Trick or Treat

Friday, I found out about trick or treating at the mall so I decided to take Ethan there last minute. Didn't think it was going to be a big thing but was I wrong. It was madness with a ton of people & their kiddos in costumes. I supposed something indoor to take their kids to. Ethan wore his cow "hood" the whole time and enjoyed the "I dressed in a cute costume and I get lots of candy" experience, even though he was sweating hot. We held up the line a few times as he wanted to eat as he goes so we decided to not actually go around the whole mall. I tried to not freak out by all the candy he was consuming right before dinner.

Saturday, we went trick or treating around the neighborhood as a family. It was a lot of fun and the warmer weather definitely made the night more enjoyable. We walked around our block, but Ethan didn't make it very far so we ended up carrying him most of the way. Too distracted by the sour apple sucker I think. By the end of the night, he realized that he has been missing out on sweets and candy his whole life (of 2 years). Yeah, I guess that'll be my fault. Anyway, we had to hide all the candy so the lil' guy would go to bed - with a promise that he can have some tomorrow.

"I Want Candy!"

Mamma Wisdom of the Week

I was reading a book called What Every Mom Needs and came across a list of age-appropriate tasks that I found helpful. Ethan is already doing a little bit like helping me with laundry, taking out the trash & recycling bins, feeding Kaika, and filling Kaika's food buckets and you know what? He is such a hard worker (when not distracted)! But I was hoping to have him do more around the house. So I thought this came at just the perfect time.

Tasks for Two- and Three-Year-Olds

• load spoons into dishwasher
  
• help feed animals*
  
• put away toys after play*
  
• wipe table*
  
• dry unbreakable dishes
  
• sweep (small broom)
  
• wipe mirrors (parent sprays)
  
• entertain infant
  
• bring in newspaper
  
• dress and undress
  
• mop small area
  
• pour milk (small pitcher)
  
• empty wastebaskets
  
• dig and pull weeds in garden
  
• dust furniture
  
• fold dishtowels - prefers to unfold
  
• put away silverware - prefers to bring them out
  
• load washer, unload dryer*
  
• stir orange juice
  
• assist with stirring in cooking
  
• brush teeth, wash face*
  
• tidy magazines, sofa pillows
  
• pick up trash in yard*
  
• set table (from diagram)

* already doing

Discovery of the Week

• Recently Ethan figured out how to use the door knobs. So now he's no longer frustrated and whinny at the door from being shut out or in. Last week, I found him in his socks playing in the middle of the yard because apparently, he decided to let himself (and Kaika) out the patio door. Also, I do have to warn guests when they stay with us to make sure they do lock their door unless they wanted to be barged in unexpectedly.


• Throughout the day, we sing our ABC's quite a bit and this is how the song usually goes. "a b c d e.....k....p..s t....y." Not too bad for a 2-year-old. And his favorite game show is none other than Wheel of Fortune.


• Ethan can now say his name...well sorta. Can't quite say the whole thing so he calls himself "E."


• He has finally learned how to say "I love you, Mamma" and it's just the sweetest sound to my ears =0)

The Farmyard

Ethan and I are visiting Brian's parents in Marshalltown for a few days. And for our outing today we went to Center Grove Orchard where Brian's mom wanted to get some apples & cider. While we were there, I decided (against all my inner desires) to walk through The Farmyard despite the 40 degree weather with a gusting wind of 50 mph - not kidding! (But what do you do when somehow you gotta get a toddler's energy out). So we put on our hats and winter coats and toughed it out. Of course like any kids, Ethan had a blast and doesn't seemed to mind the cold. Me, on the other hand, wondered AGAIN how I was going to make it through this winter. But we had fun anyway!




Ethan's favorite, the Corn Pool. We definitely gotta get one of these in our backyard! It was AWESOME!

Dr. in the House

Our good friends, the McCallisters came into town this weekend for Zac's graduation (from Palmer Chiropractic School) which meant he is now officially a Dr. Yay! It was fun to hang out with them again and as always they're up for anything. So on Saturday, we headed to John Deere headquarters to do a little touring. Ethan had a blast climbing on all the tractors/machinery and really enjoyed the freedom to wander.


Is this huge or what?

Candy bribery was involved for this pic ;0)

Halloween Party

The mom's group had a Halloween party today and we was fun seeing all the kiddos in their costumes. There were lots of yummy food, too!

My lil' cow
Posing with his friend, Nathan. Too cute!

Fall Service Project

This is what we did at MOPS today: putting together a baby boy basket which will be donated to the local Crisis Pregnancy Center.

"Twittering" on Blog

Went grocery shopping this morning BY MYSELF (without a screaming toddler) and actually had time to think through my list.

Just For Laughs

Clear the road!
Check out my new shades (actually they're Dadda's)

Party Time!

