Happy Halloween!

Scott and I were so excited to take Audrey Trick-or-Treating tonight.  We weren't sure how she would like it but we figured once she realized there was candy involved she would be VERY into it (She takes after her mother - legend has it when I was about Audrey's age I went Trick-or-Treating and when I realized candy was involved my favorite word was "more!").

Audrey and I practiced at Mrs. Julia's house where Audrey enjoyed her first treat of the night (m&m's).

Mrs. Julia's

Then Audrey and I headed to a friends house for a second try, where Audrey got her second treat (Snickers).  She began to catch on, that when you say "Trick-or-Treat" people hand you candy.

When we got home I was still decked out in my school Halloween garb so we grabbed a few pics and then headed inside to eat some pizza before it was time for the big show!

After pizza we decided to head out, thinking we would just hit the neighbors and a few extra houses.  We left a bowl of candy with a note on the doorstep and headed on our Halloween adventure.  Our little ladybug lasted not just through the neighbor's houses but around the block.  She thought Halloween was amazing.  She DEMANDED to carry her own pumpkin, even though it became very heavy due to the candy she was collecting on her journey.  There's just something about a tiny ladybug who is able to say "Trick-or-Treat" that makes people give out handfuls of candy (not that I"m complaining.  It was the good stuff!).  When we were almost finished with the block the fun went from awesome to nightmare and we carried our tired ladybug home.  Once inside Audrey got to pick her third treat (a sucker) and then her last and final hurrah (Halloween pretzels).  Last year she had zero concept of what was happening, and so Scott and I enjoyed an early feast of the few pieces of candy we had collected.  This year Audrey was guarding her stash like a professional!  It's a good thing that she can't count because now that she is out like a light we are going to have ourselves a feast of candy and some wine.

As much as I have a distaste for Halloween I had a very nice day. The Halloween party at school was a great success, the kids costumes were awesome, and I was so proud of peanut. 

Here are some cute Audrey quotes that I hope I never forget as she ages through the years.

Her little voice saying "Trick-or-Treat" was just precious.  Each "Trick-or-Treat" was followed by a "Thank you" and sometimes was accompanied by a "come here" or a "doggy barking" or "KITTY!".

At one house we asked Audrey to say "Thank you" and she said "YUMMY" as she stuffed the candy she just picked up into her mouth (this was a favorite Halloween activity.  Carry the candy around in the wrappers as she went from house to house.  It's a sure-fire way no one else will eat the candy we collected tonight because it comes with teeth marks when you unwrap it.  A genius plan I will encourage as she gets older"

There were a few houses that must have looked interesting because Audrey invited herself in for a look around before we could get a hold of her (she's very crafty).  Good thing she was adorable in her costume.  People kept eating her up.  

Phew!  Now, it's time to unwind, relax, and chow down on some delicious chocolate treats! 

Happy Halloween everyone!

Err... Halloween?

Hangin' with Dad

Halloween has never been my favorite holiday, and to be honest, I could even go as far as to say I do NOT like Halloween.  I think the kids in costumes are precious but I, myself, have never found joy dressing up.  It's not that I have anything against costumes.  Those that know me or have seen any pictures on Facebook know that I have made an outfit to wear for almost every holiday, and, LUCKY FOR AUDREY, I usually make her one to match.  It's that come October my mind is always focused on my FAVORITE holiday, Christmas, and I can't justify spending the money on an actual good costume and I am terrible at finding ways to create my own (probably because I put Halloween off my radar for as long as possible).  It might come as a complete shock how much I dislike Halloween since it does revolve around one of my favorite things in life.... CANDY!  Here are a few reasons why Halloween has become my least favorite holiday during the holiday season.

1. Halloween is the first holiday we celebrate at school and it revolves around candy, staying up late, and getting 20 + kids in a costume.  The first holiday party is always a stress because it sets the tone for the rest of the year's holiday parties.  A well behaved and respectful class can turn from good to terrible in the blink of an eye when sweets are involved.  Plus, everyone is suguared up and tired for the rest of the week, including the teachers, which is recipe for disaster!  The upside is that the students usually bring me CANDY the next day and their costumes are a hoot! 

