Spooky Corner

Happy Halloween to all! My apartment isn't set up for loads of decorations so this year I picked this particular corner for decorating. I will have you know that, including the price of the 3 pumpkins and 1 squash that you see, I spent just over $14. Minus pumpkins- under $10! Ah Ha!!I have counted myself among the crafty this year!!
I saw a very cute pumpkin in a lace nylon stocking and it was beautiful. Well I went out to dinner with Ethnee and Emmalene to find that Eth was wearing purple fish net stockings that just happened to have hole in them. She purchased some super cute yoga pants and wore them home, leaving me with the adorable purple stockings with which to adorn my pumpkins!!
I picked lime green, bright purple and black for my color scheme and moved from there. I bought some ribbon which went a really long way. The vampire dentures are a last minute touch!
This is our very own Skeletor, yeah Polo knows who that is!! He's been painted green but only because he had to match the decor in order to satisfy my very picky (haha- not!) taste.
A little about the flowers you see. One rose bud, with or without purple and or green glitter on the tips costs $1 at Wal-Mart. Sorry- but no! I found these old petals in my box of some dismantled flowers from who knows when. I painted them black then splotched them with purple and green, painted some straws black and glued them on using old pillow stuffing as the connector! Ok so this is the most ghetto, and the most creative of all my projects. I could have bought pipe cleaners but I just didn't have any more money in the budget. Oh well- they'll do for this year! Oh and those are pastel colored brads I found in my craft box!
These goblets I am proud of. They were $1 each at the dollar store and then I took some old pillow stuffing (I save this kind of stuff for weird things like this I guess) and rubbed it paint. Add a few ribbons, a spooky spider and flower- voila!
Again with the purple stockings but it made a good spider web. This green chair I stole from Bubba's room- it is breaking in one corner and isn't totally safe any way! I slashed a little paint on it and added my tulle-wrapped pumpkin!
The felt flowers took a long time to make. I had to cut out 18 black felt flowers and 18 green flowers and then sew them together. I then glued them onto little circles and they turned out very cute.

The book pumpkin, though it doesn't really match, I had to add because I love books and no holiday can be complete without honoring literature from which it sprang! Any way- I took "The Comedy of Errors" and cut it, then stained the edges with a peach tea bag (yummy tea). Then I found this stick at the park and glued it on! I love it! Thanks for the idea Pinterest!
This swag was created because I had some leftover tulle and found some black tulle at my in-laws that would have been tossed if it weren't for my rescue! I weaved in some ribbons, cut it up to look "scary". twisted it and added some painted spiders!

I just had to shoot a close-up the bow in the middle. This green was leftover from a baby shower I threw with a jungle theme. It fit perfectly.
And we bought a bunch of window stickers and Polo helped me put them up- he loves to look at them and tell me what they are. He likes to say, "Look it's a spider", then cover his eyes and say, "I don't like it". However, he loves spiders, he just thinks it's funny! But the web I created by cutting the leftover window sticker material- you know, the stuff that's still on the there once you've taken off all the images. So I cut it up and formed a spider web!
And a close up of my Happy Halloween banner made from sepia toned music sheet, rose and sunflower paper, extra Christmas paper, scraps, a long lost tube of glitter, some glue and then burned to a crisp on the edges. I had tons of fun with all my Halloween decorations and while I realize it wasn't necessary to post each picture individually I want to post some of them to my pinterest page! But I can say that it's only October 7th and I've already put away my decorating stuff. Yay!

Little Boys Are Made of Frogs & Snails & Puppy Dog Tails

We've been having so much fun as Bubba has been growing up and turning into a little boy. He doesn't even feel like a toddler any more- well, minus the fact that he refuses to go anywhere near the potty when he has to poop!!!! It even looks like a frog- come on, how can you be afraid of a frog potty? Honestly I just don't know. But we've been letting him explore this new grown-up little boy to find that he is truly 100% BOY! We found this new park that has lots of trees around the playground so it's shaded and kind of secluded. I love it! And it has tons of open space for Bubba to explore. It has a bunch of trees that are perfect for climbing (at the age of 2- I guess I never thought it would start so early, but I must encourage it when I see it!)

