Halloween 2011

It has taken me a while, but here are photos from our Halloween this year!

The month of October was full of fun.  Madeline and I are really into being "crafty" and we make all of our decorations - for whatever holiday it might be.  This year we made some tissue ghosts to hang in the entry way of our house.  It was fun to see the reaction of our friends when they would come over. 
The girls and I were also invited to a Halloween party where the kids got to do a candy hunt and play with bubbles, eat, and do crafts.  Madeline went as Jasmine from Alladin.  And because everything this year has seemed to creep up on us a little to quickly, Abigail went as a bumble bee (an old costume I had from Madeline's previous Halloweens).
Madeline also had a carnival at her preschool and dressed up that day as Little Red Riding Hood.  She LOVES dressing up so it just makes sense that she would be TWO things for Halloween.

Two years in a row now we have spent Halloween night with our good friends the E's and the B's (names withheld for privacy). This year was a little different in that the very night of Halloween we had a taxi coming to take us to the airport for our trip to Thailand (post to come soon).

We had dinner at the E's house, and then we took the kids out for some trick-or-treating. They had a good time, but unlike last year, we decided to trick-or-treat in the busiest part of camp and it was a little crowded, not to mention a little overwhelming and stressful for Madeline.

She still had a good time and enjoyed her candy - she really loves candy (that's another story).

Click here to view these pictures

Happy Halloween!

We weren't sure how Halloween was going to work this year - being in Saudi Arabia - but apparently it is a pretty big deal and it turned out great!

Madeline decided she wanted to be a princess, so we got a cute little costume from Toys R Us. At the last minute we got together with some of our good friends here on camp and we took the kids trick-or-treating on our street. Later we heard that on busier streets around the elementary school there were over 1,000 trick-or-treators and it was a zoo! A lot of Saudi families will invite their family and friends into the camp to trick-or-treat. Who doesn't like free candy and being silly? I think what we did - staying on our nice quiet street - was perfect for our little 2-year-old's first time trick or treating. And, not including the mask incident at the beginning of the evening that scared the crap out of the kids, I think they had a really good time.



A friend of ours put together this little video of pictures from last night and I think it turned out wonderful and wanted to share it:

Madeline's Monthly Message: Month 14

Dear Madeline,

Today you are 14 months old and you are so wonderful. I love you. This past month feels like it was 14 months long, which is unusual because time has been going by so fast up to this point. A lot has happened this month.

Fall is in full swing. The leaves are changing and the air is cooler. This is my favorite time of year. I love the colors, the temperatures, the overall increase in positive spirits on the Earth because the holiday season is approaching. We are able to spend a lot more time outside because of the delicious temperatures. It is a beautiful time of year.

This past month you had your first SECOND holiday, Halloween. I guess I have an obsession with bugs. Last year you were a ladybug and this year you were a bee.

We carved pumpkins on Halloween morning this year because time sort of got away from us. Your dad was really busy with work this month too so finding the time to do it together was harder. You enjoyed spooning out the pumpkin guts and eating the seeds.

On Halloween we decided to stay in because it was cold and because we knew WE would be the ones eating any candy you might have collected from the neighbors. We don't need anymore candy. So I dressed you up in your outfit and you had a good time going to the door when a trick-or-treator came. We had a total of 6 trick-or-treators this year. That's two more than last year so we were pretty psyched.

We've been to the zoo about 4 times this month. We went with our friends Misty and Brooke to the Zoo Boo. It was a lot of fun. It was in the evening time and you and Brooke were dressed in your Halloween costumes. Brooke was Tinkerbell. You both looked so adorable - but that is nothing new. We pulled you around in Brooke's wagon and visited all the different stops they had. You also got to ride a merry-go-round for the first time. You were happy until it started moving. It went kind of fast so I can understand how it might have startled you.

We also visited the zoo with my friends Stacey and Ginger and their little babies, Tyler and Mary Emma.

And we took your Dad to the zoo so he could see the new Teton Trek that recently opened.

We go to the zoo a lot, but it's fun and we are members, so why not? We'll probably go a few times this month too.

You are a very busy little woman. You are on the move from the moment you wake up until you pass out - usually later in the evening then I would like. You're usually asleep around 8:30/9:00 pm. You love to get into things. You pull pans out of the drawer below the oven and sit in it. You sit in your little toy wagon, which is really scary for me because it's small and meant to be a dump truck. You've been "dumped" a couple times already so I try to fill it with things or hide it when I can. You also love to sit in the laundry basket and in your old baby tub that we recently got out of the closet.

You try to sit in your toy stroller, sometimes spending several minutes lifting your leg up and down, but there is no way you would fit in that thing. So it's more of a fun for mommy and daddy-type activity because we get to watch you do it.