2. For 350 days of the school year I can have a candy bowl full of sweets and restrain myself.  I eat candy here and there but it's never a big deal.  For the two weeks leading up the Halloween self-control goes out the window and I eat more candy than I care to admit.  This means that all the exercise I do during the week goes completely to waste since it's not possible to burn the calories I consume in a day.  This, combined with having to run on the treadmill because of the shorter days, means the waste bands in my pants always get a little snug.

3. When I was pregnant with Audrey I dressed up as a rock (Second Grade Rocks! of course).  In the middle of the party I thought I was going to pass out from heat exhaustion and ripped that costume off.  Now I associate dressing up with heat stroke!

4. In college I volunteered for a girl scout troupe and they had a Halloween party in the woods.  Everyone was supposed to wear costumes, SO I THOUGHT, but turns out I was the only on in a costume, in the woods, with people I had never met before.  So I was that person.  The creeper in a costume.  To top it off I got lost finding my way home from said party in the woods and ended up at a dead end  at a trailer park next to a VERY big and not so friendly looking dog.  I called my friends (who were having an actual fun Halloween party, sans-costumes) and they had to direct me home (this was before GPS...I know, shocking right?)  They had to use and actual MAP, and they had partaken in a few beverages so getting home proved to be a big adventure. 

This year our family has had the opportunity to attend some Halloween parties.  We went to a party at the school and a party at a friends house.  And though it pains me to say this, I was actually looking forward to both parties.  I love to go to activities at school and seeing the kids and their families having a good time.  It's so fun to see them outside of a classroom in a fun environment.  Audrey had SO much fun just running around feeling like she was one of the big kids.  She loves her costume and she loves just being around other kids.

We also went to a party at a friends house with some of the other Range View babies.  They looked ADORABLE in their Halloween garb and I always enjoy seeing my friends outside of our working environment. 

So, when all is said and done, having a little girl in a ladybug costume has removed my bah-humbug feelings about Halloween and replaced them with feelings of anticipation and enjoyment!  I'm still counting the days till Christmas, and will probably not be the first to dress up in an amazing costume (as a side note, I've NEVER seen Scott in a costume.  Seems we have had an unspoken bond all this time and I never realized it!), but I will still look forward to seeing the kids in their costumes, I will still eat my weight in candy, and I will love watching Audrey say "Trick-or-Treat" and helping her pick out the candy I want to gorge myself with after she goes to bed.

Notice my costume - I'm a cow girl. 

P.S.  Don't let my inability to find a good costume ruin your fun.  I love seeing how creative others can be and find lots of enjoyment seeing other people enjoying the holiday. 

Cookies!

Tonight we made Halloween cookies for the neighbors.  My New Years Resolution for 2012 was to try and follow the directions and rules when making dinner/a new project and tonight I can happily say the tally  is:

1 for following directions
2,392,390,839 for flying by the seat of my pants.

Getting Ready to Decorate

I started yesterday with a sugar cookie recipe developed for high altitude.  This recipe makes the most delicious sugar cookies (when you follow directions...WHICH I DID!).  I prepared the dough, refrigerated it, and was ready to cut/bake/decorate today.

Found this one on the plate... Someone snacked a little early...

I originally planned this activity because I thought Scott was going to work from home all day and I knew it was something Audrey and I could do in stages.  Lucky for us Scotty had more time, so it became a family affair! 


Of all the baking activities that happen in our house (rarely) this is one of the messier ones.  It was messy making the dough.  It was messy rolling out the dough and cutting the cookies.  It was messy icing the cookies and it was definitely messing adding some love with sprinkles. 

She's Got the Technique!

Which One did Audrey Decorate?

