Enjoying the Season

The boys have been enjoying the weather and getting ready for Christmas. Thursday night we attended a preschool Christmas party. Anton enjoyed the cookies more than the entertainment and Cadel was way more interested in the instruments that were on stage than singing "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" with his class. Neither was interested in visiting with Santa, though he did write a letter to him requesting a monster truck. Anton has been checking out all of the ornaments on the tree.

He's not sure what to think about the snow yet. Here he is signing "COLD".

Yesterday, Rob and Cadel dug out a snow fort in our front yard. It's hard to tell from the picture, but all of us could easily fit in the fort.

We're looking forward to Christmas with family and seeing the expressions on the boys' faces Christmas morning. Wishing you all a peaceful and happy holiday!

Halloween

On Sunday, we hosted the second annual Children's Neighborhood Halloween Parade. While I didn't get an exact count, I would estimate another 60+ people in attendance. There were knights, bugs (butterflies, bumblebees), princesses, an acorn and squirrel, and last but not least a monkey and "storm power"/superhero (aka Cadel). Fun and good treats were had by all. What a great way to reconnect with and meet new neighbors.


One of the funniest moments came towards the end of the party. One of the little guests (who shall remain nameless) ran up and stole the head off of our scarecrow (see group photo-shot prior to the incident). He just tore the styrofoam head off its post and ran off with it, much to his mothers dismay. The look on Cadel's face was truly priceless!

Spooktacular Fun

Friday night we attended a Halloween party at New Horizon's preschool. There was a story teller, pumpkin carving, and best all lots of tasty treats! It was fun to see all of the creative costumes and watch the kids interact with their friends. Anton was a monkey and Cadel chose to be a fireman.

Here, Cadel poses with his buddy Jack (aka buzz lightyear).

While Cadel was proud of his costume, I think there was a hint of jealousy when he saw the toy story (buzz, woody) and spiderman costumes.

Growing...

The boys are growing so fast! Cadel has sprouted another inch or so in the past month, leaving us to wonder if his new pants shrunk in the wash or if he has really grown. He's looking forward to Halloween and has been enjoying raking and playing in the leaves. He loves pre-school and playing with friends on the playground.

Today was Anton's 15 month check up. He weighed in at 22 pounds and 30 inches long, putting him in the 25th percentile for weight and height. He is just starting to walk unassisted. He's signing (eat, more, shoes, light, milk, etc) and saying more words everyday(uh oh, bye bye, all done, woof woof). It's so fun to watch his personality develop. He's such a happy, playful little guy.

What the #&*@!?

Um, what I meant to say is "Is this thing real?".

Uncle Paul again has a giant pumpkin on his front step. Anton wasn't quite sure what to think. This year's specimen weighed in at over 800 pounds. We'll have to stop by again once they carve it. Cadel was less intrigued by the pumpkin and more interested in running up and down the hill in the front yard (hence the limited number of photos).

Labor Day Adventures

This past weekend we traveled to my home town in Indiana. This year was the 43rd annual Blueberry Fest, and while I celebrated another birthday I'm not yet that old. We braved the cold and wind and camped out with the boys who enjoyed the fresh air and adventure. Rob and I bailed on the 31 mile bike ride and opted for the shorter 16 mile loop as the boys were cold and the winds were relentless. We also attended the festival, sampling treats and watching the balloon launch and stayed to watch the parade on Monday before traveling home. Cadel was amazed to see how many people turned out to help me celebrate my birthday. Too cute! Unfortunately, Anton returned home with an ear infection, but I'm hoping he'll be feeling better soon.

Weekend with Dad

I went to Pittsburg this past weekend for a meeting, so Rob was home with the boys. He took them to Como Zoo in St. Paul. Incidentally, Cadel is learning about zoos at school and can now spell zoo. Anyway, they saw the new polar bear exhibit and rode the train together. It appears that they had a lot of fun.

Happy First Birthday Anton!

Anton celebrated his first birthday on July 20th. I can hardly believe how quickly this past year has gone. Anton is starting to cruise around and climb stairs. He still has just 2 teeth. He says "eat" and signs "more". He loves driving trucks with his brother and playing the xylophone. I think he enjoyed the balloons more than his cake.

A child's imagination

We took the boys to Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago last week. Cadel was so excited to ride the lions. He packed his pretend hat, boots and vest. Ultimately, we choose to stay behind the fence and let him ride a hippo instead.

Anton has started pretending to be on the phone. He'll use the TV remote, a block, or his hand to imitate us. Funny thing is, we rarely talk on the phone.

Little cyclists

Anton has a new helmet and bike trailer that's big enough for 2. Cadel has new bike gloves, just like Mom and Dad. Now, if only we had as much energy as they do!

Anton