Pool party

Today was Miss J's 2nd birthday party and she invited the whole gang to a hotel pool party. We've been to pool parties before, but this was at a newer hotel and the pool was great for kids. Zero depth entrance, a showering mushroom thing, the fountains coming out of the ground -- all the great stuff my kids love! The timing was a bit crappy (1-4 p.m. on the day after Daylight Saving Time when I think my kids woke up at 4:30 a.m.), but we still had fun and are even contemplating having Nick's party there next month!

After the obligatory cake and presents we hit the pool. It was pretty crowded with just our crew, but still a lot of fun. Nick was kind of timid at first, but eventually ended up having lots of fun. He accidentally went under once -- tried to slide off the edge of the pool and lost his grip -- but it didn't stop him from trying again. Zander, on the other hand, was fearless from the moment he stepped in the water. He was running, falling under, getting up, wiping off and doing it all over. Then he went to the deep end and repeatedly jumped off the edge (into my waiting arms, of course)!

The birthday girl!


It took a little while, but Nick finally got his face wet!








Everyone always says watch out for the baby -- and they should -- because he will get you!

Happy Halloween!

What a busy day it has been. Mike finished a 10-mile run this morning while I scrubbed the kitchen and watched the boys. Then he came home and worked on the bathroom (the trim is almost done -- yeah!!!). We ran over to my mom's house with the boys in the costumes after naptime, then it was dinner and trick-or-treating. We weren't out very long, but the boys had a blast. I was so proud of Nick, he actually said trick-or-treat and thank you at every house (he is usually painfully shy). Zander was hamming it up, and since he can't talk much he was doing tricks for his treats, jumping around, waving at everyone and just being generally cute. We made it around our block and the curve, then Zander I am came home. Just a few seconds later Nick showed up. He said he was getting cold and tired and he wanted to help pass out candy, which was fine by me since he can't eat most of the candy anyway (peanut allergy). Unfortunately, I think we had missed most of the kids while we were out walking so he didn't get to pass out much and I have about 4 bags left!!!

The best part about this Halloween -- I didn't have a to spend a penny on the costumes. Nick wore a dress-up police uniform to my mom's house and then decided he wanted to be the fireman for trick-or-treating (another dress-up outfit we bought last year, and his last year's Halloween costume). Zander wore the same octopus costume Nick wore when he was 11 months. It was a little big on Nick and almost too small for Zander, but still so cute.

Locking up daddy!






I know he doesn't look all that happy, but I think the costume is adorable!!

Pumpkin carving

Every year I say I am going to carve pumpkins right after we get them. Every year I have to scramble to make time to get it done. This year was no different. We were going to carve pumpkins last weekend, but got busy playing outside and then Mike was working on the bathroom. So, I figured we could do it this week. Then I had meetings and other evening work obligations that kept us from the fun. So finally, tonight, I cancelled out on my volleyball team and finally got the pumpkins carved.

My boys are such little girls. Neither one of them wanted to touch the pumpkin guts. A few times Nick would then he would freak out and fling his hands trying to get it off. He only wanted the "beans" (the seeds). And Zander wouldn't touch it at all. I don't think he stuck his hand inside the pumpkin once. I have a picture of him with a seed on his belly but that's just because Mike threw it there. Oh well, I guess I should be happy they aren't trying to have goo fights in my kitchen!


See. Do you see that look on his face?


And his?




Nick thought he was so smart for putting that pumpkin inside the other one. And, yes, our pumpkin has three eyes, a nose and lots of teeth (that big bunch of orange in the middle is teeth). That is what Nick wanted, so that is what Nick got.


And here is my obligatory pic with the boys this week. I am three weeks in and haven't given up yet. I do believe it is a miracle. I have just doubled the number of pictures I have with my kids.

His new obsession

For the last few months Mike has turned into a running fool. He wakes up early to get in a run before work and then goes for long runs every Saturday morning. He ran his first 5K this fall and has run two since then, bettering his time on each try. Though he has no intentions of running anything more than a 10K I think he should train for at least a halft marathon (I tell him this as I wave goodbye from the couch, still in my PJs and thinking about what I am going to eat for breakfast).

So far, this hobby has not only kept him happy (he loves coming home to tell me about his new route or his new time), but it is also getting him healthier. He has lost about 40 pounds (losing his gall bladder earlier this year kick started that effort) and I couldn't be more proud.

My friend M is also a runner. She does marathons. Regularly. And though Mike isn't to that point yet he oftens asks me to ask her questions about running gear or tips or just wants me to brag on his latest feat. And she is always a huge cheerleader. Last week she passed along some new stuff for Mike to try. She said the "completely legal" over the counter gel had resulted in several negative splits for her (the second half of her run was faster than the first). She usually takes these on uber-long runs (like 16 miles), but said Mike would probably see the difference in just an 8 mile run. So he downed one before his run this weekend. Though he isn't completely sold on the Gu (really, that's its name), he did knock 2 minutes off his usual time, which is pretty darn good. What impressed him more though, was that M managed to down one of these packets while running. He did it in the kitchen before his run and it took him a little while to get the whole thing down. And there were a few funny looks as he did. We'll see how the second one goes.

Little Man Z

I've said it a million times before and so I'm guessing one more time won't hurt --- I really hate taking posed pictures of my own kids. They just don't cooperate. I finally got around to putting away the picture stuff in three-season porch (well, kind of) and I figured I would try and drag the kids out there for one more impromptu photo session before it gets too cold out there. I tried bribing Zander with smarties, and it worked for a minute. Then, he was off. I did manage to get at least a few to update my wall (YEAH!). So, here they are. Enjoy.

Oh, and I will have lots more pictures in the hours/days to come. I took a lot of pictures this weekend, but am not sure when time will allow me to get them up this week. It's going to be a crazy one -- and I am praying that it isn't worsened by all of us coming down with whatever has been going around.

Decisions, decisions

I wish there were really some decisions to make, but Nick doesn't exactly cooperate for photos anymore (not even for bribes). So, these few pictures are all I have to offer for his 4-year pictures.

Learning to love fall leaves

I love looking at fall leaves --- in someone else's yard. I can't stand raking leaves. Usually it is a Mike job, but since the weekend weather has been crappy and we have been busy I figured I could take the one semi nice afternoon to rake the leaves with the boys. You know, raking isn't so bad when you get to stop for a little while and play in the leaves. The boys had a blast throwing them on each other and me. And I had so much fun chasing them around with a handful of leaves of my own!

Of course, I had to grab the camera for at least a few pictures. I've got some of Nick every year playing out in a big pile and I figured this might be our only chance. While we were out playing and snappin pictures my neighbor walked by after checking in on her mother-in-law and offered to snap a few shots of me with the boys. I started to turn her down and then thought, WHY? Why would I turn down that offer? She made the same comment that every mom I know makes "If I died tomorrow my kids wouldn't even remember what I look like. I am not in any pictures." So I gladly handed over the camera. Unfortunately, Nick ran off to play at that exact moment so she only got a few shots of me with Zander, but I take what I can get! Besides, later Nick came and cuddled for a minute so I could get a famous arms-out-in-front snapshot --- and I love it!







Yeah, the boys were running at me to attack me with a handful of leaves.