Trick-or-treat!

First time trick-or-treating! Of course, I was waaaay more excited about it than little pea! Actually, he did great and was oh so cute in his chicken costume! He loved running up to the front door and actually tried to sneak inside a couple of houses! He also enjoyed chewing on the candy, wrapper and all. We went with my sister, brother-in-law, and two nephews. We really tried to get some good pics, but it is nearly impossible with this boy. He just will not stand still for a second!

Little chicken! We were thinking of sending pic to Pollo Campero for a possible logo shot?!?! What d'ya think?

In the wagon with cousin J. I am not sure what pea is doing. Probably just moving around, but it looks like he is in agony, doesn't it?
First house! He ran right up to the house.

Walking with daddy to another house. More candy!!
It has been a crazy, busy week and we are still adjusting to our new schedule since I am back to work. But, overall, we are doing great. I will post a better update later!

Wordless Wednesday

What does it take...

to revive the economy? Apparently only 6 women, two days, and The Children's Place (and a few other token stores). This past weekend I went on a 2 day shopping trip with some friends. This is an annual tradition started by my friends, Becky and Vicki. They started this tradition at least 10 years ago. Though, I think it has been longer because every year they tell me they have been doing this for 10 years. This is my second year in on the trip and it is so much fun! Though, there are a couple non-negotiable rules.

Rule #1: At least one Christmas gift must be purchased.
Rule #2: Show and tell. At the end of the first day, we all empty our bags and share our purchases for the day. Part of show and tell also includes bragging. That is, bragging about the great bargains we found and how much we saved through clearance racks, coupons, etc, etc. For example, on one of several visits to The Children's Place, I bought Eli 2 polo shirts and a pair of shorts for $2.68. They were all on the $0.99 clearance rack and I had a 15% off coupon. That deserves some serious bargain hunter bragging rights! If you haven't been to The Children's Place lately, get out there. They are having some great sales right now!

Here's a pic of all our bargains for the day. This is a bad pic because I took it with my phone so you really can't fully appreciate the mountain of stuff! Consumerism at its best.

All in all, we had so much FUN and found some amazing bargains along the way! And, yes, Eli spent his first full day with the sitter so I could go shopping! Ha! But, he did great. The dropoff was pretty rough because he screamed when I left, but he had a really great day. He ate really well, took a very long nap, and made everyone laugh. So, that makes me feel a teeny tiny bit better!

Jason and Pea also spent some quality "guy" time together on their own little shopping trip! They went shopping for a new toilet seat to replace the one little pea broke. He likes to "help out" by putting the toilet seat down...more like, slamming the toilet seat down. Somethin' just had to give with that brute toddler force. Let me tell you, it is no fun sitting on a cracked toilet seat! ;) We made need one of those toilet seat locks!

They also had some fun playing in the leaves.

Happy Birthday, Jason!!

36 years old!! How did this happen? Wasn't it just yesterday that we were hanging out in the dorm lounge "studying?" My how time flies! Happy Birthday!!

We had a b-day party on Sunday with the fam to celebrate Jason's and our nephew's birthdays. Jason has had a rough week with his students so tonight we had a relaxing lowkey evening, which was probably his best gift! Of course, spending his first birthday with his son trumps everything.

Little Pea update...he had his 18 month check-up yesterday. I wasn't kidding when I said this boy is growing like a weed! He has grown another 2" and is up to 34" tall. This places him in the 90th percentile for height and he is in the 75th percentile for weight at 28lbs. He's a big boy for 18 months! And, remember my post near the end of August regarding how fast his feet are growing? Well, he has now outgrown size 6. Yep, it only took about 7 weeks.

We also started Pea's transition to the sitter yesterday. We are starting with a couple hours and then he will be there the whole day on Friday. He did great yesterday, but the sitter said he really missed his mama today. The minute I walked in the door to pick him up, he started crying, ran to me, and sqeezed me tight. Oh man. This is rough!

Weekend Adventures

We had quite a busy, funfilled weekend! Our first stop was the fire station for their open house held every October (fire safety month). Eli loved the fire truck and he was not very happy when it came to time to go home! It actually was pretty neat to get inside the fire truck! And, we got a couple new smoke detectors free! Woohoo! (Becky, you can inform Steven that we pass the safety test!)

Eli running towards the fire truck!

Cool lights!
Ready to roll. If only I could reach the pedals...is that the siren button???
Looking out our window at the fire truck beside our house. He does this multiple times a day!

Our next stop was the pumpkin patch! We arrived just in time for a hayride, which Eli was not so sure about. After our hayride, we grabbed a wagon and headed out to pick our own pumpkins.

I want this one, daddy!
The perfect size.

Headin' back with our pumpkins!

