Let's Go to the Movies...

I always joke that I can't remember the last time Chris and I saw a movie at the theater.

Last Friday (Christmas) we took advantage of our free babysitters (thanks Mom & Dad!) and caught an early evening showing of "Sherlock Holmes."

My brothers thought it was great and I wish that I could weigh in with our opinion but we left about an hour into the show as I just felt...off. I was halfway convinced I was going into labor but as you know, I did not.

We didn't really have anything planned for Saturday, the day after Christmas, so we thought we'd treat the kids to their first movie in the theater. About 10 minutes into "The Princess and the Frog" I began to suspect we'd made a mistake.

Cate immediately began whispering, "But Mommy, where are the princess and the frog?" Of course these two characters are not immediately in evidence at the beginning of the movie.

Things began to get worse when the voodoo/black magic witch doctor made his appearance.

By the time the two main characters, who had finally been transformed into frogs, were being chased through the swamp by hillbilly frog hunters, Cate was in tears.

We gathered our things and left the theater.

Cate immediately stopped crying.

Ben immediately started crying, "Go back! Want to watch movie!" And, just to emphasize the depth of his reaction, he didn't stop crying even after I suggested we go for ice cream instead.

In less than 24 hours, we spent $37 on movie tickets (plus $9.75 for a small popcorn and Slushie) for movies that we didn't even see.

Maybe we should consider renewing our Netflix membership.

Baby K: An Update

The medical professionals and I are in agreement: Baby K seems perfectly content where he/she is and shows no signs of arriving anytime soon.

This is, for me, somewhat disappointing.

I am 38 weeks pregnant today, a new record for me. I have never been pregnant longer than 38 weeks. At this point in my other pregnancies I had a 2 week old (Cate) and a 1 day old (Ben).

I was hoping that Baby K would also arrive early but, so far, no luck.

Is it an omen? A sign of things to come? Does that mean that Baby K will be my most laid-back child (e.g., "Hey, I'm totally content to just hang out here a bit longer. Don't worry about me.")? Or my most stubborn child (e.g., "I'll make my appearance when I'm good and ready. Give me some space.")?

If the personalities of my other children are any indication, I suspect it's the latter.

Out of the Mouth of Ben...

I didn't let the kids help me wrap many presents this year for fear they would be unable to keep the contents a secret from the intended recipient.

And, sure enough, when Ben saw Uncle Devin for the first time on Christmas Eve his face lit up and he immediately exclaimed, "You got bike tire!"

We didn't open presents until that afternoon so Ben had at least five other chances to remind Devin that his bike tire was waiting for him under the tree.

Christmas 2009: A Brief Recap

Christmas 2009 was, in a word, exceptional. We spent time with family and friends, continued old traditions, and began new traditions.

Cate and Ben could not contain their excitement over Santa's arrival. When Chris woke up on Christmas morning they were huddled together at the top of the stairs, whispering, about whether or not Santa had been there during the night.

Other highlights:

* Making monster cookies with Grandma and Grandpa C. (and eating lots of scrumptious cookie dough)

* Making (and eating) homemade cinnamon rolls on Christmas Eve with Daddy

* Playing games (e.g., Uno, Zingo, Candyland, Hi Ho Cherry-O) with Grandma and Grandpa J., Uncle Mikey and Uncle Devo

* Making a snowman and playing outside on Christmas Day

All I Want for Christmas...

My brother came over for dinner tonight and was asking Cate and Ben what they thought Santa was going to bring them this year.

Cate: I want some Skittles.

Ben: I want Santa bring me Skittles too.

Me: All the things in the world and all you guys want is Skittles? That will make things pretty easy for Santa.

Cate (matter-of-factly): I don't think Santa rolls like that.

Siblings.

Consider the following exchange that Cate and Ben had in the car yesterday: They both wanted the Princess Doodle Pro to play with on the ride home from a friend's birthday party. Ben asked first so I gave it to him and told Cate she could play with it when we got home.

