Halloween 2010

Halloween 2010 is in the history book! Nolan went through a crisis identity trying to decide what he was going to be for Halloween. First he was going to be a gorilla, then a "crypt creature" then an Indian, then a sultan, then a pirate, then back to the Indian (which he did end up being for Trunk-or-Treating), then a "hobo" (for group piano lessons), then a "child eating shark" (which he wore for school), then back to the "hobo" for Trick-or-Treating. He went Trick-or-Treating with 3 of his friends, got 5 full sized candy bars, then spent an hour scaring kids at the "haunted garage" down the street. He said it was the "best night EVER".

Jonathan went with his marching band friends to the cornmaze on Friday. Last night he hung out over at his friend's (Ethan's) house watching "Ernest Scared Stupid".

Miles thinks costumes are lame and that the only thing redeeming about Halloween is candy. I thought he'd be a Howler Monkey for Trunk-or-Treating, but he refused to wear his monkey costume. Yesterday before the trick-or-treaters started coming, I noticed the bowl of candy was missing. So was Miles. Here is what I found. Last night we actually got Miles into a costume. He would wear his buddy's (Kimball's) monkey costume. He hated the headpiece, but really loved the tail! Miles went Trick-or-Treating to 4 houses then went to see his local grandparents. He got a lollipop at the first neighbor he visited and was happy with that!

Happy Halloween! Now bring on Thanksgiving!

My Mean Side

Like (almost) everyone else in the world, I get irritated by things people do. If I'm really, really bugged by something someone did/does, I compose a lovely little note to that person in my head. That way, I feel I have addressed my issue with whatever my problem is with that person, but it's in a way that offends no one and I feel better. For example, the other day I saw a lady helping her child with a Halloween costume. The child, although very little of stature, was old enough to not need mommy to help dress him... the boy has got to be around Nolan's age! The costume was a super hero suit and it was maybe a size 6. It was skin-tight-perma-wedgie fit on this boy. I could not believe that a mother would allow her son out in public in such a revealing outfit. In my mind I thought,

"Dear Clueless Mother, Did you look at how that costume fits your child? Would you ever walk out in public with something that clingy/Saran wrapped on your body in public? Do you not realize that that costume leave no doubt in any observer's mind that your child is indeed a male? Also, dear Clueless Mother, why are you still dressing your 'Tween? Let him grow up and make some of his own choices. They may be better than the choices you make for him. Sincerely, Me"

Or another mental letter...

"Dear Rude Lady, I'm sorry that my screaming child annoys you. Guess what? The screaming annoys me too. However, unlike you, I realize that my child's naughtiness is less than charming and I choose to deal with the breech of etiquette as it is occurring while you seem to think that we find your child's naughtiness adorable. She who is without fault may cast the first stone. Sincerely, Me"

Does this form of passive/aggressive behavior really solve anything? No, but it helps me to move on. Ideally. Maybe. Sometimes.

Masterpiece

Miles still loves markers. We've had to move them to a new location because he loves to get them out and release his creative energy. Yesterday he found two markers and I didn't know he had the markers. Check out his masterpiece.... Yes, those are my sheets! Thank goodness he didn't find a Sharpie!

Halloween Costumes

The child who changes his minds as to what he is going to be for Halloween on the morning of Halloween costume day at school should be severely punished... or at least have to scrub the kitchen floor...

Deals!

I haven't done a "real" grocery shopping for several weeks. Today I ran out and got some "must have" deals. Nolan will be thrilled with the 2 Hungry Man TV dinners that I "bought" him... they were free. I got 6 bottles of Gain dish soap for... free, okay, really they were -.03 cents each. But here's my awesome/surprise score of the day! I had 5 BOGO coupons for M&M/Snickers candy bars. They are on sale for .50 this week. I figured I'd go buy 10 candy bars and pay .25 each. I got to the register and the 20 oz Coke products were $1 and there was a sign that said "Save $1 when you buy 1 20 oz. Coke Product and 2 M&M/Mars candy bars". SWEET!!! I got 5-20 oz. bottles of Diet Coke and 10 candy bars for a total of $2.50! The only problem with this deal is that I don't drink soda, so I've got a treat for McKenzie, if she lets me come visit her this week!