Circle the Wagons

Our friends, Brittney and Daniel and Pam and Mark, are still waiting for their precious daughters to come home. Both families are stuck in a terrible mess since their birth mother interview was unable to be completed by the deadline. I can only imagine the stress, anxiety, and heartbreak they are experiencing right now as they wait for answers. You can click on their names to read more about their personal stories. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers.

Growing Up

To my sweet son,

Today you are 18 months old! Wow! Why does this day feel signficant? I don't know, but it does. It is just amazing how much you have grown and changed since we have been together forever as a family (almost 6 months already!!). You fill our hearts with so much joy and make us laugh everyday. We love you so much!

Here you are on the day you were placed in our arms forever: April 27, 2008

Here you are now! Look how much you have changed already!

Here is what you have been up to at 18 months:

1. You LOVE firetrucks!! We live right beside the fire station, so you love to look out the window to see the firetruck. In fact, you do this ALL day! One of the fire fighters even walked over one day and invited you to the station to look at the fire truck!

2. You LOVE to dance! You will dance to almost anything, but your favorite song is "Te Quiero."

3. One of your favorite things to do outside (after looking for the fire truck!) is to go to the garden and pick vegetables. Mommy & daddy taught you how to pick the tomatoes and peppers.

4. You are quite a talker! You know well over 30 words and several signs. Dinner time is your favorite time to talk and you always have wonderful and amazing stories to tell.

5. You and Porter are great buddies. You love to give him hugs and kisses and play fetch with him. You can't say "Porter", yet, so you call him "boo."

6. You LOVE, LOVE, LOVE books! One of your favorite books is "Wheels on the Bus." We often sing this song over and over again!

7. You love trucks and school buses and point them out whenever we see them.

8. You can point out a bear, snake, duck, frog, turtle, dog, cat, horse, zebra, tiger, lion, penguin, sheep, bee, bird, monkey, cow, pig, fish, and more. You love looking at animals.

9. For some reason, whenever you pick up a washcloth, dish towel, or a wet wipe you put it up to your mouth and cough.

10. You love buttons, zippers, switches, and clasps and you know how to work them all!

11. You can identify almost all of your body parts.

12. You are so affectionate and love to give lots of hugs and kisses. You give the best hugs and kisses!

13. You are definitely not a picky eater! You will eat almost anything, including lemon and lime slices!

14. You like to scream! You scream when you are happy and excited and when you are mad and frustrated.

15. Big Bear and Little Bear (thanks Beth!!) are your favorite stuffed animals right now. They sleep with you every night and you love to give your bears hugs and kisses.

16. You love shoes, but you don't really like to wear them. You always end up kicking off your shoes in the car or in the store. It's amazing we haven't lost one, yet! Though, you love wearing mommy and daddy's shoes around the house.

17. You are so smart! We usually only have to show you something once and you remember.

18. Daddy can always make you laugh! And, that laugh...oh, that laugh just melts my heart every time!

Into the Woods

On Sunday, we were busy doing some projects and chores around the house when we decided it was just too beautiful to be stuck inside. We dropped everything and headed to the nature preserve near our house for a little hike in the woods. It was gorgeous! I love these fall days. Eli had a blast walking in the woods and picking up every single stick, nut, and rock. In case you've never noticed, there are a lot of sticks, nuts, and rocks in the woods. Needless to say, we could have been there for HOURS! He especially enjoyed picking up large sticks and hitting himself in the head. He thought that was pretty funny. Don't worry, he didn't poke his eye out. Not yet.


Sticks, sticks, and MORE sticks!! OH BOY, OH BOY! Where do I start?

Hangin' out inside the tree with daddy.

Me and my pea. Nuts, nuts, and MORE nuts!!! Hmmm...is that a stick over there? Time to go home on the daddy express.

Final Countdown

Only a couple more weeks left before I head back to the grind of work and a new transition begins. Sigh...it's inevitable, but I don't have to like it, right?!?! I always thought I could never be a stay-at-home mom, but I could definitely get used to this! Eli will be spending his days with a private sitter and a couple other children close to his age. I know he is going to LOVE being around the other kiddos and I know he will adjust to our new schedule just fine, but...I still don't like it!

In the meantime, I have been very busy trying to get some projects done and organizing some things around the house before I go back to work. That means I have piles of "stuff" everywhere and it feels more chaotic than before I started! And, Eli and I have been soaking in this precious time together. I still have those heart stopping moments everyday when I look at my sweet son and am overwhelmed with gratitude and a love like no other, and I feel so incredibly lucky to be his mama.

Here are a few pictures from the last couple of weeks.

Eli LOVES this dumptruck and he "rides" it around the house. It's not really meant to be a riding toy, but it works for him!

Trying on daddy's shoes. With the rate he is growing, these shoes will probably fit next week!

The perfect reading spot!

Practicing his somersault!