Cate: Let me have it NOW Ben.

Ben: No.

Cate: Well, when we get home Mommy says I can have it.

Ben: No.

Cate: MOM. Ben says I can't have the princess thing.

Me (turning up the volume on the radio): Cate, just ignore him. I already said that you can have it when we get home.

Cate: BEN. I'M IGNORING YOU.

Ben: NO. YOU NOT.

Cate: YES I AM IGNORING YOU.

BEN: NO. YOU NOT.

Cate (bursting into tears): MOM...BEN SAYS I'M NOT IGNORING HIM!

I turned up the volume on the radio wishing that, instead of a minivan, I was driving a limosine that would allow me the luxury of raising a soundproof barrier between me and the backseat, and I was reminded of how my brothers and I would torture each other as kids.

My youngest brother (Mike) and I teased my middle brother (Devin) mercilessly after seeing a female contestant on Star Search named Devin Devaquez. We thought it was hilarious that our Devin had a girl's name. Needless to say, at the age of 5 he did not see the humor in this and his irritation made us drag the game out for days.

Years later Devin and I were traveling through the Baltic States together. We'd navigated foreign languages, unfamiliar maps, overnight train rides, his need to eat constantly, and my Diet Coke addiction together. Then in the picturesque city square of Riga, Latvia we had our first fight of the trip. I can't remember what started it but I do remember Devin, his voice rising in frustration saying, "Erin, sometimes you're just like Mom." Realizing we needed a break, we went our separate ways for a few hours.

(NOTE: I would now take this comment as a compliment although, in my early 20's, it was more difficult for me to view it this way).

One of the joys of having siblings is the ability to know exactly what to say to get a rise out of your brother(s) and/or sister(s). Cate and Ben seem to have mastered this at a very early age.

I may have to invest in some ear plugs.

Let me introduce...Barbie

In an effort to corral our ever-growing toy collection, Chris and I have made a major effort to clear out some space in our 1970's inspired basement to create an offical playroom for Cate and Ben.

As we moved furniture and boxes this weekend, I stumbled across some of my old toys. The Cabbage Patch kids held little interest for my kids but they were both completely, utterly enamored with my Barbies.

They found Tropical Barbie fascinating. They were intrigued by Gift-Giving Barbie's presents. They wondered aloud why Grandma and Grandpa Barbie looked nothing like their grandma and grandpa. (It could be that Grandma Barbie was dressed in a very revealing red and blue halter mini-dress, but I digress...)

Most perplexing to Cate, however, was the fact that Barbie does not wear underwear. She has coats, dresses, pantsuits, swimsuits, shoes, and even a pet sheepdog. Where, she wanted to know, were Barbie's underwear?

Cate most enjoys dressing the Barbies. Ben most enjoys undressing them. He likes to take off their clothes and then have them do gymnastics. Then he laughs and says, "Look at that crazy chick." Or "That Barbie a naked baby."

Oh, if only my mom would have saved all of my Little Ponies...and Strawberry Shortcake dolls...I'd never have to shop for another toy again.

Things My Children Have Said to Me Today

Cate: Mom, you're kind of a small person.

*****

Me: Ben, don't do that.

Ben: Why?

Me: Because.

Ben: Why?

Me: Because I'm the Mom.

Ben: No. I the Dad.

*****
Cate: Mom, I can't believe you can zip your hoodie. Your tummy is SO big.

Me: Thank you, Cate.

A Peaceful Quiet (for now)...

I'm afraid that Ben might be transitioning out of his afternoon nap. (And really, could the timing be worse?? With Baby K scheduled to arrive practically any day now?)

We've laid down the ground rules for "quiet time." We (Cate, Ben and I) read for 20-30 minutes and then they can play, quietly, in their rooms. I told them, "Look, you can play together as long as everyone is nice to each other. If I hear crying or fighting, then everyone goes back into their own rooms. Alone."

