Oooohhhhhh myyyyy gaaaaaad...

... Safi has just been sprayed by a skunk!



To say it STINKS is an extreme understatement... our eyes are watering, our throats are sore and you can even taste it in the air... bleeeeurrrrgh... and all that even after Adam has bathed the dog a dozen times in all kinds of stuff to get rid of the stench... baking soda, vinegar, tomato ketchup, washing up liquid, Aveda Rosemary and Mint body wash (!)...

Now Adam is heading out to see if he can find anywhere still open that sells more baking powder, hydrogen peroxide, Lysol Neutra-air spray stuff and whatever else he can see that might help get the gad awful stink out of this house.

Oh yes, and it's soooo damn typical for this to happen on the exact day Jayne did a thorough clean of the bathroom, which is now some kind of disaster zone of dog hair, tomato ketchup and eau de skunk. At least the dog is alright - by all accounts she could have been temporarily blinded!


BTW, while I was quickly scouring the internet for more de-skunking remedies, I came across this definition of what skunk smell is... just for anyone who's interested...


What is Skunk Smell?

The odor of skunk spray is the offensive (to put it nicely) result of the sulfurous chemicals, methyl and butyl thiols, contained within the skunk's anal glands. These chemicals are the skunk's ultimate defense against predators and danger, and can be sprayed as far as 15 feet with accuracy, covering the target with the smelly oils that are so hard to get rid of. Skunks only spray as a last resort, since they have a finite supply of these oils (it can take up to 10 days for a skunk to replenish it's spray), so the best way to avoid skunk smell is simply to be aware of how close you (and your pets) are to skunk territory and make an effort to keep your behavior as gentle and quiet as possible (don't act like a predator).


And more importantly...


Avoiding Skunk Smell
Skunks spray in defense of a perceived threat, so as soon as you see a skunk (or if you know skunks are nearby) lower your voice and try to remain still and quiet or move in the opposite direction, giving the skunk a chance to get away without spraying.

... Now, did you hear that Safi??

Just Jack - a random selection from the last month

It's here - Jack's passport that is. It really brought it home to us that he's American! We'd better hurry up and get his Brit one sorted so he's officially of dual-nationality.

Serious face...

Smiley face!

Bada bing bada boom! Look at me in my smarts.



Are you lookin' at me? (in a Robert De Niro style)

Taxi (hic!)



Daddy!

Do I look a bit bigger in this thing yet?

Jack busy in his Bumbo, while Mummy is busy on the 'puter

Whoaaa, he's naked! Avert yer eyes people!

Winston supervises tummy time.

What?

Look, I can hold two things at once!


I'm done. ZZzzzzzz

A Gondola ride up Mount Mansfield

October 18th


The idea had been to see the Fall colours that had been so spectacular through the week... only there had been lots of wind and rain... the pictures say it all. Humph! Oh well, Jack enjoyed his first gondola ride up a mountain, and we had a nice lunch at the restaurant up there.

Red skies and Grandad Lock's flowers

Some pretty pictures of a rather spectacular red sky (in the morning, shepherd's warning) and the wild flowers Grandad Lock planted in August.

Auntie Cheryl and Uncle Simon visit

It's been such a long time since Cheryl and Simon left VT and headed back to UK (well, after their mammoth world kayaking jaunt) so it was lovely to see them both again when they visited last week. We really miss them and wish they were back here for good.

Auntie Cheryl brought a great gift for Jack - a talking cookie jar shape puzzle thingy. Thank you - Jack loves it. I don't know if Cheryl is copying Jack or vice versa here, but it looks like those shapes taste very good...

And guys... thanks SO much for the Thorntons. MMMmmm.... all gone! ;) Hope you had a safe trip home.

The Great Pumpkin Regatta!

October 12th

The sign at Sam Mazza's the day before led us to head to the Lake Champlain waterfront for Burlington's first ever giant pumpkin regatta... sadly we missed the race itself (can't think what held us up!) but managed to see the awards ceremony and take a look at the weirdly wonderful watercraft...

So, not only will Jack have to join the Giant Vegetable Growers of Vermont some day, he will also have to learn how to paddle one at speed across the lake and back! :))

AppleFest, Hayrides and Pumpkins

October 11th


It was a beautiful Fall weekend so we packed up the Jeep and headed out to see the colours and partake in some local seasonal activities.

First things first tho... Jack had to get ready...

We thought it was appropriate for him to wear his pumpkin-butt suit...

Whaddya mean there's a pumpkin on my butt??

We headed to South Hero for their annual Apple Festival...

Despite it being a little disappointing (more like a tat-fest we thought, just a huge excuse for a scabby flea market with queues that were way too long to get anywhere near any apple-related stuff) the weather was lovely and the tree colours spectacular wherever you looked.

It didn't take us long to move on to Sam Mazza'a Gaint Pumpkin weigh-in...

This was the heaviest at 8lbs shy of 1400lb

Nope, Jayne wasn't gonna shift that b*gger!

No wonder they need a fork lift to move load those things back up

While we were there Jack took his very first tractor/hay ride...

Heading off towards the haunted gulch...

Where ghosts and all kinds of spooky things lurked... thankfully Jack was quite oblivious to the scary side of it all.

Ahaaa! The pumpkin patch... it was HEEEUGE! :)

Mummy shows Jack his first ever pumpkin... he was quite pleased

Our very own little pumpkin

Teehee!

Daddy holds Jack while Mummy goes on the hunt for her pumpkin

Success! The perfect daddy, mummy and baby pumpkin, all loaded up into Jack's stroller. Jack stayed nice and cosy in his snuggly car seat.

On the way out we spotted this sign, and made our plan for the next day...