Halloween 2009

Cutest owl I've ever seen.

I'm not a big Halloween fan, but having little kids makes it a lot more fun. The kids went to a Halloween party in the afternoon and then trick or treated with a friend and my parents that night. Tatum cracked me up with her reaction to the "scary" homes. One home had a man wearing an awful mask sitting on the walkway. Tatum refused go anywhere near him, and kept her eyes on him the entire time as we passed the house. Her eyes never left him. My kids collected 7 pounds of candy between the two of them. And we only hit 2 streets! I gave them the option of keeping it or picking out 20 pieces each and getting rid of the rest for a toy. They chose the toy option. I know I should get rid of it all so I don't eat it, but I so want to keep it. I have absolutely no self control when it comes to candy in the house. Ryan chose a Star Wars dart gun and Tatum chose a hot pink feather boa.

Look who found the candy!

I'm Losing It

I'm a pretty organized person and have always felt I've been able to juggle all of my responsibilities pretty easily. I'm Queen of the list and have one with me almost every day. And yes, I cross off as I go. Makes me feel like I'm accomplishing and in control of my day.

I told Scott this week that lately, I've felt like I'm forgetting things. My days are more rushed, things are done hastily, and I feel like I'm always a step behind. I'm now the mom forgetting Ryan's library book, arriving late for Tatum's field trip, forgetting that Ryan has soccer practice, on and on. But today, I did something I've never done before, but shows that my mind is not always with me. I was sorting the dirty clothes from the hamper to wash, and found my lunch garbage mixed in with the clothes. I threw my garbage in the clothes hamper. I'm definitely losing it.

Hello Kitty Is Here To Stay

She finally did it. And has continued to do it for a week now. So, I'm officially certifying that Tatum is POTTY TRAINED!!! WOOOOO HOOOOO! I never thought it would take this long, but it's done. Two down, one to go, and then I will never have to enter the potty training world again. I'm telling you. There is money to be made with a potty training business.

Tatum's First Day of Preschool

Tatum was so excited for preschool to begin. She told me in the car on the way there, "Mommy, I'm so excited. I'm going to make new friends and play dolls with girls." I was a bit hesitant how she would react because she's pretty shy until she gets to know you and that takes quite a while. When I left her at VBS this summer, she had tears in her eyes and didn't want me to go the first 2 days. So, I thought we might have problems with her not wanting me to leave. But, she did great. A little girl next to her started to cry when her mom left, and I told Tatum she was sad because her mom left. Tatum said "I'm not going to cry." I stayed for about 20 minutes, and then I told her I was going to leave and pick her up later. She gave me a kiss on the cheek and told me goodbye. When I picked her up, she was all smiles and told me all about her day. She didn't play with any girls, but she played with Ms. Rosa in the sandbox, sang songs, and read a story about a kangaroo. She had a great time, and I was so proud of her. Also, can I tell you how much I enjoy hearing about her day. Those with boys know the drill. You get NO information. All I got throughout preschool and kindergarten to every question I asked, "I can't remember."

Rock And Roll At The Brown House

Ryan was sick last night with a fever and vomiting so he stayed home from school today. In his boredom he created his set of drums. I especially like the soccer ball on the rainboot and the bucket on the end of the broom for his cymbal. I'm sure my neighbors loved the banging of the beaters.


Newest pictures of Luke.

Look at that head of hair!

First Day of School

Ryan started the first grade on Tuesday. Hallelujah! This summer was rough with Ryan and Tatum, so I was more than ready for school to start. Ryan was just as ready and has had a great 2 days so far. When I picked him up the first day I asked how it went, and the first thing he said was that he got 4 recesses. I thought lunch in the cafeteria would be a big deal, but not so much. However he did notice that the school lunches had chocolate milk. He was quite impressed with the menu - corn dogs and chocolate milk. Great. Tatum is quite liking Ryan gone. I thought she would miss him since they were inseparable this summer. But not yet. I think she's enjoying not being tormented by her older brother.

Pajaro Dunes

 

Got back from Pajaro Dunes on Sunday. Another good vacation. But when is a vacation not good? The kids had fun at the beach despite the cold and windy weather. Did the treasure hunts again, but this time we added a metal detector for fun. The beach was so clean that I had to drop some money of my own to keep Ryan's interest in finding treasure. When he found the money he told Scott he couldn't believe that people would let money fall out of their pockets. Lots of games were played. Ryan learned how to play checkers and beat Scott and my dad at Monopoly. The week was filled with a whole lot of nothing which suited us fine.