So...I've been downstairs, drinking tea and surfing the net for about 20 minutes. Listening to the quiet from upstairs.

Part of me is pleased--so wonderful that my kids can play together and (even better) will both be in bed by 7pm tonight.

Part of me is terrified--what are they possibly doing together that has not deteriorated into screaming and yelling? Rearranging my closet? Unrolling the toilet paper in the bathroom? Taking all of the baby's diapers and clothes out of his/her closet?

Oh well, I'll worry about that as soon as the screaming starts...

More Holiday Cheer...

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I am LOVING the holiday season this year.

We put up the tree the Sunday after Thanksgiving, and spent the next week carefully placing the rest of our holiday decorations around the house. We hung Christmas ornaments on gold ribbons from the curtain rods in the living and dining room. Cate and I made red and green paper chains to count down the days until Christmas.

Despite all of these decorations, we still felt like something was missing. I scoured Kohl's, Target, K-Mart, and even Pier 1 for additional Christmas decorations.

No luck.

Then at TJ Maxx last weekend, I spotted these little nutcrackers and I was instantly smitten. I carefully tucked them into my cart and headed for the check-out lane, knowing that my holiday decorating was finally complete.

Well, at least until the after-Christmas sales when everything is 75% off...

Let it Snow!

We are ready for the impending blizzard.

We woke up this morning (Monday) to approximately 1 inch of snow (if that...) and the kids were begging to go out and play. I agreed, even though the last thing this 35-week-pregant woman wanted to do was squeeze two toddlers into snowsuits, boots, hats, and mittens and then stand outside for 45 minutes. (Oh, and did I mention that I no longer own a coat that I can actually button???)

In the end, it was worth it. Cate and Ben spent 45 minutes scooping our meager supply of snow into "mountains" at the base of our driveway. We came inside happy and tired. AND it put us on track for an early bedtime (which in theory would provide me with plenty of time to fold all that $*#& laundry. See previous post).

Going out for a trial run this morning exposed some weaknesses in our snow-play strategy. For instance, we definitely needed some waterproof (or as Ben is fond of saying, "waterpoop") mittens as well as new boots for Ben.

After a quick trip to Target we are now fully outfitted for winter. Bring on the snow!

Hmmmm...

So my new plan of only doing laundry once a week (instead of every day) has not turned out quite as I expected.

The giant pile of laundry on my couch--although clean--has been haunting me and seems to be growing exponentially every time I walk into the room. (I'm waiting for a Law & Order marathon on TNT before I force myself to sit down and start folding).

On a positive note, Cate and Ben found the laundry pile a cozy place to snuggle as they watched Sesame Street this morning.

Happy Monday!

Getting Ready for Baby

Chris and I aren't the only ones getting ready for Baby K's arrival.

Cate and Ben love their (plastic) tools and they have been diligently "working" on the baby's bed for the past week.

Oh Christmas Tree!

Ever since I've known Chris it has been his dream (and that's no exaggeration) to traipse through the woods in search of the perfect Christmas tree.



Having grown up in a family that only had artifical trees I really didn't see the allure. Once I married Chris I agreed to a real tree but didn't see anything wrong with buying a pre-cut tree from the Optimist's tree lot next to the Dairy Queen.

A few weeks ago my neighbor mentioned that their family had been going to a local tree farm to buy their Christmas tree for decades.

So...last Sunday afternoon we made the trek to Handley's Holiday Tree Farm and it did not disappoint.

The minute we pulled into the parking lot Ben started asking, "Where our tree at? Where our tree?"

Once he realized that Handley's has a train for kids to ride (albeit a rickety, rusty train, named the Frosty Express, that careens around a similarly rickety, rusty track) he was in heaven.

"They got train here?" he asked.

"Yes. We just have to find our tree and then we can ride it," we told him.

Ben grinned, "It my lucky day!"


So we hiked up the hill and found the perfect tree. (Really, it's perfect. I will say that the tree looked deceptively small while it was in the ground. Chris had to saw another two feet off the trunk when we got home in order to fit it into the house).

