Trick or Treat

Ryan had a hard time choosing what he wanted to be for Halloween. His first thought was that he and Jack should be bananas because he had seen the costume in a catalog and in his words, it, "cracked him up." Over the course of a few days, he repeatedly went back to the catalog, looked at the picture, and laughed. Next, he thought he should be a monkey, but Jack should still be a banana. One Saturday, Uncle Royce took him to a car show, which marked a turning point in costume picking. He decided to become a race car driver. We looked for a costume at Target, but to no avail. I finally found his costume on Amazon. I then asked him what he thought Jack should be if he was going to be a race car driver. He was thoughtful and quiet for a moment, then said, "he should be a stop sign... no... a stoplight." I thought it was so clever and realized this was something I could make. A little felt, cut a few circles, and voila! A Halloween costume.

This was Ryan the morning of his costume party at preschool

This picture shows how much Jack adores and studies Ryan. I love it.

A great smile on my little stoplight

Aunt Julie got into the Halloween festivities and dressed up as a cat while she passed out candy. Her costume was really cute. Check out her blog for her other and more hilarious costume.

Since we trick or treated out in my parents neighborhood, we had to go by car and load and unload in car seats each time, which was quite tiring in the end. Maybe next year we'll walk a neighborhood instead. All in all, we had a good time.

Jack - 4 months old

Jack had his 4 month visit this week and Ryan had his 3 year check up. Dr. Shah's office was kind enough to schedule them at the same time. Phil had taken the afternoon off because Doug and Vanessa were here. As I was getting ready to leave, Phil volunteered to come with me. I said, "sure," and I was so thankful I did. Trying to wrangle a baby and a preschooler is no easy task. Unbeknownst to me, Ryan had to pee in a cup. I gave Phil this task as I undressed Jack to be weighed and measured. Upon weighing and measuring Jack, my suspisions that Jack had become a much bigger boy were confirmed.

• Jack weighs 16lbs. 11 0z.
• He is 26 3/4 inches long (Ryan was this big at 6 months)
• He is rolling all over the place
• He smiles and "talks" all the time
• He can make his hands grab more of the things he wants
• He sucks his 2 middle fingers constantly so it looks like he is making the "I love you" sign with his hands
• He holds onto his bottles or my hand that is holding the bottles in case I may try to take his food away.
• He giggles
• The person he responds to the most is Ryan. If Ryan gets out of Jacks line of vision, he gets upset
• Ryan taught Jack to squeal. Heaven help my poor ears
• Jack likes to scoot his walker backwards and when he backs up against something, he lets me know
• I don't think Jack has any idea that he is only 4 months old because he is trying to catch up with his brother. I think he'll be up and moving before I'm ready for it.

I am sure enjoying being mom to my two little (big) guys.

What a Week!

We've had quite a busy week around here. Doug and Vanessa arrived last Thursday and we had a blast hanging out with them. We did a lot of great cooking and eating. I can only think of one other time when I've had so many pots and pans out at one time, but it was worth it.

Ryan thoroughly enjoyed his aunt and uncle and acted like he had acquired a new toy for the week. (Ryan was in the trash because he couldn't find his stool to wash his hands and thought the trash would give him a boost.) Jack had a lot of smiles so I think he enjoyed it too.

During this visit, we also started the remodel on the nursery at church. I'm happy we started it, but after about 5 hours of work, we still haven't even finished the primer. I'm hoping to get it finished soon, but coordinating everyone's schedules is proving to be a daunting task. I can't wait to see the outcome and hopefully I'll have pictures soon.

My teaching partner started her maternity leave this week so that means I am going to be full time again until Christmas. My days went well this week, but I'm feeling the stress of parent conferences coming up and report cards. I have enjoyed sharing these responsibilities so much and it is weird to have to tackle them by myself again. I will certainly miss my partner during this time.

Today was supposed to be another work day on the nursery, but there were too many conflicts. Instead, I'm relaxing in a quiet house with my cup of coffee. I'm thankful for this moment.

It's Finished!

I finished my bag and I made a diaper clutch to go with it. I'm very happy with the finished product.

New Season and a New Project

As summer shifts into fall, I am also beginning a shift to a new season. I should be able to drop my last feeding with Jack this week and will be "unattached" to my little baby. I will also be returning to work full time sometime before the end of the month. I am trying to get myself back together mentally and have not had a great week because of a negative reaction to my medication. I am hopeful and optimistic that the coming week will be better and I will yet again be me.

In light of this new season, I thought a new bag would be in order. I used some of my birthday money at Strawberry Patches and began designing a pattern last week. Today I cut it out, basted all the interfacings, and sewed the outside together. I can't wait to see the finished product, but here is a taste of things to come.

Here is my messy room in "Project Mode."

Lastly, Kate visited last week and brought Jack this cute little hat that she knitted for him. I love it and can't wait until it's cool enough for him to wear it.