Monday, October 21, 2013

Pumpkin Patch

Paul made a comment tonight, something to the effect of, "we can't ever let our kids get married." And I responded with, "or move out, or go to school, or date, or grow up." We are having so much fun with these two at these ages. There's nothing better!

We took them to the Irvine Park Railroad pumpkin patch over the weekend. And it was more fun than we could have imagined. Starting traditions young, and continuing them is something that I get so excited about. And a pumpkin patch before Halloween will be something we will do for years to come. No grocery store pumpkins for us! We prefer paying twice as much in a fun environment. ;) 

We went on a hayride. 




We saw farm animals.
Rode pretend horses.

Went in a haunted house.
Played in the pumpkins.





And we searched for the perfect ones to take home with us. 
We ended the day with cotton candy. I think this may have been Addie's first time trying cotton candy. She wasn't so sure about it. But Garrett and I love it! 
The weather was perfect. The kids were in heaven. And we left with cute pumpkins and happy kids. Success!

Friday, October 18, 2013

Project 365: 282-290

October 9- Addie's been jealous all day but Garrett is potty trained and she's not. But don't be fooled, this doesn't motivate me to potty train her. She won't actually go, she just wants to sit there all day. And when I make her take a potty break, (a break FROM the potty), 30 seconds later she needs to "go 'gain."
October 10- It was fine with me that these two wanted to walk me in the airport today. And Garrett pulled my suitcase the whole way. I'm about to board an airplane with no husband and no kids. This is a first for me since having a family! I'm going to miss these two, but I'm so excited for a long weekend away. And thankful to Paul for booking me the ticket and watching the kids alone for the next four days! 
October 11- The World of Coke in Atlanta Georgia. Pretty much the coolest museum honoring a soda that I've ever been to. (The only one I've ever been to.)
October 12- A plantation home in Roswell, GA. I'm loving it here. Such a charming little town.
October 13- It's really blurry, but I got a quick shot of the kids seeing me tonight at LAX after four days away. They were pretty excited, and Garrett brought me flowers. I had the best time in Atlanta with Mara and Aron. I didn't want to leave, but happy to be home, too.
October 14- The kids enjoyed their Atlanta souvenirs today. Coca-Cola shot glasses full of milk, and green T-Rex cookies with pink sprinkles.
October 15- Addie fell into a planter box in a parking lot today on the way into the doctor. Her face hit a tree stump. ... "Yes doctor, my children are always closely supervised and cared for...what made you ask that?"...
October 16- Garrett has Addie pinned. But he looks like the one who's struggling to break free. Black eye. Missing tooth. Badass. I'm so in love with her (and him.)
October 17- Monster pumpkins.

Thursday, October 17, 2013

Mimi's Visit

My mom's days and weeks keep getting busier as the holidays get closer. And she wanted to come out for some downtime with the kids.  Her visit came at the perfect time because it coincided with the time that we wanted to have our yard sale. It was nice to have her distract the kids while I sorted through rooms and closets, and took loads of stuff to my in-laws house where we had the sale, and then stay home with the kids while we were selling. By the way, I was happy with the outcome, especially considering that my initial plan was to just drop everything off at the Goodwill. We made $600 on stuff we didn't need anymore.

We also found time to relax together and do a couple fun things, too.



As the firstborn grandchild, Garrett has always had the spot as Mimi's number one sidekick. But Addie is working hard to claim that title.
Our local Stater Bros grocery store has this fun pumpkin patch right in the parking lot all month long. We went several times last year, and we'll probably go more this year, too.
Ironing fabric for a quilt together.
A picnic at the park.

Frosting, decorating, eating Halloween cookies.
Addie loves post-bath "Nakey time." Fortunately she left her towel on for the picture.

It's always nice having Mimi in town, and the time always goes too fast.

Friday, October 11, 2013

My first born is three.

Garrett turned three years old on September 23rd. As you probably saw in a previous post, we were in St. George with the whole Greenhalgh family to celebrate.

The weekend after we got back, his grandma and grandpa White had a Phineas and Ferb birthday party for him. Complete with a zip line for Perry to ride in. Meatloaf covered in blue mashed potatoes. Every Phineas and Ferb toy and party favor you could dream of.
As well as a Perry the platypus birthday cake, made by his auntie Annie.
All of his gifts were Phineas and Ferb related. A backpack, a T-shirt, a jacket, a piggy bank, a watch, shoes, stuffed animals, a football, a pillow pet... That Disney store has thought of everything.



And his Grandparents thought of everything! 

Thursday, October 10, 2013

According to the kids.

G: Can I have a bite?
A: No. All mine. 
G: You pooping right now? 
A: Yeah... You poopy?
G: No, poop in the toilet.
A: Baffroom?
G: Yeah.

G: My cook dinner. 
Me: Oh, you're cooking dinner? 
G: Yeah!
Me: cool! 
G: Don't touch my cookin'.

Me: Addie don't whine. Talk in your big girl voice.
G: Yeah talk big. Lulu talk a little one, I talk a big one!

G: Mom, are you sad?
Me: Yeah, a little sad.
G: (hugs me) You wait a second, I play with my toys real quick then come check on you.

G: I speak Japanese! Aw Choo!!… I'm funny, right?

Addie needed a little downtime, so I had her sit on my lap for a story. I started making up a story about a brave, strong, pretty little girl who loves her family, and her family loves her. She smiled, pointed at herself, and said, "me!"

Addie brought me a golf ball in a cup and said, "soccer ball, eat it!"

G: I can't pee standing up. My pee pee gets in my nose. (He's been peeing standing up since he said that and he hasn't had a problem yet.)

