The tooth fairy visited Logan's school today

Coincidence that it also happens to be Halloween? ;-)

Trick or Treat!

The above pic was taken just before heading out to trick or treat.  Logan had a great time as expected.  Callum wasn't quite sure what we were up to and why we had to WALK. SO. FAR.

So, after about 6 houses, and a mini-meltdown because I took a candy out of his hands that he was fast unwrapping, we went back to the house to put Callum down for the night and allow Logan and I to eat a quick bit of dinner.  After we ate and Callum was asleep, Logan and I headed out again to finish our route.  Interestingly, we didn't go very far.  Logan was a little nervous with how far we were walking and kept saying "Mom, I think we're lost"  :)  So, after a few more houses on a couple of other streets, he was ready to call it a night and we headed home to hand out candy to the rest of the "big kid" trick or treaters (which Logan really enjoyed doing).  All in all a great night!

Tellme Halloween Parade

Brought the boys to work today for our kids Halloween parade (this time Callum is the wise Yoda!).

It was super hard to get any pic (let alone a good one) of the boys together but you get the idea. They had a blast - Callum was overwhelmed with everything around him but quickly caught onto the "trick or treat" process.  Logan told me afterward that he had a lot of fun which is always nice to hear. :)

Happy Halloween all!

Aggie track suit FTW!

The crew

This was the best shot I could snap and you can see Callum is squealing with impatience and I think Molly is stifling a yawn. ;-)

So I lied and said Callum was 2

But wouldn't you, if your kid loved bouncy houses this much?! ;-)

(2 yrs was the min age requirement)

Camera phones aren't good at capturing kid activity

Cutest Costume Award!

Just like Logan 3 yrs ago (wearing the stinker skunk costume), Callum won the Cutest Costume Award at the school's Halloween party last night!  We left early so we missed the celebration but still got the certificate and prize (a neat book) this morning when I dropped the kids off. So funny!

Profile Shot

No great pics of Callum unfortunately but you can see he's in Logan's first costume (with profile of the cool mohawk!). Still very appropriate for my boys, as they're both little stinkers. ;-)

Logan's girlfriend

One of Logan's most favorite playmates at school. :) (most of these pics are pretty bad since they're at night and the kids are running around like crazy!)

Halloween Party

Got home late Wednesday night, but still hemmed a few alterations to Logan's costume, just in time for the boys' school Halloween party last night.

Logan had a BLAST running around like crazy and playing with his friends (in fact he was upset when we decided to leave before the party was over). Super fun!

Heading home

Made the necessary stop at an Aggies' store before leaving town. Logan was very proud that he picked this hat out all on his own. :)

Truman Chocolates

I can't wait to get into these!! :)

Homework time!

Tow truck

A pretty good rendition don't you think?

Children's Museum in Bryan

Logan and I both left our marks on the magnet wall. Can you find them?

Genius!

Triangle shaped crayons. Why don't more places have these?!

Go fast, go slow!

Logan has been very demanding and whiney this morning (case in point, one second he wanted to go faster on the swing, the next he demanded we slow down). You'd never guess that just two minutes before this pic he was in tears and impatiently begging me to (leave Callum at the playground and walk with him to a different part of the park to) push him on the swings. *sigh*

Chipmunk

My little chipmunk. Most of the time his mouth was wide open, squealing in delight.

Swings!

Logan was begging to go on the swings so we did that next after the slides. You can see from Callum's face how much they enjoyed it. :)

Playground time!

The kids were all pretty antsy this morning so I met Curtis and Renee and their kids at a nearby park while Jon took some work calls. Callum ran in this circle (up the stairs, down the slide) for a good 20 minutes or so (and probably would have been content to continue this route all morning if it weren't for his impatient brother!).

One of the dads there commented how amazed he was that such a little guy got right in and started climbing the stairs and doing the slide all by himself, and that he was pretty quick at it too. I told him Callum gets a lot of practice trying to keep up with his older brother. ;-)

Chips-a-holic

Taken yesterday, Callum was all about the potato chips. When he thinks it's time for a snack (or he's just plain hungry) he'll plop his butt down right in the middle of the kitchen and expect to eat there; I think because that's what they do at school during snack time (sit in a circle on the floor as a group to eat). Pretty cute. :)

Scary!

(While watching a Scooby Doo movie)

Luke: Logan, hide! It's a scary dragon!

Logan: It's not real, it's a movie. And, that's not a real dragon, he doesn't have any wings! I think it's a snail.

(FWIW, it was a dragon) ;-)

Jellies

Callum was very interested in Stella's new sparkly jelly shoes! ;-)

Cousins

Logan slept in late this morning so everyone else was hanging out, eating breakfast, and playing in Curtis and Renee's room. When Logan finally did wake up, I told him someone special was waiting for him and wanted to see him to play with him today.

Do you know who it is?

Is it Papa? (Jon's dad)

Nope, although he does want to see you too.

Is it Daddy?

No...

Is it Spiderman?!?!


(After a good laugh from me, he finally guessed his cousin Luke.)

Kisses

Logan got into my lip gloss, as evident from the hallway mirror in our hotel room. ;-)

Aggieland

Oh, Texas...

And we've got jamba juice!

I think we're ready! :)

Ready for take off!

We're seated and ready to go. We've got bagels...

Packing

On our way to Texas for the next week, to celebrate Jon's sister's wedding.

I asked Logan what he wanted to bring, and this was his answer (his stuffed tiger and puppy). ;-)

18 month check up

We had Callum's 18 month check up today. Logan tagged along and during the entire visit complained that Dr. Safir wasn't paying any attention to him. :) (He loves going to the doctor's office - no idea why!)

