An October Full of FUN!

Last year (or was it the year before?), we began a new tradition of making Halloween shirts.  Each child makes his/her own, excepting for the babies, who needed a little help.  Nicole made Shari's, and I made Max's, but from an idea of Nicole's.  The kids have loved wearing their shirts all month.

Scotty is a friend to everyone, and he has a special love for babies.  He treats them as equals.  He talks to them, shares toys with them, and can't wait for them to play trains (or whatever else he is doing) with him.  He likes to take a bath with Shari because they have a little game where he dumps a bucket of water on Shari's head, and then they both laugh hysterically. 

For my birthday this year, Clint happened to have the day off (A Monday! Imagine our luck!).  He asked me what I wanted to do, and I really wanted to take the kids to a U-Pick pumpkin patch, since we were unable to grow our own.  We need to quit moving in the middle of the summer so that we can plant a garden.  Anyway, it was a fun outing.

Here are the sisters on the hayride.

And the boys ...  Scotty, naturally, loved this part. 

Since it was a weekday, there was hardly anyone else there, and we had most of the place to ourselves.

Shari and Daddy (who doesn't often make it for our field trips around town).

And Grandma (who makes it even less frequently than Daddy) and Max (who slept through most of it).

Scotty thought it would be cool to select a green pumpkin.  It was cute, but he accidentally broke the top off of it the next day.  He tried to glue it on, which worked temporarily, but it soon started to rot.  So I let him have our large family pumpkin that we had purchased a week earlier.  More on that later.

I told the kids they could have any pumpkin they could carry back to the wagon.  Nicole found a way to outsmart the system, and she shared her secret with Grant: ROLL the pumpkin instead of carry it!

They all made it back to the wagon one way or another, and Grant, like usual, managed to find something extra to bring home.  In this case, it was an ear of dried corn from the cornfield.

Nicole enjoying the ride back.

There's no way Shari could have lifted that pumpkin.  Even after it was hollowed out, I could barely lift it!  She just likes to be in the middle of everything, and then she's happy.

Here is Scotty with the big pumpkin.  Nicole and Grant were jealous until they saw how much extra work it was to carve a larger pumpkin.  Lesson learned.

Nicole and Grant doing the dirty work.  Our carving kit said to cut out the bottom instead of the top.  I have never seen that done before.  Now that our pumpkins have been sitting on the front porch through a hurricane, I see the wisdom.  Scotty, who insisted that his pumpkin have a "hat," has a jack-o-lantern with a foot of water inside.  Nicole's and Grant's pumpkins look almost as good as the day they were carved.

When we lived in Spokane, they had record snowfall; it was their worst winter ever on record!  Now in Pittsburgh, we have had to live through Hurricane Sandy, which didn't affect us as much as we thought or as much as it did other cities.  However, it is so strange to have all of this crazy weather.  As a result of the Hurricane, Pittsburgh and its suburbs have postponed trick-or-treating until Saturday.  Never in my life have I heard of trick-or-treating in November.  It is an odd world for these kiddos, indeed.  Odd, but full of fun nonetheless!

A New Phase for Max

I have sometimes found it difficult to remember back to the different phases of each of the babies.  Sometimes I can't remember at all until I look back at the blog.  And if it weren't for the pictures and stories, I am sad to say that there is so much that would be lost to me forever!

In the future, when I think back to Max being three months old, I want to see his tiny mouth sucking on his left index finger to soothe himself to sleep -- no matter where he is ... in the swing, in his bed, in my arms or in his infant carrier while we walk in the woods.

And, of course, I would always want to remember this smile!  Max has been my earliest smiler ... ever since six weeks old, and I have loved it so much over these past weeks.  He smiles at everybody!

Grant said to me one day, "Babies are as precious as gems."  If not, then more so!

Grant on the Election

Clint has been checking the polls and projected electoral maps a lot lately, and Nicole and Grant have taken a great interest in it. They have both been asking questions about the candidates (on their character and policies). And even though Nicole and Grant have been consulting with two ultra conservatives, I would like to think that they have drawn their own conclusions (oh, who am I kidding?!).

This morning, Grant came into my room and said, "Obama won a BIG state: California! What a bunch of idiots that live there!"

While I mean to offend no one, I have to admit that I am Grant's mom, and I laughed at his message.

P.S. Scotty was listening and said (in a tattle voice), "Mom, Grant say 'idiot!'"

An Early Trick-or-Treat

Last year we neglected to carve our pumpkins. I wasn't about to repeat that mistake! I guess I forgot how much work it entailed, however, because after two days, we ended up with sore arms, three broken carving saws, a filthy kitchen (counter and floor), and three jack-o-lanterns. I overlooked the mess we were making and instead focused on the memories we were creating. We did have a good time!

The kids (l to r): Shari (witch), Max (Frankenstein), Nicole (Hermione Granger), Grant (LEGO brick), & Scotty (monster truck driver). Dad got stuck at work, so he'll have to wait for the real Halloween to see the kids all dressed up. I hope it won't be snowing!

An Autumn Field Trip

I cannot believe it took us four months to find a gorgeous bike trail two miles from our house.

Clint and I have tried to teach Grant to ride his bike, and he was always too afraid of falling. We finally gave up, and then he taught himself! This trail was a perfect place to practice.

On our way back to the car, Scotty's bike chain fell off. Grant tried to help him, but Nicole was the one who got it in the end. Grant is, all of a sudden, turning into such a thoughtful and helpful boy. He loves to help people in need, and often does his chores without complaining. On one hand, I am grateful. On the other hand. I recognize this as a sign that Grant is growing older.

The kids loved the trees and falling leaves (we called it a leaf storm), the bridges, the hideaways, and the rock hills.

I hope to have more trips here before we move. We were there for nearly three hours today and could have stayed all day if it weren't for our Halloween party tonight. It's been a fun and busy day!

Today's Happiness Sponsored by ...

... Uncle Tom!

THANK YOU for the "helitocter!"

Lefty

Max has been working on finding his fingers this past week, but today is the first time that he comforted himself back to sleep by sucking away.

His index finger has been in his mouth for more than an hour; it will look like a prune when it comes out!

Nicole asked if we couldn't encourage him to take his right hand, like we did with ambidextrous Scotty. I don't think that will work this time, though. Max looks pretty happy.

His Brother's Keeper

When we got home from our trip, I set Max on a pillow on the couch so I could help unload the truck. Max started to fuss because he doesn't like the couch. I started to go to him, but he quieted down. A few minutes later, I thought I had better check on him. When I arrived, I found that Big Brother had appointed himself in charge of Max.

Before Max was even born, Scotty would tell me that Max was his baby. Today, Scotty said, "Max is my baby, and when he grows bigger, he go to be my brother, like Grant." Isn't that the cutest?!

Cooperative Art

It doesn't make any sense, but sometimes certain individuals at our house whine about art assignments.

Happily, that was not the case today, however. We read The Very Hungry Caterpillar with a caterpillar puppet and giant food posters to begin. Then we taped three large papers together and used balloons to paint our own caterpillar (inspired by this site: http://elementaryartfun.blogspot.com/2011/10/kinder-and-first-grade-very-hungry.html?m=0). We used construction paper to make the food.

We now have it displayed prominently in our classroom to remind us of the first day in October when we had so much fun together.