Halloween

On Sunday night, we went to the fall festival at church.  Aiden loved seeing all his friends- here he is with Sadie and Bailey.

They had lots of carnival type games for the kids to play and their reward was a piece of candy.  Ty played putt-putt and Aiden was shooting hoops. 

They also had cornhole, bowling, and some others.  Aiden's favorite was the fishing game where he put his fishing pole into a hole in a box and he got a piece of candy on his hook. (it required very little skill).  We attempted the cake walk twice (as a family) with no luck.  The weather turned chilly and we headed home.

We had a blast on Halloween night!  The boys LOVED trick-or-treating; especially Ty.  After a few houses, he was a pro.  Jeff would push him to the driveway of a house and he would hop out and head for the door.  At first he couldn't say "trick-or-treat", so he just said "please", but by the end of the night he was saying it.  It came out like "da-da-dee", almost like he was singing, but he held out his bucket every time and gladly accepted his candy.  Of course Aiden was shy and only said "trick-or-treat" a few times.

Ty insisted on holding his bucket on the side of the stroller, but he never dropped it.

Aiden was showing me all of his candy!

The boys picked out one piece of candy (a sucker) when we got home.  They had a great time and they were the cutest ninja and soldier I had ever seen.  Don't you think? :-)

In Love with Elmo

Recently, Ty has developed a strong love for Elmo.  Aiden was the same way at this age, but I think Ty's love is even stronger. 

He wants Elmo in his bed at night and at nap time.  He has a doll and an Elmo book that he must have in his crib in order to sleep.  If they aren't in his crib he will request them by saying "mo-mo" and "mo-mo book" and pointing out his door.  When he wakes up, he wants them to come with him, so he'll stand up and hand me each item individually and then he puts his arms up for me to carry him.  In the mornings, he'll request to watch Elmo's world, and we sit and snuggle with the Elmo doll and the Elmo book while watching Elmo. :-)

We have pampers diapers and they have all the sesame street characters.  I keep the diapers in a low cabinet where Ty can reach them.  Today I asked him to go get a diaper and he grabbed one, looked at it and threw it on the floor, he repeated this until he found a diaper with Elmo on it, (rather than Cookie Monster or Big Bird).  Once he found the Elmo diaper he said "Mo-Mo" and was very excited to bring it to me. :-)

Hide and Go Seek

Hide-and-go-seek is one of Aiden's favorite games, but he has his own rules and his own way of playing.  I laugh constantly every time we play.

When I count and he hides, he'll get a blanket and cover himself up in the middle of the floor.  When I say "ready or not, here I come", he'll yell "Mom, I'm in here!"  And when I find him and he is ready to hide again, he'll tell me "I'm going to go in my room and hide." 

Then he'll count and I will hide.  When he is looking for me he'll yell "Mom" over and over again, and if he can't find me after about a minute, he'll get distracted and start playing with a toy.

Ty likes the game too- he'll just follow one of us around and mimic his brother when he is yelling. 

Let's Build a Fort

Pumpkin

We carved a pumpkin today to celebrate the season! 

Ty wanted to dig out the seeds from the inside of the pumpkin with the spoon and his hands. I encouraged him to use the spoon. 

After I showed Aiden the face I carved, he asked "where is his tongue?".  So I added a tongue.  And Aiden named him Baxter.

 Pumpkin Baxter

Boys will be boys

Recently, I have allowed the boys to play with the condiments from the pantry, in their play kitchen in the playroom.  What I thought was completely harmless turned into something strange and aggressive only boys could come up with. 

Earlier today they were "cooking" together with the condiments in their kitchen.  While doing housework, I heard Aiden say to Ty, "let's go in my room".  They both ran in Aiden's room where I assumed they were getting into the toys in his toy box like they usually do.  Often times they will be in there for 20-30 minutes playing perfectly well together and I can actually get things done.  A few minutes went by and I heard some noises and some banging which isn't totally unusual, but I was suspicious.  I folded some more laundry and the noises got louder.  I walked towards Aiden's room and it sounded like bombs were going off in there. 

I had to be quiet, because if they saw or heard me come in the room they would stop whatever they were doing, and I was curious.  I turned the doorknob and slowly opened the door and my two sweet boys were standing at one end of the room launching salad dressing and marinade at the window across the room.  I just envisioned one of the bottles breaking and ranch dressing splattering all over the wall and the floor in his room.  Aiden ran to pick up a bottle and turned around and saw me and he immediately dropped the bottle he was holding.

I disciplined them both and assured them we won't be playing with the condiments any more.  But even as I write this, I am amazed at how they came up with the idea.  They knew I wouldn't approve, but they probably encouraged each other and figured if the other was doing it, they could to.  I cannot even imagine the mischief they will get into when they are older. 

Myrtle Beach

We were fortunate enough to escape to the beach for a whole week.  We had been looking forward to this vacation all year and it was a great time spent with family and friends.

Thankfully, the boys loved the beach!  Aiden was surprising fearless when it came to the ocean and jumping the waves.  He was constantly asking to go into the water. 

 Ty loved playing in the sand.  He didn't like the soft sand so much, but as soon as we got to the hard sand closer to the water, he was happy.  He would walk to the end of the boardwalk, stop and look back at us and whine for one of us to carry him.  Jeff or I would carry him until the sand was more firm and then put him down.  I guess when you've only been walking 6 months, sand is a little tough to walk in.   

Aiden especially liked the pool because it was only 3 feet deep, which meant he could stand and play without floaties!  He wore floaties some times and others went without.  He wanted to show everyone that he could get in the water and "not go under"

The boys had a blast playing with their Uncles and their Aunt.  Uncle Collin was helping Aiden jump the waves!

Jeff and Ty went out on our patio one morning.  I think they were looking at dogs on the beach.  Ty liked pointing out different things from our balcony.

During low tide, small puddles were formed in the sand and the boys loved playing in the water.  The shallow water was perfect for the boys to play in.  Papa and Dadda built a sand mountain with Ty.

Jeff and Aiden threw the football on the beach.  Aiden is catching the ball here

We played putt-putt after dinner one night.  The boys were all over the course- Ty threw the golf ball more than he actually hit it with his golf club and Aiden constantly hit the ball with his golf club even if it was still rolling.  They had fun watching the pirate show too.  Nana and the boys sat in a cave in between holes.

A late night swim . . .

Aiden was pulling Aunt Mandy out of the sand because her feet were stuck!  He loved going out into the ocean with her too.

Our last couple days were cool, so we spent some time shopping. We met up with Jason, and Norm, Karen and baby Charlie and enjoyed a delicious homemade dinner in Sunset Beach, NC.  We finished our trip with a lunch at Landshark Bar & Grill.  The kids were great and Charlie took a good nap during lunch.  

We had a great time and we have great memories of the trip!