Halloween!

Halloween this year was a four day long celebration.  It started on Sunday at Gramma & Papa's.  We all got together to watch the Patriots game and to talk about the anniversary party from Saturday night.  While we were there, Gramma gave Halloween bags to the three older boys (Logan is still a bit too little for candy).  They had lots of fun digging through their bags and finding all of their goodies.  They especially loved the fangs!
Then on Tuesday, I brought the boys to RI for some family trick-or-treating.  We stopped at Uncle Glenn and Aunt Chris's first but no one was home so we headed to Bumpa's house.  We visited with him for a while while Logan had a bottle and Evan entertained us all.  Our next stop was Uncle Rick's and Aunt Donna's.  We stayed there for a while before everyone started getting tired and heading to Gramma & Papa's so that the fire chief could take a nap.  We stayed for dinner at Governor's and everyone got a kick out of seeing the fire chief and his little monster.
Today, we did the same thing we did last year...story time at the library, trick-or-treating at town hall, and then lunch with Daddy at Aptima.  After a nap and dinner we had planned to take Evan (and Logan) to a few of the neighbors houses.  However, our plans changed when we had a fresh two-year old on our hands this evening.  We gave Evan multiple chances to change his behavior but he just didn't seem to care that he wasn't going to be able to go trick-or-treating.  I was certainly more upset about it than he was.  It was a busy couple of days and maybe Evan had decided that he already had enough candy.  Either way we had a fun Halloween with our little fire chief and our monster/pumpkin!



Not the best video but it's all we have from tonight.  Maybe we'll try to get another one later.

Miscellaneous October Happenings

Lots of little daily occurrences with two sweet little boys = Lots of pictures and lots of fun!

Gramma & Papa's Anniversary Party

Last night we had a 40th anniversary party for Gramma and Papa at Richard's Pub.  They celebrated their 40th anniversary on September 16th and we wanted to have a party with friends and family to honor them and all they have done for us throughout our lives.  There was a lot of planning and organizing that went into the night and it turned out exactly as we had imagined.  The evening was complete with wonderful company including lots of family, old friends and new; great food; a photo slideshow; a little dancing; and some "Remember when" stories. We are so happy that so many people joined us to celebrate the long lasting love that Papa and Gramma have for each other.  We love you!

Pre-Halloween Activities

This October has been filled with pre-Halloween activities.  Everything from homemade super hero costumes with Papa to making cookies with mom to share with friends and cousins to carving (stinky) pumpkins with dad.  It has been a busy but fun month!

The Boys and Madelyn

Boys, boys, boys and more boys!  Every where we look we are surrounded by little boys.  We have our own boys and our nephews.  Most of my cousins children are boys and most of our friends children are boys.  Today we spent the day at the playground with four fun boys and one sweet (severely outnumbered) little girl - the Wheeler's and the Mamuszka's.  It was difficult to have a very lengthy conversation (and to take many photos) because the kids were all running in different directions but it was great to see everyone and enjoy a beautiful fall day.

Dippin' Like Grandpa!

When Omi and Grandpa Bob were here in May, Evan shared a snack of graham crackers and milk with Grandpa.  This morning he asked for some milk in a bowl and a graham cracker because he wanted to be...

...dippin' like Grandpa!

Adam's Farm with the Bowden's

This was a weekend filled with time spent with long-time friends.  Today we met the Bowden's at Davenport's in Cumberland, RI for lunch and then went to Adam's farm for a fun New England autumn outing complete with a hayride, a hay maze, and pumpkins.  While Evan and I have seen Lia and Emily quite a few times over the last two years, we usually get together during the week when the dad's are working.  It was nice to have a get together that included everyone on what turned out to be a beautiful afternoon.  I had so much fun watching Evan and Lia interact...such cuties!

Leah's Visit

Last night we had a very special house guest.  One of my good friends from high school, Leah, came to visit. She was supposed to stay with us on Friday night before participating in a triathlon on Saturday but due to a rental car mix up she wasn't able to make it to Millbury.  It actually worked out better because we were able to have a longer, more relaxed visit.  I can't remember the last time she and I had so much time together.  Evan was quite entertaining and flirty with Leah and Logan had quite a few smiles (and some spit-up) for her as well. We had a wonderful night just talking and catching up...something I hope we can do more of in the future!  Thanks for coming to visit, Leah!

Woohoo, Number Two!