Snow? Snow! Snow; sigh

There have been 3 distinct reactions to the snow we've received. The "Snow?" reaction is from the big boys who follow their questioning of the weather with "whatever". The "Snow!" reaction is Miles'. Yesterday, the snow was just blowing around. I took him over to the window to see if he remembered what snow was. He immediately started jumping up and down and yelling "Snowman! Snowman! Snowman!" Today he wants to eat the snow that stuck to the ground. He really, really wanted the snow in the grocery store parking lot, but I made him wait until we got home, where he happily gleaned the snow from the shrubbery. The "Snow, sigh" reaction is mine. Really, it does snow nearly every October, but that doesn't mean I have to like it. Hopefully there won't be any big storms until the trees lose their leaves so their branches don't break like they did during our late spring snow. I guess it's time to at least find the snow shovels, snow melt, and ice scrapers so I can be prepared for when I really need them. Also, I finally wimped out and turned on the furnace; 59 degrees is just too cold for inside a house!

One of My Favorite Sounds

I love the sound of laughter. I was showing Miles the video clip I took of him at Pumpkinland. He was jumping up and down inside the pumpkin house and he tripped and fell. He thought that it was so funny to see himself fall. He laughed and laughed and laughed.

Go Marching T- Wolves!

The THS marching band took first place in their division at the Mt. Timpanogos competition today! They were in the largest division- 9 bands and they finally were able to beat Salem Hills. They also won the "Best Music" award. THS got lucky and didn't have to perform in a downpour like several bands before them had the opportunity to do. Still, the field was plenty wet and one THS band member fell, but the band pulled off a great performance! Congratulations THS!

Pumpkinland

Dan really through me off on Friday. I got up at 6:00 a.m. and he was here. I took Jonathan to school at 6:45 a.m. and when I got back, Dan was still here. Nolan got up and I made him a pancake and DAN WAS STILL HERE. I told him I planned to take Miles to Pumpkinland later Friday morning. Then I asked him why he was still home. He looked at me oddly and said "because it's Friday". I looked back at him oddly and said "So?" He reminded me that he doesn't work every-other Friday. It's been so long since he actually hasn't worked on his Friday off that I forgot he didn't work every Friday. So I revised my plan and Dan, Miles, and I went to Pumpkinland.

The nursery in Vineyard transforms their grounds into a "Halloween heaven" for the month of October. It's geared for ages 6 and under. There were preschool groups and a special needs elementary class visiting while we were there. They have a kid-sized corn maze, some really stinky goats and chickens, tunnels to climb through, houses to go in, a "haunted house" of Halloween (and Christmas) lights and blow-ups, and lots and lots of pumpkins.Miles loved the bunnies. He'd put his face as close to the cages as possible, but he was scared to actually touch one (probably due to one too many encounters with 'Jing). Dan was feeding the bunnies grass. Miles wanted to feed them too. He found bunny poo and tried to feed it to them. They weren't interested. Next we went through the corn maze. Miles loved running on the paths through the corn. When he got bored with that, he took off through the rows of corn until he found his own exit. He liked jumping up and down inside the big pumpkin house. He liked the caterpillar tunnel. He played on the playground where he tried a "big boy swing" and climbed a mini ladder. He thought the "haunted house" lights were awesome. I think Miles would have been happy to spend the whole day at Pumpkinland but he wore his old parents out!

Wishful Thinking?

Today Miles and I went on a shopping trip for another "unmentionable". They are on sale at Kohls and I had a $10 off $20 coupon. I'll only buy "unmentionables" when they are on sale because really, who want to pay $32 for a bra? Anyway, I went to the lingerie department and found the style I wanted in the color I wanted and in the size I wanted. I threw it in the basket and went to pay. I handed over the coupon and $10+ dollars and left the store and went about my errands and other mommy-things. I just picked up the bag with my new bra in it and went to remove the tags. Fortunately before I cut the tags off, I noticed that somehow I grabbed the wrong bra and ended up with a 36D. Yeah, right!!! What was I thinking? Am I sending myself a subliminal message that I require an augmentation? I guess Kohls is back on my list for tomorrow, but this time, for an exchange.

