Halloween

So I am finally getting around to our Halloween post. This year, Ethan dressed up in the lion costume that Caleb wore when he was 18-months-old, and we got Caleb a very cute pirate costume. Our Sunday small group had a toddler-focused Halloween party hosted by our BFFs. Some of the adults joined the fun and dressed up with the kids, and the hosts cracked everyone up by dressing up as Marcus and me (see picture below). Marcus and I dressed up as Wolverine and Jean Grey (the Phoenix) from X-men (I know all you Gainesville people have seen this get-up before, but you have to admit it's very economical to rotate through our costumes each time we move.) Anyway, we all ate finger foods and talked while the kids painted pumpkins, and then the whole crew headed outside for some trick-or-treating. We split into a couple of different groups since there were so many kids, but even so, our group included seven preschoolers and all of their parents, so it was more like a mass than a cluster :) But the kids all got a lot of candy, and they quickly learned the trick-or-treating etiquette of NOT running into people's houses, only getting one candy at each house, and always saying thank you. Tired and full of candy, we all headed home for a good night's sleep.

Fall Festival

Our church's Fall Festival was this Sunday night. I didn't make last year's fall festival because I was sick, but others told me this one was bigger and crazier than ever. Marcus had the camera all evening because I was responsible for the toddler area in the auditorium (where the lighting is terrible). Outside, there were three huge bounce houses, pony rides and food. Inside, there were four small bounce houses for the younger kids, toys, snacks, and a cake walk. The kids all had a great time, which almost made it worth all of the work :)

Pumpkin Patch

We went to Old Baker Farm to check out their Pumpkin Patch on Saturday. Caleb got to have his friend Matthew along for the day, and all three boys had a blast! We got there around 10:00 am and played hard for five hours (other than the short nap Ethan took in the stroller). The kids enjoyed a couple of hay rides, dancing to a live band, wandering through a field of pumpkins, petting farm animals, playing in a hay maze, picking cotton, climbing up and sliding down a haystack, eating PB&J and fried chocolate pies, and getting very, very dirty. We were all filthy and exhausted by the end of the day, but very glad that we decided to try a pumpkin patch this year.

Caleb (Monthly Update)

It is the 23rd again, so Caleb is 3-years-and-7-months-old today. His favorite activity this month has been putting together the same 100-piece floor puzzle over and over again. He does this puzzle at least once, and sometimes two or three times, every day. We keep it up in the living room (not the play room), so Ethan is less likely to disturb Caleb's process. Caleb just asks politely, "Mommy, can I go do my pirate puzzle in the living room," and then heads upstairs. Usually I don't hear a peep from him for about 30 minutes until he shouts, "Mommy! I finished it! Come look!" Then I go upstairs and "ooh" and "ahh" while he stands there proudly. In the evenings, when Ethan is asleep, Caleb likes me to do the puzzle with him. We've had some of the best conversations over that puzzle. It's usually just me and him in the house because Marcus is working late, and we just sit and chat. Caleb is not a talkative child, so when I am so blessed to catch him in a chatty mood, I am all ears. I have a feeling that will be true for many years.

A cute morning interchange between Caleb and Ethan has started up this month. Ethan always wakes up shouting. Usually he is shouting "MA-MA" at the top of his lungs, but sometimes it is "DA-DA" or "BUH-BUH" (Caleb). Since poor Ethan is on the demanding side of the spectrum, Marcus and I often bury our heads under the pillow and let him shout through our shared wall for a few minutes. At least that's what we did until Caleb intervened. If Caleb hears Ethan (from his room down the hall) before one of us gets up, he darts into our room and exclaims, "Mama! Ethan is calling for you! He needs you! You have to go get him!" Caleb's compassion for his brother is so sweet that I always force myself out of bed when Caleb pleads his brother's case. Sometimes, Ethan calls for Caleb himself, and Caleb runs happily into Ethan's room, very proud to be the one his brother is calling for. (Of course I quickly follow because as soon as Ethan realizes that Caleb can't lift him out of the crib, cries will ensue.) The other morning, Caleb was sleeping between Marcus and I in our bed (after a mid-night waking). Ethan woke up shouting as usual, and one of us poked Caleb and said, "Caleb, go talk to your brother for a minute." Caleb rubbed his eyes sleepily and said, "He's not calling me...he's calling you." Details, details, my son :)

Of course, the biggest development for Caleb this month has been starting preschool. Preschool is still going very well. So far Caleb has not had one negative thing to report. The only thing that I don't like is all the extra time spent in the car. It ends up being over an hour each school day...15 minutes each way, four times a day, plus 5-10 minutes twice a day waiting in line to pick up and drop off. As much as I dislike being in the car that much, it is worth it because Caleb is getting so much out of the experience. His self-confidence has improved. He is more willing to do things himself, as well as to try new things. He is also eager to please and cooperative more often than he used to be (in general, he is NOT a people-pleaser).

