This Is Halloween

Happy Halloween! We've had a busy couple of days full of Halloween festivities. Yesterday we went to Happy Hollow with my Las Madres group, Patrick had a blast running around in his turtle costume (even if it was 75 degrees yesterday!).





All of Patrick's playmates were dressed up and just so adorable. Check out how cute Jo Ann and Sydney are!



Patrick also got a chance to play with his buddy Simon (AKA Dark Prince Simon).



Today we meant to carve pumpkins but never got around to it. Oops. My Mom and Mike brought over a fabulous dinner and Patrick ran around like a crazy man every time the doorbell rang. Our doorbell is shaped like a pineapple which the trick or treaters found amusing because every kid who rang it had to ring it 4 or 5 times. Patrick helped to pass out candy and seemed thrilled by it all. He even went along to see the local haunted house that a neighbor puts up every year. It was a very nice Halloween.





And just because I can, check out this blast from the past :)

Pumpkin Time

Yesterday Tom and I took Patrick to the pumpkin patch (at the last working farm in Mountain View!) to pick out some pumpkins. Patrick really liked the little pumpkins (or as he likes to call them, "apples"). He also liked standing and climbing on the pumpkins :(





Today we went to a first birthday party at Gymboree for Patrick's friend Anushka. We had never been there before and Patrick REALLY liked it. He was able to climb all over the place, eat a cupcake, and play in bubbles. What more could a toddler want? I'll have to look into classes there in the winter.







We ended the day today with dinner out at Black Angus. It's rather amazing how your views on "fine dining" change when you become a parents. I liked it because they have big "C" shaped booths and Patrick could sit in a booster between us and not be able to get out. The food is decent enough. Three thumbs up from us!



We have a busy day tomorrow with two Halloween parties. Check back for costume pictures!

In The Park

We're so lucky to have a park around the corner from us!

Autumn Afternoon

Fall has officially been here for a month now but today we finally broke out the sweaters. How cute is he? If only I could get him to look at the camera and smile.

Sleep My Child

***Newsflash***
Patrick slept until 7:11 this morning. He hasn't slept in that late in 4 or 5 months. Just in time for daylight savings time to end. Sigh.

This Little Light Of Mine

Tonight we all did the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Light The Night walk in downtown San Jose. My cousin Isabel was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia when she was 5 years old. She bravely went through many years of treatment, including chemotherapy, and now at age 10 is happy and heathy and in remission. Tonight Isabel's family and friends gathered to walk as Team Izzy and raised well over $10,000 for LLS. Patrick just adores Isabel, she is so sweet and gentle with him. She'll be a fabulous babysitter in a few years!

During the walk (5K?) Patrick wouldn't sit in the jogging stroller and poor Tom had to carry him most of the way...



Patrick and Isabel after the walk...



Patrick and a few of his adoring cousins...

The Daily Grind

We're getting settled into the house and still unpacking. It scares me that we still have an entire storage unit to unload. Yikes. Patrick is having a ball exploring every nook and cranny of the house. His new favorite activities include tormenting the pugs (and slipping them Cheerios) and emptying the cabinets (who knew I had so many ice trays?).





And I have to mention that I swear Patrick normally wears pants!

In other news Patrick has his 19 month well baby visit yesterday. My little baby is getting so big! The official stats...

• Weight - 23 pounds, 14 ounces (20th percentile)
• Height - 33 inches (70th percentile!!!!)
• Head - 55 cm (97th percentile)

Patrick has been steady on the height chart at 50% so the jump to 70% is interesting. Especially since I am 5'2'.....

....in a slight heel.

The Early Bird

Patrick got up for the day at 5:22 am, What's up with that? At least Tom had an early meeting and had to be out of the house by 6:30.

Sweet Pumpkin

My little pumpkin is 18 months old today! To celebrate, Patrick and I had a playdate at the pumpkin patch this afternoon. Can you believe it was 87 degrees this afternoon and we were in long sleeves?

We're Cooking

Patrick did the funniest thing yesterday. Michael and I were making lunch at the kitchen counter and Patrick was perched on his stool next to us. I was feeding him bits of macaroni and cheese as I started to make a sandwich. Patrick grabbed a piece of bread, sprinkled the pasta on the bread, reached for a second slice of bread and made himself a mac 'n' cheese sandwich. Then he picked up the sandwich, took a bite and declared "Mmmmm". Michael and I were in hysterics laughing. Patrick then disassembled his sandwich and went back to plain mac 'n' cheese. I've said it before, that kid is funny.

Pop Star

There's a lot of money to be made in pop music. In an effort to get Patrick to start contributing his share around the house we've started the pop star training early. Here's Patrick in a little trio with his buddies Jo Ann and Simon.



How long do you think it will be before they get their first recording contract? Our yard needs some landscaping.

I'll Tumble For Ya

This morning Patrick had his first Gymnastics class through the City of Mountain View. The class is designed for 18 months - 3 years and is held at a local gymnastics place. I'm not sure who picked that age range, but apparently they think that 18 month old can follow instructions (like only go left to right on the Tumble Trak). HA! I thought the class would ne a nice outlet for Patrick's energy but I was the one who was worn out picking him up and moving him trying to get him to follow directions. I'm not so sure about this class.

In other news... I was holding Patrick upside down today and noticed he has two new teeth on the top. That brings the tooth total to 14! I did a little internet research and found out that there are his upper cuspids. I had no idea those were even coming (I guess that is what happens when you fail to buy "What To Expect: The Toddler Years"). For anyone interested, here is a baby teething chart.

Our House

Our house is almost done! This week the cabinets are getting painted and it should all be done by Wednesday or Thursday so we can move back in! We still have a few tiny things to do like putting in light fixtures and door knobs but those are things Tom can do.

Front of the house


Entryway


Fireplace in living room


Built in buffet in dining room


Kitchen


New bathroom


New bedroom


And that bright blue laundry room!

M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E

We're back from our trip to Disney World! Our flight got in very late last night and Patrick was still revved up and ready to go at 10 pm :( He slept from Orlando to Dallas, but was awake for the entire flight from Dallas to San Jose. We all had a really nice time, there is so much to do and see. Patrick seemed to enjoy it all, especially the Magic Kingdom. This is low season for Disney World but it still seemed crowded to me, I can't imagine what it is like in the summer (not to mention the heat all day and night!).

I took oodles of pictures, here are a few of my favorites.

At the Magic Kingdom





Riding Dumbo (Patrick didn't seem to care for it)



Riding Small World (Patrick's absolute favorite)



Dinner in "France" at Epcot



On a boat ride



At Animal Kingdom



Patrick didn't really like Animal Kingdom (neither did we)



Dinner at the California Grille



The end of a long, hot day at Epcot



Fun with photos at Epcot