100 Piece Puzzle

Ok so if I'm totally honest I have no idea how to cultivate a mind as bright as my son's. He's such a smart little guy and he's so wonderful. One thing he loves to do is puzzles. We picked up a load of puzzles at the Dollar Store featuring all sorts of Marvel heroes. Some are 25 pieces- which take him about five minutes to put together, and some are 100 pieces- which take him about a half an hour. There is one that he's been able to do for a long time but I never thought much of it because it has twelve or so different images on it and he put it together accordingly. Turns out that's the perfect skill for piecing puzzles! When he finally put together this puzzle back in September all by himself (I didn't hand him one single piece or tell him where to put it)we were so proud of him. He separates the pieces out by color and/or character and then completes them one at a time. If he finds a piece that might fit he puts it in one spot and turns it in all directions to try to get it to fit. If it doesn't work he tries another pieces. Working spot by spot and piece by piece he has become a master of puzzles. We are so proud of our little Smartie-Pants!

That tongue comes out during concentration time! Oh and he never even looks at that smaller picture of the puzzle- that's just for me and Jake when we put them together with him!

Both Papa and Uncle D have worked on puzzles with him lately and they are both impressed (Papa's face) with Polo's powers of deduction when it comes to placing puzzle pieces! ... And so are we!

"Halloween Time"

Well ever since the stores started putting out their Halloween decorations Polo has been asking me if it's "Halloween Time". (since the start of September!) He absolutely loves all the scary things out there- as long as they don't move and are miniature sized. So I've learned to endure all sorts of creepy shows like Tim Burton's Nightmare Before Christmas, Coraline, Corpse Bride and all other Halloween-themed kids shows. (Coraline really freaks me out!) We were set on the Hulk for a costume until The Nightmare Before Christmas became a favorite and its leading man Jack Skellington took precedence. We did plenty of awesome Halloween crafts and enjoyed every ghoul-filled moment. We stopped by some spook alleys (both of which I refused to go in) and I'm told that Polo got to the entrance and backed out- more like tensed up, buried his face in Daddy's chest and freaked out! That's my boy! We've made the most of it though- and Halloween isn't even til tomorrow! We've had homemade cider (thank you Crock Pot) and doughnuts, consumed lots and lots of hot chocolate (7-11 still has the best in town!), visited the corn maze, carved pumpkins and already been out trick-or-treating in the local grocery store parking lot! My little boy has been such a joy to watch this season as he revels in all the Halloween spookiness. He just eats up every minute and every creepy little thing. I love it him.

At the corn maze! He had a blast rolling in the corn kernels, riding on the train, hiding in the hay, climbing on the hay, sliding down all sorts of make-shift slides, falling off riding a teeter-totter, visiting the animals (llamas, goats, miniature donkeys and others), and drinking that giant hot chocolate- Thanks Uncle Brad! He loved it!

This is Jack Skellington. He the Pumpkin King, the idol of Halloween Town and the scariest guy there is. He's not mean though and becomes particularly interested in Christmas and all its wonders. Thinking he will give Santa Claus a break this year he tries to get all his scary friends to help him deliver Christmas to the kids- it doesn't turn out well! (Oh an by the way I sewed that tuxedo jacket complete with scary tails and craziness all over from a single pair of pants ($5 at DI) and with no pattern! Thank you Mom and Grandma for passing on your skills so I can be frugal!)

Our pumpkins had to match the theme and this is Sally, Jack, and the Oogie Boogie man from the movie. We are so very proud of them and happy to have them as companions in our home for a few more days! Polo really just likes to light the candles and then blow them out! Oh well- Jake and I love them and we also got some delicious roasted pumpkin seeds out of the whole deal!

Brave...ing the Movie Theater in 3d!

So This new show came out and we just had to go see it. Polo has learned how to use the IMDB app on the I-Pad to watch all the new trailers for upcoming shows. He has seen this particular one quite a few times- A cute girl with a bow and arrow in her hands, awesome music, horses, scary bears, and an old guy mooning his comrades- the trailer really hyped it up. We were so excited to go that when we checked the showtimes on the internet we didn't read that it was 3D! So we got there and decided to go any way- instead of walk 50 feet to get back home and come back later- lazy I know! Polo did really well and kept his glasses on for pretty much the whole movie! And I couldn't see without my regular glasses on so I bet I looked pretty silly wearing 3D glasses on top of my spectacles- good thing it's dark in there! The movie turned out to be better than we'd hoped with even more awesome music, lots of laughs, action, family values and none of that weird adult humor that's meant for adult movies- sorry Dreamworks! There were several bare-bottomed men in the show, due to their tying their kilts together to repel down off a roof they were trapped on and I just thank heaven Polo's not old enough that I have to explain why those guys weren't wearing skivees under their... well and kilts would have been another whole ordeal! We'll wait a year on that one! And when we got home Polo went to the bathroom, came out with his bare bum, turned away from me, bent over and said loudly, "Feast your eyes!" (He copied this from the movie- I swear I didn't teach him this) He is such a boy :) and such a delight. (and yeah- he wore his Avengers hat to the movie!)

