Happy Halloween, Going Green with John and some Star Wars Catch-Up

Halloween weekend kind of hit us like a tornado this year. Friday the 30th was "Teacher Work Day", so the kids were all home. I started the weekend off bravely by taking all six children to the pediatrician's office with me for Jack's 9 month appointment. I could have gotten a babysitter, but I had an ulterior motive in taking them all with me. I was hoping they'd take pity on me and give them all the H1N1 vaccine while I was there. Well, it only took two hours, but we were successful in getting the mist vaccine for the five oldest. I know there is some controversy concerning this vaccine, but with an infant at home, I just couldn't see not getting them for the older children. I tell you what though....it was exhausting taking all six with me to the doctors office. Not to mention all the looks and questions I got while there. We had a big pep talk before we went in, and everyone did pretty well, but it's still weird to see people actually counting you as you walk somewhere. And people are never shy to ask me, "are these ALL yours?" I've gotten some pretty rude comments over the years, but mostly, I try to put a positive spin on it. And my kids try extra hard when we're out in public to make us not look like crazy people. I give them credit for that, and I think it teaches them a lot about teamwork and personal responsibility. Anyway, I'll stop on that tangent.

After we were all properly vaccinated, it was time to let the weekend party begin. We spent the afternoon at the Pumpkin Patch, and the evening finishing up our costumes and making last minute adjustments.

Here are the kids at Trunk or Treat....If you can't tell, I'll translate...
Joe: Peewee Reese (an original Brooklyn Dodger...he's been really into 1930's baseball lately.

Maggie: Dorothy - and yes, she is wearing her baptism dress under her pinafore. (sorry mom). It felt a bit sacrilegious, but I just couldn't seen making another entire white dress when we had a perfectly good one just sitting in the closet. The crux of the costume for her was the wig. She saw it at the Halloween store and decided to be Dorothy just so she could get the wig.

Harry: A Lego Brick - I think he looked great...we saw it on Family Fun and thought it was appropriate for Harry. We worked hard to make it (jig saw involved). He thought it was great and was really happy until a little girl (who wasn't trying to be unkind - she's one of Harry's good friends) asked him if he was a muffin tin. Then he got self-conscious and wanted to take it off. It made me sad to see him so affected by what one other person thought. Lots of people told him how cool he looked, but he just couldn't get past the muffin tin comment. Who has red muffin tins anyway?

Charlie: Luigi - This is the second year for him as Luigi, and I was SO grateful he wanted to be him again...one less costume to make, and I think he makes a very debonair Mario Brother.

John: A garbage can - this one was obviously the most original. He at first wanted to be Oscar the Grouch, but I knew enough about little boys to know that he wouldn't tolerate being painted green, so we compromised with this costume. First I painted the trash can silver, but he looked much to much like a robot. Then we did it black, and Charlie still thought he looked like a bullet from the Mario Brothers games, but we decided it was the best option. He had so much fun and looked so cute with his little legs toddling around.

Jack: Baby Mario - there was much debate over this costume. Since he couldn't pick, everyone else wanted to choose for him. We considered him being an apple (get it, Apple Jack?), and Maggie wanted him to be the Tin Man as an accessory to her costume, but I've done costumes enough for crawling babies to know that it had to be functional too. So, we settled on Mario. It's very fitting actually, since he looks so much like Charlie.





The rest of the pictures are ones we took on Halloween night when we trick or treated at our friend's, the Robers house. We had a great time...thanks for inviting us!










With Halloween over, we had to turn immediately around and gear up for John's third birthday. We decided to Go Green for this big day. He was super excited for the big day and really enjoyed his new garbage truck and car wash toy (his two favorite things). We made a garbage truck cake and had our friends over for dinner.









Sometime late Friday afternoon, I got the idea that it would be fun to make a replica car wash for John to play with on his birthday. (Because you know, I just didn't really have enough to do). So, after a quick trip to Home Depot for some PVC pipe, the kids and I fashioned this crude car wash. We used plastic table cloths and swimming noodles for the brushes and rollers, set up a bubble machine for the soap, and turned on the "Car Wash" song for added ambiance. John had a great time all afternoon driving his ride-on Tow-Mater and Lightening McQueen cars through his car wash.



It was a long day, and a nap was required late in the day - sitting up at the counter in his garbage man costume.




Finally, some Star Wars Catch Up... last month Joe took JoeIV and Harry down to LA for a Star Wars Concert. I don't know exactly what it entailed, but there was a live orchestra playing music from the movies, set to scenes from the movies up on giant screen. A laser show was also part of the extravaganza. Before the show, there was an exhibit set up in the lobby where the boys could look at real costumes from the movies. Harry even got to try on the X-Wing Pilot's helmet. They had a great time, and it was fun for they boys to spend some time together.












Well, that's the longest post ever...but that's the way it goes sometimes...nothing happens around here for days, and then BAM, everything hits at once. I'm just taking it one day at a time and trying to keep up and enjoy these children. People PROMISE me that this is the best time of my life, and before I know it, they'll all be gone and living their own lives. Some days, that promise is the only thing getting me through the day - knowing that they'll all be gone someday! Most days though, I just try to relax and breathe deep and count my blessings.