Yesterday, we spent the day in Lexington celebrating Ethan's cousin, Lucas' 4th birthday. As always the cousins had fun playing together and by the end of the night, they were best buds! =0) We had fun catching up with the fam, too. And I must add that this has been the best Fall EVER. The kids spent most of their time outside. What a perfect weather!

"Twittering" on Blog

You know it's going to be a LOOONG day when it's only 7 am and my patience has already run out. Praying that God would just get us through the morning =0(

"Twittering" on Blog

Many nights I wonder...why bother picking up the toys when they'll be scattered all over the house again tomorrow??? So I just leave them where they are. Clearing the hallways and bottom of the stairs of course.

Our Happenings

Just a little midweek update on what we've been up to.

Sunday: "Be the Church" Sunday where we went out into the community as a church and served. Brian and I were the captains for doing yard work at King's Harvest (a local soup kitchen). Their property wasn't all that big but was that deceiving: we were there for three hours and it was hard work! God provided the people and other things that I didn't think of, including a friend with a truck and a generator to power the equipments, that helped get the job done quicker. I guess while we were there, there were a lot of wanderers downtown that I unintentionally ignored while busily "working." God also reminded me that while it's great to be so focused on serving (along side fellow Christians) that I also needed to have a heart for His people who might not know Him.

Good job team - the yard, parking lot & sidewalk looked 110% better!
Monday: I took Ethan to a story time at the Bettendorf Library and he LOVED it! I wish I had taken him sooner, but this whole time I thought for sure he wouldn't sit still long enough. But you know what, he actually sat on my lap the whole time and was mesmerized by the songs, rhymes and movement activities. We had a lot of fun!

Tuesday: After talking to some friends, Brian and I are trying this thing where we each get a night off. So far it hasn't really worked out, but we're trying it again. Tonight, I headed to Chili's for dinner with some MOPS ladies for a Mom's Night Out. It was an overwhelming day with Ethan and so it was a MUCH needed time away! I came home feeling refreshed and extra chatty =0)

Wednesday: Tonight was Brian's night off which he chose to work on completing the deck project...a year later. (Seriously, only my hubby would do that on his night off). I decided to take Ethan to the story time at the library again. He still liked it, but unfortunately it was EXACTLY the same thing as the one on Monday. I know repetition is good for him, but it was kinda boring for me. Oh well, we got out of the house and killed about an hour.

Nothing on the agenda tomorrow. But I'm looking forward to Friday night which is our church's woman's retreat. Yippee for another night away where I don't have to cook =0D

Action Packed Day

Ethan started our day at the crack of dawn (to my dismay - doesn't he know it's the weekend?) After Brian went to get him, he happily barged into our room and tried to drag me out of bed while saying "eat" over and over again. Okay, I get the point. I'm up. Since we're all up early, we decided to take advantage of this rare beautiful day in October and go do something. First things first, the QC Mother of Twins Club rummage sale across the river. Wasn't sure what I was going to find since I have horrible luck when it comes to garage sales, but I was hoping something worthwhile. To my excitement, I got a lawnmower, a dump truck and jack o' latern for Ethan. AND the steal of the day: a Baby Bjorn Air baby carrier (that I've been looking for for the next baby) for $10!!! That totally made my day!

Look at that concentration on his face
We then headed to Scott County Park for a day of hiking. Boy, did he and Kaika had a blast on the trail! Later that afternoon, we headed to LeClaire and walked the shops along the Mississippi River. What a fun day to spend as a family and getting to do these QCA things that we've always wanted to do but haven't for whatever reason.

"Twittering" on Blog

Ethan's 9 pm bedtime lately is taking a toll on us. We NEED some couples time.

Stone's Apple Barn

Today, Ethan and I ventured out to an apple orchard with the mom's group. It was a first experience for both of us and we had a lot of fun. We got to go on a hay ride, saw lots of apples, and learned how they are cleaned & processed. Ethan's favorite part was at the end when they gave him a whole apple. You should have seen him devour that thing! And my favorite part was coming home with some yummy cider.



When we got home, he woke up freaking out because he couldn't find the rest of his apple.

Annual Oktoberfest

After agonizing over how cold it was going to be at the Amana Colonies today, it turned out to be beautiful day after all. Yes, it was cold and windy but at least it was sunny (unlike last year). And with a yummy cup of rasberry white chocolate mocha, I was good to go! We made it to the parade this year and Ethan had a blast. It was his first and he was rather entertained by all the cars, fire trucks and horses. His favorite part? Picking up all the candy that were thrown out by the parade people. Although he didn't quite get what he was supposed to do at first, he caught on pretty quickly. It was cute. We spent the morning strolling through the stores and I came home feeling accomplished. Ate at the Ox Yoke, got my dessert wine & kettlecorn and bought a few Christmas ornaments. What a fun day and it was even better spending it with Brian's parents and our friends, the Boscaljons.