Happy Halloween!

first there was trick-or-treating at the outlet mall...
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then trick-or-treating the neighborhood...
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and last, checking out the evening's loot!

crazy hair Thomas

Today was "crazy hair day" at preschool. They asked no costumes be worn but that instead the kids just simply come to preschool with crazy hair. It's probably a stretch to say this clown wig is not a costume, but this was our interpretation of it today. He wanted rainbow hair and the clown wig was less money, less work and less mess than 4 cans of colored hairspray. He loved it. Not only did he wear it to preschool today, but he didn't take it off once. And after preschool when we met up with a friend for a late afternoon walk at the lagoon, he continued to wear it while greeting everyone we came across with "Happy Halloween". He's such a fun kid!

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girls' afternoon

Meredith loves to paint. That's all she wanted to do this afternoon while Thomas was in preschool. She didn't mind that it was cool outside and sometimes the wind was quite gusty (brrr!). It didn't matter as long as she could paint so I made a cup of hot tea and read catalogs outside while she painted to her heart's content. Afterwards we took turns drawing chalk outlines of each other (her idea). I was surprised by how much of my profile she would draw without any help from me. I didn't have to say a word -- she would just jump from one side of me to the other, drawing my right arm and then my left, drawing my right leg and then my left, etc... It was a very fun afternoon for us today!

tap, tap, tap, meow

Thomas is such a terrific big brother. He's always so supportive and encourages her to try new things. He also applauds her efforts during dance class. Today he wanted to photograph parts of Meredith's dance class and actually snapped a couple of good ones. In this photo she practices the tap, tap, tap, meow sequence of steps.

asleep

I turned around 20 minutes ago to find Meredith fast asleep on the kitchen table's bench. Not the most comfortable (or safest!) spot to be snoozing, but she clearly needed a little rest and this is where she's taking it today. Since giving up her regular-and-in-her-own-bed nap last March it's been tough. Most days she'll go all day without a nap. Other days she'll drift off in the car until we reach our destination. But just about every day she could benefit from a 20 minute cat nap so I'm glad she's decided to take one today.

party animals

Whew. What a day. Two parties -- one for a little friend this morning and one for the playgroup in the afternoon. Nearly 6 hours of "party time" equates to way too much sugar for two little bodies. And for their mama, too. Thank goodness for bounce houses and our children's love for them. I think most of the sugar-induced high was bounced out before Spiderman & Little Bo Peep returned home, ate a quick dinner, took a bath and went straight to bed -- all in about an hour!

Halloween party prep

This afternoon the kids and I made some cupcakes to take to our playgroup's Halloween bash tomorrow. They both helped at every step from measuring and mixing ingredients, to prepping toppings, to frosting the cupcakes with me. Thomas' favorites are always cracking the eggs and using the mixer. Meredith's favorites are using utensils she hasn't used before (a knife today!) and the mixer. And we all enjoyed decorating and eating our very own cupcake!

Notice Thomas in two different shirts? One of the six eggs he cracked today got a little messy...

two for her, one for him

We're taking another look at potty training and today is day two. Yesterday we actually had some success which was encouraging to me. Three yesterday and once this morning -- all entirely initiated by Meredith and all successful. The reward of "two m&ms" per potty is helping. She gets two and he gets one every time she pees in the toilet. Why him? Thomas has been extremely supportive in this endeavor. He cheers her on, congratulates her and tells her what a big girl she is, and pretends to be excited when she tells him she's wearing her princess panties. The boy deserves an m&m for his part in this project.

project night

The kids and I picked up a couple of our neighbor's gigantic pinecones this afternoon and talked about what we might do with them. I had ideas of some kind of fun little "creature" with loads of yarn wrapped around the body, some googly eyes attached, etc. The kids wanted to make bird feeders, or more specifically, hummingbird feeders. We researched it briefly on the internet and then pulled together some items from our pantry to make wild bird food. Not sure exactly who will be eating our concoction but we completed the project this evening and hung them outside on a tree in the front yard. We'll see if they look any different tomorrow!

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After hanging up the pinecones we turned around to catch the tail end of a gorgeous sunset. One of the best things about living exactly where we do are the sunsets. We'll never tire of them.
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good mail

The kids love to check the mailbox and when there's something for them it makes the whole experience that much more exciting. In today's mail, three things came for them -- the latest copy of Thomas' magazine, a birthday party invitation and these awesome wands and tiara. The kids have been running around the house making things disappear with them and doing magic tricks. They love them! And we love our friends who may live far away but think about us just the same. Thank you!

The Monster Mash

Seaworld - SS Monster Mash from c on Vimeo.

Seaworld's Halloween Spooktacular

All the theme parks have special holiday events during Halloween and Christmas. Last year we missed them during Halloween -- well, we went to Legoland's but it was crazy-busy -- so this year we decided to try to go to at least one of them. Today was a perfect day to head down to Seaworld for their Halloween Spooktacular. There was trick-or-treating for the kids, special costumed characters (flamingos, fish, and other aquatic life) and all the shows had special Halloween themes, too. The kids had a great time riding the SkyRide (gondola) over Mission Bay, taking in the Shamu show, trick-or-treating the park and esp. enjoyed the Sesame Street Bay's "Countdown to Halloween" show featuring the Count and Elmo. I have to admit I enjoyed that last one, too!

beach play

This week has been one continuous playdate at our house! Thomas and Meredith have had a lot of fun with their cousins Franny and Cole. They have also really enjoyed playing with their new cousin Delaney. It'll be a few months before the cousins play again, but I know they won't miss a beat. As always, it'll be as if no time has passed at all. I love that.

