Grandma's Visit

So you can tell that I need to update when these pictures are from a month ago when my mom visited... oh well.  I always get to the blog eventually.

View from my kitchen...

More Halloween Fun!!

Angela left out a few details in her post... like my face paint looked like it did because I gave Lexi the privilege of painting it.  She really, really wanted to help with the face paint, and for reasons that are probably fairly obvious, we did not let her help paint the scarecrow or the tinman.

After we were done trick or treating up and down our block, Lexi and I hung out on the porch and she gave out candy to the trick or treaters.  I think this was more fun for her than actually collecting candy.  She did great, and she wasn't shy about it at all, though I did have to coach her a few times on only putting one piece of candy in each bag, not as many as she could grab in a fist.  Also, she wasn't very supportive of giving away the kit kats first (Mommy's least favorite).  The affair was a ton of work, and I was exhausted, but it was a lot of fun.

Happy Halloween!

Thought I'd share a piece of our Halloween craziness.

So it was chilly this year for Halloween, though not freezing like last year, so we dressed in layers, especially the boys, who don't run particularly warm.  Here's layer 1, onesies:

Layer 2, socks and long underwear:

Ed

Ben

Layer 3, leg and armwarmers:

Ed

All Together!

Layer 4, actual costume:

Ben the tinman, and Ed the scarecrow

Then, of course, you need to get your makeup done:

Lexi's green face

Adding Ed's scarecrow nose

Ed's not so sure about this

Ben is sure that this is not a good idea

"Aw, c'mon mom"

I should note that the makeup process took about 10 minutes total (for all three kids).  Then we attempt a picture on the couch.  It does not go well.

Our friend Julie came to see us off.  Julie is much better about wearing the tinman hat than Ben.

Outside we got a picture of both boys with hats on for exactly 0.01 seconds.  This is the best you get folks.

 The cutest little witch ever.

And the whole family!

Everyone's hat is ALMOST on here.

 Then we finally get one with both boys' hats on, and Ben steals Lexi's hat.

We had lots of fun trick-or-treating though, then the boys got put to bed while Lexi handed out candy and headed out to a Halloween party.  My little social butterfly! Happy Halloween to everyone!

Halloween preview...

Here are a few pics of the costumes I made for Halloween this year.  I'll post more details (and pics of the costumes on the actual children, I hope!) later.

Edward the Scarecrow

Benjamin the Tin Man

Mama the Cowardly Lion

Life is an Adventure...

So, we're hosting a little party for some of Kelly's friends today.  I decided that I'd take the kids to Walmart to pick up a few things that we needed while Kelly finished getting the house together.  It is usually easier to shop with the kids than do housework with them, ironically.  Plus they are lately in LOVE with the carts at Walmart that seat 3 kids.  So, I load everyone up, head across town, and score a 3-seater cart already out in the cart corral.  Lexi decides she's sitting next to Ben in the big blue seats, and Edward gets to ride facing us in the cart seat.  We go in, get the first half dozen or so things on our list, and are just discussing the merits of pink vs purple witches' brooms when the store goes dark. 

Apparently a transformer went out somewhere on the East Side.  None of the stores had power, including walmart.  After 20 minutes or so of circling my cart around and trying to keep two infants and a preschooler entertained, we learned that they did not expect the power back for at least 3 HOURS.  Not ok.  So, we unloaded our cart, had a chat about how we could come back to buy our things later with Lexi, and we got all re-loaded in the car.  Of course, the other 150 cars full of people who were inside Walmart (it was Saturday afternoon around 1pm) were all doing the same thing.  And our Walmart parking lot is under construction and terrible for high-volume traffic.  And I take about 10x longer than most people to get in the car since I have three children to buckle, one of whom is an "I can do it!" preschooler. So, I was last in line to get out, and starting to really get stressed out.  My plan at that point - go home.  Forget whatever we don't have. I'm sure we don't actually need plates.

Then an excited little voice pipes up from the back seat.  "Mama?  Are we on an adventure?"
I pause for a moment, and realize that yes, in fact, we are. 

So, Lexi and I start re-doing the list as we drive, paring down to the essentials.  Paper Plates. Forks. Soda. Beer.  Meanwhile I watch for stores with the lights on. 

We end up at Big M.  I'm sure Big M will have all the things we need, but what it doesn't have is big carts.  Or big aisles.  I explain the problem to Lexi.  I can't push the cart and the double stroller in the tiny little aisles at Big M.  I can't carry both boys and push the cart.  She says, "It's okay mama, you can push the brothers in the stroller, and I will push the cart."  pauses and thinks a minute...  "only, mama, I think the grownup drinks will be too heavy for me." 

So, Lexi pushes the kiddy cart.  I push the stroller.  We get our paper products and put them in her cart.  Then we get the beer and soda and put them in the stroller basket.  Lexi drives her cart up to the register and very solemnly unloads the cart onto the belt.  Then we pay, put everything into the stroller, cart it out to the car, load stuff & kids back up, and come home. 

I have one proud little adventurer today.

Painting on the Porch

Just a few pictures of Lexi painting on the porch while the porch was being painted. This kid could paint all day every day!