Halloween fun....

This year we decided to stay in our neighborhood to go trick-or-treating. We have been going over to Coronado and walking around the Lunas neighborhood. We decided that it would be easier for us to stay near our house. Marissa and Heather came over and went with us. We had so much fun! Hannah LOVED carrying her own pumpkin for the treats that she got. She wouldn't let it go. We offered to help and carry it for her as it got heavier but she wouldn't let it go. She had an iron-clad grip on it and was determined to keep it in her hands! Marissa wore her healies and rolled around the blocks from house to house. Benjamin ran from house to house after Marissa saying "Trick or treat!" and remembering his manners! The good new is that this year Benjamin didn't try to go into anyones home as he did last year as when they opened their doors!!

Benjamin, Hannah and Marissa came home with a lot of loot...funny how this year all of the candy was chocolate!

carnival...

We went to a Halloween carnival at a nearby elementary school tonight. The kids had so much fun! There were lots of other families from the school and it was busy! They had many activities that small children could do so Benjamin was able to do lots of them. They had fishing poles with magnetic tips to "catch" a fish and exchange it for a prize. Benjamin loved this and now wants to get his fishing pole out and play with it! Benjamin also tried his arm at throwing a bean bag to a pumpkin sitting on a fence. He had to knock one over to get a prize...he did it twice on the first try! What an arm! We had dinner there and played some other games. He loved decorating his cookie with all sorts of sugary treats (he didn't end up eating it~but the decorating and taking everything he could was fun!)!

dirt...

It has been raining and windy so much lately that we had to clean up the yards today (if not there is a huge case of mold in the flowerbeds). So we got the rakes out, put our garden gloves on, and got to work! We made piles of leaves and then put them all into the trash cans. We had so much fun that the children decided to get the shovels out and dig! They dug in the wet dirt and were tossing it up and over each other (luckily none got in their eyes!) They looked like little rag-a-muffins when we were all finished, with dirt in their hair and all over their clothes and faces. Ain't it neat to be a kid!

OooOOooo...

Happy Halloween everyone!

Halloween is almost here!

Benjamin has finally decided on a costume for Halloween! You'll just have to wait to see what it is! Hannah will dress up this year too...Pictures will be up shortly!

barrettes...

Hannah's hair is getting a little long in front and hanging in her eyes, so we have started to use barrettes every day. She loves to pull them out and throw them on the floor, on the ground, in the trash, in the grass... Benjamin also loves barrettes. I can't argue with him because they are cute barrettes and I'd like to wear them too. Se he gets a barrette in his hair as we are getting ready to leave the house. We went to WalMart the other day and bought 2 packs of barrettes...Now half of them are lost already! From now on, I will just pick up a pack of barrettes every time we are in the store because I can see where this trend is going. Or...I need to get some glue and stick them in her hair (just kidding, of course!!)

rain...

Aaahhh...the rain! There has been so much rain over the last couple of days that I think we have had the amount of a whole season this week! Benjamin and Hannah love the rain! They love to get their rubber boots on, jackets and carry their umbrellas under the big drops! Go out and splash in the water or just stand under the umbrella and listen to it drip drop on the top! Benjamin asks for the umbrella all day~even when it isn't raining! We listened to the rain as he fell asleep for a nap today and it was so peaceful and lulling that we both dozed off pretty quickly! The rain is making everything wet and squashy outside: the grass, the dirt, the toys... Oh well! We desperately need the rain!

Library...

We went to the library today. They have a very popular story time for little ones on Mondays. They do lots of songs and short books to keep the kids' attention. Hannah stands and watches the other children. Occasionally I can get her attention and pull her into a song, but for the most part she just watches the other children. When we get into the car and for the rest of the day she sings the songs, so I know that she is really paying attention! She loves to sing and play instruments...so does Benjamin! This could be the start of a family band! hah!

Benjamin & his cousin Levi...such big boys! 

Here's Hannah...what a cutie! 

Pumpkin patch...

We went to a pumpkin patch today, at Summers Past Farms, about 25 minutes from our house. They had a fall festival with pony rides, face painting, balloons and a nice pumpkin patch. The kids had such a blast! Benjamin got his face painted: a witch with a green face, a big black hat and purple hair (Benjamin's favorite color is purple). Hannah had fun playing in the sand box and the play house. There were some resident cats that she liked petting as well as a chicken--that actually looked like a rooster--but I don't know the difference (I don't know chickens!!).

