Happy Halloween!

Carving the pumpkin with Daddy

At the pumpkin patch at Honey Creek Acres... a perfect Autumn day in Iowa

Our little pumpkin!

Off to fight for the Empire

Or...at least to have a drink with the guys!

Aissa's first Halloween Trick or Treating! 

Mommy's little cupcake

Fall is Here

We ran into Aissa's first babysitter, Jillian downtown a few weeks ago. Needless to say, she misses her! 

 We love you, Jilly!

 Sara and I had a "Midwest Meet-Up" in Chicago last month and had a great time!

 Getting ready to go out and about on a beautiful fall morning...

 I love this photo...but, then again, I'm biased....but look at those braids

 Daddy and Aissa making breakfast

 She just graduated from the high chair to a real chair at the table

 And, of course, our outings in the fall include Hawkeye Football Games! Iowa v. Northwestern was the Black and Gold Game...everyone got the memo!

The crowd also did a few "card stunts" for the America Needs Farmers Campaign. It looked awesome! 

 GO HAWKS!

It's beginning to look a lot like...Football Season in Iowa City!

 Getting ready for Football!

Family Day at Kinnick Stadium

Kyle's nephew and grandniece...a family of Hawkeye fans

Checking out the 2011 Hawkeye Football Team at the fall scrimmage with Daddy.

What's that" you say? A hard-boiled egg on a stick! Only at the Iowa State Fair!

It's a Cow. Made of butter.

The famous Iowa State Fair Butter Cow

And this year...Deep Fried Butter! We couldn't bring ourselves to try it, but we did watch others. Ewwwww.

The end of summer has brought some perfect afternoons for the Ped Mall downtown.

She was so proud of herself for mastering the "big ladder"!

Yes, that's a Big Ten Football preview magazine...we start 'em young around here! She turns each page, points to a football player and says, "Hawkeyes!" 

Catching Up!

On a recent trip to Iowa, my dad reminded me that it had been months since I updated the family blog. Ok, so that was in May and it's now July...The Erkel family has been busy! Here's what Aissa has been up to. Yes, I know that's really who you all want to see!

 Aunt Sara knit this gorgeous "newsboy" hat for Aissa's 2nd birthday and she wore it everywhere this winter. You can order your very own at Sally HP Knits!

 Spring cleaning and Aissa was in charge, with the help of Daddy's old drill sergeant hat!

 Finally, the snow melted and she could try out her birthday present on the open road..

 Bye bye crib, hello freedom...what were we thinking?

 Oral hygiene: Live it, love it.

 Topless Easter egg coloring

 Aunt Tam came to visit in May and showed Aissa her latest toy...and then had to share!

 Granny and Papa showered Aissa with love and undivided attention for two weeks in May!

 Wood chips? No...confetti!

 Finger-turned-body-painting. Or, as I like to call it: 30 minutes of distraction so I can make dinner.

 What is this magical, sweet, fizzy liquid in the chilly can? Soda!

 Don't be fooled by the pose into thinking she is potty trained...

 Like mother, like daughter, this girl loves to bake

 Chillin' at the Zoo with mom and dad

Braving the carousel for the first time, with Daddy by her side.