Happy Halloween!

Today Jack and I went for a walk around Centennial Lake.

We learned about some new creatures, both furry...

and not.

The new stroller handles like a dream! I was able to jog part and walk part of the 3 mile trail.

Then we went to a Spooky Halloween Party at the neighbors' house. There were a lot of characters there... A naked Ladybug (costume was too hot), a Native American, someone from the 80's, a Geisha (I hope she doesn't know what that is...) and the blonde boy sitting on the floor was dressed as a Transformer.

YODA!!

Baby Chick (magnet).

and a Scary Dinosaur! Grrr.

Spooky!

We hosted a Halloween party today. Jack was very excited for his friends to arrive he kept looking for them. Grrr... scary dinosaur!




We had a yummy spread: candy corn, 100 grand bars, caramels, pumpkin muffins, pretzel snacks, apples and cheerios. (We didn't want the babies to feel left out).

Amedeo came as a bat! Oooo, scary!

Leora came as a bunny. So cute!

Jack enjoyed some of my apple.

First we tried to get the babies to sit for a picture downstairs. Cadybug was not interested in being away from mommy and Jocelyn, the pumpkin, (who is sitting now!) is not sitting reliably and kept sliding down the wall to the right. So the mean mommies kept laughing and trying to re-set the babies as mayhem ensued.

Jillian came as a lion. Roar! After our failed attempt at picture-taking downstairs we tried to seat the babies on the couch. Well they all stayed in place but not all of them were happy that the photo shoot was dragging on!

All in all it was a fun day with fun friends... and lots of naughty, naughty candy!

Much Ado

About plenty!

Today Brenna guided me through the fine art of sewing. I have used a sewing machine before, but I'm not good at details so when I decided to make a sock monkey for Jack for Christmas I knew there was a good chance this would end in disaster. The other day when Brenna and I went for a walk she offered to help. Seriously the stuff she sews is freekin' awesome so I knew she was perfect to help me.

Here is "Sock Monkey Phase I".

Then I met Grandma Newton at the store to get the best early Christmas present ever. The Phil & Teds Sport!

Finally, Jack filmed his first political advertisement.

Back in the Pool

Jack and I enrolled in swimming class again for the October & November session. Yesterday we had our first class. Jack, predictably had a BLAST! So did Mommy!

Thanks for sending me the pic Lindsey! (She has a super-handy waterproof camera.)

From the desk of

Jack. After visiting with Lindsey and Cady we were inspired to go out and get our own activity table. When Jack woke up from his nap this afternoon he found this in his playroom. He's been a very busy boy ever since.

Knights of the square table

Cady graciously shared her new activity table the other day. Here she is teaching Brooks and Jack about the different settings.
Cady posed for a cute turtle-face picture. She's thinking about something but is it "I really want to pull this sock off" or is it "I'm plotting world domination."?

Jack enjoyed playing with Cady's car. He was sure to check under the hood and make sure the engine was running smoothly.

Brooks proved to his Mommy that he would in fact pull the TP off the roll if left to his own devices in the bathroom, even for a second. Yes folks, he's that fast!

Our Farm

There were a few remaining things growing in our garden. Since we had already experienced our first frost so we decided not to delay our 'harvest' any longer. We have some green tomatoes, oregano and rosemary.

Reduce, Reuse

Recycle!

This is Jack's first PSA. We're so proud!

Hayride!

We went to Clark Elioak Farm for a hayride and some pumpkin picking. They had some awesome slides and jungle gym type things that will be perfect for burning off some energy in another year or two!
This time our well-behaved babies posed for some pictures in their Halloween costumes. Eat your heart out!

Grrr. I'm a scary dinosaur! Grrr.

Ooo, pumpkin...

Huzzah! Part Deux

Another wonderful fall weekend and another trip to the Maryland Renaissance Festival. We met up with Susan and Carter and also Field and Kate. Apparently Susan and Kate are due 10 days apart (according to my calculations)! We went to Fight School.
We checked out the pony rides (which Carter enjoyed) and watched the Elephants (which Carter also enjoyed). We ate: Scotch Eggs, 2 bread bowl of pot roast, bread bowl of chili, sausage on a stick. We tested out the hand made hammocks, comfy and fun!

