Spook-tacular Evening

We started off our Halloween fun on Thursday night by carving our pumpkin while sipping hot apple cider. We got around to it a little late this year but at least it was carved. I felt like Michaelangelo! Alex wasn't interested in the pumpkin carving this year. Oh well.

On Halloween Day we made a stop by the library, so Alex could meet Clifford. He seems to have a thing for people in costumes!

As the evening approached we got Alex dressed for a night of trick-r-treating. He made such a cute dragon! He wouldn't keep the head piece on unless he was out and about getting candy.

Paul took Alex around the neighborhood while I passed out candy. He got quite the loot for a 17month old! He already has a sweet tooth.

With such a nice night, I expected a lot of kids. By 7:15 we had only had 20, so we decided to head over to the Halvorsons'. We dumped what candy we had left in a bowl and left in on the porch with a note telling the kids to help themselves. I have a feeling one kid helped himself to most of it! I wonder if the the late time change had some effect on the trick r treating since it didn't get dark until later? Alex got a book and treats from the Halvorsons'. He put on quite a show for them the rest of the evening.

We left the Halvorson House about 9:30. Ghost Hunters Live was on, so I had a hard time leaving. Alex was pooped. I think he was out before we even got out of their driveway.

The night was a lot of fun. Paul and I enjoyed rummaging in Alex's candy. Of course, we had to sample some. I hope everyone had a Happy Halloween!!

Mr. Lover Lover

True to his Gemini sign, Alex is quite the charmer. He LOVES kissing....and he isn't satisfied unless it is on the lips! We were up playing with "K" and Maria and boy did he enjoy giving them kisses. Maria would put her cheek out, and I had to explain he likes lips. It was quite cute to watch the toddlers puckerin' up. I really enjoy this phase. However, I hope by the time he is 16 he uses a little discretion with those lips. I'm pretty sure he would kiss anyone who asked at this time. He has also found out that if he grabs something he shouldn't, brings it to you, and then kisses you that his makes things much better. I'll have to crack down on this but it's so funny.

The other day I was finishing up a phone call and realized that it was quiet...aka...trouble. I found Alex sitting in our bathroom chowing down on my concealer stick. He had drawn all over his face, pants and had a his teeth and mouth covered. I can't imagine it tasted all that great, but I'm sure it was fun.

Toddler-Hood

Alex has now been inducted into toddler hood. He finally learned how to get up on his feet with out pulling up on things! YEA...I think. He finds it very entertaining to do this and then "run" as fast as he can, fall over, and do it all over again. I guess if it amuses him it is fine by me. Of course, he has many more falls and bruises than before. Last night he cracked the bridge of his nose and between his eyes on the table. I was worried he had cracked something, but he seems to be ok today...just a little swollen. What a busy boy!

Vacation 2008!

We started our vacation in Walker, MN on Sept 19th ( I think that was the date...anyway, it was that weekend). Paul participated in a marathon through the woods. Our trip started off a bit hectic. Before Paul left for the race, he asked the front desk person at the hotel for a late check out. The guy said that would be fine and for Paul to pick a time. Paul told him 1:30. At about 10:00 I got a call from the front desk telling me that we needed to be out by 12:30! I was a little paniced as I didn't know how I was supposed to load all of our stuff with Alex. I had planned on taking Alex to see Paul finish, but I wasn't set on that as it would be right in the middle of Alex's nap time. Once we had to get out I didn't have an option. We needed to be at the end, so Paul would know what was going on. Thankfully Alex has a sleeping pod which is like a little tent with an air matress. I zipped Alex up in his "cage" and slowly got the car loaded. Alex didn't take a liking to the process. We got to the finish line at about 11:45. Because of the terraine, it took Paul about 20-25 minutes longer to finish. Not thinking, I had only packed shorts for Alex. All these little old ladies would walk by and tell me how cold he must be. Once Paul finished I had to take him back to the hotel to shower in some public thing. I guess it all worked out...I was just frazzled.

We made it to my aunt's house on Sunday. That day my throat started to hurt, but I thought it was just allergies. We woke up Monday morning and my glands were really swollen, and it was difficult to swallow. I called my doctor back in Fargo, and he had me go to the hospital to get my blood drawn. Since I wasn't a patient, it took forever. Once we got home I tried to take a little nap. The doctor had called back and nothing was really showing up in my blood work, so I was advised to call back if it got worse. On Tuesday morning we got up early and headed for Padre Island. I had gotten worse and started icing my neck and taking Tylenol. On the way down we stopped in Refugio which was where I had lived. We went by our old house and also to visit a couple of people. We got settled in our condo on the island and hit the sack.

