Saturday, October 31, 2009
Chris and Michi are back online!
Just wanted to let those of you who visit Chris and Michi's blog know that they are back up and running....
Trick or Treat...
... after refusing to wear the Bob the Builder or firefighter costumes his brother wire in years past, Xan told me earlier this week that he would dress up as NOTHING for Halloween. During a trip to Wal-mart I found some cheap costumes and asked him if he liked any of them. He picked out a $12 Rafael (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle) costume and we were ready to go!
Rodney's friends, the Stevens, came by, and their two boys, Brandon (Darth Vader) and Braxton (Marine), went trick-or-treating with us since their neighborhood was a bit too quiet for good trick-or treating. There were a lot of people shipped in to our neighborhood for trick-or-treating, We had cars parked all the way up the drive to our housing track, along the apartments. The bummer was some kids weren't even in costume when they came trick-or-treating.
Before we handed out candy at our house, we trick-or-treated for about a mile around the neighborhood.
Xan was doing just fine until, at one house, a witch came flying out at him, screeching. He immediaitely changed course and ran in a huge arc away from her and back to us. I have never seen that kid move so fast! It stuck me as very funny and I laughed for a good five minutes about it... I get that inappropriater sense of humor frm my Dad, so I made sure to call him with the story. I felt better when he laughed, too. After that incident, Xan got back in to the swing of things after two houses (candy is a big motivator) but would let Will and Brandon go up to a door first to make sure no one was going to jump out at him.
Will, of course, couldn't help but "shine" as Willvis - and was a hit with the neighbors. He kept reporting back that he would get extra candy at the doors because the people were Elvis fans. It's good to be the King!
Rodney's friends, the Stevens, came by, and their two boys, Brandon (Darth Vader) and Braxton (Marine), went trick-or-treating with us since their neighborhood was a bit too quiet for good trick-or treating. There were a lot of people shipped in to our neighborhood for trick-or-treating, We had cars parked all the way up the drive to our housing track, along the apartments. The bummer was some kids weren't even in costume when they came trick-or-treating.
Before we handed out candy at our house, we trick-or-treated for about a mile around the neighborhood.
Xan was doing just fine until, at one house, a witch came flying out at him, screeching. He immediaitely changed course and ran in a huge arc away from her and back to us. I have never seen that kid move so fast! It stuck me as very funny and I laughed for a good five minutes about it... I get that inappropriater sense of humor frm my Dad, so I made sure to call him with the story. I felt better when he laughed, too. After that incident, Xan got back in to the swing of things after two houses (candy is a big motivator) but would let Will and Brandon go up to a door first to make sure no one was going to jump out at him.
Will, of course, couldn't help but "shine" as Willvis - and was a hit with the neighbors. He kept reporting back that he would get extra candy at the doors because the people were Elvis fans. It's good to be the King!
Today we joined thousands of other Pensacolans for the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Mall-to-Mall Walk. Pen Air was one of the largest teams, and we raised $20,500 over the past month to donate to the American Cancer Society. Like the Light the Night walk earlier in the month, we all had matching t-shirts provided by the credit union, so we were all easy to spot. We walked from University Mall to Cordova Mall... 2.5 miles! Will walked the whole thing, Xan did his best but spent most of the walk on his dad's shoulders, and it sprinkled on us for a couple of minutes. But it was a lot of fun for a great cause!
Oct. 30th festivities...
The boys had a great time opening their Halloween cards from everyone. They each collected $25, stickers and a pair of socks (from Aunt Jill). They are looking forward to depositing their money in to their savings accounts so they can see what prize they get. They say "thank you" to all!
Morning fit ...
...if Xan doesn't get to wear what he wants in the morning (he did not want to wear the orange flannel shirt), here is what he's like until it is time to go to school.
Tuesday we had a "fair"-ly good time ...
The Pensacola Interstate Fair is in town and I hate to miss a good fair. I had two free tickets and Tuesday was ladies night - ladies got in free. And since Xan is 3, he was free, too! So Will and Rodney got the free tickets and so we were "free" to spend our money inside...
Xan wanted to go on the Ferris wheel, and Rodney figured his stomach could handle that, so he went, too.
Will's first ride choice was an obstacle course, and since Xan is 42.5 inches tall (a half-inch to spare!) he got to go, too.
After the obstacle course, we walked by a petting zoo, and was going to skip it since we've done those plenty of times before, but they had something different - two adorable 7-week-old pot bellied piglets.
While we were in the petting zoo, we had some enthusiastic onlookers.
After walking around the fairgrounds for awhile, the boys needed some nourishment - in the form of slushes. They loved the fact that they got to mix and match their flavors. Of course they had them all.
After some sustenance, it was back to the rides! Xan wanted to go on the "spaceship" at first (the ride that spins like a top with you inside) but changed his mind after I told him that he would stick to the wall until the ride was over. He settled on a small roller coaster, instead, and had a great time.
Mom convinced Will to go on her favorite ride with her, the Orbiter, and he was a bit nervous. So nervous, he kept his eyes closed before the ride and a little bit during. But he was none the worse for wear when he got off and was proud of himself for being so brave.
Xan wanted to go on the Ferris wheel, and Rodney figured his stomach could handle that, so he went, too.
Will's first ride choice was an obstacle course, and since Xan is 42.5 inches tall (a half-inch to spare!) he got to go, too.
After the obstacle course, we walked by a petting zoo, and was going to skip it since we've done those plenty of times before, but they had something different - two adorable 7-week-old pot bellied piglets.
While we were in the petting zoo, we had some enthusiastic onlookers.
After walking around the fairgrounds for awhile, the boys needed some nourishment - in the form of slushes. They loved the fact that they got to mix and match their flavors. Of course they had them all.
