I got no strings to tie me down!

It's not like it should be a surprise. I mean after all, Brian and I knew that the product of our procreation would be anything but laid back. It's just not in the genes and we were pretty aware of this fact. We thought we were ready, but I don't think anything could have truly prepared us for the demands of our Hurricane.

We'll be making a family trip out to Colorado in about a week. Mommy and Hayley will be flying out a few days ahead of Daddy and therefore Mommy is busy preparing for a three hour plane ride where she'll be forced to contain Hayley on her lap. Did I mention that it is a three hour plane ride? Not only does Mommy have to survive the plane ride, she first has to make it through the airport. The stress created by just merely thinking about the feat that lay ahead prompted me to purchase this. Yep, I'm "hoping" to be one of "those" parents. When I was younger (read: childless and knew EVERYTHING), I used to see parents who would attach a leash to their children in public places. I'd shake my head and think "what type of parent puts a leash on their child?" Well, now I know. The parents of a Hurricane, that's who!

I couldn't wait to get home and introduce Hayley to her new "Beary" special friend. After all I thought, Bear will give Hayley a bit of the independence that she demands, while allowing Mommy to manage the airport without having a heart attack. But alas, our daughter is no dummy and Hayley was not at all happy to meet Bear. She now screams if I even place him near her. She obviously has no interest in just the illusion of freedom. She wants it all.


So today was all about the pumpkin here at The Roberts' home. We traveled down to a local, FREE (I learned a lesson after last year's pumpkin fiasco) pumpkin patch. Hayley could have cared less about the pumpkins and found it to be LOTS more fun to just run through the maze of hay bales. Never one to sit still, it should be no surprise that she also wasn't interested in taking pictures with the pumpkins.

After some lunch and an afternoon nap, Hayley spent approximately one minute helping Mommy and Daddy clean the pumpkin so Daddy could carve it. At first she wasn't too fond of the pumpkin goop, but warmed up to it fairly quickly and decided to see what it tasted like. Our "laid-back" daughter was not at all pleased when we tried to keep her from eating the insides of the pumpkin.

"I'd rather be running!"


"Ahh, much better!"


"What is this stuff?"


"Guess I'll see what it tastes like."


"But I WANT to eat it Mommy!!"