One of the employees came and chopped it down while we watched. Having never seen anyone cut down a tree, Cate and Ben were mesmerized. Chris carried our tree back down the hill and to the little tree station where the tree was loaded into a shaker to rid it of loose needles. Then they netted the tree and tied it to the top of the minivan.

We got some candy canes and headed for the Frosty Express. Cate and Ben were the only passengers and loved every minute of the ride.

I can say, with certainty, that we'll be back next year.

Christmas Conversations

This is the first year that both Cate and Ben have some idea of what Christmas is all about. We've been reading books, listening to Christmas CDs and have been decorating the house.

I have to admit that they are totally cracking me up with their comments about the holiday. Some examples from earlier today:

***
Ben: Santa comin' to mine house.

Me: Well, in a few weeks Santa will be here.

Ben: Santa bringin' me French fries.

***
Cate: Christmas is Jesus' birthday.

Me: That's right. Christmas is the day Jesus was born.

Cate: Oh, how old is he?

Me: Well, he was a baby when he was born.

Cate: Yeah, but how old will he be this year?

***
Last, but not least, this conversation with a neighbor suggested that I should probably revise my shopping list. (And I thought I was done with the kids...)

Neighbor: Oh, Cate and Ben, what are you asking Santa to bring you for Christmas?

Cate: Candy canes and a sewing machine.

Ben: Jingle bells.

Now that's a lot of love.

Cate: Mom?

Me: Yes?

Cate: I love you so much. I love you more than Christmas.

Thanksgiving...A Brief Recap

We enjoyed a wonderful holiday weekend and were reminded, repeatedly, how much we have to be thankful for.

Some highlights...

Cate learning how to play Uno and testing her skills on a number of willing competitors

Spending lots of time with grandmas, grandpas, aunts, uncles and cousins

Playing Foosball, marbleworks, pipeworks, Matchbox cars, the Sesame Street Clubhouse and other toys from the late 1970's-early 1980's

Going around the table at my parents' house and sharing what we're most thankful for this year. (Cate is most thankful for chocolate and ice cream and Ben is most thankful for gumballs).

The only good thing...

about no naps is the early bedtime that follows.

Holiday Cheer

When we first got married Chris accused me of being a Scrooge. Decorating for Christmas seemed like a waste of time since we always left town and headed to our parents' house on December 20th. Why bother with a tree? Or Christmas lights?

And I can't even say that my attitude changed much after Cate was born.

Why would an 8-month-old care about a Christmas tree? Plus, we were still gone over the actual holiday itself, and it seemed like a lot of effort to haul out all of the holiday decorations. And who wants to spend New Year's Day putting away those same decorations anyway?

I've spent the last few years lamenting the fact that we were always on the road over Christmas. Crossing the state of Iowa to hit as many family Christmases as possible, with two toddlers and a black Lab in tow, quickly became more stressful than relaxing and I wondered when we (the four of us) would have a chance to develop our own holiday traditions, the memories that would bind us together and cause my teenage children to roll their eyes at me.

This is the first year that we won't be traveling over Christmas. Baby K is due on January 11 and since I was early with both kids (and since Ben was born in 63 minutes) we wanted to stay close to home.

So we will have our first Christmas at home. At our home. Maybe it's the pregnancy hormones but I am filled with the holiday spirit. And it's only November 22.

Now it's true that I haven't actually done anything yet. But I've given it some thought.

I know when and where we'll get our Christmas tree. I've been clipping articles for holiday projects and recipes out of magazines. The holiday CDs are loaded, ready to play. The menu for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day is (mostly) set.

I see gingerbread houses and paper chains made from red and green paper. Our stockings hang from the fireplace and I can visualize the excitement on my kids' faces as they race down the stairs of our house on Christmas morning, anxious to see what Santa has brought.

For the first time in a long time, I can honestly say that I cannot wait until Christmas.

