The National Zoo

Yesterday I made the trek up to D.C. to meet my parents, Ben, Sarah, and Amelia. A long Metro ride, and short walk later we ended up at the National Zoo. They had been preparing for the annual "Boo at the Zoo" so it was very festive. The whole zoo was decorated with skeletons, pumpkins, etc.. The orangutang even sported a witch hat. Funny! Anna love being with Amelia and also had fun being silly with Grandpa, which was good for both of them considering Dad was bored out of his mind. He's never been much on zoos. I think Anna's favorite animal was the hippo. She gets the most excited about that one when we remember all the animals we saw.

Anna and Amelia are always so fun to watch together. Before we went to the zoo, Grandma gave them some princess crowns and wands. (No pics, sorry.) They were thrilled! Amelia was not so amused, however, when Grandpa tried to be sill and put the crown on his head. He got quite a glare from the girls.

Trunk-or-Treat

Tonight was the annual Innsbrook Ward Trunk-or-Treat/Chili Cook-Off. And big news....(imagine a drum roll please)...for the second year running...

Rachel wins the cook-off!

Wow! I don't know what to say, this
comes as such a surprise! I would like to thank my mom for giving me the recipe, also the love of my life and the biggest fan of my cooking, my dear husband, Jeff. Also, let's see, I know I'm missing some really important people...oh yeah, all those who voted for my chili, I would be nothing with out you all. Thank you, thank you.

Ok, so I actually was really surprised. I have to say I am a little bitter about my prize this year. Last year I recieved a lovely, golden, chili trophy. This year I got Bean-O and a chocolate bar. How am I supposed to display that?!

We had a good time, though. Anna was excited and talked about the party and dressing up like a witch most of the day. Funny, she was really a grouch all day, all the way up to the party, then she livened right up. She met up with her friends Avery and Skye. (They're all within a month's age of each other.) Check out last year verses this year. It's amazing how much change these kids have gone through. Anna's babyhood has gone quite fast.

During the trunk-or-treat portion (which actually took place in the hallway of the church due to rain) , as excepted, Anna was all business. She was very serious about picking out the candy and putting it in her bag. She's such a little perfectionist, and the focus! She burrows her brow and concentrates on tasks so hard, even trick-or-treating. What a personality!

"Punkies"

We headed out to the Chesterfield Berry Farm two Saturdays ago for some pumpkin pickin.' I do not recommend anyone going to this particular farm on a Saturday. There were so many people there. Oddly enough, the least popular attraction, it seemed, was the wagon ride out to the patch. Last year we went to the Ashland Berry Farm and I enjoyed it much more. We still had a good time, don't get me wrong. Anna loved looking at all the pumpkins and seeing the animals. They have this corn play area that is similar to a ball pit, but with corn. Anna freaked out when we put her in the pit. Even though Jeff and I were with her, it was just too weird for her, I think. The best part of all...my pumpkin milk shake.

Fun with Maylie

Anna has a cute little friend that lives a couple doors down from us named Maylie. They love to play together. I get such a kick out of watching Anna interact with other kids. She is definitely most comfortable with her good friend, "Mayee." Jeff and I swap date night baby-sitting with Maylie's parents fairly often so the girls get to have frequent sleepovers.

(Does it count if the sleepoveree leaves by midnight?) I also share an affinity for ice-cream with Maylie's mom, which often leads to afternoon ice-cream runs to our favorie, Gelati Celesti. (And, no, it doesn't taste like real gelato. I know all you Sollis's are wondering.)

Finally, who can pass up some fun at the park. Thank goodness for friends!





It's so much more fun with two. I especially enjoy the adult company while the kids are playing.


Can you believe how long Anna's hair is? I had to thrown in a couple of pics where you can see it, even though they're not the greatest of Anna.

Rachel Ramblings

Why do I stay up late and while I could be enjoying a warm, comfortable, bed? I'll tell you. After Anna goes to bed around 8:00 pm. It takes this tired mama at a while to decompress. After a substantial recovery period, I clean up the house (if I'm lucky) and then (yea!) it's Rachel time. I usually fill this time with wasteful activities that don't really benefit anything except my sanity. I would love to confess that my evenings are filled with service and great coversations and perfectly baked pastries, but that would be lying. The gig is up everyone, I am an evening slacker! It's true. Ever wonder what the Sollis household looks like after 11 pm? Here you go...

I find myself too ofter perusing the internet world of dream-shopping, blog-reading, review-searching, news-finding, you-tubing mostly mindless fun. Hey, all we need to de-stress somehow, right? Hmmm...maybe my de-stressing should be more of the running, stretching, working-out type "fun".

Pickles 'n Pops

What a combo!

There's nothing like a

nice,

cold,

juicy

pickle

paired with a

sweet,

sticky,

sucker.

Bust a Move

Starting 'em Young

Jeff was reading a fishing magazine a few days ago, when Anna decided she better get in on the action. Jeff was more that happy to comply. Although Anna's attention span was not real long, Jeff was able to plant some good fishing seeds. They looked at different fish, rivers, etc. Jeff introduced some new vocabulary words like nymphing, dry cast, and woolly buggar. It was so fun for me to watch my two favorite people bonding.

18 Months!

Anna is officially 18 months!

Anna turned 18 months yesterday. Here are a few of few favorites right now:


1. Elmo- The girl is obsessed! She wakes up and the first thing out of her mouth is usually, "Emo?"

2. Suckers- Any time Anna is feeling a little hungry, she says, "I know, I know, I know," which translated means I want to look in the cupboard for something to eat. She always goes for the candy jar first. I try to save them for distraction purposes, i.e. grocery shopping, taking a shower in peace, long drives, but sometimes her desperate pleas win me over and she gets what she wants. Yes, I know I'm a pushover.


3. Books, books, and more books! Anna has always loved them, and it still continues. She has decided now that most of the time she prefers to read them on her own. If Jeff or I ask her is she wants to read with us, she often responds, "no," and goes back to her babbling, aka reading.


4. Buckles- Still going strong, although she's mastered pretty much any type you can imagine.


5. Hugs & Kisses- Yeah for this one! Anna gives the sweetest, melt my heart hugs and kisses. She always has a kiss ready for Dad when we drop him off or pick him up from school.


6. Winnie the Pooh- She loves to watch, read, and sing anything that has to do with pooh.


7. Running- Anna runs everywhere! This unfortunately includes into the road or away from mom at the store. It also results in lots of scraped knees and bruised elbows.


8. Screaming for fun- Can't say I'm too excited about this one, but I will say that I will take a happy screaming child over an angry screaming child any day.

I can't say I love her enough! I feel very blessed to have Anna in my life. Being a mom is so overwhelming at times, and I constantly doubt my abilities, but I am confident that if I do nothing else right, I at least love my daughter in a way that no one else possibly can.