Lot's of loot.

The boys had so much fun. They were running in circles as I wrestled them in their PJs. A little too tired and too much sugar. We went to a neighbor's house for a pre-trick or treat party and then got candy on the walk home. It didn't take long for Mason to figure out what was going on. He was much bolder than Owen and occasionally tried to sneak in the houses. He enjoyed wearing his horse costume. Several people thought he was a girl, probably because of those pretty bangs :) Owen's costume came slowly off piece by piece.

One of our neighbors had extra special treats for Owen and Mason. Glo-sticks in the shape of swords, the kind you break and stay lite for a night. We don't get many trick or treaters on our circle so they all get excited to see the boys.

Owen wanted to make sure Mason understood his loot. So tired!!

Preschool Party

Owen's preschool class (Owen is the knight back row right)

The annual costume parade. I LOVE the difference between girls and boys costumes. I still feel guilty that he wants to be "bad" and that somewhere down the line we did something wrong. It made me feel good to see other boys with "fighting" themes. It justs so runs deep within them. Later, Owen asked why their were so many princesses. EJ helping Owen with his craft
My friend Kristin (her daughter is the bee) and I were the party moms today. This was her awesome spider snack.

This was the craft project I prepared. I did lots of cutting last night.

The kids enjoyed getting messy with glue. Here is Owen's version.

House of Rock

I bet you didn't know I am running a music school out of my house. These are my talented pupils. I have had a dreadful headache all day. I am sure this didn't help :)

2008 Champions

I have one very happy hubby!

No sleep... 'till Brooklyn

Yes, yours truly was at a Beastie Boys concert last night! Barn girls, I felt as if I was at a 625 party all over again. The fans were jumpin! I loved watching the huge grin on my husband's face. He enjoyed every minute of it. Apparently, while I was swooning for the New Kids on the Block (in Middles School) he was listening to the Beastie Boys. Fortunately my conservative ears couldn't understand a lot of the words. This was definitely not a family performance if you know what I mean ;) Thanks Dad for babysitting!
EJ and I (mostly EJ) have had a lot of late nights lately. I am feeling it this morning. I think I am moving at half speed. Fortunately Owen has school so I'll only be keeping up with Mason this morning. Between the PHILLIES and last nights concert we are going to need some serious naps soon. Hopefully the Phillies will end the World Series tonight with a big win at Citizen's Bank Park! Go Phillies!

Mason will eat anything...

off the floor. So gross and yet so tempting to drop a few of my veggies at dinner. For some reason they taste better to him with a little dirt. He has mastered a technique that allows him to keep what he wants in his mouth and letting the other stuff he doesn't like just roll down his chin. All in the same bite. I suppose I could have taken a picture, but its better left to the imagination :) We have such great table manners!

Carving pumpkins

Owen chose a more traditional expression.

Can you guess my inspiration for Mason's pumpkin face?Happy Halloween!

Mr. Bubbles

Time with Family

We are so blessed to have family nearby. Today we visited with my grandparents, parents and cousins.

Cousin David and daughter Haleigh and my Grandfather

Owen is actually touching a dog. He usually doesn't like being in the same room. We were so excited that he got a little more comfortable with my sister's dog, Yeager. Granted Yeager was taking a little nap, but still we made major progress. The rest of the time Owen had to be held or sitting up high (like the kitchen counters). Mason got really comfortable and actually tried to play with him.

My grandmother with Cousin Haleigh.

My Pumpkin

I can't tell you how excited I was to catch this moment. It always seems I am a second too late. This is Mason looking off of the tractor at some of the animals on the farm. His expression perfectly captures his current stage of life. He is excited and curious about the smallest things and lets everyone know it.

On the Farm

This was Owen's favorite part.

It is amazing how they change in just one year. Last year I was carrying Mason on my chest in the snugli. And Owen's favorite part was the wagon ride and he needed my help all morning long. This year he acted so "cool" about it and hardly noticed I was there. That's his best buddy Malcom to his left. They are like 2 peas in a pod.

Pumpkin Patch

Today we went to the Pumpkin Patch with Owen's preschool class. It was a chilly morning but we had lots of fun. I took lots of pictures, here are a few of my favorites.

This is my dear friend Kristin. Her daughter Anna Caroline in one of Owen's classmates and good friends. Please note: Mason is clapping. He loved the wagon ride!

