Dinner Date

Today we ran some errands and had a late lunch/early dinner at The Cheesecake Factory. Ben had a heck of a time. Clearly, he takes after mom with his enjoyment of a eating out and takes after dad with his enjoyment of food.

While we waited for a table, Dad kept Ben entertained. Who knew pretending to eat a kid's pacifier would be so hilarious? Ben was giggling like a school girl during this "game."

Once we were seated, Ben saddled up to the table to eat. At Cheesecake they give kids a complimentary plate of bread and bananas. Ben enjoyed plenty of both, along with some snacks we'd brought along.

Instead of taking the banana off my finger, Ben decided it would be more efficient to just grab my fingers and shove them into his mouth instead.

We forgot his sippy cup, and a kid's got to wash down a good meal, so he tried a little of Mike's water. I think most of it ended up in his lap.

Between bites, he managed to charm the waitress.

And much to my germaphobe dismay (although I did thoroughly clean the table with wipes), when we weren't quick enough replenishing his food, Ben decided to go ahead and eat the table. Mmmm.

I'd say at least 50% of Ben's food ended up on the floor. Sorry Cheesecake Factory!

Before we headed out for more errands, Ben filled up with a bottle. He likes to do it himself.

With mixed results...

He gets the concept that he needs to tilt back the bottle to get the milk out, but in his haste to do this, apparently he forgot rule #1 -- the bottle should be in your mouth first.

And then it was back to the car and off to Costco.

Ben loved taking in the sites and sounds of Costco. It was a Saturday night, so there was a lot to keep his attention. He's such a happy little guy!

Fall Fun at Kuiper's Family Farm

Today we headed out to Kuiper's Family Farm with Meg, Ed, and Scarlett to enjoy a beautiful fall day at the apple orchard/pumpkin patch.

After sampling some apple cider donuts, we climbed on the John Deere to see if farming is in Ben's future. Perhaps? He really loved "driving" the tractor.

He and Scarlett were pretty interested in all the sites and sounds at Kuiper's.

On our way to the apple orchard, Mike decided to try out the kid's area.

Then we took a hayride to the apple orchard to sample and pick some apples.

Here we all are ready to head out for our apples.

Ben REALLY liked the apples. He has no teeth, so he just kind of gummed them. But the juice must have been delicious!

Despite what the scale says, I can guarantee you this kid weighs way more than a pound! My sore arms can prove it.

Next we headed through the corn maize.

Then we played in a "corn box." Ben was enthralled with the corn. I think he would have stayed in there all day if we'd let him.

But instead we moved on to see the animals. Ben really liked the chickens and ducks.

And finally, we snagged some pumpkins. But Ben is my cutest pumpkin!

I was hoping for a few cute pictures, but Ben was DONE. We'd been out for 3 hours and someone was ready for a nap (well, maybe both of us).

We had a great day. It will be fun to go back next year, when Ben is a little older and can appreciate it more.

Here is a quick video of Ben enjoying an apple.

Out on the Town

Mike had the week off for paternity leave, so we decided to spend Friday morning enjoying the nice weather in downtown Naperville. We loaded up Ben and Dee and headed off. We picked up some bagels and coffees at Einstein Bagels, and then walked over to the riverwalk to eat.

Ben was enjoying all the new sites and sounds of the riverwalk.

But all those new sites and sounds helped him to work up an appetite. Little "chub chubs," as we like to call him, sucked down 7 oz before he was content and ready to head out.

Dee waited as patiently as she could for us to finish eating so she could hit the road.

Once we got moving, Ben fell asleep. But every time we would go over a bridge, he would pop his eyes open and stare, looking a little freaked out for some reason.

Dee loved her walk and marked her territory wherever she got the chance, peeing like a boy dog.

Content that her spot was marked, we moved on.

After a nice walk, we packed up and headed home. Dee helped to navigate for a while.

Exhuasted and happy from her walk, she decided to rest it up a bit as we made our way home. A good time was had by all.