HALLOWEENAPALOOZA 2007

Papa asked when Halloween went from being one night to AT LEAST one week??? I feel like we got our money’s worth out of our costumes this year! I have uploaded all of our Halloween/end of October activities into one big HALLOWEENAPALOOZA album.

Allie and Ryan LOVED Trick or Treating! The weather was beautiful! Ashley joined us and that was a HUGE help. I could barely keep up with Allie running from house to house!!! At each house, Allie screamed ‘LOOK, THEY HAVE CANDY!’. It was as if she really wasn’t expecting it! Ryan crashed towards the end but he perked up when we got home and sorted the candy! They will both sleep well tonight.

Love that dirty water...

BOSTON RED SOX

WORLD CHAMPIONS 2007!!!

Amazing that this is the SECOND Red Sox world championship in 4 years. I had to wait 30 years...and Allie wasn't even 1 before the 1st one in her lifetime...now she has 2! How will they learn what it means to be disappointed by our team if they keep winning? I don't really care...It's a great time to be a Boston sports fan!

Let's go PATRIOTS!!!!!

Another note from Mrs. Jones

We received ANOTHER note from Mrs. Jones (Ryan's teacher) today.
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FINALLY!!!! Allie had a great day today too. We had chocolate pudding for dessert to celebrate (yes, they used spoons!)

Allie's new 'do'

I experienced my first hair-moment with Allie. We went to Snip-It's on Sunday. It's a children's haircut place. We go there all the time. I wanted Allie's hair in a short 'bob' (think Jillian Leviton circa 1986). Well, the 'stylist' (if you can call her that), went a little crazy and Allie's hair was SHORT...and later I could really see uneven layers in the back. So, today we went to my salon to fix Allie's hair. When we walked in and Allie saw all the women getting haircuts she said 'Is there where all the mommies live?' They cleaned it up but it needs to grow out a bit. It's a little bit 'page boy' and a little 'Victoria Beckham'-ish. The pictures towards the end show the improvement. No more Snip-its for Allie. They can continue to buzz Ryan's head...but Allie's hair is off-limits.

Here are the pictures I took at the park and over the last few days.

Cute Picture of the Week - October 22

It is very difficult to pick JUST ONE cute picture...but this was the clear winner! I could not resist this bear costume for Ryan ($9.98 from BabyCenter!!).

Don't you just want to hug him???

WASABI!!!

Allie and Ryan's new favorite restaurant is Sapporo. It's a Japanese Hibachi restaurant in Marietta. THEY LOVE THIS PLACE! Actually, I don't think LOVE is a strong enough word. As soon as we walk in, they are both over the moon. Allie yells 'Hi Chef man' and Ryan looks for the fire and volcano's. They are so entertained by the chef cooking the food right in front of them. I think Allie and Ryan eat more in one meal there than they do ALL WEEK. They even eat the sauteed onions...crazy! They both use the kid's chopsticks (the ones that are connected by an elastic at the top).

We go there every other week (or even more frequently...they recognize us by now). We have one cook and he always yells 'WASABI'. Ryan thinks that this is HYSTERICAL. He returns with 'SAHBEEE' and giggles uncontrollably. The chef tries to toss shrimp and scrambled egg into the kids' mouths. He also makes characters with the fried rice...usually Mickey Mouse and a heart.
Everyone looks at us in awe at how much FUN two toddlers can have at a restaurant!

Mommy was on TV!

The Marietta Mom's sponsored MOMFEST 2007 today. The local NBC affiliate, 11Alive, broadcast live 2x from the event.

http://www.11alive.com/
Look for the VIDEO NOW section in the middle of the page.
Enter 'peachy moms' into the search box. It's the first clip.

You'll see the clip of Michelle and I talking about MOMFEST!!! If you send a SASE, I will send you my autograph!

Allie's 4 year stats and a bunch of other stuff

We had Allie's 4 year check-up today. Yes, it's a month early...but Ryan's last appt was 2.5 months late. I'm trying to make up for that!

Height: 40.5 inches (73rd percentile)
Weight: 41 lbs (90th percentile)

She passed her hearing test although I am fairly certain that she suffers from the common toddler disorder of 'SELECTIVE HEARING'. She also passed the vision test...20/20 in both eyes. It won't last...Daddy had Lasik and Mommy was squinting as Allie was reading the pictures. I couldn't make them out but Allie could! It was a very thorough visit. Allie had to pee in a cup (which she did successfully)...she said 'look mommy, i made water into the cup'. :)

Allie received her flu vaccination as the FluMist. They squirt it into your nose. She thought that was pretty funny. She also received her 2nd Hepatitis A shot. This caused A LOT of crying and drama. Not even a sticker AND a lollipop could soothe her. When we were in the car, Allie said 'I am going to tell Daddy all about my boo-boo'. This is funny because I said the same thing to MY pediatrician when I was her age! She'll get her other 4 year vaccinations next year. The cut-off for Kindergarten is 9/1 in Georgia, so Allie won't start until September 09.

