Pumpkin Carvin' Time

Ah, my squealer and my whiner (watch the linked video files). In any case, the carving turned out this year... last year we forgot & ran out of time. I hastily insisted Rob carve something, anything (!) so I could snap a photo and we could get outside trick-or-treating. This year we perused a few ideas online and then modified the looks with a bit of our own touch. Rob made a pumpkin devouring a little pumpkin, I made a  girly-type one for Evie, a Spiderman for Max, and I tried to work with the hole Max bit in the little gourd by turning it into a baby pumpkin.

Halloween Costumes - 2012

We're on our way out to the Hansen Family Halloween party this Sunday night. A great opportunity for a costume dry run...

Evie is "Izzy" from the Disney show Jake and the Neverland Pirates. Although a still very girly character with her pink and purple clothing, this girl is not a princess and doesn't wear a dress - thank heaven. I really sealed-the-deal with Evie by embellishing her with my eye shadow, blush, mascara and lip gloss. Evie is seriously a cosmetic girl's dream customer - she wanted more (!) and was patient/still throughout the application.

Max is a toughie. He loves sunglasses and hats. But, he loves putting items on and immediately ripping them off more than anything else. So, we couldn't do a costume that required any head gear or masks. I then decided to hold onto Evie's old Tiger costume for Max to wear next year (it has a hood with ears on top). After shopping Target today, we realized we could be really economic and buy sale sleepwear for $12. Perfect! So, Max's costume will double as bed wear the night of Halloween... and then some. Max is, of course, a daddy favorite - Spiderman. Note the webbed underarms (details, people, details!).

This first picture captures both kids' true natures. Evie the glam girl who loves to be "pretty" (such a ham for a camera) and Max walking away shrieking with a bumpy gourd in his sweaty little mits. Ay ca-rumba.

The second picture is as close to a token keepsake, sweet photo as we could get. Maybe we'll have better luck in 3 more nights on Halloween night, but just in case, we do have this one.

Leaves!

Yet another quintessential autumnal activity I had to check off my October list of "things to do." We are due for this terrible 'frankenstorm' hurricane Sandy to hit this weekend ...so today was the only day to see that this happened! We invited over Evie's BFF, Emma, to jump in this modest pile of leaves with us. Max was inside napping (we did the pumpkin patch this morning, too) but he would have loved this as well. Oh well, there's always next year....





These are some of my favorite pics from this activity. Total duration of me raking these leaves and cleaning up 2 huge trash bins of leaves: 1hr. Total duration of leaf jumping fun: 15 minutes. Total photos taken: 22.

"Wheee!"

Evie and Emma jump in with their happy faces.

Evie buries Emma.

They both spring out after I bury them both.

Action shot.

Throw them all in the air!

A Lovely Fall Day...

The local church (Ginter Park Baptist) has simply the most amazing maples out front that radiate in the fall afternoon sunlight. It really is beautiful and gives you that pause that reminds you how beautiful nature is (and how quickly it changes). I grabbed Max from daycare early to take advantage of this short window of opportunity. Thirty minutes and fifty-two photos gave us these *winners*. Thanks to Rob for running down Max the entire time. And thanks to Evie listening to my constant directions. I have a very patient and understanding family. Too bad Max doesn't play along with my whims quite yet.

Max daycare portraits - Bundle of Joy (BOJ)

Max is in part-time daycare as of this past Labor Day weekend. He was at a neighborhood sitter (the same one Evie went to) from the time he was about 4 months old until 1yr/4 months old.

We joined Bundle of Joy Daycare after some friends recommended them and we used them for back-up with watching Evie the summer I had Max. It's a nice place (it's still daycare, so part of your heart breaks at the thought of leaving them somewhere) and he does now like it. We are still adjusting to our bank funds depleting faster then they ever have before.

Max's portraits were last week - a perfect time considering he was over being sick, wasn't in too need of a haircut, and we had a decent outfit selected. He, of course. fell down just 30 minutes before bed the night before resulting in his 2 front teeth piercing through his lower lip. Lots of blood and tears ensued. 

Viola! I give you, Max's portraits the next morning.