And sliding down(his legs are always bruised from climbing one thing or another so I guess I didn't think twice about letting him slide down the tree!)
And it always has plenty of sticks that act as swords, guns and the like.It's our favorite place to go! We drop Daddy off at work and then hang out at the park til nap time!
My little guy is definitely just like his momma. He prefers the frosting over cake and can eat tons and tons of candy- like an entire bag of gummy bears before we ever get home (that's like 4 blocks away, not kidding!)We have to be really careful because if we give him sugar after dinner then he turns into an instant wild monster and will be up until midnight. Also caffeine is the absolute devil. I once gave him 1/4 cup of Mt. Dew around 8pm- (in my defense, we were in the car, on our way home, he was thirsty and it was all I had!)He stayed up until 5 am telling Jake, "Come on, Dad, let's go watch a show!" He's such a cheese ball!
While he looks like a total mess I have to make an argument in his defense- these were some of the very best cupcakes ever (yes I made them from scratch!) and it was hard not to get them all over your face!
"Whatta ya want" he now says in a very low and boyish tone, just to be silly. It sets us laughing. (He's copying us mimicking the John Lee Hooker song, One Bourbon, One Scotch and One Beer :)This particular green mess all over the walls was most definitely encouraged- it's baby wash, corn starch and food coloring! He also has green bath body paint that he puts all himself and claims that he is the HULK!!
Before I continue with the super hero talk I must mention his love for shoes. Here he is wearing my UGGs. No matter where we are, he will find a pair of shoes and try them on, walk around in them, and put them back. It doesn't matter whose shoes they are, what color, what size- nothing. He just has to try them on! Though his favorites are his cousin Jacob's crocs that have bad guys attached to them! Help us- we have a shoe fetish issue!
Back to bad guys and good guys- he loves the Hulk the most and then the rest of the Avengers- though Captain America is quickly making his rise up the ladder. That's our planned Halloween costume for him this year- a mini Captain America- and yes he's very excited! I just bought a show featuring Super Man, Batman, and the rest of the Justice League. He loved that too, of course.
He enjoys fighting with baseball bats, plastic bowling pins, vacuum attachments, etc. He will fight us and then pretend that he's been hurt- which is pretty dramatic. He falls down, drops his "sword", closes his eyes and stays there for a bit. It's pretty hilarious and we love to play along! I even bought him a wooden sword at Swiss Days, and a marshmallow gun (that one was for me!). He loves both and is really fun to play with. We love him- and all his little frog, snake, snail, dog, whatever boyishness!

Watch Me Grow!

Apparently I have been neglecting my blog due to a new found love of the website and virtual pin board commonly known as Pinterest.com. Warning: Do not join this site- you will turn into an "unprofitable" and anti productive person. All the thoughts swirling around in your head and on your pin board will cause a total and complete physical breakdown to where you won't accomplish anything. Just so you know!
So here's a little look at my boy, starting with the most recent pics and heading back through to July (because it's been so long since I blogged I forgot to put the newer stuff first and the old stuff last. FIFO and LILO for all you accountants. A glance into the distance with yogurt all over his face- of course most of these pics he has some sort of food or dirt all over him!
I know he's a mess- but look how cute he is- and his eyes look just like mine now- besides me coloring, that's his one Momma feature.
Dipping apple slices and pretzels in peanut butter and chocolate for treats during the football game- of course he had to be naked for this because I wasn't about to treat chocolate stains!
This means he is concentrating really hard :)
Fire truck, jeans and a black turtleneck shirt- I had to snap this cuz it was just too Tommy Gavin ish and I loved it! Of course Batman's Robin is close by, I think Batman was inside the truck already.
Trying to share everything he had with Uncle D who so kindly shared his lap with all his nieces and Polo and shared his time to come out and play tickle monster, swing on the swings, watch Despicable Me, and put on an awesome fireworks show for us! They loved every minute of it!
On his 2nd birthday eating rainbow chip cake with rainbow chip frosting- forget the fork I'm using my hands!!
Telling me how much he loves me, probably not but that's why we take photos so we can add our own loveable captions!!
Perhaps I was too lazy to put clothes on him or maybe he just got out of the bath but for whatever reason, he was watching a show in his diaper. Normally he bugs me to get him dressed but this was one of those beautiful carefree days where all he wanted was to lay down on the floor naked and enjoy a show.
In a Bronco's helmet (which we don't exactly love- Go 49ers!) probably saying this, "Down, Set, Hut Hut, Hike!!" He's good at that one- and then he takes off! He's such a sweetheart still and he's growing up so fast and getting so smart. We love him so much and we always find something to laugh about with him.
Small update: he can count to 13 in English and 10 in Spanish, sing his alphabet, recognize the majority of his capital letters by sight, A-K in sign language, sing Sunbeam and several other songs by himself, complete a game of Memory with 24 tiles in under 2 minutes consistently, tell me "NO" very defiantly, make awesome animal noises and make me laugh hysterically. He can also bring a light to our lives that wasn't there before and we're so grateful for him!

