PUNKERDOODLES

You may recall our obsession with Halloween outfits from last year... and THIS year we had TWO babies to dress up, so it was twice as fun!

Baby's First Halloween (a gift from our coworker Sam):

These awesome PJ's used to belong to our pal Jackson: Under those little clasped hands it says "Daddy's Under My spell", and there's a cat face on her bum (outfit courtesty of her Ma-Maw, even the bow, which she made):

From his Ma-Maw (it's not his fault he's a monster, it's the teething - don't mind his big ol' crocodile tears):We bought this onesie on clearance last November, not long after we found out we were having another baby (and before we knew the gender). The tutu was a good find in an end of summer sale. And the bow was a gift from Aunt Beverly:

This one's for Robyn & Stephen:You know I HAD to have this onesie (another gift from Ma-Maw): Cute hand-me-down from Jackson (and so true, with all this teething drama):

Another fun hand-me-down from Jackson: Another one from Ma-Maw:And that's a wrap!

Happy Halloween!

CHOCO SPIDER-MALLOW

Yup, that's right. We gave James candy for breakfast. It IS Halloween, after all!

TREATS ON THE STREET

This morning we got our butts in gear (after all sleeping until nearly 8:00) and headed downtown for Treats on the Street. The event started with a costume contest. Cora and Will were in the same group. Unfortunately, neither won. The OTHER lady bug won...

James didn't win his group either. The OTHER garden gnome won (Maybe because James didn't wear the beard? They were the EXACT same costume...)

Jay and I were dressed up too. If you can't tell, I'm a flower and Jay is the gardener.We skipped the parade and moved right on to trick-or-treating at the downtown shops. Jay reported that he got James to try and say something similar to trick-or-treat twice, but when that mostly failed, he switched to working on "pwease" and "don du". Jay's watering can made the perfect treat container.At the end of the street, we broke for coffee. Will had a chance to get down and play (is he not the cutest little turtle?), and James took a break from all that walking and chilled in his stroller. Since he couldn't reach his hair for twirling, he just twirled the eyebrows of his costume...We had a fun morning, and anytime James falls asleep in the car on the way home, you can bet he had a good time too. I loved his little hot chocolate goatee...

JAMES' FIRST FIELD TRIP

Today was James' very first school field trip. Of course, being only 1-year-old, he couldn't go without his Mama and Daddy! We went to a local pumpkin patch and had a blast!

Here we are waiting for the hayride with Dawn and Coltin:

All aboard!

We got to see a cute, hairy, friendly-looking pig, a bunch of chickens, a couple of horses, and an adorable dog. James was WAY scared of the horses......the chickens were OK as long as they didn't come TOO close......but the dog was a big hit (I think James wanted to hug him)!This photo came out blurry, but it cracked me up when I turned around from checking out the runt piglet (so cute!) and saw James holding a pitchfork (um... this is a child-friendly farm, right? perhaps the dangerous tools could be stored elsewhere...):James really enjoyed hanging out with his Daddy:

Actually, I'm fairly certain that James LOVED hanging out with his Daddy AND his Mama, and having us all to himself (we left Cora at school with the other infants so we could spend some one-on-one time with our baby boy, something we haven't done in a LONG time):

Then there was the pumpkin patch, where they actually grew the pumpkins. And some gourds. And I'm sorry, but you know my sense of humor and problem with laughing at others when they fall, even my own child. So, seeing all those toddlers and kiddos tripping over the pumpkin vines was hilarious. I couldn't hide my laughter. I hope the other parents didn't take offense...

Jay got some good photos of James with his buddy Gabriel (to be posted later, when Jay finishes his homework). His partner in crime. The one he's known the longest (they started out in the nursery together and are only 1.5 months apart in age). Jay and I really love Gabriel. He's a sweet kid. So tiny and cute. And so smart (he teaches James all sorts of words and gestures - and bad habits, on occasion)...