Disney Princesses on Ice: Rockin' Ever After

Thanks to my friend who works at the local coupon magazine publisher, I scored some free tickets for Evie and I to attend this today.
She had been excited for DAYS telling people she was going and saying to me, "Mom *pause*, I've seen princesses but I have never  seen a real, real, REAL princess before...."
We excitedly pointed out other girls entering the coliseum in their princess costumes and arrived with enough time to play with toy stands. We even comfortably found our seats without me freaking up asking her to, "hurry up!"
I told Evie was going to take her picture before the show started and she frowned. Coaxing a smile was a challenge and she hardly spoke. I still have no idea what the sudden problem was but after the first act she mumbled that she wanted to leave and go home. No idea. Was she scared? Was she overwelmed? Was she simply upset because I turned down all her requests for $22 lite-up sticks and $12 buckets of popcorn?
In any case, I pulled her onto my lap and we watched the rest of the show together. I bought a $7 box of popcorn during intermission and she seemed to perk up a bit.
As I predicted, she excitedly talked about the show in the car and to dad later tonight as we looked over the MANY small video clips and photos I took through-out the show. This is all totally consistent with how Evie's always been but it still makes very little sense to me. In any case, I know she had a good time after she's had time to reflect and I am glad I made her stay.
Would we go again? Probably... but maybe only if the tickets were free again. I would recommend to other princess-lovers out there, the show was a very well orchestrated event. I just don't know if I would pay for Evie to mope through-out another performance. But then again, my kid is an oddity... and she did enjoy it.

Max - A Man of a Few Words

About 3 weeks ago Max's communication skills started presenting themselves.
He seems to recognize "da-da" as daddy.
He also knows when to remove his pacifier, blow a rasberry right in your face, giggle, and then replace his pacifier (he did this to me first thing one morning after I pulled him from his crib). He's consistently gesturing by reaching up (to be picked up out of his hi-chair or his crib)... he does know what it means now.

Last week, while at the beach, I kept singing the opening lines to the cartoon show "The Cat In The Hat." I would sing, "Here we go-go-go-go on an adventure! The thingamigger is on its way!" Max would smile and fling his legs in glee (when I started this routine he was in his car seat). He started repeating "Ga! Ga! Ga! Ga! (incoherent babble in rhythm)" back to me. He was actually parroting the song back to me and would do this every time I started the song.

Again, at the beach, Evie and Ivy would twirl about the house pretending to be fairies dancing. Max wanted to get in on the action. Evie would bend over to his eye level and call, "A one! A two! A one-two-three-GO!" and Max would twirl. The day we got back from the beach, Max ran up to Evie and parroted, "A Ga! A Ga! A Ga ga ga!" and spun in place. I know it's baby babble, but it's finally taking shape in terms of him repeating the tone and recognizing that some phrases mean certain things. This is pretty huge and pretty exciting for all of us. Max even seems happier knowing that he is starting to communicate with us.

Yesterday, while at work, Rob texted me that Max went into the pantry, pointed up at a box of cereal, and said, "thee-tho!" Clearly trying to say "cereal." I'm reminded of Evie calling it "cielo!" and being excited to know we are on the verge of some interesting (and still developing) dialogue. I also hope Max remains a man of few words because a house full of chatterboxes will send Rob over the edge....

Tangled (words)

Brushing Evie's hair in the morning.
"Ow!" Evie reaches back trying to keep me from brushing.
"Sorry."
"But we used that [pointing]."
"What?"
"[pointing harder] That! Air conditioning."
I look up and Evie is pointing to the little hair conditioner bottle on the bathroom sink.
Me, "You mean, Hair ConditionER?"
Evie, "Yeah."
I giggle. Evie scowls.
Me, "I'm not laughing at you. You were close. But its conditioner for your hair. It makes your hair soft and less tangly. Air conditioner makes the air cool - it conditions the air."

So close.

Going to The Lodge

"Great Wolf Lodge", that is.

We had spent so much money on Evie's birthday party last year that I thought, why not have a fun family putting for all 4 of us this year for that same price? Well, to be fair... it was about that price in the spring. But, by the time I booked the trip... it was quite more. BUT (again with the "but's"), we had a fantastic time and Evie was a complete adventurer the entire trip so we got all our money out of this 1-night stay... so it was very worth it in the end.

Evie's 5th birthday was on a Monday this year. We wanted to stay overnight on her birthday but some swimming lessons made us bump the trip to a Friday-to-Saturday overnight the following weekend. Thankfully the place was not too crazy on Saturday like I feared - they only let guests into the indoor water park so it isn't too obscenely crowded.

We couldn't check-in until 4PM but they invite you to start playing at 1PM. We arrived at 12:50PM and I immediately got in the check-in line. I planned ahead and packed a separate bag with just our water gear so we could change in the bathroom. Here's Max clawing at me in the handicapped stall after Evie, he and I got dressed. This is what it is really like when you have two small children in a hot bathroom stall. Yes, it sucks for you as the person in the stall next to me... but you can clearly see it sucks as the mother, too. Right after this pic we went right to playing!