My First Vocal Tryout

For those of you who know about this little excursion- here's a look at what the competition was like!! Just kidding. My dad thought it would be fun to capture the memories of all the crazy looks about town. These two people right here drove 8 eight hours to Denver with a 2-year-old little boy. They showed up at registration on very little sleep with a song in their hearts. They enjoyed the whole trip, the singing, the driving, getting to stay at Shae's house with his wonderful wife and kids, and especially the father-daughter talks and time spent together. Even though this girl didn't make it through to the next round, she's so glad her dad and the rest of her family encouraged her to go and supported her all the way through it. (On a side note her husband was extremely happy and grateful that her dad was able to travel with her as he could not this time around.) All in all this was such a good learning experience and so much fun!
This guy could be seen from the back of the line and Dad walked up for a better look!
This guy must have had 4 red bulls and 6 cups of coffee all before 7 am because he was crazy! He was running up and down the line, talking up the cameras, giving speeches and blabbing on and on to the local news channels. I never once heard him sing a song but amazingly he made it through to the next round (due to his extreme craziness I'm sure!)
And this chick was obviously "stoked" to be there :)
Crazy people (including me), awesome city, better hospitality from my one and only Rohrer sister-in-law. Thanks Cathy and Shae for letting us crash your house! We loved every minute of it! And thanks Denver for such a great experience.

A Child's Dream, A Pocket Book's Fantasy

Have you ever looked to buy one of these really nice, sturdy, fancy play kitchens for your kids? They start at about $100 and go up from there! The artist said it cost about $30 to make this whole thing. Head down the DI, maybe Home Depot or Wal-Mart and you've got yourself a customized kitchen. When I have a kid who loves kitchen stuff- I'm totally gonna do this!!

The Cutest Boy (the cutest boy) I Ever Saw (I ever saw) Was...

Hangin out with Papa at the playground by the duck pond- having the time of his life! Thanks Papa!
Refusing to take a nap by me and instead heading over to his table, motorcycle in hand, and crashing there by accident, due to equally extreme amounts of stubbornness and tiredness.
Exploring the deep blue bath water on his belly.

Constantly begging to "drive car" or "drive truck"- so persistently that few can refuse! Also- wearing some of his very own choices- snow boots and a golf hat!!

Showing off his new trick of closing his eyes and opening his mouth at the same time (thanks Uncle Brad!)

Farewell to Hair

So I generally avoid posting pictures of myself because like most women on the planet I'ma bit self conscious about the way I look. (If you're not one of those women- hooray for you. I envy and admire you. And now that we're done talking about you...) Here's my new haircut for the summer! After I had Peewee my hair went dark and curly which made the thickness even more of a mess to handle! It would frizz out look like a haystack if I didn't do something with it.
Goodbye to 15 minute blow drying sessions then 20 minutes of flat ironing. Goodbye to a palmful of shampoo and one of conditioner. Goodbye to ponytails that end up a mess on top of my shoulders. Goodbye to 3 palmfuls of Noodlehead plus one of styling sauce plus harispray for that curly look. Goodbye to hot rollers that take an hour to put in and a half a can of hairspray to make it last. Goodbye to waking up being choked by my hair in the mornings. Goodbye to waiting all day for my hair to dry naturally... Hello to the perfect cut for the pool!

Baby Shower

My neighbor is pregnant! Strangely she is the only person around here that I know that is pregnant! There's usually more this time of year- I know that sounds so Mother Nature of me but it's true! So I decided we needed to throw her a baby shower. I've never done that before but I am having so much fun! Here's the latest gift/decoration made from 84 Pampers Swaddlers (the best diapers for a new baby bum!), lots of rubber bands, an oatmeal can and some ribbon!
The monkey is PW's but he goes so well with the jungle theme I think I'll let him come visit the shower!