After all that stumbling around, the boys were ready for lunch. Coltin and James bellied up to the nearest table:

After some good ol' PB&J, James was ready to hit the dirt again. He's very interested in collecting all the falling leaves. And bringing them to Mama to hold. (And yes, I have a very pretty one he gave me on display in my office)

Then Daddy had to leave to get back to work. Rather than wait for the super slow hayride, he caught a ride back to the parking lot with the owner of the pumpkin patch. James liked waving and telling Daddy "Bye Bye", but then kept pointing down the trail saying "Dada?" - I think he wanted to ride out with Jay:

Before we climbed aboard for the return trip, we had to get James' pumpkin.

Yup, he pulled the stem right off the biggest pumpkin in the pile... Oh well. I grabbed a toddler-sized pumpkin instead and then called it a day. Well, morning. I had to go back to work too. Good times and good memories!

TRUNK-OR-TREAT

We attended our first ever Trunk-Or-Treat celebration tonight, thanks to an invitation from Michelle and Jerry. What is Trunk-Or-Treat? Well, it looks something like this:

James was too little for the obstacle course, and he was more interested in running around than bouncing in the bounce house. He enjoyed the puppet show though. And we did get his photo taken with Captain Hook and Peter...

And they gave him a sucker... James does NOT eat candy. Ever. This is the second sucker he's had (the nurse gave him one in the ER a couple months ago), and he thoroughly enjoyed the treat! (And Jay thoroughly enjoyed cleaning the resulting sticky red mess off himself and James...)

Cora enjoyed her new baby carrier (BECO Gemini), a gift from my mom for my birthday, while we walked around. She had her gorgeous smocked dress on today (though you can't see it well under the carrier), with a pretty little felt flower bow. We swear this girl is teething already. Check out the finger:

Then we braved the beet-red hot dogs. Yuck! (Good thing I made cupcakes tonight - they made for a wonderful follow-up dinner at 10pm...)

In other news, today was also school portrait day. When we get them in, we'll post Cora's. We were told she did really well during her photo shoot! James, on the other hand, refused to be photographed, so we won't be getting a school portrait for him this year. Poor kid lost another 2.5 hours of sleep last night due to teething pain, and missed his dose of ibuprofen this morning, so he was apparently all fuss and fits, and no smiles. Oh well, we can always try and recreate the portrait later ourselves. In the meantime, picture him in those cute overalls and new shoes, with a crisp, clean, white, long-sleeved thermal shirt underneath. He looked so nice...

And finally, before we sign off for the night (now that the cupcakes and laundry are done), we'd like to wish Dave and Taryn a very Happy 3rd Anniversary! We celebrated in their honor tonight by having a glass of their wedding wine. We couldn't have it last year because I was pregnant with Cora. And we couldn't have it on their first anniversary because I was pregnant with James. Hmmm... But since Cora is sleeping throught the night now, I figured I was safe to have a glass (well, half a glass, anyway). I was wrong though. Half a glass is WAY too much for someone who hasn't had a drink in 3 years! But anyway, here's to D&T! Goodnight!

A LITTLE FRESH AIR

A couple weeks ago we started a new tradition after school. Or rather, James started it. When we get home and release him from the car, he now goes tearing up the (looong) driveway to the culdesac, where he proceeds to play in the dirt and rocks until we force him inside. Some days he grabs his Fropper from the sunroom before he heads up the hill.

We used to rush into the house and get dinner started, etc., after work/school (AKA daycare). Then the weather cooled off and we started taking short walks around the neighborhood or playing in the yard. Then we noticed that James is more fun in the evenings if we just take 20-30 minutes to let him do his thing outside before we start our evening routine. So now, even if we get home late, we take the time to play outside. Whether that be a short walk, or moving rocks, or driving the Fropper around, or crashing through the bushes, or chasing Maxine, or whatever. And if we get distracted and take too long? Then there's always PB&J for dinner! We've had far fewer toddler meltdowns lately (hooray)!

GOOD MORNING!

Cora wakes up so happy these days. It's quite lovely. And so is she.

Happy Monday!