Chick Oh Cheet

The boys agreed to get suited up and go trick-or-treating after all. Daddy was sadly feeling sick, so I took on most of the tasks to get them dressed and out the door. The pictures aren't great, but I worked with what I could handle, along with their level of cooperation. Thankfully the evening was warm so we didn't have to bundle up too much. And they had fun. Elias dressed up like a.....

"LION RRROOOOAARRR (monkeybeartiger)."
(These are his own words. Today when asked, he added "jaguar" to the end of the list.)

And Kindred was...

an ELEPHANT, complete with trunk, ears and sound effects.

Elias also had a tail which he was very proud of.


And on the way out the door, Kindred looked up and me and informed me: "Mama, elephants have tails too." Oh. Right. So we turned around, handily and quickly fashioned a tail and pinned it on. Only then was it acceptable to leave.

We went around to everyone on the block whose lights were on, but that wasn't many people, so we wandered onto the next block and tried to visit friends who live close by, but found no one home. So we returned with our treats and sat on the front step inviting other costumed (and non-costumed) folks up for some fruity tootsie rolls and to yell (some semblance of) "Happy Halloween!"


Our next door neighbor, Miss Roberta, claims to not celebrate or recognize Halloween, but she has managed for the past 2 years to not only get kids knocking down her door and walking away with candy of some sort, but also to give my children something fancy that she has made and offered. This year it was candied apples she'd crafted. The coating wasn't caramel and nuts, it was a hard candy sticky-ness. It tasted yummy but wasn't really storable. So I handed one to each kid and they happily went at them with tongues and teeth. I knew they wouldn't likely get very far. Sure enough, after several licks, Elias' apple-on-a-stick plummeted from his grasp and rolled away from him across our welcome mat. He snatched it up and I immediately confiscated it. "Wanna lickit!" he pleaded, and I half-heartedly tried to rinse it off. But there was no hope for the candy apple goodness. It had to be tossed. Elias got over it pretty quick, surprisingly.

The evening was enjoyable even though the costumes were not elaborate and the neighborhood's level of participation in the events was somewhat low. (Michael being sick was a bummer too. He loves Halloween.) Most people thought the kids were cute, and that's all that really matters, right?

Time Management

The time is now after midnight. I have realized pretty thoroughly that I am a poor time manager. I spent the day like this: Woke up at 6am when my husband groaned his way out of the warm bed and into our chilly room (we haven't allowed ourselves the luxury of heat yet) to deliver his father to the train station. Then I woke myself and groaned out of bed so that I could try to get to work a little early. Washed the coffee pot and made coffee, totally ahead of time, and heard the kids laughing with each other in their room. I hate to leave for the day without seeing them, so I went upstairs to find them singing about hugging things. I sang too for a minute, and then a few more minutes, and before I knew it I was late for work. Crap. Anyway, so I did work, running home briefly for lunch, then stayed late because I had to talk with my supervisor who had called to bail out on 2 meetings we were to attend tomorrow together and give me a morale boost (the ol' "I believe in you" speech), and then I had to call and ream out an attorney and real estate agent who had somehow allowed one of my clients' homes to nearly get "locked up and winterized" with him napping inside. Came home to a waffle with homemade apple compote dinner, and then took the rowdy kids downstairs to search for items in the basement to complete their Halloween costumes. Then back upstairs for a rowdy bath, and separate rooms to sleep. I came back to the basement to complete the costumes, then went upstairs to take a long shower, then cleaned the kitchen, and scoop myself a little bit of vanilla ice cream and hang out with my blog. And it's midnight.

(I wonder how on earth people manage to have shows that they watch on TV consistently.)

Anyway, about the Halloween costumes. You will have to wait with bated breath to see the final outcomes tomorrow, but I will say that although the costumes are fun, and exactly what the children have been saying for the past 3 weeks they want to dress up as, they are rather makeshift. I refuse to put tons of time into an outfit that my surly and sometimes stubborn children might, when the time comes, adamantly protest the approach of such a thing coming anywhere near their body. We'll see how it goes. I'm hoping for at least a few good pictures.

Must go to bed. Fingers freezing, eyes closing.

ps- Please go check out Michael's blog. (The picture of Elias on the pony makes me want to sit here all day staring at it.) Check his blog frequently-- he has some really fun updates on the kids since he's home with them all the time now.