After some sustenance, it was back to the rides! Xan wanted to go on the "spaceship" at first (the ride that spins like a top with you inside) but changed his mind after I told him that he would stick to the wall until the ride was over. He settled on a small roller coaster, instead, and had a great time.
Mom convinced Will to go on her favorite ride with her, the Orbiter, and he was a bit nervous. So nervous, he kept his eyes closed before the ride and a little bit during. But he was none the worse for wear when he got off and was proud of himself for being so brave.
Monday, October 19, 2009
Saturday's Soccer and School carnival...
... after a great practice with only 30 seconds of crying on Thursday, Xan REFUSED to play on Saturday's chilly morning (it was 53 degrees) and cried the whole time. We are considering dropping him off completely to he starts having to focus on being there. He really does have a great time when he lets himself.
Immediately after the soccer game, we stopped at home so Xan could change, and then headed off to Will's school carnival. This definitely wasn't a SoCal school carnival. It was amazing how much we were able to do on $10. Here is a sampling:
Will tried to dunk his assistant principal, who was freezing in the 60-degree weather. He kept throwing a bit too high.
Xan threw for a few games, too. He was deadly with the baseballs and milk bottles. He throws hard - and a little to the left.
Will, of course, had to get his face painted. There were a number of sailors and Marines on hand, volunteering their services. I guess the most artistic one got to paint the kids.
Although we skipped the bounce house, Will and Xan did have to go down the big inflatable slide a few times.
The boys re-energized with some tart licorice.
Immediately after the soccer game, we stopped at home so Xan could change, and then headed off to Will's school carnival. This definitely wasn't a SoCal school carnival. It was amazing how much we were able to do on $10. Here is a sampling:
Will tried to dunk his assistant principal, who was freezing in the 60-degree weather. He kept throwing a bit too high.
Xan threw for a few games, too. He was deadly with the baseballs and milk bottles. He throws hard - and a little to the left.
Will, of course, had to get his face painted. There were a number of sailors and Marines on hand, volunteering their services. I guess the most artistic one got to paint the kids.
Although we skipped the bounce house, Will and Xan did have to go down the big inflatable slide a few times.
The boys re-energized with some tart licorice.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Willvis costume complete, California photos and more...
After 11 hours of blinging, the Willvis costume is complete. I had Will try ot on and he immediately went in to Elvis Mode. Here are photos of him in action. I only prompted the one with the back of the cape showing.
Here are some close-ups of the bling. I used fabric glue to adhere each gem, jewel and sequin on. Will loves it, so it was totally worth the work.
A couple of California photos:
We went apple picking, but because of an off season, there weren;t any apples to pick. We still had a good time. Here's a photo of Mom and Joe in the corn maze.
A photo of Mom and GG under the Vince's Spaghetti sign. Mom and GG have been going to this restaurant in Ontario, CA, since the 1950's and it is a family tradition to eat there any time we are in the area.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Hanging out in SoCal...
... I have been spending time with my family in California this weekend - and having a great time! I did manage to sneak off to the Scrapbook Expo in Ontario on Friday, so that was fun. Here are some pictures I've taken:
I needed to touch up my toe nail polish, so Brandon wanted some polish, too. After I did his toes, he was ready for his fingers to be painted, but that's where the line was drawn.
After the Scrapbook Expo Friday, I met some of the ladies I went on the SoCal 2 Provo bus tour with last year, for dinner. It was so much fun to catch up with them!
Dad picked up turtle food at the local grocery store - red things are their favorites! They are now eught years old and are so big and heavy, I can't pick them up any more.
Tonight, we headed to the beach en masse for some Gina's pizza and some sand time.
Tomorrow we are going apple picking!
I needed to touch up my toe nail polish, so Brandon wanted some polish, too. After I did his toes, he was ready for his fingers to be painted, but that's where the line was drawn.
After the Scrapbook Expo Friday, I met some of the ladies I went on the SoCal 2 Provo bus tour with last year, for dinner. It was so much fun to catch up with them!
Dad picked up turtle food at the local grocery store - red things are their favorites! They are now eught years old and are so big and heavy, I can't pick them up any more.
Tonight, we headed to the beach en masse for some Gina's pizza and some sand time.
Tomorrow we are going apple picking!
Monday, October 05, 2009
Soccer, sleep, bling and baseball...
Xan actually didn't cry the ENTIRE soccer game this weekend. He actually managed to kick and run a bit before he realized he was participating and started crying aain. Will was on the field again, for moral support.
He even did the soccer boogie now and then while he waited at the line of scrimmage.
Rodney thinks this photo is funny and should be posted here. I have no comment.
I spent more than 6 hours blinging the Elvis costume on Sunday. I got the cape and belt buckle done. I still have the front of the jumpsuit and the pant legs.
Will's team finally had its first win - 15-12. The boys played very well. Will had several great hits and did very well at first base again.
Xan, for lack of other entertainment, climbed all over the bleachers during the game. In between climbs he kept yanking up his shorts. These are his favorite shorts even though they are a size or two too big.
He even did the soccer boogie now and then while he waited at the line of scrimmage.
Rodney thinks this photo is funny and should be posted here. I have no comment.
I spent more than 6 hours blinging the Elvis costume on Sunday. I got the cape and belt buckle done. I still have the front of the jumpsuit and the pant legs.
Will's team finally had its first win - 15-12. The boys played very well. Will had several great hits and did very well at first base again.
Xan, for lack of other entertainment, climbed all over the bleachers during the game. In between climbs he kept yanking up his shorts. These are his favorite shorts even though they are a size or two too big.
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