First it is important to point out that, right in the center of it all and right when you walk inside, is a completely interactive "fort" complete with water slides, pulley's, never-ending buckets of water, rope bridges, water pistols, pop-fountains and levers/rope-pulls to control sprinklers. Also, there's a 1000 gallon bucket that topples over almost every 15 minutes....

The first day there Max just enjoyed taking it all in. Evie, ran wild. I took Max with me into a figure-8 shaped "lazy river" where you sit in transparent tubes built for one or two people. He leaned into me and just soaked it all up. I also pulled Max's hands into the pop fountains and let him feel waves that crashed in the other pools... he preferred to be held and liked watching from afar. I have a feeling that this will all change when he is two years old.

By the end of day 1 and into day 2, Max seemed less nervous/shy but did remain rather cautious. He did "break free" in a few places. Max was very engaged in the water tables located by one of the larger/shallow pools designed for toddlers and very small children. He pulled on these valves and levers A LOT... I think he was also happy to be able to hold on to something, too, while standing...

Evie and I enjoyed a bit of the outdoor pool while Rob & Max secured our room key (on day one). The pool is 4ft at it's deepest end and has a very long, beach-like entrance. We did get scolded for Evie performing a water solo dance in her "water wings" (or, "floaties")... evidentially they are not allowed in the park. I took off Evie's flotation devices and she begged me for a swim vest. After having had her complete swim lessons just this week (and I know the pool was mostly accessible by her simply standing up) I said no. She frowned but she also quickly forgot about it.

I was actually very surprised and quite proud of Evie throughout this weekend. She tried the VERY fast, enclosed water slide with me. It featured club music and laser lights. She was skeptical when seeing it at the top of the stairs after we waited in a slightly lengthy line, but she went with it. I actually had my stomach drop shortly after launch and was totally freaked-out staring at her as she giggled UNCONTROLLABLY the whole way down. At the end she screamed, "LET'S DO THAT AGAIN!"

I did try another enclosed ride with her where we sat in a 2-seater transparent tube with my legs wrapped around her... equally as fun but in a different way. She wanted to do this one again sand again, too. Who is this child???? (Perhaps she is mine after all. And perhaps, I'm getting old to be so freaked-out by such rides!)

At 8:00PM every night they invite you to convene in the lobby where this center display of a lodge, trees, and characters come alive (robotics). They sing a song (it's rather cheesy... even Evie agreed but later recanted saying it was cool), things animate and the whole scene lights up. At the end of the "performance," out comes a Tara Reid look-alike that engages the kids in a story telling session with her fellow Great Wolf Lodge costumed character. Evie enjoyed the story... but she wanted nothing to do with meeting the character (I think he was "Wiley Wolf"?) afterward.

Evie had no trouble crashing out at a decent time.

The next day (again, it was just an overnight), Max was becoming rather listless as the day wore on. He slept directly across from the air conditioner and it did stress me out all night long. As the day wore on, I could tell he was getting sick and running a fever. Perhaps this was poor parenting on my part, but we decided to stay on since Max wasn't sick in terms of vomiting or diarrhea... I figured we'd just take turns holding him and letting him snooze while we went around & around on the "lazy river." This seemed to work out well and we stayed until 3:15PM (check-out was at 11AM but they invite you to 'stay and play')! I was so proud that 'Team Ullman' had fun and stayed on to play hard. Again, we pulled every last cent out of this trip and we all wanted "one last go on the water slide."

Taking turns with Max on the "lazy river" - Max clearly not up to his usual excited self.

In closing, we had a fantastic trip. Things I would advise: pack a bag with essential bathing gear so you can play while you wait to get your room, pack food for the room (I had milk & cereal for breakfast to cut costs - as well as snacks), and bring long-sleeves 'cause its cold in the room after all that playtime.
Things I learned: plan on getting sick (Max left with a fever that lasted 5 days until I finally got an antibiotic, Rob got the flu and was really sick the following 3 days, Evie got a fever/head cold, and I finally got sick after everyone else 1 week later), plan in advance to get a lower rate (I shared info with people what I paid and it was nearly double), and the cost of food there isn't too bad & is mediocre/decent.