Another Fall Project

Pumpkin Sunday

A Pumpkin Sunday Event

Pumpkins!

Straw!

Animals!

Cousins!

Sisters!

More cousins!

And more straw!

Popop-razzi!

Goat tower jumping!

Hay ride sadness!

More straw, on tongues - yuck!

Beep beep! Bye! We miss you, Grandma, Pap and Grammie!

We Came, We, uh, Heard....

We didn't actually see Mr. Obama, so much, but we heard him. And although it was odd that I was at a political rally in the first place, it was an exciting moment in Philadelphia history, and I was glad to be a part of it.

So were the boys. They ran around the parking lot yelling "barrockobama!"

(I don't think they are staunch democrats as much as I think "obama" is easier to say than "Jahnmick-cane.")

My Way Home

I was on my way home today after convincing a 95 year old man to sell his house (bummer), and I was riding through the parking lot on my bike--

Oh yeah, this is my bike:

Anyway, and I went through the parking lot and through the park, and there were fences and cars parked on my path. I had to go up the hill and straight out to the street. But I wasn't bothered, and I didn't feel inconvenienced. I was happy. A little excited even. Guess who's coming to my park tomorrow? I found out yesterday....

Barak Obama

will be practically outside my window and less than 2 miles from my front door. Makes me feel like a star, sorta by proximity. Like now he knows where I work. Where I live. It's so exciting.

Byebye

Byebye garden. You served us well.

Byebye Mama and Elias on school mornings. We love you!

kindred wrote d's

He wrote D's and d's. a whole lot of 'em. And seeing them hanging up was the happiest part of my day after coming home from work at 7pm and before getting a little drunk to watch the debates. I was unbelievably proud of him.

(why doesn't anyone comment anymore? my comment love tank is empty.)

(ignore me. i'm a little drunk.)

Best Birthday Party Ever (at least for all the guests)

Friends of ours from college live close by and have 2 little boys with whom our boys play often. Their oldest just turned 3 yesterday and had a big celebration. But where this celebration was held is the big news: a real Fire Station! The kids and grown-ups got to go into the fire hall and meet two real fire fighters who showed us a really old safety video and then dressed up in their fire suits, complete with mask and all.

This is the birthday boy with his mom. The thing is, he was a tiny bit overwhelmed with the playing out of his dreams. He was scared to death of the firemen. He stood in the doorway until one of them convinced him to come over and watch "Sparky the Fire Safety Dog." But although he was excited about seeing the fire truck, he adamantly protested the next activity....

A ride in the FIRE TRUCK!
(Sorry about the blurry picture.)

Kindred and Elias were thrilled. And we were happy to spend some time with old friends.

Kidbits

Elias' first day of "school" was yesterday. He will go on Wednesdays and Fridays, all day. See Michael's blog for the recap of how it went. While Michael dropped him off, Kindred came to sit with me in my office. He drew quietly at the table, practicing his numbers. He successfully drew a 6 (several times), a 1, and a really awkward 5. Then he announced his accomplishment joyfully and loudly to anyone who would listen and applaud. I wanted to yell for happiness for him, but he wasn't really supposed to be there, so I had to praise him quietly.

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The boys were upstairs running from room to room. Kindred would shout, "Speed! I am SPEED!" and tear out of the room. Elias didn't quite get it. "Peas! I am PEAS!" Then off he went, like a toddler who runs everywhere instead of walking. Bump bump bump bump.....
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Tonight I went out with Elias to buy a special new backpack for school. (I also bought a bike. No, not at any west philly bike church, but at tar-jay. That point is kind of embarrassing. It's a cool bike, but it has coaster brakes. I thought I was fine with that, but then Michael pointed out to me that I won't ever be able to stop pedaling. Oh. Well, we'll see how it goes.) Anyway, Elias did get a really cool backpack. He showed it to everyone while we walked through the store, and when we got home, he bounced in the door, spun around backwards and yelled, "Sheeee, Daddy! Liteeen a teen! My peshal backpack for stool!"

(He doesn't look happy about it in this picture, but that's because I had to tell him to stop smiling. His smile-for-the-camera-smile is definitely more pained.)

We played outside while we waited for dinner to be ready. See?

Then Kindred and Elias took turns making Stupid Face while mom tried to take a nice picture.

And she finally got one.