Along with your increased movement are some things that I will be happy to get through. You have this uncontrollable attraction to kitty's food dish. No matter what I say or do, you MUST splash kitty's water and you have to test her food. So, I now put her dish up on the counter after she has eaten some food for breakfast. Kitty whines at me on a regular basis because she doesn't seem to want to jump up on the counter to eat. This is nothing new really. Kitty whines all the time. She is an extremely verbal, loud kitty, and it's always at the most inopportune time - when you are about to fall asleep or at 4:00 AM when we are all still sleeping in the morning.

This month you got your first really big boo boos and they both scared the crap out of me. You stood up in the bathtub and slipped and bashed your left eye.

It happened so fast I didn't have a chance to tell you to sit back down. It swelled up really good and when it first happened it looked almost black. There was also some blood from a tiny little cut on your eyelid that made it look a lot worse than it turned out to be.

I freaked out. At first I just held you and tried to look at it while you screamed and screamed. Then I cleaned you up and got some ice and tried to put it on your eye. You weren't too happy with that. I called my mom first, which makes me laugh now. She is obviously my person I go to when something is wrong. Then I called the doctor, which was even more hilarious. It took me about 5 minutes to get your name out so they knew who I was, because I was crying. I kind of felt like an idiot because it really didn't look that bad by the time I took you in so they could check you out. You were back to your old self pretty quickly and by the time we got to the doctors office the bruising color had changed to pink/purple, the bleeding and stopped, and you were as happy as ever - but I didn't want to take any chances.

I think it was worse for me than for you. But it was a learning experience, and the next time I will behave more like an adult rather than a helpless weirdo.

Your second big boo boo happened one day when you and I were heading out to the mailbox to get the mail. You love to go outside and whenever I open the garage door, if I am not holding you, you bolt out of the garage onto the driveway with a crazy excitement. On this particular day you ran fast and just kept going - I don't think you could stop once you hit the bend of the driveway because you flew forward. Your hands hit first because you have fallen down enough to know they will protect you, but the force was to great, and I couldn't reach you in time and you did a sliding face plant on the rocky surface.

Your top lip got pretty swollen and red and there was some bleeding, but you were okay. You didn't lose any teeth. Thankfully, this time it was a wound located in the perfect place - where you would willingly suck on some ice in a washcloth- and that helped tremendously with the swelling. I'm just glad you are okay, and pray you get through your childhood without any permanent damage.

You regularly get into all the cupboards. This wasn't much of a problem until recently. You opened one of the cupboards and picked up the coffee pot to the coffee maker your Grandma and Grandpa Mevec use when they come to visit, and nonchalantly threw it on the tile in the kitchen. It shattered all over the place. Your Dad immediately came over and removed us from the devastation and did a meticulous and well cleaning of the area. So now we have secured most of the cupboards so you can't get into them. The cupboards to the pans and Tupperware are still open so you don't feel too restricted.

You also love to push buttons. You like to start the dishwasher for me and sometimes you do it when it's not time to start it yet. One day the dishes went through an entire cleaning before I realized that I hadn't started it. You are very good with the TV remote. You know how to turn the TV on. You also like to get the lint out of the dryer for me and watch the washer when it starts.

You love to dance still and love listening to music. Every morning you watch Super Why and Sesame Street on PBS. They are your favorite. Super Why especially. It's a lot of fun to watch you when that show is on. At the end, after the Super Readers have found the super story answer and saved the day, they do a little dance. You always dance with them. I love it, so I encourage you by dancing with you.

You love to dress up. You like putting on make-up, brushing your hair and my hair, putting on jewelry. I bought you a pink, fluffy boa that you sometimes wear around your neck. You also like wearing poofy skirts and tutus. It's fun. I'm glad you enjoy that stuff.

You are doing really well with your communication skills and with learning. You understand a lot of things that we say. If I say, "go get your shoes." or "go put your clothes in the hamper." or "go get a diaper." you do it. You copy a lot of words that we say if we ask you to say them, and you are working on learning your letters. Sometimes you walk around saying "A", "B", or "C!" I'm not sure if you understand what those letters are, but you understand that we like it when you say them because sometimes you will point at something, like the wall, and say "B!".

I sing "Head, shoulders, knees, and toes" to you a lot, and so far when I ask you where your ears are you point right to them. We are working on the rest, but you do the motions with me (sort of ) when I sing it. You still love to read and often, when things get quiet all of the sudden, I will find you sitting and looking at a book on your own. You recognize a lot of pictures, especially animals like cats and dogs.

You copy the things I say and do a lot. This has been a real wake up call for me. I have always known that I need to watch what I say and do because you are very impressionable, but it really is true! An example: I, like most people, might lose my patience once in a while and get frustrated with something. Or sometimes I might yell at the cat for eating a plastic bag or vomiting on the carpet. Lately, I have noticed that when YOU are frustrated you yell. Your voice gets louder and you move your body in abrupt, short motions... the other night you got mad at your teddy bear because he didn't fit into your stroller so you yelled and threw him across the room.