It's Time for Orthodontics

Lucky Nolan! We're getting all the preliminary orthodontic work for Nolan done. The big braces day is scheduled for November 17th. Nolan wants to eat lots of apples, taffy and gum before those items become taboo. Yesterday we went and got his x-rays and oral photographs taken (they use these instead of impressions!). When Jonathan had these done, I wished I'd brought my camera because the technician makes the patient put these "pullers" in his mouth that move the lips and cheeks away from the teeth. When the pullers are in the mouth, the patient looks so funny. Well, lucky Nolan! I remembered my camera yesterday...

The Subaru

We've had the Subaru for a little more than 2.5 months now. The only "oops" that's happened to the car was due to my negligence (it's just a little "doink" where you can't see it unless I point it out to you). I love my car, but I don't love to put miles on my car. Today the odometer reads nearly 2,000 miles. I put 7.5% of those miles on the car today. I drove 150 miles round trip for a band competition. Yuck. I want the number on the odometer to stay nice and small. I told Dan that where we drive to St. George in a few weeks, we're taking the Prizm because I can't stand the thought of putting 600 miles on the car in one weekend. On the bright side, we got a notice from Subaru today that said the since we've owned the car for 2.5 months, we should have 3,057 miles on it. Ha! We've put 1,000+ fewer miles on it.

Gross Post Alert!

I know this is a gross post, but I'm looking for a real solution. If you don't want to read about poop, then stop here and move on.

Miles has a diaper fetish. Actually, it's not a diaper fetish, but a "what's inside the diaper" fetish. I thought I had the upper hand on the issue by making him wear a onesie because that blocks access to the diaper, but he's found a way around that obstacle. He can access his diaper by going up the onesie leg. TWICE today he has come to me proudly bearing gifts of "poo poo" in his hand. I'm not overreacting to it. We go and throw it in the potty then disinfect his hand and I tell him to leave the "poo poo" in his diaper, but he's not catching on. He's proud of what he is bringing me and it makes me want to throw up. Any suggestions?

Day Trip to SLC

It's the boys' fall break from school, so today the boys and I played tourist in Salt Lake City. I had to drop the car off at the dealership for its 1,000 miles service check. We left the car and walked 5 blocks to the Trax station. We took the train into downtown Salt Lake City then took a bus to the state capitol for a tour. We saw the House of Representative's chamber and the rotunda. The big boys wandered through a lot of the building, but Miles had other plans though. In the visitor's room in the there was a bowl of lollipops and that's where Miles wanted to be. He also liked the fire extinguisher. After the capitol, we took a bus back downtown and walked around Temple Square and then headed over to the church history museum. Again, the big boys looked at the different displays while Miles discovered the escalators and found some crayons and markers. Next we walked over to the Bennett Federal Building. Nolan is doing a merit badge that required a trip to a federal building. The federal building is a secure facility so all we planned on seeing was the lobby. The security guards wanted to know what we were doing and when we told them, they got permission to let us up to Senator Hatch's office. We went through security and up to the 8th floor where Senator Hatch has his SLC office (let me tell you, I don't think I've ever been in such an ugly, dreary building). Senator Hatch's aid showed us the senator's office, his "lovely" records (because he's a "recording artist"), and pictures of the senator with famous people. The boys got pocket Constitutions, and then we left.

We decided to take the bus down State Street to the car dealership. What an adventure! My boys were not impressed with the public transportation clientele. They thought the riders were... different... yes, that's a good word. The bus was completely full and a very diverse cross section of the SLC population was represented. I enjoyed listening to a lady talk about how she was being released to a halfway house and how excited she was about that. She was telling EVERYBODY that this was the first time in 25 years that she'd been sober. She will have to attend classes 4x per week to stay in the halfway house and get a job within 30 days. She said she needs to stay busy because when she is bored, she gets the "twinges" and they are hard to resist. Then she wanted to know how many people had been incarcerated and how many times. Yes, it was a lovely bus ride. I also saw a Budweiser sign on a bar that said "This is not a gay bar, but we don't discriminate". Really? I think your sign is discriminating. Anyway, I think my boys have never been more grateful that we own cars so they don't have to depend on the bus to get around.

We got the car and it was after 2 p.m. and the boys were starving. They wanted to go to Sweet Tomatoes, so we did. On the way to Sweet Tomatoes, we saw a shirtless fat guy riding his bike across State Street while holding an 18 pack of beer with one hand. I think that took talent! The big boys ate like whales, especially Jonathan. Miles wasn't interested in lunch. He thought climbing over the back of the booth was more fun. Then he decided he was tired and lay down on the restaurant floor (ewww!) and went to sleep. What a day!