Mother Daughter Day ("first official")

Don't ask me what prompted this concept of "Mother Daughter Day" or how I came up with the way it would come together. Evie has just really wanted & needed time with me... special time... and I have really been feeling the pressure for this, too.

I thought of all the things she likes to do that would be rather special. I printed out a picture of a mom & kid pedicure (Evie's never experienced this treat before), a picture from the new movie "Brave" (Evie loves movies... particularly the popcorn part), a picture of Chik-Fil-A (which she calls "Chik-La-Vey" - *giggle*- I do love that she says this still) and a picture of Sweet Frog's (a chain that features any frozen yogurt you want with any toppings you want - you make & pay by the weight). Evie knew I had planned on us having this day when I mentioned it about a week ago. I presented her with the print-outs just a few days ago so we could solidify our itinerary for the day's events. She bounced on the sofa clasping her hands as I lay out each photo, "Oh! I want to do them all!!!" I put together different combinations and let her pick 1 of the 4 possible combos. She picked the one I knew she would - the movie Brave followed by ice cream.

We glued down our photos and decorated the itinerary. It hung on the fridge awaiting today.

Last night:

 - picked out today's outfit, discussed plans for the morning

 - I glue on the additional surprise pedicure photo... Evie jumps up and down with excitement

Today:

 - out the door by 10AM for our 11AM nail appointment

 - arrive early, so we kill some time at the bookstore reading books. Evie selects the "Brave" activity/sticker book & informs me she would like to look at it during her appointment.

 - double-check the theater times only to find out they switched since I looked yesterday at 3PM. We do some re-working of appointments and re-arrange our plans

- decide to watch 11:30AM movie. We buy the #1 coke & popcorn combo (and, regretfully, get extra butter that leaks through the bag the entire movie). Lesson. Learned. 

- 1:15PM the movie ends - perfect timing since the new nail time is at 1:30PM

- Nails done at 2:10PM

- Walk to Sweet Frog's. Me: peanut butter & cappuccino swirled with crushed Reeses Cups and crushed Whoppers candies. Evie: chocolate & vanilla swirled with mini M&M's and Gummi Bears.

- drive home. Evie and I discuss needing a rest-time. Evie decides to read her book then rest. I head straight to resting. The whole family enjoyed long naps (Max slept for nearly 3 hrs!)

A girl could get used to this Evie selected hot pink sparkly nail polish and a deep purple sparkly polish. Originally she wanted one foot purple and one foot pink. I persuaded her into making a pattern instead (every-other-toe). She then decided on polka-dots. The salon lady choose white for the dots. Evie was a little disappointed the dots were not purple but, as you can see, she overcame that disappointment just fine.

The salon propped her up with pillows and the ladies there all thoroughly enjoyed watching a girl get her first pedicure. Evie did great. In fact, she went on to suggest manicures, too (we didn't). Crafty little thing...

I think Evie learned from last time Nerds candies on chocolate & vanilla swirled ice cream is not the best combo. She made up for strangeness by adding Gummi Bears this time. She then proceeded to pick out the candies leaving me with melted mush to finish for her. I told her next time we'll just get candy. She seemed quite happy with that solution not realizing we could've just purchased candy and cut-out the ice cream middle man.

While at Sweet Frog's I put my purse on my toes while juggling the bathroom activities. As you can see, I ruined my big toe nails mere minutes after having paid for their completion. Alas, such is the life of a mom. I was just glad I had 20 minutes of pampering performed. Evie was happy with her sparkly polish choice.

My mother pointed out to me, "My God. It sounds like you had a $100 day!" And, yes, close to it when you add it all up. But, considering we were out together from 10AM-2:45Pm (nearly 5 hrs of time).... and I would have spent more than that for a babysitter and a dinner out with my husband (for just 2-3 hrs of time)... I think it was well worth it. And, just look at how damned happy she is. Wouldn't anyone give $100 to have a chance to go back and relive a day like this with their daughter just days before their 5th birthday? I would think so...

Baby Butt

Watching a toddler toddle around nude before his bath is just hysterical. Big, bloated bellies leading the way with chunky legs & butt swaying back & forth. It's really the cherry-on-top when Max makes his toothless grimace as he pats his taut, full belly like a drum... walking through the house before bath time. I try to soak up these moments knowing soon enough he'll be lanky & skinny with knobby knees and a strong will declining any foods I serve. Dimpled thighs and chubby cheeks really are a fantastic stage to enjoy....

Max Is A Walker

I love these "drunk sailor" walks Max performs. What amazes me is how long he can manage to stay up before falling over!