If you are a parent, then you are well aware of how exciting the little things can be, especially those related to bodily functions.  Over the last few weeks and months, we have been trying to get Evan comfortable with using the potty.  We haven't started full fledged potty training but have been taking small steps instead.  We have Evan sit on the potty every night and try to pee.  Most nights he goes, anything from a few drops to a decent amount.  Well tonight, during what I thought to be a delay tactic to avoid going to bed, Evan pooped on the potty!  Yes this is a big deal!  And yes I am crazy and took a picture of it (I'll spare you)!  This is a big milestone...after all there will only be one first number two!!

Logan's First Friend

Evan's first friend was Mr. Frog in his crib.  Logan's first friend, besides Evan of course, is also a frog but a different frog, the froggie on his bouncy seat.  He talks to him at length every day...If only we knew what Logan was telling the frog.  Maybe Evan understands...I guess we'll never know.

Two going on 15

I'm not sure when it happened but our two year old is two going on 15! Just today there were a handful of times when I thought to myself "when did Evan get so big!" First it was make your own pizza at Uno's where we met Gramma and Papa for lunch. Evan did a great job making his pizza and hardly even needed my help at all.

Then after playing outside for a while once we came home, he helped himself to an apple in the fruit drawer in the fridge. The drawer is full of apples and really heavy but Evan was able to open it, choose an apple and close it by himself. Then after shining the apple on his shirt he said, "Look it mommy, I'm cleaning it up. See how shiny it is." While enjoying his apple, Evan turned to me and said "John (our 11 year-old neighbor) wore me out." He and John played outside for quite some time this afternoon.

Finally, this evening after changing Logan's diaper, I came downstairs to find Evan sitting on the couch with the TV on watching some Mitt Romney (Daddy would not be happy) special on PBS. Evan looked at me and said, "Look it, Mommy, I turned the TV on. I can help myself."

What happened to my baby?? Before I know it he will be off to college!

In other news, we went to the pediatrician today for Logan's two month well visit. He weighs 14 lbs, 10 oz (93rd percentile); is 24.25 in long (84th percentile); and his head circumference is 41 cm (67th percentile). It's funny because Logan started out 10 oz heavier than Evan and was 8 oz heavier at 1 month and again at 2 months. Evan was slightly longer and his head was a bit bigger than Logan at 2 months but so far they are pretty close. Logan also had a couple of shots for vaccinations but he was a champ and not at all cranky today. Such a trooper!

Getting a little help from Papa with the sauce

Serious pizza making business!

Two Months Old

Logan is two months old today.  He is a growing, happy boy who sleeps through the night (6-8 hours inconsistently) and eats like a champ. He is eating about 30-35 ounces per day and still naps much of the day.  Logan is becoming more and more alert everyday and loves to watch his big brother run around the house.  We go to the pediatrician on Thursday so check back for a size update.  He is growing out of most of his 3 month clothes so I'm sure he will be off the charts!  And as you can see from the pictures, he loves to talk, smile and giggle!  We sure are lucky!

Princess Evalyn and Prince Evan

Today we drove out west to see Jackie and Evalyn.  We had lunch at the farm after looking at the baby cows and then had some ice cream.  Evan enjoyed his very first own ice cream cone and had a blast playing with Evalyn at her house.  Can't wait to see them again and meet the new little baby who is set to arrive in just about one month.

Big Brother Presents and Big Boy Fun

Having a new baby has been busier than I imagined.  As such, I have fallen behind in my blogging.  In an effort to catch up and get back on track, I have decided to combine a few smaller events/posts into one larger one.  (In all honesty, I'm not sure that many of these "events" would warrant their own post anyway.)
While it has been a busy eight (seriously...already 8!) weeks, we have also spent quite a bit of time at home, settling into our new routine.  Part of our new routine includes Evan being a big brother and a big boy.  He has been enjoying being a big brother, especially receiving all of the big brother presents, and has also been having some big boy fun.  As always Evan has been singing, dancing and performing a ton.  He has also been having a great time riding his new tractor and trying to do karate just like Danny.

Brothers!

Since Logan was born, we have been asked over and over "How is Evan doing?  Is he a great big brother?" I have to say Evan is a wonderful big brother!  He is very helpful and willing to get things for me when I need them...a bib, a burp cloth, a bottle, a binkie...and he often gets things without being asked.  Evan is also very loving and sweet with Logan.  He gives him lots of kisses, often times on his own, talks to him, snuggles with him and wants to hold and feed Logan all the time.  This is not to say that we haven't had difficult moments as well but I think (or at least I like to believe) that these are typical two-year old moments more so than they are attributed to having a new baby in the house.
Logan also loves his big brother.  He responds to his voice and laughter and watches Evan play and dance around.  Now that Logan is smiling more, he often smiles at Evan.  It is so wonderful to watch this bond between brothers begin to develop...just as I'd hoped it would.  I know they will have their moments when they fight but overall I believe they will be best friends.