A Little Preview....

Seriously, I am no better than a child. I couldn't wait until tomorrow to share Halloween pictures....I have to share now.

The secret (not that it ever really was a secret) is out....this year Isaac is a fire fighter (or fider-fidghter as he calls it) and Evelyn is a Dalmatian. The stroller is the fire engine. Personally, I think Tobe should be a fire hydrant, but he isn't too keen on the idea.


(I am still making final adjustments to E.'s costume...I just put it on her this morning to take pictures. By the way, I have already take 89 pictures just this morning. I might need to rent a separate storage unit to house all of our pictures by the time the kids are teenagers.)

Hallow's Eve

In case you didn't know, tomorrow is Halloween.

However, if you have darkened the door of any retail establishment in the past two months there is no way that you missed the fact Halloween is rapidly approaching. Apparently Halloween is the new Christmas.

Today I baked, colored, hot glued, dusted off my Old Navy black cat shirt, and hauled down plastic pumpkins in preparation for tomorrow's activities. The Halloween spirit (the friendly one....like Casper) was present in casa de phillips. We ate pumpkin shaped toast, attended the Halloween themed story time at our local library, and had lots of mini pep talks about how fun it is to wear a costume (I think we have Isaac convinced that wearing a costume is almost equal to a trip to Disneyland. He is excited about his Halloween party at school tomorrow where he is quite convinced that his teacher is baking a cake....I hope he isn't disappointed with the cheese cubes and pretzel sticks that I know will be served). We are all set for the 31st to come upon us.

That is until the disastrous results of Dancing with the Stars tonight.

Sabrina's early...and unjust...departure has zapped my Halloween spirit. Are we really supposed to believe that Dr. Quinn is a better dancer or that Kelly Taylor has a bigger fan base? Really? Because I am on the uncool side of 30, I don't even know what a Cheetah girl is, however I was rooting for ol Sabrina. Now I guess my votes will be between Heilo and Scary Spice.

On that depressing note....Happy Halloween. By the way, we did develop a costume theme that involves both children and our super-rad double stroller. (By "we", I mean my sweet friend Summer....whose blog is now private, otherwise I would have linked her name.)

If you have any interest in autism, take a look at this. This is a major step for the American Academy of Pediatrics!

Take that, Blogger!

There is rumor I might have met my quota of pictures on Blogger and will now be forced to pay for more picture space. Does Blogger not realize that I have two small children and it is the holiday season? Pictures are a must at this point. I suppose I will eventually hand over the cash to Mr. Blogger so I can continue to post pictures. For now I will spend hours attempting to load pictures the old-fashioned free way until I am completely shut-off from such capabilities.

This past weekend was Fall Extravaganza here at casa de phillips. We managed to fit in a viewing of "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" (which Isaac loved....it is the third time he has watched it in his young life and the first time he liked it), a trip to the pumpkin patch, a picnic, playing at the park, a hike down a nature trail to try to find fall foliage (no such luck), and consumption of chocolate chip pancakes, caramel apples, frito pie, and popcorn (and a major work-out session during nap time yesterday to work off such fall goodies)

Our delima with Evelyn....pumpkin hat or Halloween bow? Who knew raising girls had such issues?Isaac is still apparently "allergic" to pumpkin patches and picture taking opportunities. He was having no part of sitting in front of decorative pumpkins and smiling for the camera. Yet he will likely wonder one day why we have hundreds of posed pictures of his sister and only three of him.
Look what a difference a year makes...here is Isaac on the same bench last OctoberThe park where we went for our picnic is one of our favorites because of it's large size and family-friendly atmosphere. It also has two large football fields for people to play on as well as a jogging trail and playground equipment. Isaac is really into watching other kids play sports (mainly football) right now and was mesmerized by some kids who were tossing around the pigskin while we ate our lunch. All of the sudden Isaac jumped up and proclaimed, "I play football with boys. Be right back." and ran off in their direction.

These are from the other day when Blogger was not allowing picture of any kind...little did they know I really wanted to post a picture of my little Fire Chief for the Day (made at school) and proof of how one can sit safely in a Bumbo

Goal!

I have a basketball goal in my living room. Jealous?



I know it sounds glamorous and perhaps something one might see on MTV's Cribs, but don't be fooled. Having a basketball goal in one's close quarters is far from the fabulous life. Did I mention that our basketball goal is blue and red and made by Little Tikes?

I hold my mother and husband responsible for the existence of the basketball goal in my living room. These two thought that every little boy needs a basketball goal so one was purchased for Isaac's second birthday. It resides inside for 24/7 access and spontaneous pick-up games. Besides it would be quite conventional for such sporting equipment to be outside and we are all about the unconventional here at casa de phillips.