And another note on Anatomy 101 with Toddlers. I was changing Ryan out of his PJ's this morning. He was standing in front of me with just his shirt on. He reached back, giggled, and said 'I'm touching my bum!'. I wish there was a 'Last Toddler Comic Standing'. I think Ryan would win.

And anyone reading this that lives in Georgia, come to MOMFEST! The Marietta Moms are sponsoring this FUN and FREE event on Saturday, October 20th from 9am-5pm. Door prizes, bouncy castle, talks, classes, vendors...and it's all free! For more info, check out:
http://momfest.mariettamoms.com. Tell your friends!

Happy Birthday to Stacey Tavel and Corey Penn! Both ladies are turning 33 this week! Happy Larry Bird-day!

Lastly, I know that some of you MUST be Red Sox fans...and even if you are not a fan...let's root, root, root for the Red Sox. If they don't win, it's a shame. GO SOX!!!

Is your husband a pilot?

When I arrived at Ryan's preschool class today, Miss Katie asked 'Is your husband a pilot?'. I told her that he is not a pilot but he travels by airplane quite frequently. She said that Ryan was talking ALL morning about Daddy being on the airplane...and that it was a green airplane. We did talk to Daddy RIGHT before school this morning. He told Ryan that he went on the airplane last night.

I was happy that the teachers were not telling me that Ryan hit or pushed someone today!!!

Anatomy 101 with toddlers

I was changing Allie into her bathing suit before swim lessons today. She looks in the mirror and says 'Look mommy, I have boobies just like you'. And then Ryan pipes in and says 'I want mommy's boobies too'. I can only hope that no one was standing right outside the dressing room!!

Fall Carnival Playdate

I met two local moms who created a business planning parties for children (http://www.poshtotevents.com/). I hosted a Fall Carnival-themed playdate last week which was produced by this company. We had carnival games, crafts, a clown, and delicious cupcakes! Shannon and Jennifer did a wonderful job and everyone had a great time. I asked a few of the kids to tell me their favorite part of the afternoon...it was unanimous...THE CUPCAKES!

There was a professional photographer there too. I will try to post some of his pictures once I get them!

And one quick funny. When I put that shirt on Ryan, I told him that it said 'Mummy's Boy'. When I asked him who was on his shirt later on that day, he replied 'It's MOMMY!'. I wish I was that skinny...ha ha!

The Big Chicken

(This is just for you, Liz!)

Yes, it's a big chicken. Actually, it is THE BIG CHICKEN and it's a landmark around here. If you ask for directions, you will often hear places referred to as 'south of the Big Chicken'. You can click here to read more of the history of this landmark. Only in Georgia, right?
http://www.bigchickenchorus.org/BigChickenLandmark.html

You've come a long way, baby!

It seems like just yesterday Allie was taking her first swim lesson with Coach Cortez at Atlanta Swim Academy. We endured weeks...months...of Allie crying for the entire 30 minute lesson. Fast forward from February to October 2007. Allie is taking a group lesson (still with Coach Cortez...he cannot get rid of us!) She is in the Seahorse class and she swims the entire class with no floatie on her back! She loves going to swim lessons and is happy (for the most part).

Warming up with a few laps on her noodle

Allie's class (ok, she still has a few of 'those' moments)
Practicing her 'torpedo'
Swimming underwater
With her buddy, Coach Cortez
We are so proud of Allie for learning how to swim!

A trip to a new 'park'

Today we visited 'The Coffee Park' (www.thecoffeepark.com). It's a new coffee house in our 'hood with a children's play area...a SUPERVISED children's play area. Allie and Ryan had a great time playing and climbing while Mommy relaxed with an iced chai latte (thanks for turning me on to those, Amy!). It was heavenly. We purchased a monthly pass...I know Daddy is going to be a HUGE fan of this place!

Ryan takes a break with his apple

Checking out the cars.

The fenced area behind him is a pond with real goldfish and a waterfall. I'm not sure if the fence is to keep the fish in or the kids out!

Daydreamer

In the play area...very cool!

One fish, two fish...a trip to the GA Aquarium