Only 32 days, 2 hours, and 13 minutes to go...

Battle of the Sexes

Last Saturday we made a quick trip to the outlet mall to stock up on some winter items for the kids.

We let Cate and Ben each pick out an outfit for the new baby to wear home from the hospital. Cate is still convinced that the baby will be a girl and that we will name her Olivia. (Why Olivia? One of her friends at preschool has a new baby sister named Olivia).

Ben is now insistent that the baby will be a boy. He's keeping quiet on his preferred name (hopefully Mojo is off the table now) but he is adamant that he wants a brother.

Pictured above are their clothing choices. The opinions of the grown-ups did not count for much on this day as Cate and Ben resisted all attempts to steer them towards clothing that we liked better, a common theme in my house. (I was lobbying for pink polka dots and Chris for cars).

The final choices (with the exception of the onesies...) are Cate and Ben originals.

I apologize for the poor picture quality but I interrupted a mad game of dress-up so there wasn't time for a retake.

Laughing Out Loud

Everyone thinks their kids are funny, and we are no exception.



Many of the stories recounted on this blog showcase my kids being unintentionally funny--saying or doing something that is (to adult eyes/ears) ironic or silly.



It is fascinating to watch Cate and Ben try to be intentionally funny. They have the general idea. That is, to be funny something has to be somewhat unexpected or contrary to expectations.



Somehow, someone, somewhere introduced them to the knock-knock joke and they've been cracking themselves (and us) up ever since.



For some reason they started telling jokes after dinner last night and kept it up for a solid 20 minutes. I looked around the table at my family. My kids shaking with laughter over their clever repartee. Chris and I sharing one of those wow-these-kids-are-amazing glances over their heads. I wanted to freeze the moment. To etch it into my memory so that I would never, ever forget it.



Some examples:



Ben: Knock-Knock. Who's there? (Yes, he answers himself).

Chris: Who's there?

Ben: Orange juice.

Chris: Orange juice who?

Ben: Orange juice...watermelon! Ha-Ha-Ha



Ben: Knock-knock. Who's there?

Chris: Who's there?

Ben: Grandma.

Chris: Grandma who?

Ben: Grandma Sugar Pie! Ha-Ha-Ha.



Cate: Knock-knock.

Chris: Who's there?

Cate: Flower.

Chris: Flower who?

Cate: Flower POT!

And Sometimes You Just Get Lucky...

You're leaving for your first Iowa basketball game of the season.

Both kids have agreed (without tears on their part or bribery on yours) to put on their Iowa Hawkeye gear in honor of the occasion.

They look so cute that you tell them you want to take a picture of them so that you can remember this day forever.

You head outside and ask the kids to sit on the front step.

You pull out your camera and say, "Smile everybody!"

And they do.

Real, genuine, sunshine smiles.

No scrunched up faces with squinty eyes.

All eyes are on the camera, not on the neighbor's dog or the airplane flying overhead.

You snap the picture knowing the instant you do they will leap from the steps and demand to see the photo.

It's a good one. One that will grace the refrigerators of family members for years to come.

And you find yourself thinking, not for the first time, about how lucky you are to have such happy, healthy kids.

You look at the picture again.

All you can do is think, "Damn. I love those kids."

Shaving Cream...Revisited

I made the mistake of telling Cate that once the weather was nice we could play with shaving cream outside. I foolishly assumed that this would not happen until April. Or May.

But this week the temperatures were warm enough that, after hours of pestering ("Please Mom?"), I finally agreed to let them take the shaving cream AND food coloring outside.

I learned a few lessons from our last attempt and things went more smoothly this time.

The kids had a blast. It is obviously much more satisfying to play with shaving cream if you can march around in it, stomp your rain boots in it, flick some at your sibling's head while singing, "We have Mickey Mouse hands!".

It was even slightly educational as they learned that yellow and blue make green (!).

AND I could relax since I was not worried about dog vomit or stains on my carpet.

