The Dancing Fool

This partially explains all the bonks on his head.

I have a longer video but for whatever annoying reason, it's not loading up on Flickr.

What now?

This is Taede's latest feat. He is so proud of himself. Unfortunately he only goes in one direction: up. And there he stands, for however long only he knows, calling me to get him down.




Looking a little worried that I haven't made a move to come get him.


The ledge is too narrow for him to turn around and go down feet first. What will probably happen is he'll bonk his head and then tumble off and land in a heap.

This is the bookcase that gave him the shiner. I wrapped up the corners but I'm sure he'll find something to potentially lose an eye on.

Halloween! Halloween! Trick or Treat!

I can't believe Halloween has come and gone. You know what that means... Pretty soon it will be Turkey Day and then Christmas... and another year will soon be over.

Yikes!

Before I freak myself out, let's talk Halloween first.

I lucked out this year in the costume department. Both my kids wanted to wear what they wore last year. It worked out great because (1) Malia hadn't started school yet so it would be a new school costume and (2) we weren't here last year for Halloween (wedding in Santa Cruz) so it would be a new school costume for Kael as well. This is the one time that I'm glad Malia is so small that she still fit her fairy costume (sized 18m-24m).

Taede was very cute in his skeleton PJ's. Luckily his black eye healed pretty well so he didn't look so ghetto with the long hair and busted up face.

As a Room Parent, I didn't see any of Kael's party. Luckily Truong was able to take the morning off to be there for Kael. Malia had a great time at her party. Her favorite part was the costume parade. Good grief she was so excited to be a part of that. It is unbelievable how different Kael and Malia are. Kael in preschool could not finish the parade. He was maybe 10 feet in before he lost it and refused to go any further. I had to walk him back to his seat. Little Miss Malia? She danced and pranced out there, way ahead of her class. She had no idea where she was going -- and she didn't care! She strutted her stuff and enjoyed her moment in the limelight. At one point I had to call her back because she missed a turn (it was like a track loop but instead of going left, she danced straight ahead). It was hilarious. She twirled and whirled and waved and skipped her way along, just having a ball.

Halloween night the cousins came over for pizza and Trick or Treating. The house was a zoo with 7 kids running crazy. Our 7 was joined by our neighbor's 2 for Trick or Treating, so it was a nice huge group come nightfall. I was left behind to pass out treats and I have to say I was a little sad. I remember running the neighborhood with my friends when we went Trick or Treating and I miss those carefree times.

Or maybe I just miss being able to go out at night.... hmmm....

Anyway I have some pictures posted. Enjoy!

Bakugan

Last year Kael got bit with the Bakugan bug. Some of the older kids were playing them and Kael got caught up in the wave. He still plays with them and apparently, so does Taede:



It cracks me up that Taede figured it out so quick. He watched Kael for a bit then grabbed a couple of the brawlers and did it himself. Why am I wasting my money with all that Fisher-Price stuff?

Spooktacular

Last week we went to Disneyland's Spooktacular with some friends. It was our first time so there were some hiccups as we didn't know what to expect.

FYI - The Spooktacular is an event held at California Adventure open to just Spooktacular ticket holders. The park is closed to the general public and everyone is encouraged to dress up and go trick or treating. Depending on when you go, you can come home with obscene amounts of candy.

We decided to go on a Friday.
Pro: there's no school day the next day.
Con: it started at 7:30pm. (Remember my kids' bedtimes are 7:00pm for Taede and 7:30pm for Kael and Malia.)

The kids had a nice time... for about 45 minutes then they started feeling the late night. We went on some rides too which required line waiting so that took time away from actual Trick or Treating. Next time: we're on a mission. No rides until we get all the loot.

I've been told that if we had gone earlier in the month and on a Thursday, the crowds would have been less and we would have gotten more candy. The nice part about Thursday is it starts at 6:30pm. So if I can convince Truong to go again next year, we're definitely going on a Thursday at the beginning of October.

All in all we had a good time. We'll definitely change some things around next year so it's more manageable with the kids.

Here are some pictures:


Malia in her Fairy costume.


Taede is wearing a glow-in-the-dark Skeleton PJ set. Why PJ's, you ask? So it's easy to wrap him later to sleep.


Joey, Riley, Lauren, Kael, Malia and Taede.


Daisy Duck dancing with Malia while Malia kept saying "Trick or Treat!" expecting Daisy to fork over some candy.


The scarecrow was a real guy, hanging out, making funny/rude comments at everyone. He was pretty funny.


Malia and Audrey. Fairies galore!


Here's the whole group with Megan (Batgirl) and Audrey (Pink Fairy)


Malia totally enjoying her lollipop with Cari and Audrey.


See? His PJ's worked out great!


"Oh! I like your purple wings, Muh-Me-ah!"
"Thank you Audrey! I like your pink wings too!"
These girls...


This is what happens when your Daddy's a doctor: he makes you eat apples at a Trick or Treating event. Check out that look of dismay on poor Audrey's face.


And sitting right next to Audrey, rubbing salt on her wounds, her "BFF" licking that lollipop with relish...


The look on Audrey's face. Priceless!


My friend Brooke!