A very busy (17-month-old) bear!

It's been a hectic few weeks around here. The weather has been a little bit cooler lately so we've tried to get outside and enjoy it. Dada and I took a weekend trip to Orlando last week and Natalie enjoyed spending time with Grandma and Grandpa. They kept her busy with visits to everything from pumpkin patches to marinas (just like Grandpa used to do with me - at least she's not old enough to complain yet). We appreciate getting some time away - thanks!
Today was a big day for Natalie. This morning, we went to her pal Kayla's second birthday party. It was held at a place called Gator Freds, and I knew it had to be a cool establishment if "Gator" was in the name. Anyway, Gator Freds has everything any little kid could want - bounce houses, little themed rooms that included a "grocery store," a "fire station" and a gym, dress-up clothes, a movie theater, and more - wow! Natalie enjoyed playing in the bounce houses and with the toys in the fire station and grocery store. But what Natalie seemed to like the most was Gator Fred himself. Now this was cute for two reasons. One, I love to see her getting into anything Gator. Two, she was nearly the only child her age (and there were many) who wasn't terrified of the plush mascot. I saw one boy run away crying when Gator Fred came up to him. Natalie, however, couldn't get enough Gator Fred. We took some photos, of course, but when he walked away, Natalie followed him. Everywhere. She even tried to go into the "employees only" room where he was going to change out of his costume. Gator Fred was a good sport, though, and paid lots of attention to her, offering his [hand? paw? claw?] for high fives and giving her pats on the head. It was quite adorable!
After a long nap and some playtime at home, we walked down the street to a church carnival. They have the carnival every year but we've never gone before. It was so nice outside, though, so we decided to check it out. Natalie was too little for most of the rides, but each of us took a turn taking her on the carousel. I couldn't get a good read on whether she liked it or not, but she wasn't scared. I think she was just trying to take it all in! She also enjoyed walking around and checking out the rides and the stuffed animals at the game booths. Finally, we went and listened to some live music in the food tent and she danced a little, charming the (very few) people who were actually listening to the singer. She ate some soft-serve ice cream and we were ready to go. Needless to say, Natalie went to bed a little early tonight!
We're looking forward to next weekend and Halloween. We're planning to take her to the YMCA Halloween festival Friday night and out to a friend's house Saturday night for some possible trick-or-treating. I'm sure we'll have cute photos to share!
Happy Halloween!