Because a basketball goal lives in my living room, I have decided to undertake OPERATION: BIG BOY BED. Currently there are two beds in Isaac's room: a crib and a trundle bed (AKA his Big Boy Bed). If Isaac could learn to sleep in the big boy bed, we could take the crib down and put it in the attic, thus freeing up space for the basketball goal (and various other toys) to live in Isaac's room. I am all about freeing up space (for example, our coffee table now lives in our garage because I could not take the clutter in the living room one more day) here at our house.



I decided that Monday was the day to begin Operation: BBB. However, Isaac designated Monday as "Push All Limits Day". Apparently this was a two-day event for him, so Tuesday was out as well. On Wednesday we talked on the way to school about how he was going to nap in his big boy bed later that afternoon. I installed the rail to prevent unfortunate falls onto his head and moved his many loved animals that must be present during all sleep times.



After lunch I lovingly tucked him into his bed and instructed him in quite the serious Mommy tone that he had to stay in bed until I came and got him after nap time. I closed the door and heard silence.



Twenty minutes later I still heard silence and proceeded to pat myself on the back for a job well done.



Thirty minutes later I heard a small voice chatting up a storm from behind Isaac's closed bedroom door. I opened the door to remind him to close his eyes and go to sleep and discovered that I had not been specific enough in my instructions about what things were not to take place while sleeping in the big boy bed. Although I had told Isaac to stay in bed, not kick the walls, and not remove his diaper, I had somehow forgotten to remind him to not completely disassemble the picture frames on the dresser next to his bed.



Into the crib he went for the remainder of naptime.



Yesterday we attempted the big boy bed again. I only had to go in one time and remind him that standing on one's head in the big boy bed is not the best way to ensure a quality nap. Isaac fell asleep about 20 minutes after I placed him in bed.

Good-bye, Basketball goal!

Now if I could only get the exacauser out of my kitchen....

(I have pictures but Blogger won't let me post them for some reason)

The Save the Phillips Seal of Approval

Don't you just love seeing the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval on an item you are about to purchase? It gives me a boost of confidence as I head to the check-out lane, approved product in hand, that scientists (I assume only scientists have the power to hand out the seal and not just a regular Joe Shmo) have determined my retail selection to be worthy of purchasing.

However, this blessed seal does not extend into all areas of products so today I am going to share a few items that I would give the "Save the Phillips Family Seal of Approval" (Because if I didn't, all this post would mainly be me bemoaning the fact that Isaac has obviously studied up on the "Art of the Terrible Twos" lately. I was praying for patience and wisdom by 7:20am today.)

1. Herbal Essence Dangerously Straight Shampoo and ConditionerCarrying and birthing two babies caused my hair to go crazy. Although it can still be classified as straight, it is now frizzy and hangs in an odd fashion. I go through a bottle of conditioner a week. Due to such conditioner consumption, I have to bargain shop for my hair products. Dangerously Straight Conditioner is kind to my wallet and leaves my hair smooth (Describing a hair product as being "dangerous" seems a bit extreme to me, but it gets the job done). Now if I can just find a product that keeps my hair from falling out in clumps, I would be good to go in the hair department.

2. Target Brand Wipes

Through much trial and error, I have come to rely on the Target brand of Baby wipes for all diapering duties. They do not dry out in the wipes warmer (we live the posh life here at casa de phillips) and they pop up one after another (whereas other generic brands do not). Again they are kind to my wallet...especially good since we use Pampers diapers (to whom I have doled out more money these past 2+ years than I care to think about)

3. Jon and Kate plus 8

I love this show on Discovery Health (I believe TLC is now showing it as well). It is a reality show that depicts the life of a young couple with twins and sextuplets. Tobe cannot watch such programming because it stresses him out, but I am simply fascinated by it. Who doesn't wonder how a family functions with six three-year-olds? Check it out (and maybe pop an anxiety pill or two if you tend to stress easily).

4. Dunkin' Donuts Coffee

I heart coffee big time and used to frequent a local specialty coffee shop frequently in search of rare blends. However, such coffee is not kind to my wallet (which is important when one's 24/7 job renders no income). Target has recently begun carrying Dunkin' Donuts coffee and it is heavenly. Swing by casa de phillips sometime and I will brew you a cup (unless you are a scary stranger and then I will promptly dial 911).