Boys will be boys

A little wrestling action with dad last night.

What is more fun than having 1 son to wrestle with? Having 2!
Notice Mason is getting distracted.Just taking a little break. (1 yr olds have great attention spans ;) EJ and Owen are still wresting only inches away.

M.I.A.

When the fever departed from our house it seems to have snatched my even-tempered, happy-go-lucky boys. I sure hope they return soon! I miss them.

17 months old

Mason is 17 months today. Things to remember: He is quite a handful, he is fast, strong and aggressive with every move. Not in a hurtful way he just tends to exaggerate his movements. He loves to read books before bed and usually flips the pages with the same speed and aggression. He can really throw a ball and I usually have to block my face b/c the direction of the ball is any ones guess. I will be glad when he can talk more b/c he does a lot of yelling and whining. In the past he would sign "more" when he wanted more food and now he just continuously nods his head as if to say, keep it coming. Sometimes he eats more than his brother! If he just hears the words ice cream he says "mmm" and if Owen shows him a craft project he did in school he says, "oooooh or wooooow! Lately he wants to be held a lot and he tucks his head under my neck! I melt every time even when I am exhausted from holding him b/c I know it won't last forever

Owen took this picture! He did a great job.

Special Delivery

Putting the window stickies on!

The boys got a package from Mim (EJ's Mom) today. They were so excited and tore through the box. Actually Mason did tear the box while climbing on it. Everything was so cute. Owen can't wait to put the window stickies on. Thanks Mim! We miss you!

My little Kitchen-aide

Isn't he cute? Not terribly thorough but cute!

Not a fan!

I have a tradition when I buy ice cream at the grocery store that I always have one spoonful before I put it in the freezer. I like it when its soft. Well, I let Owen in on my tradition one time and he has never forgotten. Needless to say we bought ice cream at the grocery store and we had to have a spoonful. We couldn't leave Mason out, I think this was his first initiation. Well, he is not a big fan of the tradition b/c he was too big a fan of the ice cream. He didn't quite understand why we were only having one spoon each. OOPS! I guess Owen was much older when I shared the tradition with him. I tried getting a photo while they were each eating their spoonfuls but I had to help Mason and it got tricky. But I couldn't resist this pitiful face!

P.S. the fevers are gone! Owen stayed home from school just to be on the safe side, but he is fine!

Yummy Pizzelle!

Thanks Nana for the huge batch of Pizzelles! We have already put a big dent in the supply. As you can see Mason is a big fan.

Tonight

We are on fever watch. Owen doesn't have a great history with fevers. 2 (past) Febrile seizures is enough for us, so we are always extra conservative. Mason's much better and ate a great dinner. Hooray! On the plus side, EJ and I had a quiet dinner for 2 b/c we ate a little later than the boys. I felt a little guilty enjoying the P&Q knowing it was because Owen was lying sick on the couch.

Another one bites the dust

Owen is quickly going down hill. SAD!!!! At least Mason is a bit perkier and hasn't needed any Motrin.

End of the Week

Today was a long day. Mason has been running a fever since Thursday morning. You would never know by yesterday's blog entry, but he was sick. He had a few bursts of energy but yesterday evening and today he has spent in my arms. At 4:30 today I took him to the Dr. He has a viral infection mostly likely started in his throat. Not much we can do. At least I feel better knowing its not an ear infection or strep throat. Since Mason has gotten so much attention lately and Owen slept during his quiet time today (hasn't happened in weeks) he stayed up a little later and we watched "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" with popcorn. He was thrilled.
Needless to say I am beat (although it doesn't look like it by my smile). I am glad its friday and the kids are in bed.

Trick AND Treat

Owen thought it would be fun to have some Halloween yard decorations. So today while we were at Target we got some pumpkin leaf bags and spooky webbing for the bushes. What I didn't realize was it unintentionally Tricked him into raking the leaves. And that was a Treat for me!
Even Mason joined in. Not to mention its the middle of Oct. and we are wearing shorts and sweating!
Here's the finished product. We have 2 more bags but not enough leaves have fallen.

When we were done Owen said "Mom, that looks FANTASTIC!" Uh, I guess, if you like having cotton stretched out on your bushes ;)