Happy Halloween 2012

My little pumpkins...

Getting ready for trick-or-treating

 Happy Halloween 2012! 

This year the boys picked out a ghost (Brandon) and a ninja turtle (Mason) costume to wear for halloween but little Mason seemed to have a serious change of heart just as Kevin tried to get him dressed.  He was wearing it for just thirty seconds, when he demanded, with tears streaming down his face, "don't want it, take it off".  So, we broke out the hand-me-down skeleton pj's Brandon wore last year and all was better (but not before I snapped one picture). 

 We started our night at Tomb Town, which the boys had been looking forward to since the start of the month.  Our neighbors literally start setting up for halloween on October 1st!  Every morning and evening we have to drive past the house, to see progress they made, on our way to and from daycare.  Brandon and Kevin went through the "scary" part this year and Mason admired the decorations, not getting too close to the giant tarantula!

Then it was off to the Foothills Mall for a little trick-or-treating.  It was super busy but both boys had fun.  Mason was pretty much focused on the first peice of candy he received, a little box of nerds, he did't seem to care about much else and Brandon just went with the flow. 

Our last stop was to the front door of Grandma-nama and Grandpa Bill, where they received more treats before heading back home.

Pumpkin carving with Daddy

Mason was too happy coloring his pumpkin with a marker!

"touch that, no way!"

Tonight we finally carved our Buckelew Farm pumpkins!!!  Brandon was excited to see what was inside  until he reached in and touched the wet, stringy mess and let out the girliest scream.  Mason was a little bit more brave about sticking his hand in but seemed all the more interested in "decorating" his pumpkin with the green marker.  

Pumpkin pickin' @ Buckelew Farms

Unfortunately, this was the best we could get!

Kevin and I started our pumpkin picking tradition at Apple Anne's in Wilcox with his brother and sister-in-law in 2003 when we started dating!  Every year since, we have visited the various farms in southern Arizona to see which one we liked best.  My goal is to make pumpkin picking our annual tradition with the boys.  Kevin has fond memories of picking out a living Christmas tree when he was growing up and for our boys, I hope they have fond memories of our annual pumpkin adventures. 


This weekend we visited Buckelew Farms to find the perfect pumpkin, thanks to some free passes to the farm from my co-worker!  It was like most of the farms with wagon rides to the patch, county-fair type food, jumping castles, and a petting zoo, which alway seems so over-priced.  We had a good time but didn't realize we needed to bring our own cutters to retrieve our perfect pumpkin from the patch and by the time we had picked and bought our pumpkins the place was teaming with people.  The boys really liked to ride the covered wagon (pulled by a tractor) to the patch. Brandon picked out a white pumpkin and they each got a small pumpkin that we will decorate with paint and stickers!


Having been to all the other "patches" in the Tucson area, my favorite is still in Wilcox (Apple Anne's) but since we haven't been there in a few years, it may be just as overly busy and over-priced as the rest.  They used to not charge for parking, you could pick other fruit/vegetables, and had other farm goods to purchase.  Hopefully the next time we visit, it will be like it used to... 

Mason's stats @ 2 years

Mason had a rough time at his two year check up, likely related to "memories" of previous doctor appointments (shots) and he was only able to take half his nap!  He was so out of sorts I almost felt like we should have just rescheduled. 
He, just like Brandon at his age, was more than unhappy about getting his height and weight checked, so much so that we almost didn't get his height taken.  Our poor nurse probably couldn't wait to get us out of there, but she was very understanding.
Mason is right on track, weighing in at 34 lbs and measuring 38", staying right in the 97% ile!!!!  He is still wearing a few 2T items but 3T is really starting to fit him well, especially Brandon's hand-me-down pj's. 
We are still working on learning colors and shapes but he can identify tons of objects, uses pronouns properly, and has a vocabulary almost as large as Brandon.  His has reached the stage of minimal interest in food although has a sweet tooth his brother never really had, and LOVES his Mommy (we are in a vicious "only mommy will do" phase).
His little pinky toe is still not "quite right", meaning it still kinda curls over the toe next to it (and has since birth) so we are being referred to a pediatric ortho doc to see what we may need to do about it.  Hopefully he won't be too concerned but we'll see.  Otherwise we have a healthy, happy little guy!

Guess Who?

Yes, we sometimes dress them alike...I just can't help it!

Yet another package was waiting for us at the front door today!  This time it was filled with Halloween goodies!  I was surprised when both boys opted to play with the toy glasses before digging into the candy, even Mason kept his on for several minutes before deciding they belonged in the bucket of his new tractor!
Thank you grandma Diane for thinking of the boys. 

Tractor!!!