So, this is a goal of mine. I'm working on my patience. I'm working on understanding that regardless of how I react to a situation it doesn't change what has happened. And I am working on being a better example of kindness and patience for you. So thank you for that. Because I need that. You do have a tantrum once in a while when you don't get your way. You are very good at the full body thrust where you straighten your midsection making it difficult for us to pick you up. It makes me laugh. I know I shouldn't laugh at you when you are upset... but it is really funny.

On the cuter side of the matter, sometimes at dinner or when we are just sitting around, I will give your dad a big kiss with an exaggerated "mmmmmwah!" sound. One time this month I did it and you immediately leaned over in your high chair toward your dad and did the same noise. You wanted a kiss to. This started a very cute tradition. You give your dad long "mmmmmmwah!!" kisses all the time now. I love it.

You eat pretty well. You love to feed yourself. We are still working on you using utensils and I am still trying to get you to love veggies. I am not worried that you won't understand how to use a fork or spoon - it's pretty self explanatory.

You mostly feed yourself with your hands still. I cut up all of your food into little, chewable bites. You actually eat better when you can do what we call "tester time". I put your high chair on the lowest setting and lay your food out in little piles on the tray. You run around playing and periodically stop to grab some food. Eventually, you eat everything on the tray, which is a lot more than what you will eat when confined to the high chair. We still eat together as a family and we don't do "tester time" all the time. But it works. I'd rather you eat and have energy and be healthy.

You also like to eat things that you find on the floor. I try to keep the floor as clean as possible but you always seem to find the one or two things I missed. You are usually pretty good with showing me that you have found something and give it to me, but if it is too enticing you usually put it in your mouth and then do this cute little wave at me. That's how we know you are doing something naughty... you wave at us. You think you are so sneaky. hahahaha

You still breastfeed about 3 times a day. You eat in the morning, around naptime, and at bedtime. It's going well and I am really happy with you and your health. You haven't really been sick yet since you were born. I think breastfeeding has been a huge part of that. I plan on beginning to wean you after Christmas. I thought about doing it sooner because there are some things I want to do for myself - like a cleanse - but that can wait a couple more months.

You still have a ridiculously fun time with your dad. When he gets home from work now you scream at the top of your lungs, this high-pitched scream, and say "Daaa Daaa!", and then you run toward the garage door and immediately begin pounding on it until he comes in. When he walks in the door your reach up and he must hold you so you can put his badge on around your neck and give him hugs.

Sometimes you and your dad do this thing where you hold his hand and you walk in a circle over and over. You laugh and squeak like crazy. I've said it before, and I'll probably say it many more times throughout your life - You are so lucky to have a father like Paul (your dad). I love the relationship you have with him and that you love him so much. I love that he loves you and has an interest in your life, your health, and your happiness. This is something I never had and it is something a lot of people take for granted. It makes me love your dad even more - every time I see him being kind to you or reading to you or showing you how to do something... when he shows a sincere interest in you. And the most awesome thing is, it is never a forced interest. It's an actual, genuine, interest and love that he has for you. It is beautiful. You and your Dad are beautiful to me. I love you guys.

Love,
Momma

The Zoo Boo.

Friday night me and Madeline went to the Zoo Boo at the Memphis Zoo with Misty and Brooke - yes, we hang out with them a lot, they're are buds. Anyway, so it was finally an opportunity for me to get Madeline all dressed up in her bee costume. I put her hair in pigtails (bee antennas) and made some bows to matcher her costume, I even put a little rouge on her face... ohh la la. She turned out so cute I couldn't see straight for like 30 minutes.

Here she is getting ready, brushing her "teef", as she likes to call them.


Here she is just walking around the house...

Here she is playing "BEE" ball...

Here she is dancing to some "BEE" bop music...

And of course, one MUST meditate and get in the zone before attending such an event...

Here she is helping momma get the dishwasher going...

So we finally took off and we were excited!!

We actually made it to the zoo a little early and patiently waited for our friends to arrive...

Here's Madeline and Brooke. Brooke is Tinkerbell this year. Her costume got lots of "ooo's and aww's" because it was so sparkly and poofy and cute! She looked adorable!

There were lots of decorations and fun things to do. This is the wall of pumpkins painted by the Memphis college of art students...

Here's Madeline having a good time...

The Zoo Boo turned out really fun. They had trick or treat stations set up in different areas for you to trick-or-treat at, free rides (Madeline and Brooke rode their first carousel, yay!), a magic show, costume contests, fortune tellers, Dracula's Disco with booming loud music.

We had lots of fun. I hope to make it a tradition.