Trick or Treat

Thankfully we had a small reprieve from the rain Sunday evening for trick or treating. Quinn had a blast running from house to house gathering his loot. Random phrases to be heard coming from him at points throughout our excursion were, "I LOVE trick or treating!" "Dad (Mom), look, I got some (more) candy!" "This is so much fun!"

It was plain to see that Quinn was having the time of his life. Keaton too, was having fun, although he had to sit back in his car and point out the sights. Most houses had steps up to them and we couldn't get him close enough to get his treats, so we pushed him along to see the ghosts and goblins. Next year he'll be able to run and shout "Trick or Treat" with the best of them.

Pumpkin Carving With a Superhero and a Dragon

Bet you didn't think it was possible did you? Well it darn near wasn't. The dragon was wandering around aimlessly dragging out utensils and balls and random toys. The superhero was jumping around fighting imaginary foes tearing up the newspaper daddy had painstakingly put down to keep the floor somewhat clean.

Finally pumpkin carving commenced and it couldn't begin fast enough for Quinn. His job was going to be scooper of pumpkin guts. "Can I scoop now Dad? Can I scoop now?" Dad hadn't even gotten the top cut off yet. Patience is not a virtue of our oldest son. It was then that I realized this was probably the reason why I had never carved a pumpkin with my parents until I was probably in my 20's. They probably felt the same way.

In the end all was well and uneventful, Quinn did a great job at chief guts scooper and Dad did a good job carving the spooky pumpkins. The dragon, he was the supervisor.

MacGyver I am Not

Resourceful Mommy I am even not! About 2 seconds into our car ride to pre-school this morning, Quinn decked out in his Halloween costume, he was messing around with the mask portion of his Robin costume, Robin being from Batman and Robin, so this mask is quite important at keeping his identity secret you know. When all of the sudden--zing--and well there goes the elastic on one side of the mask. Well apparently THESE super hero costumes were not made all that well. So I tell our super hero that mommy can't fix it right now in the car to pre-school. He is wailing,sobbing, as all good super heros will you know. How will he fight bad guys when they know who he is?


I try to explain that mommy does not have a fix it all kit in the car and that I will be able to fix it for trick or treating, just not for pre-school in 30 seconds. He calms down sort of and goes to class where he proceeds to tell everyone he broke his mask and I leave. I immediately call daddy to tell him the terrible news. Daddy, ever resourceful daddy says "How about stapling it?" Mommy says: "Stapling? Nah, no, you can't staple it. It would never work, I'll just sew it later." Meanwhile in the back of her mind she thinks, why on earth didn't I think of that! Men just think like MacGyver I guess.

Changes, like autumn leaves

Ok, first the crawling. It's over. Old news. Done. Finite.

Walking is in. WAAAAY in. Might as well call it running. The kid's completely over with the knee thing and into the feet.

It's fun watching Keaton figure out the whole walking thing all of a sudden. It's like watching the evolution of man in fast forward. One day he takes two steps, then it's six, and finally today we've got to keep him from a running sprint to the highway.

I'm not sure, but I think he asked for a motorcycle today.

When that happens, I'll post pictures, just like the ones below from the past few days and our week-long trip to see Grandma and Grandpa Smith in Pennsylvania.

And in case you need evidence of our walker, there's plenty of video below.

It's show time

It's been too long since we've posted. We know this. Apparently chasing after two boys really cuts into our blogging time.

Some day, we'll get our priorities straight.

To satiate your need for Quinn and Keaton news, here is a whole highlight reel from the past three months, starting with our trip to Minnesota in June.

Enjoy.

Talent show

At this point, I'm wondering if there's anything these boys can't do.

First Keaton: Crawl? Check. Climb? Check. Squawk like a bird? Youbetcha. Cute? Of course.

Now Quinn: Dance? Naturally. Sing? Like no other. Hunt for Easter eggs? Gleefully. Play trombone? Are you kidding? Better than his Dad.

In case you don't take our word for it, here's the video evidence.

Sunday Drive

Keaton has been spotted out & about lately in his sporty new red plastic car with the snazzy dad handle. He likes it, dad likes it, what's not to like about it? He's been seen getting the mail in it, spotting ducks and touring the neighborhood. We got word it needs to go back to the shop for some work, so we'll have to get it in soon.

In other news our little big man has been pulling himself up to things and standing for short periods of time. He likes his big brother's train table and I caught him standing up next to it this evening tearing it all apart to get to another piece of the track that was out of his reach. He's a wily little fella who seems to be a bit mischievous and jumps with a start if you catch him doing something he probably shouldn't be doing.



Quinn is becoming the big helper around the house, whether it's gardening, or sweeping the back porch. He may not be perfect yet, but at least he tries.

We visited a pre-school last week where we hope he can go in the fall. He watched as the kids sang songs and did their daily jobs. He joined in on the fun when it was free-play time and it was hard to tear him away. He was a little wary about going to "school" but I think he'll fit right in come September.