Happy Halloween!

Trick or treat night is here! 

Do you think Gavin wants to be Swiper? Noooooo.

After he had to have a Swiper costume and we cleaned it from yesterdays parade, he decides that he wants to be a king. (we have a few dress up things in a trunk for playtime)

So here is the KING waiting to go collect his riches.

Patiently waiting....

He's gettin' antsy!

 OK, its TIME!

Let's GOOOOO, Daddy!

Mommy stayed home and passed out candy from the porch.

Swiper! Nooooo, swiping!

That is what we heard over and over again from kids on the floats at the annual Rossford Halloween Parade!

It's always fun to hear so many comments on his costume....even one I didn't make this year.

His bff/gf Pressly came as Dora. 

How cute are they?!

 We rode together to get some parking and a good spot near the elementary school.

Turns out....NOT early enough. Luckily, my parents are awesome and were in town hours earlier and tossed a blanket and a stroller out for us. They said it was only place open to leave a blanket at 11:30! The parade starts at 2:00! Next year, I suppose I will drive to town SUPER early and leave my stuff spread out.

We arrived about 1:00 and let the kids play on the playground for an hour.

Swiper, the orange fox, was a bit brown and dirty by parade time. But that was okay. The kids had fun, we had good seats, and no tantrums were thrown. Our buddies Sarah, Brad, Chase and Brynn joined us this year too! Every year, our group gets a little bit bigger. I LOVE it.

  

Maybe next year it will even be warm?? Or I'll just remember that the temperature always drops ten degrees and the wind start gushing a few more miles an hour. 

The kids didn't mind though. They got TONS of candy. Seriously, there is no need for trick or treat after attending the Rossford Halloween parade. Or in my case, no need to buy candy to pass out for trick or treat. :)

Firetrucks are always the favorite. (2nd to getting candy)

 Buddies!

The Hillbilly floats create chuckles.

The horses were beautiful.

The motorcyclists have the best costumes.

Speaking of motorcycles...even Grandpa made it!
Although he wanted to bring his camera and take some of his excellent pictures....he knew better than to push himself.

(that is until he went home and tried to mow the lawn. Grandpa can't handle limitations)

 We waved to some mascots!

 This fantastic parade was almost an hour long!

MORE horses!

I told Tim to get in this event next year...

We all know these guys. They tossed out their famous cookies!

Another great parade and an afternoon of fun!

Stuffed full of candy and no nap was even MORE fun when we got home.

So we made up some burgers....

and we relaxed on the couch before an early bedtime.

Three year and family pics

I'm not above bribery

It only took the promise of some smarties.

Twice a year, Magical Memories comes to the daycare and takes pictures. No obligation to buy.

The first time, the pictures were beyond adorable! Nothing since. Not because they aren't great photographers, but because my little man has refused to sit, smile or cooperate in any way.

We hadn't had a chance to get 3 year pictures, so I bribed him. We had a nice little chat in the morning on the way to school about smiling for the camera. He was told that if Miss Amber (his teacher) said he did good job getting pictures taken, then we would come home and have smarties AND pick out a car from the (potty-training) box.

 What are your thoughts on bribery?

This was my result :)

 As long as you bought ONE picture, they threw in a class photo.

Gavin likes to look at it and name every one in his class.

Gavin is not overdressed. It was 2nd week of October. It was cold outside.

This week they sent home this picture after the big Holiday Harvest!

I sure like cuteness.

I blinked

Know what happens when you blink with a toddler?

They cause disaster and are worn out before you reopen that blink....

 They even get MAD when you want them to help clean the disaster up.

And if you can't beat 'em....join 'em!

Then demand clean up time :)

It was a Monster Mash

Grandpa thought Monsters, Inc was a great flick for Gavin to start watching the other day. Then we drove home after dark. The monsters come out at dark. It was a fun night. Monsters, Inc is a great, NOT scary movie...so I thought. But we are entering a monster phase. Appropriate with the holiday, but nevertheless, tough at bedtime. We also read one of my favorite childhood books, There's a nightmare in my closet. I thought seeing the monster cry and then sleep with the little boy would help....it did. Kinda.

So the next day we made our very own monsters!

FUN, COLORFUL, HAPPY Monsters!

This is just a sampling. We ended up making thirteen  lucky monsters.

My wiggle eye jar has been dangerously depleted.

I still don't trust him with the glue bottle. So he told me where he needed it, and I squeezed some on. Other than that, these monsters were all created by Gavin.

 Looks like I spend A LOT of time cutting foam out doesn't it?? Trust me, I didn't. Nothing is even. Circles are all different sizes. Squares, triangles, squiggles, etc. You can't go wrong with monsters. I sat on the couch and watched an episode of Desperate Housewives ON DEMAND that I missed the other night due to falling asleep early. An hour of cutting = HOURS of fun :)

Along with a second glow man at bedtime, these monsters have done the trick!
(picture of closet door protected by monsters, coming soon)

**I don't remember the reason for buying the jumbo pack of foam pieces, but I knew I did it for a reason. It was cheaper to buy in bulk than it was for a few pieces. Same for the wiggly eyes.**

Who is the crazy one now.