Halloween 2009

This was the first Halloween where Jack actually enjoyed getting candy and dressing up. Ok, so he didn't really want to get in his costume after his nap, but he soon found out that being a Tiger would get him treats. Olivia on the other hand, didn't know the difference, but of course we still dressed her up in a little pink leopard costume for some cute photos.

We left home around 4 and headed out to Scott & Jayme's where Jack, Steve, and I all scored one of her yummy oreo ghosts. P.S. - I ate all of mine and part of Jack's when he wasn't looking :)



After that we headed around to all the grandparents and great-grandparents in town and then back home by 6 so Dan and Katie could bring the girls over to go trick-or-treating. Steve decided to take Jack along this year, but wasn't sure how far he would make it. Surprisingly, Steve said he did very well and after about 40 minutes came home with a whole bucket full of candy.

5th Anniversary/School Halloween

This post is kind of two part since today was an eventful day...

It was Steve and my 5th wedding anniversary and it's hard to believe that we have been married that long already and have lived in 2 different homes and now have 2 kids.

Our intent was to celebrate by going out to eat at the Pickwick in Duluth, but in the past few days I have developed a cold where I can't smell or taste. So we decided we would save Pickwick for another time and just ended up going to Applebee's. Regardless, it was nice to get away for a few hours.


Also, today was the Halloween party at Jack's school. All the kids get dressed up in their costumes and parade around for the parents and then there are a bunch of games and treats for the kids afterwards. Jack was still feeling a bit tired from being so sick, so he wasn't really to into parading around. He mostly just wanted to be held by Mommy and of course eat treats.

Here is a picture of Jack in his Halloween outfit that he wore to school today. Of course I had to add a few fun little images to the picture.



Then here is Olivia in her outfit for school with her little pumpkin onesie and striped tights.



Before I went to the party I made 15 treat bags for Jack's class. Since they were all out of Halloween party bags at the store, I opted for making my own with brown lunch bags and a little orange and black paint. They were pretty basic and nothing too special, but still fun to pass out to the other kids.

H1N1

This past week has been a very trying week in our household. Last Thursday when I picked Jack up from daycare he felt a bit warm. I gave him some Tylenol and put him to bed hoping he would wake up feeling better. As luck would have it, he woke up with an even higher fever, runny nose, and a terrible cough. After 4 full days of a101-103 degree fever and a cough they have classified as croup - we came to the conclusion that he must have had H1N1. Thankfully Olivia didn't get it and I only got the cold part of it (no fever).

Magic Broom?

So, Steve called me at work today to tell me that he heard, because of the Equinox, you could take a broom and stand it on its bristles and it would stand on its own. I didn't really believe him, so I told him to try it and send me a picture. He did...and it actually worked. Now I'm not sure if this is really because of something with the planets or if you can just really get a broom to stand on its own. Hmmmmm?!?



Maybe you should all try this at home :)

The Wiggles

A few months ago Steve and I found out that The Wiggles were coming to the State Theater in Minneapolis. Since this is one of Jack's favorite shows, we decided it would be a good opportunity for us to take him to his first concert and stay over night in a hotel without the baby. We asked our friends Dan and Katie if they wanted to join us with their daughter Quinn, and they agreed to come.

We left around noon on Saturday, so Jack could nap in the car on the way down. I just have to share this picture of him napping because A.) He looks like he is about 4 years old and B.) He insisted on leaving his hat on the whole ride with his ear sticking out.



We checked into the hotel, downtown Minneapolis, around 3pm and just hung out in the room until Dan, Katie, and Quinn arrived. The theater was only 1 block away so we waited to walk over to the concert until about 15 minutes before it started. We had pretty good seats on the floor level and were nice and close to the aisle. The concert lasted about 1 1/2 hours and Jack and Quinn seemed to do pretty well. Jack sat for quite a while on Steve's lap in amazement, but then ventured to the floor for some dancing.



Once the show was over we headed to The Hopscotch Grill for dinner. Of course Jack didn't eat much because he and Quinn were too busy playing around on the big corner booth we had. After dinner, it was back to the hotel so Jack could get to bed.


On to a completely different topic - this weekend Olivia also started rolling back to front. Now every time you lay her down on her back, she almost immediately rolls over. Hopefully she starts to like being on her stomach because we can't keep rolling her back.

Pumpkin Carving

Last night I went and bought some Halloween stuff and Jack was pretty excited to see it. So this morning we decided to make our first attempt at carving a pumpkin with him. He was interested for a while, but didn't seem too into cleaning out all the messy stuff. He kept asking us to wash his hands. So, Steve ended up carving the pumpkin by himself at the kitchen table.


Good job Steve - I think it turned out pretty good.

Spin Class

So, as most of you know I joined the YMCA in Duluth a few weeks ago. My intent was to workout on my lunch hour, so I didn't need to worry about doing it before 5am or in the evening when Steve is gone and I'm exhausted.

Things have been going to pretty good and on Friday I took my first 'Spin' class. For those of you who don't know what 'Spin' is...it's basically cycling on a stationary bike. The class lasted 1 hr and in addition to pedaling really really fast you do, what the instructor called, hills and pyramids. Switching gears and standing like you are seriously pedaling a bike up a big giant hill. Needless to say I thought I was going to die and my legs were killing me after...but I have heard it is a very good workout, so I'm hoping to stick with it at least once per week.

Olivia - 3 Months

It's hard to believe that Olivia is 3 months old all ready. She is smiling and cooing more and more every day. She is also close to rolling over from her back and has already done it a few times from her front. We are still getting up with her about once per night, but otherwise her night sleeping is getting better and she's actually taking a few longer naps.

In the past month she has also started daycare at the same place that Jack goes in Esko. It's nice having them go to the same place and Jack usually wants to go down to Olivia's room to "see his baby sister."

Here's a picture I took of her this last week...

And a link to her baby website... Olivia's Baby Website

Potty Training

This week marked the start of potty training Jack. We really haven't been pushing the issue since he's had a lot of recent adjustments with the new baby and everything. But last Monday when Jack woke up his diaper was dry, so I asked him if he wanted to try going on the big potty. Oddly enough he said he did...and he actually went potty. We mentioned it to his teacher at daycare, so they've had him go a couples of times as well. We'll see how it goes as I suspect this will be a long journey.