Yesterday It Was My Turn

Yesterday I finally had to admit that I was sick. I'd been trying to convince myself that the stomach queasiness I'd been feeling for the previous two days was empathy nausea because Miles was sick. Around 3 a.m. on Wednesday morning I could no longer deny that I was truly sick. I got up and got the boys off to school then went back to bed. Miles was still asleep when I crawled back into bed. I heard him wake up a short time later but I wasn't ready to get up, so I slept with "one ear open", or so I thought. When 11:30 a.m. rolled around, Miles decided that it was time for me to get up and he did his best to encourage me to do so. I thought I'd been aware of where Miles was while I was "sleeping", but I guess I was more asleep than I'd thought I was. He'd dumped everything off my nightstand, played with and hidden my glasses, and been busy playing toys in my room. In the computer room, he'd climbed up on one of the desks and got some disks he wasn't supposed to have. He also found some casting powder and taken the lid off the container and sprinkled it around the room. Evidently Miles had been hungry and went downstairs where the storage room door must have been left ajar and he helped himself to a package of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. He even opened the packaging instead of eating through it. Way to be self-sufficient! At 2 p.m., we took a nap together. This time, I made sure I was second to fall asleep and first to wake up! Today I am feeling much better. I even ate "lunner" with my boys at 3 p.m.

I'm a CNN.com Junkie

Just like half of the world, beginning last night, my waking hours have been centered around the live video feed of the mine rescue in Chile. It's been awesome watching these men rise from the earth after being trapped for more than 2 months. It's nice that this time I was addictively watching an event with a happy ending. Other times that I have been a news-media-addict are the first Gulf War, the second Gulf War, and for days after September 11th. None of those were happy events. I would sit and watch the coverage of those events for hours on end, and for day after day until I couldn't take it anymore. Today I loved seeing the reunions of the miners with their families. I saw the first miner pulled out last night and the emotion on his child's face was moving. I'm not a crier, but I found myself in tears several times in the past 24 hours.

I loved watching Esteban Rojas, the 18th rescued miner, exit the rescue capsule. After he was released from the capsule, he fell to his knees and prayed. I'm sure he was thanking God for his rescue. Only after he prayed, did he get up off his knees and hug his family and others who aided in his rescue. There's a man who has his priorities in order.

I also loved watching the rescue of miner #20, Dario Segovia. His rescue was typical of all the previous miners, but his wife was what made his rescue unique. As her husband reached the surface, she didn't was the rescuers to immediately open the door... she wanted to take pictures! I can totally see myself being like that lady... pictures first!

It was interesting to see Chile display national pride. It was as if it took this accident and Chile solving the problem and successfully bring all the miners out of the mine to realize that they are a valid country. Their president actually said, "I think Chile is more unified and stronger than ever and more respected and valued in the world." They developed pride in themselves. Good Job, Chile!

Sick

Miles' birthday went out with a bang! He's been my healthiest child, so far; no ear infections yet and nothing worse than a cold... until last night. Miles asked to go to bed at 8:30 last night. That was unheard of! Of course I let him go to bed and he slept great until around 11 p.m. He started getting restless and squirmy. He would curl up in a ball, then stretch out. He was moving his head from side to side and just couldn't settle down. Suddenly, he sat up and threw up on my bed. He cried and cried, and threw up again and again. I cleaned him up, changed his pajamas, gave him a drink, gave him snuggles, changed my sheets, and put him back to bed. He went right back to sleep, for about 15 minutes. He woke up again and threw up all over my bed and me this time. I cleaned him up, cleaned out my hair, changed my sheets again, cleaned up the carpet, gave him snuggles, and put him back to bed,and went and got a bowl. Miles slept great for ten more minutes. Then he sat up, I grabbed the bowl, he threw up in the bowl. I dumped the bowl, washed his mouth out, gave him snuggles, and put him back to bed, where he stayed until well after 9 a.m. today. Poor little guy. He isn't eating or drinking much today. He lifted up his shirt and touched his tummy and told me "ouch". He's very clingy today and wants to be held a lot. About an hour ago, he climbed up into my lap and let me hold him while he fell asleep.

