller while we were out and about, but now he's too interested in everything else going on around him. (Yes, Mom and Dad, I'm afraid he has acquired some of my sleep habits ... ) He kept rubbing his eyes, but then smiling at us, smiling at all the people who peered in at him to say hello (though Belle actually got more attention than Blanden did from strangers today) and struggling to stay awake just a little bit longer. ...