Carter got his face painted with a dragon, which Matt was supposed to be taking a picture of. Why is it that he can operate his camera with the finesse of a prima ballerina and I ask for a picture of Carter's super cool dragon and this is what I get.

We watched some Celtic singer/dancers.

Then someone, who missed his morning nap, got fussy and we had to call it a day early. As soon as we pulled out of the 'parking lot' this was what happened...
Had we stayed longer we would have had: chicken on a stick, beef bbq, apple dumpling and ice cream. (Yes, we do go for the food.)

It starts...

This was what we found this morning (and after morning nap, and afternoon nap).

Today Jack was worried that I was feeling buried by housework so he decided to help by sorting his pocket diapers.

And inserts.

And then he realized there was an opportunity here...

He decided to practice empathy by being buried by housework as well!

Busy Day!

Jack is definitely, I think, teething. He's been super fussy and super clingy for 2 weeks and it's been slowly getting worse. He bit my finger this afternoon and I was certain that I would have to go to the hospital to have it re-attached. It turns out I didn't, but WOAH it was painful.

This morning we tried to stay distracted from our 'toother' pain. During morning nap I cleaned all the windows (outside and in) on the main level of the house. After some playing we tried for an afternoon nap. He cried for 45-50 minutes and then fell asleep and slept for 40 minutes. When we woke up I had enough so I decided to go find some fun down the street (which happens often in the afternoons). When I walked out of my door my neighbor, her husband and their daughter (4 years old) were on a walk. The girl was sitting in a wagon and they said: "Put Jack in and come with us." YES! Some time without him hysterical and a social walk is perfect. So I belted him in and their daughter fed him some tiny pieces of animal cracker. She talked to him for the entire 3o minute walk. He sat entranced, it was s cute... I of course did not have my camera. Grr!

Then Susan and Carter came over and Carter showed Jack how to use the puzzle and we read some books together and spelled some words with ABC blocks. I again forgot to use my camera. Double Grr!

This evening there were 3 moms standing outside in the grassy area behind my house. Their kids were running around and having a good time. Jack and I decided to go out and introduce ourselves. We scored a possible play date with an 11 month old boy who lives on the next court!

And tonight I'm going to A Wii Mariokart tournament at the neighbors house!

Better late than never

Today we learned that we should have taken the mobile down earlier when we went into Jack's room this morning and found this: Apparently we had been using the mobile to stand in our crib.

We went to Little Sunshine Trading Co. today because they graciously hosted out mom's group! It was a great time because they have a play room in the back for the kidos. This is a better standing device than the mobile, isn't it?

Lindsey's keen eye saw this great shot while we were chatting in the parking lot.

Later today: Stroller shopping and used toy shopping!

Puppies and Beatles

Today at the Library play partners themed their story time "Puppies". After stories and songs they brought out the ball pit, which is a huge hit with the kids. Even the babies enjoy themselves!

As per the challenge I received, I have made a 'diaper' box derby car. Jack very much enjoyed his yellow submarine!

Fresh is best

Today (Columbus Day) is a federal holiday, so with Daddy home from work we went to Larriland Farm to pick some apples. 'Some' is loosely used here because by 'some' we mean to say 50 lbs of apples. Apparently when Mommy and Daddy decided to teach Jack about the importance of fresh, local produce they got a little carried away. We will have enough apple sauce, apple butter, apple pie, apple crisp and apples for MONTHS!Jack was very excited about our haul!

We posed for a pumpkin picture by the barn.

Then went to the patch to get our 3 pumpkins for the year: a Daddy pumpkin, a Mommy pumpkin, and a Jack pumpkin.

Jack was so excited about his apples that he decided to try a slice when we got home. He was very excited to confirm that fresh is, in fact, best.

The best part for me in all of this is that Jack proved that he does not need any teeth at all to eat a slice of apple. Even the peel didn't slow him down.