Happy November!

That Special Time Of Year

Well it's that special time of year again....my house is littered with all sorts of costume paraphenelia. I won't give away what all their costumes are, but let me just give you a list of all the tools I've used to create this year's Halloween Creations:

Sewing Machine (obviously)
Power Drill
Jig Saw
Spray Paint (several cans)
Glue Gun
Iron
Printer
Screwdriver
And last, but not least, hours and hours of time.

Don't misunderstand me...I'm not complaining. I LOVE the process of watching the kids decide what to be and then figuring out how we'll make it happen. Some efforts are more successful than others, but I think this year everyone will be pretty happy. (not like last year when Joe's mummy costume literally fell apart as he trick or treated). I still vividly remember a halloween when my mom made my brother Darin a REALLY cool Ghostbuster costume. It was an awesome grey jumpsuit that zipped up the front and had a badge and everything. She must have worked really hard on that creation. And, I still remember Darin coming home from a party at Reed Barker's house (not sure why I remember that name), so upset because no one knew what he was. I guess he was a boy ahead of his time. So, I think about that when making costumes....how will it translate to the general public? I mean, not everyone knows that John is obsessed with garbage trucks and garbage cans and might not understand why he's dressed as a trash can. But that one I couldn't resist...he makes a darn cute trash can...even if no one knows what he is!

In other news...I'm finally getting some relief from my joint pain. Ever since Jack was born, I've had pretty bad pain in all my joints: wrists, hands, elbows, knees, even the tops of my feet. I started some medication for Rheumetoid Arthritis about a month ago, and it's finally started to work. I'm still not admitting that I have RA (although my response to the medicine seems a bit telling), but I am feeling very grateful that I can once again sew without pain, or mix up a batch of cookies, or even pick up my baby without wincing. Pain is an amazing thing...and this last year has given me so much empathy for those who suffer from chronic pain. It can truly be debilitating.

Well...our Trunk or Treat is tomorrow (or Trick or Trunk as our friend Briggs called it...much to the delight of all the children in my car at the time), so if all goes well, we'll have six happy children and one happy mother - because of course, I get first dibs on all their candy.

Happy Treating!

No More Ruffles????

I was devastated last night on Project Runway when Heidi Klum asked the designer, "What woman of today wears ruffles?"
(And this show was taped MONTHS ago!)

Am I the only one who didn't know that ruffles are out?

Tell me the truth...I can take it.

PS - my "ruffle dress" of an earlier post was a total disaster. Maybe the fashion gods were trying to tell me something?

Spoiler Alert

SPOILER ALERT!
If you've been telling your kids that you're not going to get them a pet and using me as an example of someone who doesn't let their kids have a pet, stop reading now.

Also, if you're like my sister Chelsea who hates it when people post pictures of their pets, stop reading now.

Okay, anybody left?

So, yeah, I broke down and let the kids get a pet.

Meet Kit Kat...






I'm not now, nor have I ever been a "cat person". But with six kids and a tiny yard, we decided this was a better option than a puppy.

The oddest thing we've discovered in this venture is how much my husband enjoys this animal. I didn't know that about him. I find him playing with her even when all the kids are in bed. Last night I was nodding off in bed and he came into the room with the cat in hand and said, "she's crying...what should I do?" I rolled my eyes and said, "put her in her bed...she's a cat...or rock her to sleep if you want...I've had enough babies, I'm going to sleep".

And that's exactly what I did.

Jack Man

Jack, at 8 months old. Couldn't you just look at him forever? Maybe I'm a bit biased.

From September 2009

Some Privacy Please?

I caught John getting pretty the other day....


He was NOT pleased with the intrusion....


Can't a two year old get some privacy around here please?

I've Had A Birthday, Shout Hooray! (and some other stuff too)

So I turned 33 last Sunday. Now I'm one year old and wiser too! (as the song goes)
We had a nice day (as nice a day as a mother of six can have on a Sunday...really the longest day of them all)
Thanks to Grandma Carole for organizing a dinner, and letting FIVE kids help her make it. They were pretty happy, and so was I.



We've gone through a bit of a dry spell in the costume area. Harry has somewhat grown out of the game. He'll still put them on, but not every day like he used to. Luckily for all of us, there seems to be a never-ending supply of 2 year old boys at my house who have fallen in love with the costume collection. Here are a few shots of John as a garbage man one day, and a car washing fireman the next. This kid's got a smile like none other.








And, I've been trying to get back into some sewing. Today I spent THREE hours putting these ruffles on the bodice of this dress. IT TOOK FOREVER. I had to give up and put it away for awhile. I've made several versions of this dress and thought some ruffles would be fun. Fun is not the exact word I'd use to describe it now, but hopefully I'll like the end result. Don't mind the weird duct tape dress form. That's a story for another day, but basically, it involves being wrapped up in saran wrap and duct tape. It's a useful tool for sewing for one's self, but VERY humbling to see a cast of your body in duct tape. I should be hitting the gym and not the sewing machine!





So, Happy Tuesday, here's to birthdays, costumes and sewing!