Happy Birthday Grumpy!

Friday we drove to NH to visit Gram and Grumpy.

When we arrived, MiniM.E. had a surprise waiting for her.  Nothing says fun like a 25 year old bouncy horse- for real. MiniM.E. is thrilled with it!  What fun!

Then MiniM.E. had to show off her solo trike riding skills:

And find the new toy on the swing set.

Saturday was Grumpy's birthday.  We went to Heritage Farm again (we visited last year) and saw the animals and had a great pancake brunch.  The baby cow was older and was caged in and the ground was wet and muddy, which we were a little disappointed about, but to make up for it, we got to go on a wagon ride with a St. Bernard/Sheepdog mix.

ooo, so the baby cow is so soft!

Hi, Fern!

petting the horse was the highlight of the trip

MiniM.E. even helped with the farm work!

Happy Birthday Grumpy!

Happy Halloween!

This is MiniM.E.'s first Halloween where she actually understands what's happening.  In fact, since her birthday she's been getting excited about it.  "...and I will say "trick or treat" and I will get CANDY!!!"

Also, now that we have so many toddler activities and playgroups and live in such a kid-friendly town, Halloween really started for us on Saturday.  Saratoga held its annual Fall Festival and we decked Molly out in her costume face paint to take part in the festivities.

pumpkin rolling was a huge hit!

the pony ride was not :( 

Sunday we took a break from Halloween and made one last trip to Ellm's Farm before they closed for the season.  It was chilly and we only lasted an hour or so before the sleet started and we decided to call it a day.

In the afternoon MiniM.E. dressed up got her face painted for our neighborhood's annual Halloween Parade. The weather stayed cool and despite the rain that fell on us as we ended the parade, it was a success and MiniM.E. had a great time.

Monday we painted MiniM.E.'s face for our library playgroup, but it was such a hectic morning, I didn't get a photo.

The rest of the week we got a Halloween break.  After our new Tiny Tumbler's class on Thursday (which was AMAZING!)...

MiniM.E. in her new gym clothes

 We got ready for the real deal.  Unfortunately, we got rained out of our annual trick-or-treating at the Riggi Mansion.  And even though MiniM.E. was super excited to get out and go trick-or-treating for the first time, we got rained out of that too.  Fortunately, we had a playgroup Halloween Party to go to and MiniM.E. had fun (even though she was so tired because she skipped her nap), so Halloween #3 was a success.

just hanging out

I think next year will be our best Halloween yet!

Toddler Quotes

Bob has a pull-up bar in our closet doorway.  MiniM.E. has been practicing her "pull-ups" for a couple months now.  Here's the conversation from yesterday.

As Bob is doing pull-ups:

"I want to do pull-yups too so I can get buff!"

While she's "doing them":

"I'm getting buff!!"

When she gets down and walks away:

"I'm buff!"

Welcome to Two

Here we are in the "Terrible Twos".  I have to say, it's not anything new, but MiniM.E. is a practiced tantrum artist; she began throwing tantrums about 6 months ago.  She's not the "Throw Myself On The Floor" kid or the "Beat My Fists Until They Bleed" kid.  She's just a screamer.  Horrific blood curdling cries complete with tears and all.  The unending screams for things I can't understand through the sobs.  Or things I can understand but just can't fix: "No Mommy! Put the banana back in the peel!!"

I love her dearly, but sometimes, the days filled of tantrums make me yearn for bedtime at 10am.

Fortunately, like all toddlers, she has an angelic side to counteract the evil-tantrum side.  And I think I've paid my Terrible-Twos-Dues because though she still cries about getting dressed every morning, and we have the occasional melt down over the wrong cup or milk instead of juice or a cracker that's broken, our days have been much smoother lately... The sweet little girl has been shining through much more often.

Like earlier this week when I went to a doctor's appointment- when I came home MiniM.E. sweetly said "Hi Mommy, how was the doctor? I'm so proud of you."  Or when she politely asks our friends, "Would you like to come to the playground too?"  Or today when Grumpy was talking about foods he liked and said he liked Hershey's Kisses, to which MiniM.E. replied, "I like hugs."  There are lots of spontaneous hugs and requests for cuddles.

Not that we don't still have "those days"... I just have to try to remember how sweet she usually is on the days I'm ready to throw in the towel before we've even finished breakfast.

Here's what we've been up to since Two.

playground with friends:

Raking a bajillion leaves:

playing in the yard:

A visit to Congress Park for the last carousel ride of the year:

A late-night hayride:

More Ellm's:

a late-night trip to the mall:

A playgroup birthday:

The playground:

Sunnyside Gardens with Baby E.: