St. Paul Pumpkins & Eleven Mos.

My cross country head coach, who lives in St. Paul, has a neighbor that grows giant pumpkins.  We took McKinley to get her picture with a 610-pounder when she was nine months old.  This year Bruce's neighbor offered to give us some carving pumpkins for the girls. So, McKinley and I picked out three pumpkins to take home, and I also took advantage of the scenery for Piper's eleventh month photo shoot.  Instead of carving, I'm think of spray-painting the pumpkins....maybe a chevron pattern?
But first....a flashback.

October 2010:

October 2012:

This pumpkin is estimated to weigh around 300 lbs.

Piper is only interested in the rocks and leaves on the ground. 

All our attempts to get Piper to look up at the camera were bust.

So, Miss Piper is a month away from turning one.  There are a few new and exciting things to report.  She transitioned to four milk feedings like a champ.  She is now a swaddle-free sleeper. And she got her first fever (102 degrees), which ended up being a mild case of roseola. She finally says dadada, but not as often as mamma.  I'll wrap it up and leave you with some cute pictures and update this post if new things come to mind.  Besides, I have a birthday party to plan!

A few updates: We've discovered that Piper has a mild tomato allergy. She breaks out in hives around her mouth when I've given her fresh tomatoes, and recently quinoa cooked with tomato sauce. I have also forgot to mention that Piper will lean in to give me a smooch when I lean towards her, pucker up, and say "give Momma a kiss." It's the sweetest thing ever, watching her wide, open mouth come towards mine. 

Her new obsession: waving