All in all, this has been a very good month in Caleb-land. My only regret is that I can't think of any of the hilarious things he has said lately. I really do need to write them down somewhere as soon as I hear them. Otherwise they slip away and never make it to the blog. Oh, well :)

Fall Campout (continued)

So, here's more on our camping weekend:

On Saturday morning, Caleb and I got up around 6:30. (Marcus and Ethan had left for home an hour earlier.) The five Pollard's were still asleep, so Caleb and I tiptoed quietly through the camp down to the bathhouse nearby. Then we went for a little walk, trying to kill time until the end of the "quiet time" (7:00 am). By the way, it is AMAZING how deathly quiet the campground is in the morning, and how quickly sound travels from tent to tent. This is why we have never camped without having to take Ethan away in the car at some point in the night or morning, because he wakes up SO early and he is SO loud.

Anyway, around 7:00, Caleb and I came back to camp and got to work building a morning fire. It was (at most) about 40 degrees outside, so we needed it. Despite the fact that I am not skilled in such areas (that's Marcus and Quenta's area), somehow the fire got going and even burned throughout the morning, much to my amazement. Caleb sat and ate a muffin while I moved to my more comfortable domain: making breakfast. I started the first of three packages of bacon. By the time Marcus and Ethan got back to camp, we'd all feasted on bacon and eggs and English muffins (I kept a big plate for him, of course).

Next on the agenda was a drive up the mountain for a hike. The hike was a lot of fun. The path was very wide, allowing all five kids to meander at their own pace without getting too far from an adult. The kids collected rocks, sticks, acorns, leaves and anything else that lay along the path. Their excitement about that stuff is infectious. They were all collecting acorns and most were sharing them liberally with each other. When we got to the end of the flat trail, Marcus and Caleb continued down a steep slope to see the waterfall while I took Ethan back with the Pollard's. The Pollard's gave a lady and her daughter a ride down the mountain to their car and I took Ethan for a drive so he could get a car nap.

We all ended back up at camp around 3:00ish, the kids marginally rested from car naps and all very ready to get another fire going. Dinner Saturday night was hot dogs for the kids and steak for us (after the kids were asleep). The great thing about camping is that side dishes are completely unnecessary: all anybody wants is the meat :) We let the kids stay up a little later the second night, and they all (except Ethan) tried their hand at roasting marshmellows. This was a bit nerve-wracking as their marshmellows frequently caught fire and one flaming marshmellow ended up far too close to Addison's hair, so we called that activity and moved on. All of the kids preferred eating the chocolate to the marshmellows anyway.

After some AWESOME steak (true Pollard-style), we talked and laughed around the campfire for a couple more hours before the guys (party-poopers) decided to turn in. Marcus tried to go to bed, but Ethan kept waking up cold, so Marcus took him home and the two of them slept in our warm bed and came back in the morning again. Quenta and I stayed up later and had some good girl time together. I do feel sorry for all of the other campers because I laughed so long and so hard that night! Sunday morning was more bacon and eggs, and several hours of breaking camp. We finally had the cars and kids loaded up around 11:00 am, and we headed home for much-needed baths and naps. Another succesful, though challenging, weekend of camping.

Despite the challenges, I truly can't wait to go again!

Mac Daddy

So during our campout this weekend, we (the adults) got a glimpse of what we are in for with our four close-in-age boys. I was piddling around the camp kitchen at the Pollard's campsite when I looked up to see Caleb chatting with a little girl who had walked over to our campsite. It was just the two of them at our campsite...everyone else was hanging around the fire at the Pollard's. Caleb was standing there with his knee propped up on a rock, leaning forward, looking up at where she stood above him. Just the image of them chatting was too cute, so I couldn't resist wandering over to listen in on the conversation. Here's what I heard:

Izzie: "My name is Izzie. It's short for Isabel."
Caleb: "I'm Caleb."
Izzie: "I'm five-years-old. How old are you."
Caleb: "Almost four." (yeah, Caleb, in about five more months)
Izzie: "So, you're three." (perfectly delivered...absolutely hilarious)
Caleb: "Yeah."

Jackson, one of the Pollard's 3-year-old triplets, had sidled up during the conversation. He took this opportune moment to jump in and offer this bit of info to Izzie:

Jackson: "I have a quarter." (nice job Jackson...distract her from the age thing, since you are also three, and tell her what you DO have going for you)

The interactions between the three of them continued for probably twenty more minutes. They had these preschool-sized camping chairs that they were moving around and lounging in. At one point, Izzie (who was in the middle), angled her chair toward Jackson's chair, leaving Caleb looking at her back. Not daunted, Caleb just picked up his chair, squeezed it into the space between Izzie and Jackson, and plopped down in it again.

The whole scene was one of the funniest things I've ever seen kids do. At the same time, I realize that this is only the beginning of competing for the attention of the cutest girl around. I just hope we can teach them how to keep girls from coming between brothers and friends!