Backtrackin: Pumpkin Patch

Annie has a ton of pictures on her camera that need to get posted and some go waaaaay back into late summer. Its almost winter now. Most of these pics are coming from October and that month really flew by. Here we are already in November with the daylight savings shift coming up, my least favorite time of the year. Why? In these latitudes children are destined to go to school in the dark and come home in the dark whether you shift the day an hour in either direction. Lets get on board with the forward thinking States and boycott it -- tomorrow is election day, lets get this one on the ballot!

Kian has been a super-stinker the past couple of months, of course he is two now so that comes with the territory, we're told. He's in daycare now and learning all kinds of tricks, and every day he comes home with new way of expressing himself: often new words, sometimes new means of manipulation. Otherwise he's doing great and physically he has caught up: he's finally reached the thirty/thirty club (30-lbs/30-inches) and he's above the 50th percentile in both of those.

It began as a super foggy morning but it all burned off and was fabulous for the rest of the day. We were up north of the city with Mari and her kids and we picked out a few pumpkins, rode a tractor-train and then went for a hayride.

One of Kian's favorite things right now is trains, he's really really into trains, and so about once a week we'll hike down Jackson Street to the "tube" and we'll hop the light rail into the city, and back, and forth, until he's happy... or I've had enough which, so far, comes first.

Not sure whats going on in this picture but it looks
compelling enough. Poor little guy has had his share
of nagging ailments last month.

First Cyclocross Ever

Kian and I drove down to Portland one weekend to get out of mommy's hair since she had a test to study for. And also because there was a cyclocross race organized by my team Veloce Cycles-- Kian just had to give the sport a try. It was another epic day of mud and Kian and I both did pretty poorly, to be honest. Kian just didn't have the legs on this day, and I didn't even have the heart to finish (I was stung 3X by bees, crashed into a sticker patch shredding my legs and skinsuit, and I was crashing every 50 feet).

At the start line, Kian with no Portland call-up, still looking for that hole-shot!

And they're off!

C'mon Kian, hit it!

Where'd everyone run off to?

Battered, bruised and bloody.

Here's a cameo of the new rig! (not even fully built-up yet).
Not looking forward to getting this thing muddy.

Finally, Something Recent

Spent last weekend at a cabin in the Methow with many of the usual suspects. For years we have been going up there and I've always taken a spot on the couch, or floor, or tub, but this year it was proactively suggested that we take the upstairs master bedroom. Chock one up to the baby, yeah, score!

A bunch of the guys got in a decent mountain bike ride (did I say that outloud? While it was happening it was the "WRE", worst ride ever: turned into quite the hike-a-bike on what used to be a sweet, Methow epic, now its overgrown and unmaintained). The girls and kids kept closer to home. Next day was the big hike, but I managed to sneak in a ride up over the passes to get in some much needed double-duty.

We went big on the food again. We had two solid breakfasts, as always enough to keep us fueled all day long, but for the big dinner Annie made up 10 pizza doughs and we flattened them out and topped them individually. Turns out that 7 was even too many but whats better for lunch than leftover pizza.

Hey Kian...

You with me on this?

Ha ha, crazy doggies!

Ridin bareback.

A Very Serious Wedding

Early last month we were celebrating with our Bellingham friends, Dave and Hannah, as they pronounced their vows and tied the knot. We took the RV, camped out, played boche ball and croquet and frisbee and bubbles and bikes.

The ceremony was a quick 3-step process:

Vows.

Victory.

...and Vroom Vroom into the sunset!

First there were bubbles. For awhile they lived peacefully, happy...

... until Kian came along.

I AM KIAN, KING OF BUBBLES, CONQUEROR OF ROUND
FLOATY THINGS THAT POP.

A sharp dressed manish boy.

Kian was looking so cool and dapper until....

Marlin got hold of him.

Okay Kian, put these motion sickness pills in your
mouth like this and you'll feel much better.

The Roobeck's, still rollin!