Snapshots of Caleb

Reading to baby doll

At least we got to him before he flushed.

Bed head. This hair do finally pushed "cut Caleb's hair" to the top of the list. (Next photo.)

And a very poor cut it is, but his face is so cute you hardly notice.

Discovering Pockets

There's nothing in his hand. But every time I said, "Show me how you put your hands in your pockets," he put them in and then pulled them out, looked at them, and held them up for me to see.

Partygoer

Today Kate went to her first birthday party. She has talked about it for weeks. We wrapped the present last Saturday. Finally, today was the day. And I let her wear her red tights. And she got to ride in Daddy's car. This was a happy girl!

Candy Binge

Today was the Halloween candy finale at our house. Somewhere I got the idea to choose a day (it's better to do it 2 or 3 days after trick-or-treating) and tell the kids they can eat as much candy as they want in one sitting, but that when they stop I will take whatever is left and throw it away (after picking over it and eating the good stuff myself, of course.) The theory being that if they eat a few pieces every day until it's gone they will eventually eat 50-75 pieces of candy each (!), but if they eat a big handful at once, their net sugar intake will actually be lower. (I also do this on New Year's Day with their gingerbread houses.) For the most part it works like a charm--they rip into it and devour several pieces, enjoy a few more at a reasonable pace, realize they're maxing out and suck on half of one last piece before throwing in the towel.

Well, this year, Nate rose to new levels. He happily and steadily ate candy for 30 solid minutes. Then, with a few pieces left in his pile, he decided he was full and stopped. He washed his hands and went out to play and that was that. No sick groans of regret, no green face, no sugar high. I always knew the boy could hold his sweets, but this was unbelievable. If his smile looks a little weak in this picture it is due to mediocre photography, not a queasy stomach. Trust me. He was barely 10 minutes in at this point.

Here is a shot of the remains. And in case you're curious, I took inventory:

3 snickers

1 m&m fun pack

1 butterfingers

2 starbursts

1 twix

1 take 5

1 pack of sour patch

1 baby ruth

1 3 musketeers

1 pixie stick

1 hershey's kiss

1 mini reeses peanut butter cup

1 nestle crunch

1 tootsie roll

A Girl and Her Worm

Trick-or-Treat

Meg

(Queen of Hearts, costume inherited from her Aunt Bethany)

Nate

(bow hunter)

Kate

(ballerina; switched from bride 20 minutes before departure)

Nella, our friend next door

(cowgirl)

Not Pictured: Caleb

(20 month old baby in pjs whose mother thought he was too young to trick-or-treat)

Desk Upgrade

Some of you may know that Meg is a prolific author and illustrator. She is constantly making books, papers, notes, and drawings. Back in January she took it upon herself to make a desk (see first photo below) but it didn't hold up too well. For months I've been looking in vain for the right desk to put in her room: cute, small, decent storage capacity. A few weeks ago my mom offered this one (second photo) that she had refinished but is not currently using. It perfectly fits the bill and Meg is delighted with it (even though it is not portable).

Good Clean Fun

Oh, to be young again.

Climber

Caleb has been proficient on the swing set ladder and slide for a while now. He is very delighted by his skill. In fact, if I let him he would spend his whole day on here (as well as meandering around the backyard).