Helping Daddy put his tractor together

He loaded the bucket and hopped on for a ride

Pedaling his new tractor!!!

Mason's birthday gift, a tractor with trailer, finally arrived last night.  Brandon was so excited to see what was in the box and both boys were eager to help Kevin put it together.  It took a bit of time to put together thanks to little hands pilfering through all the parts and wondering around the house with them but that's half the fun right?  Don't toy manufacturers know you are suppose to include extra bolts, nuts, and screws???
Mason took right to the tractor, jumping on with pacy hanging out of the side of his mouth like a stogy and taking it for a ride around the house.  He does pretty well pedaling but has to stop to change directions, not too bad for a two year old. 

Pickin' cotton, tractors, and 6 yrs!

Helping to run the module or "compactor" as Brandon calls it!

Mason was is heaven!!!

before

after

We headed out to the cotton fields (Bratton farms) in Marana to watch the harvest in progress.  The boys loved to see the big machines in action!  At first they were a little fearful of the equipment however both boys love Andrea and so they quickly got over it, they love to be anywhere with her!!!!

We also celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary today!  Here's to many more.

Mason's 2nd Birthday Party

the cousins

Ms Brandie & Mason



Such a big boy

 I can't believe my little baby is now two years old!  Where did the time go???  Lucky for me he is going through a "mommy" phase and insists I hold him, carry him around sometimes (which I love despite his hefty weight, ~35 lbs), and cuddle with him at night before bed.  As I have been told, I am trying to savor every moment of him at this age, as he is just so delicious (and nutritious) and growing up so fast. 

It was a great day to be at the park (Canada del Oro Riverfront Park) celebrating Mason's day with our friends and family.  Mason absolutely loved his contruction cupcake cake (thanks to Fry's) although he surprised us by not eating very much of it.  He has such different food preferences than Brandon did.  He has a major sweet tooth, loves all snack foods (the saltier the better), and seems to be turning his nose to fruits/vegetables sometimes (picture a sad Nutritionist Mommy face right now). 

Thanks to everyone for all the great gifts he received.  The theme of this birthday was definitely tractors and construction stuff!  He loves all that he received and has been sharing nicely with his brother (most of the time).  A special thanks to Ruth for handing-down an old scooter, which both boys are so excited to ride!!!

Masonisms to remember:
Putting his wubby on his head and saying "Look at me!"
"Hey mommy!"-he'll prefers to call our for me at night and when he can't find me
"Lay right here" as he pats the bed next to him-his direction for me to cuddle him
"No, you find it!"-when he's too lazy to look for what he wants
"I got it"
I'm sure there are many more but I'm drawing a blank right now.  I'll add them as I think of them!

He usually skips or runs where ever he is going.  He loves his brother and usually doesn't want to be without him.  He has all but two molars, though not all of his teeth are completely in.  He can undress from the waist down and is still interested in potty-training.  He is being weaned off the pacy, still loves both of his wubbies, and is super smart.  His vocabulary is huge, though was are still working on colors and shapes.  He loves to be read to and loves to identify things in the books.  He loves everything with wheels, but especially tractor-type items (as if his party didn't give it away) and he is quite mischievous. 

Let the celebrating start

Happy 2nd birthday Mason!

Caught in the act!

The month of October is now our second busiest time of the year, with all the birthdays (Diane, Mason, Joe, Kim, Aunt Teddy, Stacey, and Stefanie, and Ethan), anniversaries (us, Nama/Grandpa Bill), and Halloween!  This is the kind of month that I regularly check the calendar to make sure nothing is missed. 

This evening we started our celebrations with Grandma Diane's birthday party with a fabulous mexican food dinner, lots of sweets, family, and friends.  "Aunt" Sharon was the mastermind behind this get together, which turned out a great success!  It was great to see Peggy (and most of her kids) and Sharon & Bruce, who we only get to see every few years. 

Today was officially Mason's 2nd birthday.  Happy Birthday sweet boy!!!!

Packages from afar

Today we had a surprise package arrive in the mail from Aunt Gail and Brandon was so excited to open it he could barely stand it.  Thanks to Aunt Gail for sending the writting paper and  books, the alphabet lizard puzzle and the especially green and blue tubes.  Brandon hasn't put them down since we pulled them out of the box!  He loves trying to figure out how to make different shapes and has quite the imagination.

Slides, swings, and grasshoppers



My boys



Now that the weather is cooling off a little, the boys and I have decided that our mornings off together should be spent at the park, expending a little energy!  Brandon thought it was fun to run laps around the equipment while telling me he was "exercising like Momma".  By far their favorite was taking turns going down the slide, they must have slid down about 20 times each before finding a helpless grasshopper to torment.  Can't wait for next time.