5. Fairytale Pumpkins

What girl does not love a pumpkin whose adjective is "fairytale"? I have these on our kitchen table and they make me smile every time I sit down to eat a meal. I might have to tape on a red bow and some Christmas lights to these beauties because I do not know if I can depart with them come December 1st.

6.Spontaneous Brother/Sister Playtime

This one is occurring more and more these days and it warms this Mommy's heart. Evelyn truly becomes ecstatic whenever Isaac is within three feet of her. Isaac is often spotted grabbing the baby a toy without anyone asking him. I know there are days lurking in our future when playtime will result in fight time, but for now we stand back and watch these two laugh at each other (and rapidly take pictures to serve as a reminder one day when such brother/sister exchanges are not quite so sweet).

What things are you loving lately?

As Promised...

Because I know many of you readers have been unable to sleep due to the anticipation over seeing the pumpkin patch pictures I promised on Friday.....here are just a few from our experience.

I feel the need to make a few disclaimers about the above pictures:

1. Yes, Evelyn was in attendance. We had very few chances to remove her from the stroller and take her picture due to the fact that I was chasing a two year old amongst hay bales and day care groups.

2. Yes, both children were at the pumpkin patch at the same time. However, the idea of all three of us posing for a picture together about sent Isaac into meltdown mode so I decided not to push the issue...thus the separate pictures of me with the kids.

3. Isaac's favorite part of the pumpkin patch: the fake jail. Not sure what that has to do with Halloween, but it brought joy to his little heart.

4. Apparently looking at the camera is over-rated when you are two years old.

Although this weekend involved pumpkin patches, local festivals, time spent with friends and family, craft fairs, drama over possibly losing a digital camera and backpack (both were found and actually never really lost),and a date night with my husband, I have to say the highlight of the past three days was tonight when Isaac came racing into the kitchen (in true dramatic two year old form), wrapped his arms around my legs, and said, "I Luvs You, Mommy!" It was the first time he has said he loved me without prompting....I had to refrain from jumping in the car and buying out Toys R Us. I guess he's a keeper.

(By the way, the date night with husband holds a very close second.)

The Pumpkin Patch

The site of a mother carrying her child...who was wearing a swimsuit, goggles, and flippers...should have been my first clue to pack the children back into the car and turn around.

The massive amounts of school buses and daycare vans should have been my second clue.

Because fall was in the air this morning with crisp temperatures and bright sunshine and because my mom happens to be visiting casa de phillips, I decided today was THE day to visit the pumpkin patch.

Since we live in the 'burbs of a major metropolitan area, pumpkin patches are almost a dime a dozen around here. Many people throw around a few gourds, stack some hay bales, pull out a scarecrow, and declare themselves a pumpkin patch. We set out this morning for one patch whose popularity has soared in the past few years and is a mere 20 minute drive away. It happens to be right down the road from where Tobe and I first called home in our newlywed bliss six years ago (This particular pumpkin patch was just a regular pumpkin patch at that time...no bounce houses, no traffic jams, no neighbors competing with their own pumpkin patch next door.) Camera batteries were charged, car was loaded down with necessities (Baby Bjorn, fresh apple juice in the sippy cup, chic Mommy sunglasses), and off we headed to the magical land of pumpkins.

Apparently 200 other mommies did the same thing this morning and descended on the same magical land at the same time as the phillips' sedan.

Isaac loved the pumpkin patch. He loved the cut-outs (which I have never quite understood), the hay bale maze, and the large pretzel he got to each at an actual picnic table by an actual pot-belly pig. However he did not love Mommy attempting to take his picture, holding someone's hand as to prevent becoming lost in the sea of children, and being told that he could not hug every small child he encountered. Oh yeah, he also did not love having to share the large wooden firetruck which resulted in me having to break up a slight disagreement between him and another boy (whose mother acted like she never saw her child push my child first). There were quite a few tears at the ol patch today and very few smiles....one of those being when we had to prevent bees from attacking us while eating the pretzel. Apparently having your Nanny and your Mommy madly waving their arms at aggressive bees is hysterical.

Evelyn loved riding in the stroller. She did not love it when Mommy attempted to put her in a large vat of pumpkins to take a picture.

My lesson learned today is that my desire to have cute, adorable pictures of my children doing interesting things does not jive so well with my children's desire to have a good time. I need to chill out on the whole picture thing sometimes and just let Isaac be Isaac, rather than hoping Isaac will be a mini-model who happily sits at 15 different fall displays while I play photographer. Oh...and don't put my 5 month old in a vat of pumpkins.