G: I peed the garbage can!
Me: What!? No!! Why??!
G: I peed like this. (He then took the pee stance and began swaying from side to side.) Sigh… Growing up with all brothers, I fear that teaching a boy to pee IN the potty is a lifelong struggle.

I was teaching Addie to properly ask for more fruit snacks.
Me: May I
A: May I
Me: Please have
A: Please have
Me: One more?
A: Two more?

Garrett's new thing when he doesn't want to go to bed at night is to keep asking "guess what?" There's never anything to guess.

I guess when I'm frustrated and trying to not let on when I'm asking the kids to do something, I call them sweetie. A couple of times now, Garrett has been trying to convince me to let him do something that I don't want him to do, and he ends his request with, "okay sweetie?"

P: Garrett, is it okay if I take a nap?
G: No, little kids take naps.

Addie's a curious little girl, she often asks, "wha-cha doin' there guys?"

Garrett came up to me and said, "hug me." I gave him a hug, and as I went to let go, he said, "a little bit more…" a second later, he said, "Squeeeeeze." Then we were done. 

We got a go fish game that's not cards, it's a fishing pole with a suction cup that picks up cardboard fish. There's items on the back of the fish, and one of them has an anchor on it. Garrett caught that fish and he held up the fishing pole and shouted, "look mom! I caught a hooker!"
Later that night Addie went for the pole and Garrett yelled, "No Lulu! Don't touch my hooker!"

When Addie says fork it sounds a lot like another four letter word that starts with F.
A few days ago at dinner, she was passing out forks, and she'd say with each one, "Fork you. Fork you."

Garrett was trying to explain to me that Mimi was making him hold still so she could comb his hair. He finally just yelled, "Mimi's making me crazy!"

Favorite words that Garrett mispronounces:
Jellyfish- Jell-O fish
Flamingo- FlingO
Sprinkles – sprinklers
Basketball – back sit ball




Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Project 365: 262-281

September 19- She's kind of dirty and she's kind of losing her mind. Addie doesn't do road trips without getting sticky from head to toe, and without losing her mind.
September 20- I cut 8 inches off my hair today. And for the first time in way too long you can't see any grays. (This is post hot tub ponytail hair so don't judge the style.)
September 21- Family dodgeball. It's a big deal.
September 22- We celebrated a day early with my whole family in St. George. My boy will be three tomorrow! He loved everything about his construction party, especially the cake.

September 23- And just like that, he's three.
September 24- The kids showing me some rocks at Zions national Park.
September 25- Dinner at Pirates Cove pizza in St. George. Don't ever go there. The kids took the race car video game very seriously, even though it was on the game over screen, the whole time.
September 26- Having a popsicle and saying goodbye this afternoon after a week in St. George.
September 27- I called Bapa White last night to see if they were up for grandparent day today. I wanted time to unpack, do laundry, and other general home from vacation housework. They've been gone for two hours and so far I've put a load of wash in and started catching up on the DVR. It's a lot of work.
September 28- Garrett was so excited that Paul finally put his new bed together tonight. This bed is quite possibly the worst decision we've made as parents thus far. The mattress is too deep so it comes to the top of the safety rail. I wouldn't mind if the bed wasn't 4 feet off the ground. The whole thing turns over to be at normal bed level so we'll probably have to do that even though I was looking forward to the extra floor space. But for now he's on the mattress under the bed frame. Addie is so jealous that she refuses to go to sleep and she's been screaming in her crib for almost an hour. Garrett was so excited that he did a running dive onto the mattress and his head nailed the wall and he started screaming. I had to lay with him until he was almost asleep, and now Paul is back consoling Addie who at almost 2 years old, can't believe she still doesn't get top bunk.
September 29- Apple tasting for breakfast. Eight varieties, along with cheese slices, peanut butter, and caramel for dipping. It's amazing how different they all taste, especially when tasting one right after another.
September 30- I'm overwhelmed with stuff. Time for a yard sale. Today I held up approximately 78 stuffed animals and asked the kids with each one "keep" or "get rid of." They each said keep approximately 78 times. They won't even miss the more than half that I said get rid of.
October 1- Can't wait for these to turn orange. Tangerines fresh off the tree are the best part of California.
October 2- The best thing about having kids close in age is they can share clothes. Not really, but he did wear her pajamas to bed last night, and those are his shoes.
October 3- Garrett just probably walked in wearing his helmet that he had from about nine months old till just over a year. I found it a couple of days ago well de-junking. ... I was at a conference with Garrett once when he had the helmet, and a man came up to me and started asking what kind it was, how long he'd be in it, etc. When I finished answering his questions he went on to tell me that his now 12-year-old daughter had one when she was a baby. He went on to tell me that he and his wife intentionally never took pictures of their daughter wearing the helmet, and when she was "graduated" from it they threw it away and have never told her, and have no intentions of ever telling her that she once wore one. ...WHY??... I don't get it. It wasn't a great four months, but it wasn't bad. And it's certainly not a chapter of our lives I'd ever erase. He was just as cute in the helmet as he is now!
October 4- Just finished de-junking the entire house. Turns out we have plenty of stuff to do one of these tomorrow.
October 5- We had to have some fun today after Yard sale day. (Selling, not buying.) Chinese food and a fun little pumpkin patch.
October 6- Mimi's working on a quilt, and Garrett decided he needed to get his play iron and help her.
October 7- I sold Addie's dresser at the yard sale Saturday. Thought we could do without for a while, but I realized later that we still kind of needed one, and I wanted to bigger one than she'd had. We found the perfect fit for her tiny room. (Not the one in the picture, it's ugly. They just liked marching around it.)
October 8- Our afternoon snack is usually grapes or apples, or cheese and crackers. Something semi-healthy. Today it was ice cream. One of those days.