Toth Family Halloween 2009

It was a 2 day extravaganza of in and out of costume, up and down on sugar highs, and round and round the neighbourhood.

It started Thursday afternoon with a little decorating.

Friday afternoon was the Halloween Parade at school. They parade through the halls in their costumes, and afterward they have snacks and treats and play games or watch movies.
They went by in a blur.

So far, not too excited about costumes, on other people or himself.

The excitement grows on Friday evening at the school Family Dance. More treats, glow bracelets, music and a gang of boys running and running and running and running.

Starting to enjoy himself.

Daddy dressed up, too!

They had fog machines!

I'm sure breathing this stuff was not exactly good for them.

Saturday evening, costumes on, flashlights and bags in hand, all ready for The Main Event!

The Little One is starting to get the hang of this Halloween thing.

Trick or Treat!

This is the neighbourhood Halloween House.

They go all out. And there's a line-up at their door!

The house beside them. "Ditto"

Getting cold and tired. Time to head home!

It's all over but the candy eating. As you can tell, I LOVE Halloween!!! Can't wait until next year!

Pigs and Pumpkins

I wasn't going to post about this, cuz we totally stole the whole idea from T's blog. Then, something happened that made the whole experience more memorable, and unlikely to be attended by us again.

Here is the story...

The Little One 2.0

Last week, Toth Inc. released a new version of their latest, and some might say, most popular program. In some ways, this new download is not as user friendly as previous versions, but it runs faster, uses updated language and has more advanced features than earlier releases. With a little patience, this version will be even more satisfying than the last.

Here is a review of the key features of The Little One 2.0...

Play Mode
It's all about motion. Cars, trucks, trains, anything with wheels will do in this version, which isn't a big change. Added in are things like balls, musical devices and almost anything available in the Older Siblings 8.5 program. The increase in action play is sure to keep things fun!

Learning Mode
Language is being developed quickly, aided by the programmers at Toth Inc. Singing, reading and constant "talking" all make this portion of the program more interesting. The more you use it, the better it gets!
Warning: Some developments in the Learning Mode, such as door opening, stair climbing and light switching, seem relatively safe at the moment, but this reviewer feels these actions could lead to the program being compromised. Caution is advised.

Stand By Mode (previously Sleep Mode)
Much more complicated than earlier versions, with more user time needed to accomplish the same task. You can no longer simply enable Stand By Mode and walk away. In fact, users may need to contact Toth Inc. or search the web for crack codes to the Stand By function. But, it will be worth the time invested when results are achieved.

System Requirements
This update of The Little One requires stable hardware with the most current operating system. The more memory, the better, and it may take up most of your hard drive space, leaving room, of course, for the current version of Older Siblings. The supporting program, Applesauce, is still required, as well as Milk 1.0, and the Pizza plug-in.

The new version of The Little One 2.0 will, at first, seem more difficult to use and you may struggle with the independent nature of the program. We feel confident that this is temporary, and further updates will work out any bugs still remaining.

The Birthday Curse

It was The Little One's second birthday last weekend, as many of you know. Last year, he was perfectly healthy on his big day, but he, along with several other people who attended his party, got very sick afterward. He was so, so sick for days, with a fever and not able to keep anything down. This year, he was like that ON his big day.

I knew something wasn't quite right when I put him to bed the night before. He couldn't seem to get comfortable and took a long time to settle down. A few hours later, I was not so surprised to find him standing in his crib, crying and vomiting. 4 complete changes of sheets and pajamas later, and it was morning.

Paul and I drank a LOT of coffee and debated whether to cancel the party or go ahead with it. The Little One seemed in pretty good spirits in the morning, and we thought he might be feeling better. If we cancel it, when will we be able to reschedule? And the older kids were really looking forward to seeing their cousins. The final decision...warn everyone that The Little One was sick, and invite them to come on over anyway. And they did!!!

It turned out, he did not feel at all well, slept through some of the afternoon, and spent the rest of the time in my arms. Other than that, the party was a success. (He's not a crowd loving kid, so this may have been how it would have worked out even if he was feeling better.)

The night before, the boys and I made a roadway for the coffee table. Before the party the next day, The Little One got sick on it, so we had to make a new one.

The birthday cake, which the birthday boy did not eat.
We saved him some for 2 days later.

The cardboard box car we made for him.

He could not be less interested in opening presents.
Luckily, it is one of his brothers' favourite things to do!

Pink cheeks. Bruised head.
"Is this over yet???"

Happy Birthday, my little angel.
Hopefully, the curse will be broken next year.

PS: About 24 hours later he was as good as new!

5 Things in 5 Minutes--The "Reality Bites" Version

I haven't been blogging much lately. When I read other people's blogs, they are so positive, and have such delightful little anecdotes about their happy families. When I sit down to add some of that sunshine and light to the blogosphere, I come up blank. If there is a family who is not even close to perfect, that's us...

1. No Sleep-Got rid of the soother, went away for the weekend, and topped it off with a case of stomach yuck. I know, some babies would breeze right through, but ours has decided someone needs to be in his room with him all night. Yawn...

2. No Respect-I remember being 8 years old. I remember thinking I knew everything. I remember believing my parents knew nothing and were just plain mean for enforcing any kind of rules. I apologize profusely to my parents, especially my Mother. If it makes you feel any better, I am paying double for it now.

3. No Energy-Seriously, is this just the way I get to feel for the rest of my life!?! Ugh!!! Sure, it is related to #1, but I can't even put together a sentence, I can't remember my own birth date, I can't walk to the school and back without feeling wiped out. I sure don't have the energy to look at things in a positive light.

4. No Christmas-Yup! Canceled in our house due to #2. See ya next year, Santa.

5. No Coffee-The canister is empty, so it looks like I will be leaving the house today. Oh crap, there's No Gas in the van.

Okay, just so you don't think I am on the brink, which I may be, and for my own therapy, here are 5 more, with perspective.

1. All of my children are healthy and without serious injury at the moment.
2. Halloween is coming. I like Halloween.
3. There are still one or two people who will agree to babysit so I can take a break.
4. The sun will come out...tomorrow. It will. I checked the forecast.
5. This, too, shall pass.

Phew! It took so much longer to write those ones. Maybe it's the weather. Maybe it's some sort of hormonal imbalance. Maybe I just need a good kick in the...

I know I have it good. I know we are lucky. I just don't always feel that way.


NB: In case you think it is unusually cruel to cancel Christmas, they do have two and a half months to redeem themselves, and ultimately, I don't have the power to stop Christmas from coming. Not even the Grinch could do that. "Somehow or other, it came just the same."

Movie Monday

More Birthday posts to come.

5 In 5

1. We are having the laziest day. A day off. Pajama Day. Only 2 loads of dishes, 4 loads of laundry, 3 meals and 3 snacks to make, and less than 10 arguments about computers, toys and things a toddler can't touch.
2. Toddlers like to touch running dishwashers, laundry soap, computer power buttons and wine bottles, among many other things that are dangerous or breakable. Toddlers are not so interested in toys.
3. Older Boys do not like to pick up their toys, but do like to use their mother's computer frequently, even though they have one of their own.
4. If you've seen my Face Book status recently, you may be tired of my Lego obsession, but there's one more COOL thing on the site. Kids can design their own Lego creation and then order it in a customized Lego kit. Is that not awesome!?!
5. Must get off my computer now so the boys can continue designing countless Lego sets which I will then have to order and pay for. Whose idea was this, anyway? Oh ya, mine.

Design Your Own Lego Model