Those of you who know my husband know he is less than thrilled with mess.  It was so sweet to see how much he really enjoyed making the mess with Audrey.  I can proudly say we made all of these messes and are both still speaking and sitting next to each other on the couch. 

Happy to Decorate!

A "Before" Picture

I was very proud of my direction-following-delicious-tasting cookies I couldn't wait to show them off...THEN...I tripped on the blanket and everything went South.  We had made it through an entire decorating session without letting the toddler goo everything up and then WHAMO!  Smooshed cookies.  Luckily they still taste great, they just now look like a real Halloween scary scene.




Happy Halloween!

Buddies!

Not pictured - The Sadler boys.  When you have an older brother picking pumpkins takes priority over taking pictures with babies.  We captured the precious Sadler boys on Facebook.  Be sure to check out our album!

Our three-year-old elementary school has been blessed with 17 babies since we opened our doors.  That's a lot of maternity subs, a lot of maternity clothes, and a lot of hormones floating around one confined space.  Not only have we grown 17 of our own but we continue to welcome new friends into the community as they move their families to Northern Colorado.  Growing up I was also a part of a baby boom from teachers at the high school where my mom worked.  Some of my greatest friendships were born out of our parents decision to simultaneously start their families.   My hope for these babies of Range View is that they too will grow up making life-long friendships.

Today, some of these precious babies got together at the pumpkin patch.  We had two walkers and three sitters, and a beautiful day to play and have a good time.  Audrey was baby number 3 of the 17.  My friend Kimberly had baby number 1 and baby number 16 (and they are only 2 years apart).  Audrey speaks of these friends as her "buddies" and we sing about them almost every night before bed.  Nothing is more motivating to my strong-willed toddler than getting together with her buddies. 

Not only is Audrey a lucky lady but I consider myself a pretty lucky gal as well.  With each of these 17 babies comes an awesome family.  I've made some great friends and really enjoy the time we spend chatting and laughing about our little growing families.  When I came back to work after maternity leave I came back to a wonderful support system and when I'm teaching after a sleep-deprived night I know I'm not alone, and that's comforting.  

So, thank you friends, both present at the pumpkin patch and those who were missed, for having such wonderful babies and families.  I count my blessings to have found such a wonderful little community.  

Bad Back

We all know my back is the most unreliable part of my body, and last week the back monster struck again.  Usually I can pinpoint an action or activity that leads up to my back giving out on me but this time it caught me completely by surprise.  One day it was a little sore and the next day I was in bed.  The last time my back went out was in the spring and Audrey was 4 months younger and probably only ounces lighter (she is so petite!).  The difference in 4 months has been amazing.  Last time my back went out I relied heavily on my friends and family to help me with Audrey.  Scott was out of town and I couldn't get her in or out of the car/high chair/crib for a few days.  This time Scott has been home and he's a champ, and Audrey can do so much more!  She climbs into her car seat and she climbs up in her high chair (which is actually one of my least favorite toddler activities - I would compare it to some spider-monkey-like actions).  The thing that is the most miserable about having no back is not being able to participate in all the fun that goes on around here!  Yesterday and today I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, and let's hope it's a very loong tunnel before I'm flattened again!

One thing that's also been fun is I've had a little helper while doing my back exercises.  It is quite disheartening to see her flexibility when I'm looking like a 90-year-old grandma.

 Audrey likes the back exercises so much we do them repeatedly (mostly at bedtime when she's procrastinating...).

Audrey is the last toddler I know to be getting her molars.  She's almost 21 months old and just now getting the chompers she needs to eat people food.  This means she's also needing some Ibuprophin.  Today, when I got home I went into the bathroom to grab the bottle and give her a dose.  I must not have put the lid on tightly last night in my 2 am stupor because when I went to shake it up the meds went EVERYWHERE.  In the toilet, on the floor, and alllll over Audrey.  The good news was after wiping her off the meds acted like hair gel and we were able to get some amazing hair do's out of it!