Evie Graduates Preschool

Preschool Learning Center at Maymont

Evie picks out one of her "fancier dresses" for today's occasion. I couldn't attend (work) but Rob did. I actually did not think too much about today';s event since it is just preschool but after the videos and photos Rob shared with me... it looks like I missed some cute moments. Oh well, there is always Kindergarten, 5th Grade, and High School graduation to look forward to....

Here's Evie on graduation day... they all received balloons.

Evie with her fiend and fellow classmate, Jasmine.

The kids all did an on stage performance singing a song about rainbows (hence the colored gloves). Rob did video tape for me... it was super cute and truly amazing that they managed to keep the kids in line for this bit...

Evie's teacher, Karin Eldred (Mrs. E) on the right and her teacher assistant, Ms. Jones on the left. Evie will truly miss them both...

This is Evie's class. Picture day was this week so this is a good "end of the year" shot. Can you find my teacher's pet? Evie is always found nuzzling close to her teachers...

Here's Evie's entire school. Her class is wearing green and is off to the left side of the group shot.

Camp Hilbert - Recreational Pool Day

We joined the Weinstein JCC Rec Center this year... just in the past week, actually. We enjoyed the indoor pool last weekend and hiked the 31 miles out (near Oilville, VA) to the outdoor pool at Camp Hilbert today. It was in the middle of nowhere, sparsely attended, and surrounded by forest.

It. Was. Perfect.

We left for our pool adventure right at the heels of Max's afternoon nap and retuned home 2 hours later ... just in time to heat up a frozen pizza for me, Rob & Evie.

Over dinner Evie tells me, "I had fun today."

So did mom and dad. So did we.

Final Dance Recital - "Giggle Toes" class at The Little Gym

The final dance of the semester.

Everybody line up, line up....

The class ran August through June (but we signed-up somewhere in October).
The "giggle Toes" class includes 15 minutes of tap, 15 minutes of ballet, and then 30 minutes of gymnastics (of sorts). Evie tells me she liked tap the best... but she says it smiling knowing that I liked tap at her age. What she really likes is the 30 minutes spent running around (sometimes a little crazy) inside the gym. I polled a few classmates... they agreed.

The class was offered the opportunity to purchase costumes (basically that little one shoulder purple number some of the girls are wearing) but I had just bought Evie a dress-up ballet dress that fit in just fine. So glad they didn't enforce costumes... $35 for a 15minute spotlight seems a bit excessive for where we are with our enthusiasm for dance right now.

One more class next week and then we take a break from Little Gym for awhile. This was Evie's 3rd class there (and her best one yet). But it's once again time to try other things and to enjoy the summer committed to activities like swim lessons.
Yes, Evie starts swim lessons in just a few weeks... stay tuned...

Houston, we got a walker... over.

Max is 12.5 months old. OK, well, maybe more like 12 months and 3/4 of a month but let's not get too technical, shall we?

He's been taking steps for a solid month now. I posted on May 4th that Max took 2 steps off the coffee table and I was super excited that he'd be running by week's end. Rob was in Toronto and missed the whole thing. Turns out, Max would take 2 steps off the tables, chairs, walls, doors, knees and even the puppy for the next few weeks. Rob had missed nothing. We all saw the same show again and again.

Most babies take very slow and deliberate steps. Max, however would throw himself forward with his legs stumbling trying to keep up with his momentum. He'd inevitably "fall" after a few steps and he'd transition into a crawl. He never once hurt himself and seemed to find this all rather fun. I think Max likened himself to a dare devil.

Over Memorial Day weekend (May 26-28), while in North Carolina visiting my folks, we would catch Max taking up to 3 steps. We had acquired Louie, the new family pup, on May 19th and I think Louie nipping Max's butt & licking Max's face had finally started motivating him into a more upright position.

Tonight, we caught Max taking over 6 steps so I grabbed the camera. We tried to recreate the moment just after it happend. This definitely wore Max out so I'm sure it's what attributed to his fall at the end of the second take on camera...

Formal portraits

I had professional portraits taken of Evie at 3 months, 6 months, 9 months and 1 year.
It was expensive. And, frankly, I typically preferred some of the ones I took with the moments I captured.

With Max I skipped the quarterly portraits and opted for just his 1 year pics. I also decided I would recreate the one photo of Evie diving into her very first birthday cake (although, technically,  Max did enjoy his first birthday cupcake at his 1st birthday party).

I promised I would only purchase 1 portrait... but left with over $100 worth of portraits. *surprise!*
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