Halloween

Happy Halloween! We had such a fun time trick-or-treating with the kids tonight. This was Elise's first time (last Halloween she was less than two months old).

Savannah was so excited about Halloween all day long. She was singing a song she made up about how fun Halloween was, and so I asked her if I could video her. This was her encore.

And if you're wondering what she's wearing, it's her "Sleeping Beauty dress" over her Halloween t-shirt.

Doesn't Elise make an adorable giraffe?

Savannah was a mermaid.

Leighton was Buzz Lightyear.

Ryland was a football player

(or, as the Leighton and Savannah prefer to say, a football teamer).

[He was so busy watching football on the computer that he wouldn't look at the camera for a picture.]

Elise checkin' out her bag

at the first house

She's such a big girl!

Trick or treat!

Worse Than Harry's Cupboard

We moved to my sister's house in Arizona last July, and, although we left most of our stuff at Matt's parents' house in California, we brought Elise's crib with us. I knew the three of us would be sharing one room, but I don't think I was prepared for the upset the move and sleeping within Elise's view would have on Elise's sleep. And, thus, on my sleep too. (Matt sleeps through most anything.)

Elise was waking up all through the night every night, and she was getting up so early every morning. When it had been a couple of weeks and I didn't think I could take it anymore, we tried to see if Elise would sleep better in a different place. At first we tried putting her in her pack 'n play in the living room, and she slept a little better during the night but still woke up super early when my brother-in-law got up to get ready for work.

Then, almost as a joke, someone suggested the laundry room as an alternative. Maybe I made the suggestion; I don't remember. I was really tired all the time at that point. So we tried it. And she slept. And that has been her room at night ever since.

We still put Elise in her crib for naps, but during the night she sleeps in the dark, quiet laundry room, with a box fan running, and a baby monitor set up just in case. In the mornings, instead of crying, she sometimes hammers on the washing machine to let me know she is awake. This makes for a very effective alarm clock.

I feel a little bad about putting her to sleep in a pack 'n play every night, and I have been looking for a pad to make it more comfortable (if you know of a good one, please let me know). Putting her in the laundry room reminds me of Harry Potter's aunt and uncle, who made Harry sleep in the cupboard under the stairs instead of in a real bedroom. Then I think back on how tired I was (how tired we both were) when she was waking up all night. Then I don't feel so bad.

Fall Festival

Yesterday we went to the fall festival and pumpkin patch at Vertuccio Farms. We were sad Jonathan didn't get to come with us because his father passed away this weekend and he is in Tennessee. Holly with her bunch and Matt and our little pumpkin had a lot of fun, though.

On the way in, the kids got lollipops. This was Elise's first experience with them. She's a fan. She also likes to eat it from the other end, chewing on the stick.

the barrel train

(Ryland is in the next car with Holly. You can see him in the background.) This was probably Ryland's favorite part, along with the sucker. :)

hop-along inflatable ponies

They were too hard for Elise to do, but she liked to bounce on them anyway.

Matt squinting in the bright sunlight

Matt and Elise on the pedal race cars

(I think he was probably enjoying this more than Elise.)

Elise didn't really want to put her head in the hole, and Matt didn't have much luck trying to convince her to do it.

The kids loved seeing and petting the farm animals. Leighton said this was his favorite part, along with the bounce house. It was probably Elise's favorite too.

This thing made me feel like a wimp! I only got up to about 400. Matt, of course, rang the bell. He says that's what he learned from a summer working construction.

We got the kids these tiny pumpkins. Savannah said getting the pumpkins was her favorite part, along with the bounce house.

Afterward, we went to Chick-fil-A for dinner, where Elise got her first ever balloon. Can you tell she really liked it?

Even with the complete meltdown Elise had on the way home (she was super exhausted), the day was totally worth it. The kids had so much fun.

And sorry the pictures aren't better! Holly's camera battery was dead, and mine was almost dead too, so that it kept turning off. I'm just glad we could get a few pictures.

Happy fall!

Lotion/Yogurt Conundrum

Here is Elise eating vanilla yogurt. Notice her right hand is below her highchair tray. She's rubbing the yogurt on her leg.

And here is Elise getting ready for bed. I usually give her a little lotion and let her rub it on her chest as I put lotion on her legs. Notice she's rubbing the lotion with one hand and eating it with the other hand.

I've come to the conclusion that Elise must confuse lotion and yogurt. They do look really similar. But they probably don't taste very much alike.

Curly Girl

Elise's hair is growing in a little. Actually, most people probably wouldn't notice that it's thicker or longer, but I can tell because it gets fuzzed up more easily than it used to. I know I've already posted about Elise's hair, but now that it's longer it gets this adorable little curl, and I had to document it. This picture really doesn't do it justice; it's way cuter and curlier-looking in real life. The funniest thing about this curl is that it is totally off-center. If I put up all of the hair that would stay in a hair elastic, Elise would have a side ponytail on her left. Awesome. Elise likes to twirl it, which is really cute, but sometimes means that what little hair she has is crusted with food.

One day Elise will have a full head of hair (at least, I hope she will). Until then, I am enjoying her little curly tuft.

Slides, Sand, & Sun

In the mornings before it gets too hot outside, Elise and I usually head to the playground. Sometimes Holly and her kids come too, which is fun. Elise loves going to the playground so much that sometimes she won't eat her breakfast very well because she is in such a hurry to get going.

Leighton and Savannah like to run ahead on the way there.

Even first thing in the morning, the Arizona sun is pretty intense.

my beautiful girl

Savannah on the big slide

Elise is quite the little climber!

"Come on, Mom!"

Ryland loves to talk into this pipe telephone.

Handsome man!

Savannah and Leighton (posing)

Thirteen months old and fearless!

Sweet Chocolate

Today my brother-in-law Jonathan got a dog. He has been wanting one for years, and he is really excited. The kids are all super excited too, Elise included. Did I mention that she is obsessed with dogs right now?

The new puppy is a chocolate lab, and Jonathan named him Hershey. The dog will be six weeks old tomorrow.

Leighton doesn't want to put him down. Ever.

He also made sure that I knew we couldn't take the dog with us when we move out. (Whenever that will be.)

Don't worry, Leighton. He's cute and all, but . . .

He likes napping on the cool tile

(because it's still really hot in Arizona in October).

He really is pretty cute.

Cobweb Commotion

Living with my sister Holly and her family has been a lot of fun.

Maybe too much fun sometimes . . .

In this video, we are trying to knock down a cobweb that is especially high. Jonathan had been throwing the duster like a javelin for a while without success, so we were trying to come up with a better method.

Never a dull moment in this house! Even when dusting. It's a wonder we didn't wake up any of the kids.

Movie Party

The kids had a movie party, which included popcorn and cardboard hats, and they had a lot of fun. The "hats" were from the packaging between the bowls in a set of new dishes Holly bought.

Here's Elise wearing hers.

I helped some with her hat decorations.

Here's Leighton, all ready for the movie to begin.

Ryland decorating his hat

Savannah coloring hers

Movie time!