How much does Ben love his new digger? Let me count the ways...

So much that he reads books about diggers while sitting on his new digger.

AND

So much that when his Mom left the room to make breakfast, he stripped off his diaper and tried out his digger naked.

A Day in the Life of the Birthday Boy

6:46 Climb out of my bed and into Mommy and Daddy's to cuddle. Giggle while they sing, "Happy Birthday" to me.

6:48 Ask for milk

7:15 Squeaky clean after a shower, sit at kitchen table and ask for a waffle. Plain. No peanut butter.

7:19 Ask for sprinkles to go with waffle.

7:21 Take one bit of waffle. Announce, "All done." Ask for donut instead.

8:45 Drop Cate off at school.

9:00 Talk to Grandma on phone. When she asks how you will celebrate your birthday say, "Going to Panera. Gonna' eat bagel."

9:05 Walk into Coral Ridge Mall. See rides by carousel. Sprint towards them.

9:06 Agree to go to Panera after Mommy and Daddy say they need to get money before we can go on rides.

9:10 Order at Panera. When Mommy and Daddy ask what you want for breakfast reply, "Money."

9:13 Sit in booth. Take one bit of cinnamon coffee cake, announce "All done." Slide down onto the floor, army crawl out of booth, and sprint towards rides.

9:14 Mommy shrugs, "I guess it is his birthday" and follows with $2.00 in quarters.

9:16 Ride Bob the Builder bulldozer. Then ride the race car.

9:18 Go back to Panera to get Daddy.

9:25 Check out ice skating rink.

9:30 Climb into photo booth.

9:40 See giant display of candy. Ask Mommy and Daddy for more money. Leave with a handful of "Dog Bonze." Yum. I love candy.

10:00 Kindermusik. Friends sing "Happy Birthday" to me.

11:05 Mommy and Daddy ask, "What do you want to do next?" Reply, "I want go to Uncle Mikey's house."

11:15 Fall asleep on the way home. Being 2 is hard work!

1:33 Wake up from nap. Demand chicken nuggets.

1:45 Help Mommy put chicken nuggets on cookie sheet.

2:00 Lunch. Scrumptious.

2:30 Daddy and Cate come home. With presents! Open presents. LOVE my new digger (see photo).

3:30 Head downtown to play on playground by library.

5:00 Dinner at the Saloon. I eat only tortilla chips, cheese sauce, and french fries. (See? There are some advantages to being the second child. Mommy would have never let Cate eat such an unhealthy dinner on her 2nd birthday).

6:15 Blow out the candles on my delicious ice cream sundae.

6:30 Arrive home. Play with my digger.

7:00 Mommy and Daddy say, "Time to get ready for bed." Cry because I want to play with my digger all night long! For dramatic effect, I throw myself on the stairs and make my body go limp when they try to pick me up--just so they know that I am not happy.

7:30 In bed. Asleep.

Happy Birthday Dear Ben, Happy Birthday To YOU!

Ben had a great birthday weekend. We celebrated with family on Saturday and then with friends on Sunday.

He's got lots of new toys to play with and Cate is helping him to perfect his ability to share. ("Mom, Ben will share those toys with me, right?")

In keeping with tradition, I made the cake for Ben's party on Saturday. (Invariably, whenever I attempt something like this, I can only see the flaws--the things I could have and should have done differently--but this time I was actually pretty pleased with how the cake turned out).

Ben had been telling people for weeks that he was going to have a "fire cake," which always sounded like some sort of flaming dessert. I hope he wasn't disapppointed by the, non-flaming, fire engine that he received.

I Think I'm in Love

I think I'm in love with Diapers.com.

Diapers.com is an on-line store where one can order virtually (no pun intended...) any baby item imaginable. This is not limited to diapers as they stock everything, including baby clothes, baby toys, wipes, bottles, pacifiers, and diaper bags.

