Tag Archives: Eleanor

AppleJack Festival 2018

After a week of dad leaving ransom-note like daily clues, it was finally revealed that Team Llama would be heading to Nebraska City for the 50th annual AppleJack Festival. After a successfully on-time departure with some bagels for the car ride, 

The annual orchard pilgrimage to fetch a medium-sized bag of apples has also been a nice opportunity for a few family photos:

When Pa’s not around to pull the wagon, you gotta pull your share (of a near-empty wagon)

It’s important to understand that each subsequent photo of Eleanor consuming an apple are all different fruit at a ratio of one-to-three to those not-pictured partials starts

Des presenting his most recent “flower” find, mere seconds from the prior (and so forth)

A quick pitstop at the pumpkin patch

[Llama household, ca. Sept 18: near daily reading]
Thistle: “Have you checked the pumpkin patch?”
Duck & Goose: “The WHAT?!”

Undaunted by physical appearance, Eleanor would attempt a lunge for any pumpkin- regardless of weight

Little Ella on the Prairie

Ok, let’s pull together

As a recently confident high stepper, Eleanor immediately infers the gameplay of this part of the playground

“Hop!”

With an early check-in to the lodge, it was the perfect second-story window view for a picnic

Narrator: We now pause for a message from our sponsors-

Des gazes out upon the east orchard, or he’s the admiring the (clearly dead) bug still attached to the extended window sill. Who knows.

Des digs in to his share of the apple pie à la mode

Eleanor cocoons peacefully into the hammock

Explore explores his comfort of heights atop a large rope-spiderweb

And high up a cardinal perch

Plant trees…

…raise children

Eleanor Shreffler, intrepid walker of long distances

Dad’s “it’s cool, we’ll wing it” approach to pizza sourcing and resource management resulted in even a Pizza Hut carryout order pushing dinner timelines well beyond normal. Desmond has his first drive-through food experience to fuel the chips-and-guac requirements for a car DJ chip party, and before you knew it, the pizza was ready.

With the beyond-overtired little sister zonked out (rodeo’d down?) for the night, there was still time for a late-night swim

September 21st, 2018

Des tuning in Tokyo on dad’s WWII shortwave radio grandpa dropped off. It successfully tuned in the BBC as recently as the early 90s

More gadgets and knobs, Eleanor happily explores

Des showing off his latest lego creation to dad’s friend Josh

September 20th, 2018

Catching an evening storm rolling in during sunset, mom’s sends a photo to ma of a dress she made for Viv. Fortunate to live the hand-me-down life.

September 16th, 2018

After dad picks up the kids from ma & pa’s while mom’s in KC, it’s time for a picnic with the geese.

Sandwich and chips- and a pouch for good measure

Eleanor gets fairly insistent that the goose consumes her treat for them, right before dad intervenes…

Looking closely towards the middle of the frame- Eleanor’s bit of sandwich flies towards the unsuspecting geese

The lunch adventure ends in a standoff

Right before everyone completely loses it, each yearning for a nap

Sign models

Side trip to drop off some salsa to uncle Mike, Calvin guides Des through tic-tac-toe gameplay

What seems like not a first, Ella prefers to eat her nachos top-to-bottom

September 15th, 2018

Sunrise after campout #1. Desmond and dad go hunting for donuts for sister.

Just pursuing some periodicals after breakfast

Morning trip to children’s museum, ahoy!

Slinging a few slices

Blanket ALL the things

Des checks mom’s cheek (for something)

Nailed it.

Ok, maybe she’s into dolls

While her lower half is soaked from water play, dad gets the traditional fruit sorting picture for comparison

Des pulling on a Newton’s cradle constructed with bowling balls

The faster you spin the platform, the stronger the water tornado

Milliseconds before lost grip and control of her emotions :/

Dad’s best attempt at face painting. Not too shabby.

In the construction room, each child lives out their fantasies

Des hammers and screws to his heart’s content

Eleanor let’s it rip and yanks off a few dozen feet off tape. Bliss.

That’s one arm around her llama

September 14th, 2018

Des conversing with Braveheart, with dad’s new midi controller

Eleanor runs up at daycare, excited to show dad the stick she found

Desmond’s first practice camping trip in the new downstairs jungle (complete with campfire-scented candle and forest/frog background noises). Time to set up the sleeping gear-

All ready

Of course sister has to join in the fun as well

Although she was really concerned when walking upstairs the frog noises stopped. “Where froggy go?” “I think maybe the froggies went to sleep, Ella” “OK”

To complete the experience, mom busts out a white elephant gift from a few years back- an indoor s’mores maker. While the equivalent of cooking over a warm lightbulb, mom eventually got some marshmallows softened.

Ella completely dismisses the notion of taking bites, consuming hers via meticulous picking/pinching

“It’ll be ready soon…” (lie)

Yum!

It may have been the sugar overload, but Des was astounded at the site of the moon in daylight

When you’re hyped on s’mores, apparently it’s time to practice yoga poses?

Less of a sticky disaster than you’d think

A heated game of “Go Fish” with the bag mom fashioned into a partition so Des could manage his cards in bit larger layout

Campground #1

September 13th, 2018

Baby’s first push-pop. It was a hit.

September 12th, 2018

A new friend at daycare/school

What happens when Eleanor finds the stickers…

Ella finally has long enough hair to sport a ponytail most days 

(Des x2 – PS)