Halloween Treats from Oma!

Before you watch this video, PLEASE allow me to set the scene (ie, make some excuses).... James had just woken up from a nap (hence the bedhead) and desperately wanted to paint (a daily request). I took off his shirt which seemed like a smart mommy thing to do, but really only facilitated him painting his belly. So, that explains why he looks like we don't clothe or bathe him. Also, he is suffering (and will continue to all winter) from chapped cheeks, hence the red clown circles.

He was very excited to open his Halloween package from Oma & Opa (Brian's parents) and basically jumped on Brian when he walked in the door after work -"HiDaddyCanWeOpenThePackageNow?!" - and that is why Brian is still in his uniform.

OK, enough excuses - on to the show!

The Toddler, The Baker, The Chocolate Bat Maker

Wow, does this kid love to bake.  James and I made some fall treats for our neighbors - chocolate cut-out bat cookies. While this seemed like a good idea at the time, it seriously amped up my "don't put your fingers in that!" "keep the dough in the bowl!" and my personal favorite, "don't touch the knives!" factor. Just kidding - it's fun and once I get all the cookies in the oven - James LOVES to roll out the extra dough and pat pat pat it and put a cookie cutter on it no less than 20 times per square inch of dough.

Here's the rolling/patting/cutting:

Look at the concentration during the rolling process. I should have videotaped it so you could also hear the heavy breathing of a baker deeply immersed in his work.

 

Fall Weekend, Part Three (the final installment)

Well, lookee here. It's already the NEXT weekend and I haven't even finished telling you about LAST weekend.

So, aaaanywaaaay...last weekend was the Shenandoah Balloon & Wine Festival about one hour away. I have been looking forward to this for months because I just knew the weather would be perfect, the leaves would be changing color at exactly the right time and that there would be lots of sprawling hills for James to run/roll/slide down. Really, I got lucky on all of that - it was beautiful! The weather was perfectly sunny and crisp and while they didn't have much for a 2 yr old tike, he did love the hills... and the horses... and the Kettle Corn. OK, we all loved the Kettle Corn - James was lucky to get even one kernel.

So, there was talk the entire time about the wind - was there enough for the balloons? too much? too late? I could go on. Apparently, when you decide that the conditions are just right, you launch your balloon RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE of the festival. This big ReMax balloon was about 10 feet from us and as it was being inflated (?), it would roll from side to side, partially crushing those underneath. Good times.

It's quite a process to get one of these big guys in the air. Here's how James occupied himself while we waited:

And here is a still shot of that taken by Uncle Kevin with his fancy dancy camera. I must say, this is how it feels to be James' mommy about 90% of the time. The other 10% is when he is sleeping.

First Day of School

We interrupt this riveting tale of "Our Fall Weekend" (part 3 is coming)... to announce James' FIRST DAY OF PRESCHOOL. He only had one tiny moment of hesitation when we got to the classroom and his teacher, Ms. Taryn greeted him and then I said, "aren't you ready to play with the toys and books?" and I didn't see him again for three hours. When I greeted him when school was over, he made it very clear that he was not interested in coming home with me (aka, boring old mom) so we are calling the day a SUCCESS.

(please note that James' lunch bag is half the size of his entire body)

According to James, here's how his day went:

"The yellow marker didn't work."

"The paper was green."

"We read about a big red chicken."

"Chickens say bok bok."

We've just returned from Back to School Night (wow, lots of events at this school) and it turns out James' class MADE BREAD. They made actual bread! With yeast and flour and an oven and our kid comes home with, "the yellow marker didn't work." I can only imagine what he won't be telling us in high school.

Fall Weekend, Part Two

So, as I was saying.... James "got into" preschool last week and even though he hadn't even attended one class yet (he starts tomorrow!), they welcomed us with open arms and invited us to their annual Pumpkin Patch Night last Saturday. Although this pumpkin patch did not have "giant slides" as James kept requesting, they did have great campsites, a fun hay ride (with actual hay) and an actual patch in which to pick your pumpkin. 