I placed my first order on-line Wednesday morning at 9am and it was on my doorstep by 2pm Thursday afternoon. Oh, and did I mention I received free shipping?

And, even better, I did not have to drag my kids to Wal-mart and repeatedly say, "No, we're not buying candy today." Or "No, we're not buying any toys today." Or "No, you may not get out of the cart."

For the bargain price of $124.93 I received the following:

• 120 Johnson & Johnson nursing pads
• 100 Lansinoh breastmilk storage bags
• 280 Pampers diapers (156 for Ben and 124 for Baby K #3, which will last us approximately 4 days)
• 384 Pampers baby wipes, sensitive

And, as you might expect after seeing the above picture, it takes a pretty big box to hold all of this baby-related paraphanalia. The box itself has amazed me with it's sheer entertainment power.

The box has already occupied Cate and Ben for over an hour. My 28-year-old brother and my kids played hide-and-seek in the box. The kids hid their balls in the box. They ripped the box and spent 20 minutes taping the side back together. Cate then taped the entire box shut.

Tomorrow she's planning use markers and sequins to decorate the box.

Free shipping. Avoiding Wal-mart. Next day delivery. A giant box.

What's not to love?

And this is why my laundry is piled 3 feet deep on the couch...

Because instead of folding it in the afternoons (or completing any task on my ever-growing "Things to Do Before Baby K #3 Arrives" list), we are usually engaged in some sort of art project.

Our latest project (see above, C's on left and B's on right) involved turning Halloween candy boxes into robots. The hardest part was actually gluing the boxes back together so that the shiny, printed labels were on the inside.

While I can't take any credit for the idea (see That Artist Woman's blog for details), I'm thrilled with how well they turned out.

With the exception of some gluing (e.g., putting boxes back together and setting googly eyes in place) and using a knife to poke arm/leg holes in the boxes, Cate and Ben were able to create their robots almost entirely without my help.

A Few Announcements

This morning after dropping Cate off at preschool, Ben and I headed for Wal-Mart to do some shopping for his upcoming birthday party.

He kept asking, "Where mine birthday?"

I explained that his birthday was next week and we would have a party, Daddy would take the day off work and we would do fun things like go to Music class together and maybe even ride the bus. (What can I say? Riding the bus counts as "exciting" and "fun" at our house. Actually, if I could find him a real construction site he would be in heaven).

Today at the end of Kindermusik Miss Blum, Ben's teacher, said, "I have a few announcements to make about class next week..."

As if on cue, Ben leapt from my lap and stopped directly in front of Miss Blum.

"Yes Ben?" she asked.

"Ben birthday coming up," he told her, making his own announcement with the full attention of every child and parent in the class.

"Oh, that's right," Miss Blum replied and asked me when his actual birthday was.

Ben wasn't finished yet.

"Ben going to blow candles out!" he continued excitedly. "Just like Big Bad Wolf."

Halloween...Part 2

Our three day Halloween extravaganza ended on Saturday night with a neighborhood potluck, followed by some intense trick-or-treating.

Ben was toasty in his monkey costume and Cate was, predictibly, freezing in her ballerina costume. Despite the fact that we hauled a winter coat, jean jacket, fleece and leggings to the potluck, she shivered for a solid 45 minutes before agreeing (with some tears) to put a coat and leggings on over her costume.

It was Ben's first official trick-or-treat outing and he enjoyed every minute of it. He kept saying, "Ben be excited! Ben be excited!"

In the end, everyone was happy, warm (enough), and had tummies full of candy. Happy Halloween.

Go HAWKS!

While Cate and I were at a classmate's Halloween party on Saturday, Ben got to go to his first Iowa Hawkeye Football game.

He was excited to see Herky and the marching band. And it turned out that he is fond of the I-O-W-A cheer that travels around the stadium after a touchdown.

Although Ben and Chris left at halftime (so that Ben could nap) we now realize that a better plan--at least with THIS football team--would be to put him to bed early and take him to the second half of the game.