Where has September Gone?

Landon and I have had a whirlwind last few days! Now that he is older and less content to stay in one place stacking blocks and listening to me read or sing to him, I am trying to plan some activities outside the house. This plan is also based off the fact that Landon LOVES people and other children, and enjoys getting out and about.

Phillip and I informally practice child-directed parenting. Maybe it's my Montessori background, but I tend to let Landon spend time on what he is most interested in at the time. Right now it's girls. Hmm, this strategy could be tough if his interests continue to stay the same in high school!

All joking aside, if he wants to run, explore nature, meet new friends, and play with old ones (even though I had planned some drawing and verbalization games for the day), then that's what we do.

Last week we visited the State Farmer's market to see the colorful pumpkins, gourds, and mums. Then, we made Landon's first trip to The Cupcake Shoppe for a little afternoon pick-me-up. To round out our downtown trip, we headed to Nicole's Studio to soak up some more beautiful colors and brainstorm ideas for Landon's big-boy bedroom.

Thursday we had a playdate with Josi, Amy and Adrienne, which included a photo shoot of course, a fun lunch at CPK, and some shopping at Nordstrom Rack.

Friday, the art/culture outing continued with a trip to the Liberty Antique festival with Grandmother and our friend Heather. Because of the heat we ditched the festival and headed to nearby Asheboro for some leisurely browsing in the antique mall and the Circa gallery.

After all that activity, we are taking our cue from the much-needed rain and staying inside for a bit. Maybe we will finally get to the drawing and verbal lessons today?

Or maybe not; when we tried to teach Landon baby-sign-language for "more" yesterday, he decided that it was just easier to say "more" instead. This child-directed stuff might work out after all!