Joy was restored as we packed back into the sedan and set off for casa de phillips after an hour and 1/2 of "fun" at the pumpkin patch. I made a mental note to self to not visit this particular pumpkin patch next year and be content with a smaller, scaled down version.

Despite the less than ideal time this morning, I did smile smugly at my reflection in the rear view mirror as we pulled out of the parking lot and say to myself, "At least I wasn't carrying a child in flippers."


(I did manage to take about 100 pictures today. I am guessing 5 of those turned out to be decent. Check back later for pictures.)

(FYI...Isaac calls my mom "Nanny", thus the reference to Nanny in the above post. I didn't want someone to think we had entered the high life here at casa de phillips and had hired us an actual nanny.)

Who Doesn't Love a Hair Bow?

Before Evelyn joined our family, the husband and I used to joke about how we would have to teach Isaac some basic photography skills if/when baby number 2 ever came along because there was no way we would be able to take as many pictures as we did with Isaac.

Enter Evelyn...and big blue eyes...and triple chins...and hair bows.

I think I took 30 pictures just this afternoon because who can resist a baby in a hair bow (Besides she is on a sleep-strike and for some reason the camera entertains her when nothing else will), especially when such baby has drool hanging from her chin and seems to have experienced an unfortunate accident with some faux pumpkins?

Welcome, Croup

Apparently Isaac has the croup. I know this because:

A. I thought a seal was attacking Michelle Obama around 2am Monday morning....only to discover that reading a lengthy interview about someone before going to bed is not a good idea if you are prone to vivid dreams. The attack seal was merely Isaac coughing in the other room (a "seal-like" barking cough is the main indication of Croup) and I am sure Mrs. Obama was asleep peacefully somewhere on the campaign trail.

B. The pediatrician confirmed such a diagnosis yesterday.

So the croup has entered casa de phillips and we have now been to the doctor more times in the past four weeks than I have in the past six months. Oh, allergy season, please end quickly.

Because he has the croup, Isaac is on some pretty strong steroids to get rid of his infection and prevent a secondary infection from forming. Being the novice Mommy that I am, I did not realize that steroids equal grouchy, slightly hyper toddler until today. By 10:12 am this morning, when nothing was going right in Isaac's world, I was counting the minutes until nap time (I was also having to endure a painfully long conversation with the lawn treatment man about how children who crawl for a long time end up being better readers....an old wives tale my own mother later confirmed. But that is another post.).

Although I am a novice Mommy, I have quickly learned that children can ease all frustration and impatience with a sloppy kiss or sweet smile. Today such things were erased by the following conversation...

Isaac: "Mommy, I ready to eat lunch."

Me: "Great!" (Being the seasoned adult that I am, I refrained from making some sarcastic comment about how handy this was that he was ready to eat lunch considering we eat lunch at the same time every day and I had just called him to the table...I have learned sarcasm is lost on two year olds.)

Me: (After painfully watching Isaac attempt to climb into his highchair unassisted) "Is your tummy hungry?"

Isaac: (looking at me as if I were the dumbest Mommy ever) "Nooooooo. My tongue is hungry."

Duh.

(Update: After writing this post and before actually posting it...naptime came to an end. Upon opening Isaac's door I was greeted by a partially-clad little boy holding a soiled diaper. Seems like he felt the urge to remove part of his clothing upon waking. Fortunately contents remained in the diaper, however his crib sheet was used as makeshift toliet paper. The glamourous life of a mom never ends around here.)

Five Months

When Evelyn was first born, she was whisked away to the warmer while the doctors tended to me. I remember straining to see exactly what she looked like and to get a glimpse of the brown hair everyone was making a fuss over. Later that evening I held my baby girl and wondered how similar or how different she would be from me.

Thursday she turned five months old. Time seems to be flying with this baby. I attempted to stuff her into a size 3 month dress the other day without thinking....I quickly removed it when I realized that she was turning an unfortunate shade of blue due to lack of circulation in her extremities. Sometimes at night I stare at her laying in my arms...just like she did on her birth day...and dream of who she will be.

Will she twirl around our living room in a pink princess dress or push cars around on the floor (or better yet do both simultaneously)?

Will she be a little chatterbox like her brother or the silent, contemplative type? (Some days I hope for number two, but I am pretty certain we have another talker on our hands.)

Will she blossom in the social spotlight or prefer to stand in the shadows just a bit?

Will she have a flair for the dramatic like her mommy or be practical like her daddy?

Will she write some silly boy's name all over her school notebooks and come home crying with a broken heart one day?

Will she one day announce her plans to attend college hundreds of miles away or stick close to home?