The Birthday Party

Miles had an early birthday party this year. While he was a little more interested in presents and birthday stuff than he was last year, he still doesn't grasp the birthday concept. He got 4 presents from us this year. He was interested in ripping off the wrapping paper this year, but once he opened his first gift and saw what was inside, he was satisfied and done with presents. It was "love at first sight" with Mr. Potato Head! Amy came to the party and brought Miles a gift too! He got Toy Story Mac & Cheese! He even gnawed through one of the boxes. I made Miles Cookie Monster cupcakes this year. He likes cake. He likes fire. I thought he'd like fire on his cupcake. Nope! The candles scared him and he wouldn't touch his cupcake even after the flames were blown out.
When Miles turned one, Nolan gave him a box of tissues to pull out of the box. This year, Nolan gave Miles another box of tissues... evidently that's a great gift for a two-year-old as well. Happy Birthday Miles!

Evidently, Mr. Potato Head is fun for everyone!!!

Jonathan has his "angry eyes" in!

Look Who is 2!

Yesterday was Miles' birthday. He is now officially 2 and now when he acts up I can roll my eyes and tell everybody that "he's acting his age". While yesterday was technically Miles' birthday, we celebrated his birthday last Tuesday because someone had to be out of town on Miles' big day. So, here's how Miles spent his "official" birthday... marching band competition, Home Depot, Sweet Tomatoes for lunch, a trip to Target, drop off at a lacrosse game, a trip back to the marching band competition to meet up with Aly, then back to the lacrosse game, a short nap through half the game, a drive back home, sat in a traffic jam, 3 mini cupcakes devoured, a bath followed by an early bed time. What a day. He did get to play outside a lot though and he did eat frozen fish sticks for breakfast.

Shopping With Miles

Shopping with an almost-2-year-old is always an adventure. Today was errands days. Miles loves the bank because he gets a lollipop there. He likes the post office because the lobby has a big open place that is great for running around in circles. Also, it has a noisy floor that echos when Miles stomps his sandals on it. Miles likes Kohls because their carts have a stroller attached to the front. I went to Kohls to buy some "unmentionables". I drove the cart and Miles into the dressing room and was trying on the "unmentionables". Miles was getting restless. My cell phone had lost it's magic powers. He wanted to hold my shirt. I handed it over to him. Then he started demanding, "I go! I go!". I said "fine, but give me back my shirt". That was not part of his plan. I had to forcefully take my shirt back which started a major tantrum. He wanted my shirt, but I felt it was more important for me to have my shirt at that moment. Obviously, I won, but Miles didn't go down without a fight. Well, Miles' hair has grown back to shaggy, tangly length, so I decided that since he was throwing such a fit, it would be a good time for him to get a haircut. We drove over to the kids salon and he continued his tantrum while getting a haircut (even though he was sitting in the airplane chair, with a lollipop, and watching Finding Nemo). Haircut, done! One more stop to go. I had to go to Walmart for gamma lids and compact florescent flood lightbulbs. Miles wanted to see the fish, and only the fish. He started up his tantrum again as I was putting the lids in the cart. Then I went over to get bananas, and then he really started. Miles got out of the cart. He checked out the fish. He visited the crabs. He told everything good-bye and happily got back into the cart. We headed over to the lightbulbs via the Halloween costume aisle. He saw a Buzz Lightyear costume and started screaming for it. I continued on without stopping. He wailed while I got light bulbs. He wailed while I looked for a picture frame. Finally, I let him out of the cart to go see if he could find what he wanted. He ran down an aisle to the front of the store and then started howling again because he didn't know which way the costumes were. I took him over to the costumes, but then he wasn't interested in the costumes. Now he wanted a ball. I handed him the ball, but he told me "All done! All done!" and the tantrum started again. At that point I just wanted out of the store. We found an empty checkout line, rushed through and left the store. Ugh! No fun for either of us!

Pumpkin Harvest

We have pumpkins! Nolan and I harvested all the orange pumpkins. We left 3 greenies on the vines and are hoping that they will have time to ripen before it freezes. If not, we'll harvest them while they are green and have green jack-o-lanterns. Nolan's biggest pumpkin weighed a measly 21 pounds, but it's the prettiest orange color ever! We picked 15 pumpkins so far (and gave 2 of the baby pumpkins away). Yea for Nolan's organic pumpkin crop!