November Already?

Pizza night last weekend.

The Varners and Gma Sue came to KC for a Chiefs game last weekend. We also celebrated Halloween. On Saturday we went to Boo Night at a local YMCA. Kennedy and Gus, Josh and I, and Lindsey took the kids. Gma Sue, Brandon, Hazel and Parker stayed home.

Cowboy Gus.

They had this great scenic backdrop set up for picture taking, but Gus wanted to hide behind a foam gravestone the whole time. This is the best picture I could get.

He and Kenny played some games and made crafts. He was an ace at the bean bag game (must get those skills from his tailgating dad) and ever since fishing for spiders, he states nightly that there are spiders swimming in his bathtub.

They did trick or treat at our house when we got back from the event.



Parker was sick over the weekend, so this was about the most time that he got to spend outside all weekend. Poor little fella.



On actual Halloween night we didn't take Gus out, but he had just as much fun putting candy in the bags and buckets of all the kids that came to the door. He just sat in front of the door for a good hour and yelled for me anytime someone started coming up the sidewalk.




This week Hazel enjoyed some real crackers. It is so funny to watch her eat dry foods! She is just learning and she looks like she hates every bite, but she always wants more!

And of course, jealous Gus had to have me take a picture of him eating his supper as well.


Updates

Of the sacrifices I've had to make lately in order to live life more healthily (being behind on blogging, grading, grocery shopping, housekeeping, laundry, and others) the good news is I am getting more sleep at night. So although it has been almost 2 weeks since I blogged (I don't think I've ever neglected to blog for that long in the 2 1/2 yrs I've been doing this!), I have taken my doctor's advice and made myself go to bed much earlier than I had been. I have noticed a difference in my headaches, mood, hair is no longer falling out, and my energy level has increased since I made 10:30 pm my new bed time. Tonight I am cheating a little and probably won't be in bed on time, but hey, it was daylight savings last night right?!? Since my usual blogging time is between 11 and 12 pm, I am going to have to find a way to sneak it back into my schedule, as I feel terrible that I am getting behind on it. This is my online scrapbook.

So, what's up with the kids? Well, Gus figured out door knobs this weekend. I am so nervous that he will open his door and sneak out of his room to go who knows where while we sleep that I probably won't ever sleep again. It is funny to hear the squeaky handle turn, his door open a crack, and then slam shut about 20 times before he actually stays in his bed for naps and night time. He says the funniest things too. I have trouble remembering sometimes that he is only two. He seems so smart. He is learning more and more each day and I can just see the wheels spinning in his mind sometimes- like the light bulb is flashing on. Our favorite games right now are to build blocks up very high and then knock them down, he loves being A C T I V E in any way, and he really likes playing the 'stoplight' color game in the car. He has a huge imagination that I, of course, enjoy playing with as much as I can. He is adapting well to his bifocals and does seem to blink/twitch less often now that he has them. I forgot to have him wear his glasses after his nap today and I noticed many times that his eye is still really crossed when he doesn't wear them. Disappointing, but we will get him through it.

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And Hazel is just too darn cute. She has started to copy clapping. Lately she is saying BaBaBa (meaning absolutely nothing, just practicing her sounds) and loves to scream. She doesn't full blown giggle as much as Gus did, but she does chuckle (and did I say scream?) when she gets excited. She is getting much better at eating some finger foods (like puffs and Ritz crackers) and LOVES bananas and oatmeal or rice cereal. In fact, she is starting to really dislike bottles; I think the solid foods fill her up much more. She still hates belly time, but tonight when we forced her to do it for awhile, she did scoot back a little. She has been able to sit alone since 5 months. She doesn't really roll over very well yet, but she does dive (and then face plant) for objects while sitting. It is funny when she does it, but you have to watch her very closely so she doesn't hurt herself. She likes to put weight on her legs if you hold her, but hates to try to stand alone or beside furniture. I remember that Gus changed so much from 6 months to 12 months- that's when he went from looking like a baby to a toddler. I am so so so sad that Hazel is entering that age. She is almost 7 months old. Still no teeth and (as you can see from the photos) absolutely no hair. Over the last two weeks she has had a permanent cold, but she is a tough girl (well not really, she is pretty whiny like her mommy). She hates sleeping alone, which has been hard on us, but hopefully soon we can break her of that habit. About half the time she still needs a bottle in the middle of the night before she'll go back to sleep.