A Double Birthday Party

We went to a birthday party on Saturday.  Kaitlyn turned 3 and Kai turned 1.  Their birthdays are just a week apart so their party was combined.  There were lots of kids and they all had lots of fun.  Erin planned some really fun activities for the kids that were just perfect for their age.

Birthday Boy Kai with Daddy, such a serious little guy.

Birthday Girl Kaitlyn with Mommy

The cones were a hit with Hunter!  They had cake baked inside of them.

The first activity was finger painting on a shirt.  We skipped that one.  Hunter was having too much fun on the slide.  The second activity was eating pudding and whipped cream with their hands.  She put globs of pudding and whipped cream on the table and just let them have at it.

Hunter enjoyed this one!

The third activity was make an edible bracelet with a pipe cleaners and various loopy foods.  Hunter made two and ate them both!

It was a great party, Erin!

My Little Turkey

They did a Thanksgiving craft at the Y today and Hunter came home with this 'hat'.  They used his hands to make the feathers.  For a kid who will not keep a hat on he sure doesn't mind wearing this.  The sun was directly over head so I'm not happy with all the shadows on his face.  No angle would make them go away.  Still cute though.

Product Recommendation: Loop 2 Loop Belt

I was in the market for a belt for Hunter.  He has a really tiny waist and all his pants are falling down.  I went to a couple local stores and found no one carrying belts for kids.  I searched Etsy and found a lot of people selling kids belts, but this one is genius to me.  It doesn't buckle in the front saving you from having to undo the belt every time you change a diaper or take your child to the potty.  In the back there is an adjustable slide so you can cinch it as tight as you wish.  I got my belt last week and Hunter has worn it several times.  It's awesome!  If you're in the market for a child's belt (they sell boy and girl colors), check out Loop2Loop on Etsy.

New Product : Diaper Covers

I've been wanting to add this item to my website for a while now and finally found a vendor to supply the blanks. Diaper Covers are perfect for covering up that ugly diaper underneath an adorable dress. Personalize them with one initial, a 3-letter monogram, or the child's first name. I'm offering six sizes starting at 0-6 months and ending at 4T (34lbs). Diaper Covers are $10.  WritteninThread.com

I finished a couple of sets of burp cloths. I have a couple of friends who typically buy 3 burp cloths as gifts for their friends and family. They normally just give me the child's name, any sports teams they like, and maybe the parents' occupation. I love having the freedom to pick fonts, colors, and designs and try different things. I started sewing on some ribbon to the bottom of some of the burp cloths, too (thanks for the inspiration on that, Megan!).

Bathtime Fun

Hunter was in an extra giggly mood last night so I snapped some pictures while trying not to get my camera wet. I'm not so thrilled with the color cast on the pics. I improved it a little (it was really yellow), but I'm not so good at Photoshop. Oh well!

A little bit of nothing

Not much to report here. Heath and I had a bit of a stomach bug Friday. We felt good enough Saturday to take Hunter to his very first movie in a movie theater. We saw Madagascar 2 and he made it through the whole thing! Some may be surprised that a barely two year old can make it through a whole movie, but Hunter is a movie buff like his dad.

Hunter got all his hair cut off

Eating an Oreo with Grandma

Self portrait

Hunter and Allison

Last week we had friends from Jax staying with us for a few days. They have a daughter, Allison, who is just a few months older than Hunter as well as a new baby boy. Hunter and Allison played really well for being together for 3 days straight. We practiced lots of sharing and playing nice :o)

Standing in the toy box together

Pumpkin Heads

Well, that was easy!

I feel confident in saying that we are paci-free as of Sunday! It went WAY smoother than I ever imagined.

Hunter took to the paci right away after he was born. He practically lived with it in his mouth until about 14 months. He started walking just before 14 months and I just have this thing about kids walking around with a paci in their mouth all the time. To each their own. It's just something that bothers me personally. I started slowly weaning it from daily life as much as I could. It came in handy during those dreaded weeks of teething though! By 18 months the paci's home became Hunter's bed. It stayed there at all times. He left it there when he woke up and never asked for it otherwise. That should have been my first indication that maybe he didn't need it as bad as I thought he did. Now that Hunter has turned 2 I decided that maybe it's time to get rid of them all together. I decided last week that I would start cutting the paci down starting Sunday. That method has worked for a couple people I know so I figured I'd try that. I didn't think I could just take it away cold turkey.

Saturday night Hunter slept at Grandma's house. He was home Sunday to nap. There was nothing in his bed because everything had been taken out to go to Grandma's so I gathered his pillow, blanket, and dog and took him to bed. I decided to just see what would happen if I didn't put the paci in the bed, too. He didn't even ask for it. Not having it didn't even keep him awake. He fell asleep in no time. We haven't turned back. He hasn't even asked for it.

Pikelween V

We attended Pikelween 5 Saturday night.  This is our neighbor's annual Halloween bash. Marcie totally outdid herself this year.  The decor and food were the best yet.  She has a blog now so all the little details were very well thought out. We had a great time.  I enjoyed being the resident photographer.  There are a lot of pictures!  I'll share just a few, but you can see all 150 of them here if you so desire.  Click on 'detail' if you want to see bigger pictures with captions.  WARNING:  You might find some of the costumes offensive so view at your own risk!

Heath and I were going for easy, cheap, and comfortable this year.  He was a Redneck Gator Fan and I was a Jaguar.  No, people, I wasn't a Cat.  Ha!

The Hosts - Little Red Riding Hood and Slash

The Spread. It looked AND tasted great!

No party is complete without a chocolate fountain! I'll totally take credit for the display of food. Isn't it purdy?

Fall Festival Fun!

For the last 6 years, ever since there have been kids in the family, we have gone to our church's Fall Festival on Halloween night.  They do it up right.  There is an area to trick-or-treat, games to play, bounce houses, rides, and food to enjoy.  The past 2 years we've taken Hunter as well, but he's never been old enough to enjoy any of the activities.  This year was much different and so much fun for him... and us!

Here he is trick or treating.  Some of the elderly people in the church sit in chairs making an alley for the kids to come through while they hand out candy.

With Daddy on a ride

Coming off a big slide

Cowboy Ethan

Dragon Ashton

Grandma even likes to dress up a little

Aunt Tiff must get it from her mom!

Hunter LOVED the choo-choo as he calls it. We rode it at least 3 times. Here he is pulling the whistle.

Hunter's friend Amelia (dressed as JoJo) was there, too. She asked Hunter to hold her hand and he did. So adorable!

When we got home we took Hunter to trick or treat at our friend's houses close by. It was the cutest thing. He totally understood the trick or treat concept. He would chant "cha-cha-cheat" between houses. He wasn't afraid to go up and knock on the door and pick a piece of candy. He was very polite and said thank you for his candy.

There are even more pictures here if you just can't get enough!