Wednesday I was useless. I tried to sit on the beach but was miserable. Alex loved playing in the sand. He wasn't too wild about the water. I think he was more afraid of the noise and the current pulling against him. Paul and I played in the water a little bit. Paul loved going out and riding the waves!

By Thursday I had had enough of the pain. I called the doctor again and he had me go in to the ER for an evaluation and blood check. We spent 4 hours there. All the doctor did was order a blood draw and hand me the results. He then asked me what he needed to do! I called my doctor and gave the nurse the report. By that time my doctor had left so his colleague had to call the shots. The ER doctor in TX was leary of letting me leave with my levels low, but he wanted my primary doctor to make the call. I ended up with an antibiotic and Tylenol 3. By Friday morning I had made almost a complete turn around. I was finally able to enjoy our vacation. Paul and I spent a lot of time in the water and trying to coax Alex out a little bit further. Each day he got a little braver but never really got excited about the water. Saturday we went out for souveniers and Paul took me to Catfish Charlie's , so I could finally enjoy fresh seafood. Sunday we had to head home.

I had been looking forward to this trip for a very long time. I guess things never really turn out the way we plan. Oh well, what can you do?

Feel of Fall

Well, we managed to drop 30 degrees in less than 24 hours. I hope yesterday was not the last of the warm weather! As much as I enjoy the Fall, I do hate to see Summer go. I really enjoyed the trees, our bountiful garden and plethra of plants/flowers.

We started off the weekend by taking Alex for his 1 yr (or should I say 15 month) pictures. Wouldn't you know it would be the one day he wouldn't nap. The session went ok. Alex was really going to town on his fingers, so I hope we have some pictures that don't include his hands in his mouth. After pictures we stopped in to Nichole's for dessert. Alex and I shared a slice of Chocolate Carmel Sea Salt cake. It was devine. I also had a mint lemonade...my favorite. We should be getting his pictures emailed to us today.

We spent Saturday and Sunday canning. We started out by using 20 lbs of our tomatoes for salsa. Then we canned peaches. This coming weekend we will tackle spaghetti sauce.

Alex is finally starting to take a few steps by himself. He looks like a drunk and finds it quite funny when he topples over. He is also in to scooping. In fact, on Saturday he decided to use one of his stacking cups to toss all of the water out of the toilet! He was soaked and so was the bathroom.

Today Alex had is 15 month check up. Here are the stats 21lbs 13 oz, 31 1/4 inches and a big head! He also got shots which I wasn't expecting. Hopefully he won't start feeling bad.

I'll try to do a better job with postings!

The latest technique in lawn mowing!

We have two new sets of neighbors. One set is East Indian...not sure if they are from India or Pakistan or what. They live behind us. The other family is next door. I have no idea where they are from, but they seem very nice. They built a beautiful deck and fence. They also painted the interior all kind of colors...but not to the point that it's ugly. Sometimes they play music...not in English...but it is very enjoyable. They should be moving in the by the end of the month. We have been very entertained by the neighbors behind us. They are a very young couple and have never mowed. The guy mows like you would vacuum the house! It's crazy. His wife stands and laughs at him and then she gives it a whirl. In the end, the lawn does get mowed...well, mostly mowed. You can tell where he experimented with the different height settings and sometimes he misses strips. I guess it doesn't take much to entertain us.

Albertville

This weekend I was able to get away with Nancy and the girls (my sister-in-law and nieces) to Albertville to the outlet mall. We left early Sat. and returned Sunday evening. I didn't come back empty handed, but we just didnt' find the bargains we were hoping for. I did manage to get Alex 9 pieces of clothing for just at $50. That's not too bad. I got some undies and a pair of shoes! Paul was in charge of Alex, and he seemed to do just fine with out me. I'm not sure Alex reallly noticed I was missing. I guess I expected him to be a little more excited when I got home.

Alex has now figured out how to turn himself around and go down the stairs! He also gives "low 5's." The toilet and toilet paper are now his objects of interest. If you come to visit, the tp will pr0bably be either unrolled in a pile on the floor or rolled back up in a messy roll. I guess it gets the job done either way! :)