I think my girl has grown up over night.  She really takes me by surprise sometimes.  Tonight I was in the kitchen and she wanted me to turn on her CD player in her bed room.  She came into the kitchen, said "Mom!" and got behind me.  She grabbed the back of my pants and pushed me into her room, right up to the cd player where she pointed.  She's a go getter!  Then, tonight at bedtime when we were singing our songs she sang with me through twinkle twinkle and the ABC's.  Nothing is sweeter than singing and snuggling hearing a little pip-squeak voice singing along without really knowing the words.

And! Tomorrow is Friday!

"I Wear My...

Sunglasses at night so I can see the light before my eyes..."  - Corey Hart (No, I didn't know that by heart (thank goodness) I used Google, and no, not the cool Corey Hart who is married to Pink... this guy.... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corey_Hart_%28singer%29). 

I think Corey Hart had a toddler when he wrote this song.  Only a toddler ACTUALLY wears their sunglasses at night.  It only makes sense when she comes from such a stylish family to make such a fashion statement on our way to get some "FroYo" as the kids say these days...

This song always makes me laugh because it was featured on Vh1 (remember that channel...?) during their Awesomely Bad series.  That show made an impact on my relationship with Scott because before and during each of the songs, as different trivia statements were made, a graphic of a pained face appeared with an awesome sound bite.  Scott and I frequently make these faces and sound bites around the house at various times during the day...

Cup turned over and filled with water in the dishwasher?  ARGH!
Stubbed my toe on the closet door but it didn't really hurt that bad?  BAHLRG
Got all the way in the car but left your cell phone inside?  BLAAH

Vh1 has long forgotten their awesomely bad list of songs, and will never know that their legacy lives on.  And now, I can proudly say, we continue the legend for a whole new generation.

You wear those sunglasses at night Audrey.  It is totally Awesomely Bad.

Pancake Sunday

 

At our house, we like to celebrate Sunday with pancakes.  We buy the King Size Bisquick from SAMS and make a batch every Sunday.  This is a tradition I talked about when Audrey was first born and couldn't even gum a pancake.  I figured pancakes were a safe tradition to start because you can ALWAYS find a pancake, even if it's from McDonald's, no matter where you are.

Audrey has learned a love for "SYRUUUUUUUP!"  As you can see, she is finished with this pancake and there are three chipmunk bites missing and a happy girl licking the syrup off her fingers.  She and her dad are the syrup eaters.  Today Scott had to miss the pancake festivities because of work.  I thought perhaps Audrey would not notice the lack of syrup since it wasn't on the table but I no sooner sat down than I heard the word bellowed from her high chair.

I love having pancake Sundays.  I love that in our counter top storage containers we have flour, sugar, powdered sugar and chocolate chips (for pancakes of course!).  I hope Audrey likes pancakes as she gets older.  It would be a complete bust to create a tradition only to find that she likes fruit and yogurt parfaits.

I meant what I said about posting 3-4 times a week, but last Sunday I threw my back out and am just now getting back to speed.  It seems like it's taken forever to be able to get up and down without strategery, and i'm itching for a run.  I'm forcing myself to wait until Wednesday for a run, since walking the aisles of Target pose a challenge after a few minutes. 

In other news I co-hosted a baby shower for my dear friend who has a brand new baby girl.  It was so much fun getting together outside of school.  My friend is now on maternity leave until January.  I die a little on the inside every time I think about the wonderfulness of maternity leave and summer vacation.  I know with maternity leave comes the sleepless nights and never ending schedule changes of an infant but it is also the most precious time!  It would be perfect to have maternity leave every school year, if it didn't mean more babies and daycare expenses! 

 

That's all for tonight :)  Gotta get up and stretch my back - I've gotten tips from watching the cranky old man who walks on the SIDEWALK in the morning as I leave for work and waves his arms and yells something indeterminable, cursing me for having the nerve to drive through my neighborhood.  Hey - he's got style!