Legoland & SeaLife Aquarium

The kids had a great time showing their cousins around Legoland and SeaLife Aquarium. Favorite rides, shows and the Halloween theme throughout the park made it fun for everyone!

a California Adventure with cousins

inside California Adventure Theme Park

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waiting for the parade to begin

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getting out their last wiggles before parade time

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ooohhhhh...

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aaahhhhh...

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We hadn't been to California Adventure before but had heard from friends that our kids would probably enjoy it even more than Disneyland. And sure enough, they did. Yesterday was spent not only at Disneyland but also at the adjacent California Adventure theme park. Yes, two big theme parks in one day! High on their list of favorites was the evening parade of all their favorite movie characters from fun movies like Finding Nemo, Monsters Inc, Toy Story, Cars...

Autopia

disneyland driving from c on Vimeo.

The kids had a great time with their cousins at Disneyland and California Adventure today. One of their favorites was driving the cars at Autopia. Remember how thrilling it was to drive a car at that age? Thomas loved it.

cousins!!

The kids asked about every 10 minutes yesterday afternoon, anticipating the arrival of favorite cousins Franny, Cole and Delaney, "Are they here yet? When will they get here? Is Franny here now??" They were very excited to see them and now that their cousins have been here for a day, the excitement level is still very high. It's going to be a fun and memorable week for these kids!

Fire Station Open House

T tries his hand with a fire extinguishing simulator

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The kids always enjoy a good fire house visit. They love the trucks, the fire houses, the firemen, the equipment... pretty much anything and everything to do with fire stations they love. It's fire season here in Southern California again so all the local fire stations have open houses to inform the public of the services they offer and how homeowners can protect themselves. Mike took the kids to one this morning while I enjoyed some time out with mama friends and they all had a super great time! Thomas was so excited to go that two hours before they were to leave the house he put on his Carlsbad Fire Dept. t-shirt and grabbed a fireman hat. He was ready to go!

Halloween at Miniland

The kids and I joined a friend and her two boys today at Legoland. All the kids claim Miniland is their favorite so it was an especially fun hour slowly walking through the miniature model world. Since October is Halloween month, the park is decorated for the holiday and Miniland is no exception. The kids loved seeking out the Halloween items. "I see a pumpkin! There's a costume contest! Look, a spider web! A ghost is bungee jumping!!" Very fun for everyone today!

REPLACED

Sweet, cuddly Thomas has been replaced by Spiderman. He's really into the superhero characters lately. Yesterday he went back and forth between Spiderman and Mr. Incredible, donning the costume of each for about 5 minutes before doing a quick change into the other. Today Spiderman has gone to a playdate and wants to go to preschool this afternoon. Playdate, okay. But to preschool? I think we're going to have to change back into Thomas the superhero boy for that. I'm sure Spiderman will be back later this afternoon though.

T & the girls

There's something delightfully refreshing and sweet about Thomas that attracts all the little girls we know. Mike and I have known this was coming for a long time, but now we're beginning to witness this when all our (girl) friends flock to him. "It's Thomas!!" they'll cry out when they see him. The two on the right above (Caroline and Grace) are no exception and today they chased him all around the botanical gardens. They seek him out, they want to touch and tickle him -- they simply want to play with him! He isn't always crazy about it, but I'm sure in 10 years he'll be singing a different tune.

the tutu

I made this tutu for Meredith last week, but then I had to wrestle with it (basically take nearly half of the pieces off and put them back on again) for a few days. I'd still like to embellish it a little but it'll suffice as is until I can get to it. She's satisfied with her new tutu either way.
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[No, the sad face on Thomas is not because I didn't make him a tutu. He's not feeling well today.]

Miramar Airshow

Thomas and his dad enjoyed a much-anticipated morning at the Miramar Airshow. Both civilian and military jets were on display and wow-ing the crowd. The weather was a little cool and cloudy today, but the show was still fantastic. Also for visitors to enjoy were airplanes, military vehicles, racecars and booths of all kinds. This event is very popular and Thomas loves airplanes so it was nice they could enjoy the event together. Thomas told his dad he wants to be a pilot. I would have loved to have seen the show but Meredith isn't a fan of the loud sounds so she and I enjoyed some mommy-Meredith time instead. Maybe next year we'll all go!

pumpkins, ponies and cupcakes

This morning we celebrated our friend Ava's second birthday at a pumpkin patch -- what a fun idea! The kids enjoyed pony rides, looking at pumpkins, eating cupcakes, taking a tractor-pulled hayride, seeing all the different farm animals and crafting their own cowboy/cowgirl hats. We decided to not take pumpkins home today, but will wait until later this month to get them. Fun party!

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