Here is how happy James was with his pick:

One minor hitch in our giddy-up was that all of the kids were going to wear their costumes. James has a costume (stay tuned), but we didn't really feel like it was pumpkin patch appropriate. So, he went as a... zoo keeper? safari guide? kid who has too many earth-toned clothes? Lucky for us, these giraffe boots seem to be useful in any season, rain or shine or pumpkin patch.

Please note that this is the beginning of the evening and James has 6 animals in his jacket.
Here we are maybe 20 minutes later. James is trying out his first toasted marshmallow and now he is down to 2.James' first introduction to s'mores: It's obviously a genetic mutation, but he doesn't like them. Brian and I looked sad for about 10 seconds and then just inhaled them ourselves.

The pumpkin "patch" was in a great fenced-in area with lush grass. Each kid was to pick one. James, of course, picked two and couldn't decide which one to add to our ever-growing pumpkin population at home. (please note: just one sad little giraffe remains in the zoo that is James' jacket.)

After considering each, the coloring, the stem size and ??? - really, what IS the difference between these two? Only a toddler would know, I guess. Finally,  James chooses.

And just how do these pumpkins grow right here in this lush grass with no weeds, no vines and no garden bugs?? They grow in a bin on a forklift, of course. I don't know if it was planned, but the forklift guy let each kid sit on the seat and "drive."

The hayride back to our car was so authentic, I think I will go back when I want to hurry along my labor.

Boy, do we love Fall.

Fall Weekend, Part One

In the words of our favorite animated octopus Oswald, "ohmygosh." It was a FULL weekend here at Chez Coyne. 

First of all, let me officially announce that last week, James GOT INTO PRESCHOOL. A real one that he will attend live and in person! Two days a week! In real play clothes - not the pajamas that his current "preschool" requires! I say "got into" because we were 31st on the waiting list (!) so I do feel that we accomplished something. 

Anyhoo, we are all very excited. We toured the school last week. James barged into the classroom (through our legs) and immediately claimed a seat at the art table and began... There are no less than 1,000 pieces of official paperwork to fill out, have notarized, etc so we hope that he will get to start this week!

The preschool is the impetus for one of our events this weekend (stay tuned for Fall Weekend, Part Two), but before that, our weekend started out as usual. A trip to the Old Town farmer's market. Cinnamon pastries were consumed, we danced for the "saxophone man," we chatted with our neighbors. We ended up needing a frame for a print purchased at said farmer's market and headed to Michael's. That's where we had the "brilliant" idea that maybe James would like to try painting.... So we bought the beginner set and talked all about painting. James, of course, wanted to get started right there in the cart, but we told him he could start after his nap. And so began the "can I paint now?" broken record that was our son. He honestly woke up from his nap shouting "CAN I PAINT NOW?!" from his room.

So, a promise is a promise and here are James' first attempts at painting. He loved it so much that we are already out of three colors and one ream of paper.

The Nesting Instinct

No, not me... James. So here is the very nice bed we have provided for James. 

It used to be his crib and has been converted into a toddler bed for months now. It was a gift from Brian's parents and we thank them very much since it is so nice and sturdy, it will last through two kids. Now, it may be this nice and sturdy because JAMES REFUSES TO SLEEP ON IT. If you look closely at the photo below, you will see the "nest" where James sleeps every night - right next to the bed.

Here is a closer look at the nest. James does this all on his own after we put him to bed. This particular evening's nest consists of: one sleeping bag, two blankets made by his Aunt Natalie and Great Aunt Judi, the seat cushion from the glider, one overturned toddler armchair, one actual pillow (used as a blanket), and one giant teddy bear used for a pillow. And although we cannot see it here, I assure you he is also sleeping ON TOP of at least two trucks and one random toy like a yo-yo or a pair of binoculars.

BUT, if he sleeps like this for 10 hours a night, then who are we to complain?

National Gallery Sculpture Garden... Boo. Hiss.

Is there anything more sad than a boy stuck OUTSIDE a carousel?

