Dog Handler

This is Carissa's mean face. Also notice the perfectly pointed finger. These are the makings of a great dog handler.

Chef Carissa

Christina found her cooking toys from when she was little. We, well, really just Christina, cleaned them up and set them out for Carissa tonight. She first had to organize her pans.

Then she cooked up something for Mr. Bear.

And finally, we presented mom with the finished dish.

It was a great time. And two hours and a bath later, she's still playing with them.

By the way, this is post 300 for ayreslife.com. I'll put on my party hat tomorrow.

Frost Flowers

This morning we woke up to some frost flowers. It is a lovely part of nature we get to experience in the late fall. It happens when the ground is not yet frozen but the air temperature is below freezing.

Taking Care Of Baby

Carissa loves playing with her baby doll. She always wraps her up and gives her a hug.

goodbye shoes

I bought these shoes at least four years ago. I wore them everyday up until earlier this year. If I've seen you in the past four years, you've probably seen them yourself.

I had to throw them away tonight. I've worn the soles so uneven that if I wear them now, my feet hurt. And I wore them today. I can't seem to stop. So I'm throwing them away.

So tonight I raise my make believe glass to my most favorite shoes of my entire life. *tear*

Alright, I'm kidding about about the *tear*.

Animal Sounds

We recorded Carissa in the car this morning. She has such a great time riding to Rolla each morning.

Sunny

Carissa loves playing with Sunny, the stallion up at Christina's parents house. He is so gentle with her. She will run over to the fence and call him. She tries to feed him grass (I pulled some once to feed him and now she always tries to do the same).

Afternoons

Carissa took a late nap today and woke up just before sunset, just enough time to get back outside to enjoy some cool air and play with the dog. She is trying to say "Tillie" in the photo.

StL Zoo in November

We went to St. Louis this past Saturday for a wedding. There were several hours to pass by in between the ceremony and the reception. With the weather being so nice and warm in November we decided to hit up the zoo. It was pretty busy, but not as busy as a summer weekend.

Carissa enjoyed the trip but this was a rather serious face for the afternoon.

Being November and all, the sun was setting while we were still at the zoo. The animals were bathed in the most beautiful light.

Smiles

I've found that Carissa has a super power. I chased her around outside for about 30 minutes just for this shot (and a few more like it here). I will do just about anything to get a smile. They just melt my heart.

Leaves

We went outside tonight to get some more pictures in the bumblebee costume and enjoy the leaves. There's also some more here.