Callum is developing nicely. He's put on another pound (24 lbs, 11 oz - 50%) since his last visit and has grown over an inch (34" - 90%), still trending taller than average, and his head circumference is 49cm round. He feels like a big kid to me!!  He's very curious and observant, the doc noticed, and also pretty sensitive. :)

Both boys received shots today which was the lowlight of the visit. :( Logan was up first, for his annual flu shot.  I don't think he was quite expecting to get a shot so it took him by surprise and he just bawled his eyes out. This actually made things worse for Callum, who saw his brother crying and got upset and started whimpering BEFORE it was his turn! So you can imagine how upset he then became after his shots (also a flu shot plus a Hep A vaccine). It was pretty miserable trying to calm down both boys, who were both inconsolable. :/

Our biggest challenge right now is that Callum is still waking up in the middle of the night. And, because he's so old, it's now behavioral and needs to be fixed ASAP, before Jon and I lose it. (We had made great progress until he started having major constipation issues, which disrupted any sleep training we had been successful at!)

Hopefully we'll have better luck this time around. :D

The Zane

Somebody took my brother's license plate! ;-)

Logan's Roommate

Look who we found snuggling with Logan's pajamas. :)

Best buds

Taken at Nordy's while waiting for Daddy, who needed to buy a new suit!

Future model in the making

Lentil and Split Pea Soup

Time for the crock pot to earn its keep!

Loganism of the day

(After singing him "You are my Sunshine")

Mom, sunshine aren't people. They're stars!

Taking care of myself

I often forget to schedule my own check ups since I'm so busy with the boys. So this week I've actually done a few "me" things! Like...

- Flu shot ('tis the season!)
- Full body skin/dermatology exam
- My first mammogram (and it's not at all as bad as people say it is!)

Loganism of the day

My teacher is going to jail because she always says no.

Intense concentration!

So it begins...

Logan now has a binder of homework to complete each week. Yikes!

Hide 'n seek

Callum is a superb hider.

Teaching Nana how to take off socks

If you ever want to feel like your kids are getting into EVERYTHING and terrorizing the house, spend an afternoon with an elderly. Thankfully my grandmother is hardcore. ;-)

Teaching Nana how to put together a puzzle

My grandmother is in town so we've been visiting for the afternoon and evening. So nice to see her and have her see my boys! :)

First time at the pumpkin patch

Callum also had a great time. :)

"I'm not tired"

Had a great day running through mazes and corn fields, riding trains and picking out the perfect small pumpkin at Arata's Pumpkin Farm in Half Moon Bay. :)

Cuddling

Mortality

Ever since I got pregnant with Logan, Jon and I have taken a much more serious look at our lives, what is in (and out) of our control, and our overall mortality. It's certainly a topic that weighs heavy on the mind as is, but when you become a parent, I think it just increases exponentially and takes a much more FRONT AND CENTER place in our minds.

So, this week, I'm sad to say, we've had a few reminders of (our own) mortality. And frankly, both Jon and I are a little shaken by them.

A few days ago, a good friend of Jon's, someone whom Jon has worked with for many years, suddenly and unexpectedly died of an embolism. He woke up one morning, dropped his two kids off at school, came home, and died. At the ripe old age of 43. Jon went to his viewing and funeral just a couple of days ago - and it certainly has weighed heavily on his (both of our) mind.

Bright and early this morning, Jon texted me to let me know there had been a shooting in Cupertino, where three people died and several were injured. But what was worse, was that the mad man was armed, dangerous, and still on the loose. Schools (including our kids') were on lock-down all day long. I've done my best to keep it out of my mind today, but certainly nervous and worried about Logan and Callum's safety. And the fact that I can't do anything at the moment to protect them or keep them safe, particularly given I'm not even in town! is maddening, I must admit.

Later this afternoon, we learned that Steve Jobs passed away. An amazing man, a true leader and visionary, who has done so very much in the short time that he had. My colleagues and I were discussing how the news feels somewhat surreal, particularly given, again, that we aren't actually in the Bay Area right now.

Non-coincidentally (I hope), one of the sessions I attended today discussed the importance of being financially organized, since you can't always be prepared with what life hits you (examples were divorce and death!).

So you can bet your ass I texted Jon right then and there. WE NEED TO FINISH OUR WILL AND LIVING TRUST ASAP. Full stop.

I can't wait to get home and hug my three boys tight.

Meet Woody

A dog friendly hotel and spa. Need I go on?!?

Woody's official title is the "Woodmark Hotel Director of Guest Satisfaction"! :)

He's a gorgeous labradoodle, just like our spunky Grover.  About the same age and size too, but MUCH MUCH MUUuuuuCH mellower.

Lakefront view

My camera phone isn't nice enough to capture it all, but I've got a gorgeous view of the lake in front of me! :)

Service with a Capital S!

I'm staying at a different hotel this time, right on the water, in Kirkland. Super cute hotel (and spa) with fantastic customer service. Very eager and helpful staff who had this welcome card waiting for me in my room and then called me a few minutes after I had settled in, to make sure the room was to my liking. 

Off to the mothership

Left home this morning for a Women's Global Leadership Conference up in Redmond this week. As always, Logan wanted to know why he couldn't come with me. :/

Loganism of the day

Mama, I'm hungry.

Ok, we'll make rice and vegetables when we get home.

Mama, I'm not hungry.

Size 7!

Callum has outgrown his other shoes so we got him a couple new ones. Growing like a weed!