Sea lions...

One of our childrens' favorite attractions at Sea World is watching the sea lions. We bought some fish to feed them today. We were told to keep the plate of fish folded and closed so that the birds won't steal it away. We saw many seagulls snatch the fish from other peoples' hands and take off with it to enjoy by themselves. We didn't lose our fish to the birds. The sea lions barked so loud and jumped up the side of their pool, they almost reached us on the outside. Benjamin had so much fun feeding them. He tossed the fish in and watched the sea lions jump for it and gobble it up. It was great!

balloons...

Today we went to Wal-Mart to pick up a few things that we needed. As we left the store there was a woman selling balloons to benefit breast cancer research so we bought a couple. Balloons are a big hit in our house. They are a constant source of fun and amusement. They are let go in the house and the kids can grab them by their long strings and "bounce" them on the ceiling and on their heads and toss them around the house. Then after a while the balloons are forgotten and they find something else to do. I must say that they are NEVER really forgotten because they somehow make it back into their sights and play with them over again!

cards...

As we were cleaning out the garage the other day Hannah picked up a deck of old playing cards and spread them out onto the floor. She would pick up a card and hand it to me and then go to give one to Corey. She would go back and forth with cards for us to hold as we were working. At one point I put my little collection of cards down and she came to me and said "Mommy! Cards!? Go?" Well that with the hand gestures that she was doing was clear that I needed to keep holding the cards in my hand as I worked. She's the boss!

Birthday...

Today was Nanny's birthday and we had to get ready for it. Benjamin LOVES birthdays especially those of his loved ones. He gets very excited about giving presents and making them a card. Most of the time he makes the card himself but today we made one on the computer...that was OK thought because there were monkeys on it~and that is what we call them "our little monkeys". Still he was so happy to give it to her with her gift. When it came time for Nanny to open the present eh could hardly contain himself. He had already reached into the sink to get the flowers for her. She took the cards to read first and Benjamin took off with the bag to rip into it with Hannah, luckily Corey caught him and returned the gift to her. Nanny was so nice to let him help her open the present. He loves to help. She loved the gifts and made a big deal out of it...Benjamin knew that she loved it. He can't wait for his birthday now because he knows that his is after Nanny's!

paint...

We went to the story time at the library this morning. They sing songs and read books for a short amount of time and usually that is all that we get to do. We stayed a little longer today and painted! Benjamin is usually in a big hurry to go and check out books so it surprised me that he wanted to stay. They were reading books about the fall season and so the paint was fall colors. He had fun...Hannah did a little painting too but mostly interested in the felt story board. Until next time!

big brother...

Benjamin is such a good big brother. He is very caring and loving towards his sister. He knows that she is smaller and somehow he understands that she needs more attention from us. We do try to give them equal but it doesn't work out sometimes. Anyway, he will include her in everything that he does. He wants her to go down the slide with him at the playground and color with him in the play room. They chase after each other through the house all day long. He says "Hi Hannah, want to go outside and play with the ball?" He gives her hugs and sweet kisses on the cheeks before bedtime. He is so lucky to have a playmate all the time!

Bless you...

I was reading Hannah a story tonight and I was fighting with myself, trying to keep a cough from escaping. It finally just blew out in the middle of the story and I kept reading. Hannah turned to look up at me from my lap and said "Bless you, Mommy" and then turned back to the book to finish reading it.

"Mommy!!

Watch this!" I hear this a lot lately. Benjamin picked these words up from a child at the park one day. He then realized that I would watch what he was doing if he said it. "Mommy, watch this!" as he climbs to the top of the bars at the playground and my stomach turns. "Mommy, watch this!" and he throws the basketball into the hoop, yay! "Mommy, watch this!" running around the house doing strange dance moves. "Mommy, watch this!" tossing a ball into the air and catching it in his arms, so proud of himself. "Mommy, watch this!" strumming the guitar and singing a Raffi song from his CD. "Mommy, watch this!" placing a strainer on top of his head and singing the Silly Hat song from Barney. So MUCH to watch and I'm so glad to be able to.

post office...

We went to the post office today. It is a big event for us to get there to mail letters or packages but it is fun! We went with a large manila envelope today and we had to have it weighed by the postman. Benjamin was in charge of holding the envelope while we walked in. He handed it to the postman and stuck the stamp on. It was such a large envelope that we couldn't get it into the slot so we let the postman do it himself. We also chose some stamps-trains, of course, to mail letters from home with.