Oh don't worry! We let him on! And of all the delightfully authentic horses on the Smithsonian Carousel, James chose (drumroll please....) THE BENCH. Yup, chose it from OUTSIDE the fence, waited in line for his turn and then raced to ride THE BENCH. No up and down, no fake reigns to hold, no seatbelt. Our kid loves THE BENCH.

Although, maybe he is wiser than his years would imply because this is how FAST that carousel was going. Have you ever seen such a fast carousel??

Obviously, James needed a long night of sleep after a vigorous day of bench riding so we called the babysitter and hit the town. Here we are out to dinner (like real people!) with Aunt Cathy - in town for a fun visit to celebrate her 29th birthday. Oh, to be young again...

Oh wait. Here's something more sad than the carousel. Here is a lovely fountain just outside the National Gallery Sculpture Garden where James was having a grand old time walking the perimeter with Daddy. Until... the security guard told him to get down.

Not to be deterred from our sculpture-loving fun, we roamed the garden and thought it would be "oh so funny" if James stood on the sign that says, "do not touch or climb on the artwork." That was hilarious until.... the security guard came by and told him to get down because, "that's not a good idea, son."

And so, here it is, a truly sad picture of poor defeated James.

Boo.

Hiss.

Pentagon 9/11 Memorial

If we keep having house guests at this rate, we are sure to see EVERY SINGLE MONUMENT AND MEMORIAL EVER ERECTED. This week: Oma & Opa and the Pentagon 9/11 Memorial.

Brian also gave us a tour of the inside of the Pentagon (where no cameras are allowed). It was very interesting, but if you have never been there.... let me assure you that your tax dollars are not being wasted there. It is quite barren and sparse. The miles and miles of white walls and linoleum flooring are only broken up by the occasional print of a Chief of Something. Other than that, the 5 rings and 7 floors are basically indistinguishable.

More about the memorial: www.pentagonmemorial.net/home

Fall!

I grew up in Arizona where it looks the same pretty much all year round - beautiful in its own way, but the same. Winter is the cold desert and summer is the hot hot don't-touch-anything-or-your-skin-will-burn-off desert, but it still looks the same. Brian grew up in Florida where it also looks the same pretty much year round. Winter is oh-it's-"cold"-so-you-might-want-to-wear-a-tshirt-while-jet-skiing and summer is picturesque, but HOT Florida - palm trees, the whole business, but really, it looks the same.

So, you can imagine our extreme (borderline obsessive) delight in living in a place that actually has a FALL. The whole place changes! Right now, the air is brisk yet the sun is shining and the leaves are starting to change color. We don't find it at all strange that we say, "wow, it's SO nice out!" 100 times within an hour.

Of course, there's only one thing to do this time of year... head to the biggest craziest pumpkin patch in the world. (that last bit is not a researched fact, just based on my own personal experience) Lucky for us, Oma and Opa were in town (from Florida) and they were reveling in the fall weather too.

So on to the pumpkin patch: in a word - vast. Climbing structures as far as the eye can see (planes, trains, big trucks, pirate ships), pony rides, hay rides, storytelling, a free pumpkin when you leave and 5 GIANT slides. Here's how much fun they were:

This was a tunnel built INTO a farm-size display of haystacks.

At first, I was appalled by this giant mound of dirt, BUT it turns out it has a name: Money Mountain. Kids can climb on it and dig out three treasures. James' treasures: a plastic candy corn man, a butterfly finger puppet, one diaper full of sand and one purple rubber alien that he did not let go of for hours.
No, this is not the pumpkin that he got to take home at the end.

Rites Of Passage

Licking the spatula: done.

James pretty much wants to "make something" every day. He loves to make us "garlic soup" or "pie" which happen to look and taste exactly the same. Occasionally, I let him "help" me make cookies which involves a lot of sweat and "don't put your hands in that!" from me, but brings him undeniable bliss so how can I not?

(please note: there are no raw eggs in the frosting that James is licking)

Do As I Say NOT As I Say

James (sticking out his tongue): These chicken nuggets are hot!

Me: Are they burning your tongue? How about some orange juice to cool it down?

Pictured below: James pouring orange juice ON HIS CHICKEN NUGGETS.