Mom Day '12

It's my third year as a mother and my 25th as a daughter! This year was just as great as all the previous years- maybe even better! We headed up to my mom's house to celebrate with crepes, strawberries, peaches, whipped cream, yogurt filling, scrambled eggs, bacon, pudding pie and all other kinds of deliciousness! We had so much fun! I love my Mom! We then went to Afuvai house for dinner for Philly Cheese steak sandwiches and banana splits- that was delicious too! I love my mother-in-law too! My husband and son spoiled me with special gifts that were so close to our family and our hearts. I do love my boys and am so lucky to have both of them help me be the best mom and wife I can be. I'm so grateful for all the women in my life who show me what it means to be a mom. Especially my very own mom, but not excluding my mother-in-law, all my sisters and sisters-in-law, my aunts, my grandmas, my friends, and all those great examples I have witnessed of great motherhood. You have all been such a blessing to me, and so is this journey of motherhood! I especially have to thank my husband for helping me and supporting me in my role as a mother. I am so grateful for his love and patience and gentle heart for me and our family. He's the best!

Us in the Prehistoric, or Perhaps it's the Prehistoric in Us

These are some pictures from our very local and very awesome Ogden Dinosaur Park. We had lots of fun and will definitely be heading back many times over the summer. Look what kinds of silly came out of us!

It was so fun to head out on Jake's day off and spend a little time getting to know our wild sides! PW thought the dinosaurs were so awesome and shared everything with them: conversations, scary faces, funny faces, hugs and all his boyishness- It was great.

Lazy Old Me

Ok so I really do feel lazy and old and I haven't posted anything for such a long time. To all my wonderful family members and friends who check our blog- I'm Sorry! Here are some pics of Polo and what we've been up to lately.

Bubba comes out of his room one day wearing shorts on his head. Well- I guess they could be used for that since it was freezing and he couldn't wear them outside! So this is his scary monster face... he's such a nerd!

This is from winter when we were having to play baseball indoors- and apparently he thought he needed to be naked! It was the beginning of potty training and I think he was just trying things out(which I might add has turned out wonderfully by now thanks to Captain America skivies and a lot of baking soda and vinegar on my carpets!!). It can take him up to an hour to realize that he's not wearing pants- just not an essential I guess!

This bike is the best thing that ever happened to a parent. When I wash these wheels it's perfect for riding around our apartment but now that summer has come he's riding it around everywhere. He even tackles hills and stairs! He's a fearless little daredevil, mirroring whatever he sees. He saw some kids doing tricks in the park and immediately started to jump with his bike. It's great- I'm just preparing for the inevitable and awful fall. But here in this photo he's wearing his Superman cape Auntie Rene made him for Christmas. I guess since Superman can't fly in our house he has to ride a bike! And without pants of course.

This sword thing a whole issue in itself. We have A LOT of swords or things that get used as swords. What does this mean? It means that I get hit with a lot of stuff! Here he is trying to sheath his sword in his pants- it worked ok- til he wanted to sit down- ha! But PIRATES are the #1 thing on his mind at all times. All 4 movies of Pirates of the Caribbean are currently on repeat at our house. And the Adventures of Tintin is another well-quoted favorite. All pirates, skeletons and swords- all the time!

No-bake Date

Jake took the car to work the other day so Bubba and I got to hang out together all day with nowhere to go and nothing to do! So we made some fun out of it! We read lots of books and played bad guys. The best part was getting him to help me make some No-Bake cookies. I put Jake's apron on him and we got right to work. Of course he made a mess but it was so fun watching him pour and stir and smile the day away. And the result was that for once we actually had cookies in our house!
He's kind of a goofy little nerd :)

When I told him to come stand in front of the door and say cheese he insisted on sitting on that bag of sand (it sits in front of our door at night and protects us). Apparently he thought that spot would make a good picture- I guess he was right!