Will she be a beautiful bride in a long, flowing gown as her father walks her down the aisle or decide to tackle life alone for awhile?

Will she have a career, lots of babies, or both?

Will she look back on her life with a feeling of accomplishment and a sense of family or wish she had done things slightly different?

I am not quite sure what or who this little girl will become, although I am pretty sure whatever it is, it will be great.

While Miss E. is busy being five months old, this little boy is attempting to fill his daddy's shoes....they're pretty big shoes to fill, but I think he is up to the challenge.

A First

Someone grab the baby book...it's time to record a new "first."

This first is actually mine so perhaps I should dig up my baby book rather than recording such an event in Isaac's book.

Yesterday, I became "that mom"....the one who takes a comment from the preschool teacher and runs with it. Back story: The co-teacher sweetly straps Isaac into his car seat after school. During this process I take the opportunity to ask a fairly innocent question. The reply to such question was not exactly what I thought it would. .

This is the point where Lynley entered into the Land of Mommy Over-Reactions.

Emotions went crazy. A phone call was made to my mother (Rule: Always call your mom en-route to the Land of Mommy Over-Reactions). A second phone call was made to the lead teacher....and then I realized that
A. I was a dork and
B. I was being overly-sensitive about my child for no reason at all.

Ugh.

The worst part is that after I realized I was just being a dork, I called and relayed the whole incident to Tobe at work....and became upset all over again. He was kind, but did ask, "What is your degree in again?"

Um, child psychology. I guess I am a bigger dork than I originally thought.

Please tell me, have you ever entered into the Land of Mommy Over-Reactions where you lost all grasp on reality and was suddenly super-sensitive about your child for no reason?

(And if you haven't, please just lie. My emotions are still a little raw from my dorkiness yesterday. I don't know if I can handle knowing that the population of The Land of Mommy Over-Reactions is 1.)

It's the Great Tortilla, Charlie Brown!

Being the involved mommy that I am, I loaded the children into the car (along with Ike the dog and the "fider-fider" hat....yes, we have hit that stage where we must travel with all earthly possessions or the world might stop turning) and set off to buy pumpkins.

Before you "oh and ah" over such parenting, please note that we did not travel to one of the many local pumpkin patches to make such a purchase. It is just too hot and today was a school holiday...both of which make for an unpleasant trip to any location that attracts hordes of children and parents yielding cameras. Rather we set off to our local grocery store in search of orange goodies to make our home appear fall-like and inviting.

By local grocery store, I mean the Mecca of all grocery stores.

We do not shop often at such stores, mainly because they tend to be pricey and because you cannot buy massive amounts of diapers and formula (unless you want such things to be organic and imported from Sweden), which seem to make up the bulk of our grocery bill these days. Anyway, this morning we set off to buy pumpkins of all shapes, sizes, and colors.

Isaac choose his pumpkin from the display outside the store and one for baby Evelyn as well. We then entered the store which brought great joy to our blue-eyed toddler. He loves fine grocery stores as much as his Mommy...mainly because 1.You can buy fruit from the kid's fruit stand and munch it while your Mom pushes you in the cart (his personal favorite is the green apple) and 2.the fresh, hot tortillas available in the bread section. After navigating the skinny aisles and trying to avoid the call of the bulk candy section while wearing one baby and attempting to prevent the other one from feeding Ike the green apple, we headed to the check-out counter to make our purchases and head to the house.

It was as we were leaving that Isaac suddenly remembered the fresh, hot tortillas in our bag and decided that he must sample one. Now.

Did I mention that for some odd reason Isaac calls tortillas "te-tes"?

Did I mention that this gourmet grocery store is in a fancy-pants section of town?

Did I also mention that he had to have a tortilla NOW or his two-year old world might come crashing down around him?

Yes, that was me today wearing a drooling baby girl, pushing a grocery cart, with a little boy clutching a worn white dog loudly yelling, "I-ick want te-te! I-ick want te-te!" as we made our way to the car.

***

In case you were wondering, the most random thing Isaac said to me today (other than "I-ick want te-te") was "I hurt my knee on the lemon." Since he can't reach the lemons in our kitchen, I have to assume he meant some of his plastic fruit. Apparently it can be vicious. Good thing a kiss from Mommy made it all better (although he would have preferred a Little Einstein band-aid but unfortunately the lemon incident drew no blood).

Giggle Box

Okay, so I thought I would give this whole new "blogger video" thing a try. Here is Ms. E. doing the giggle thing, which is absolutely priceless. Please excuse the dorky voice as Mommy attempts to encourage such laughter and please really excuse my pair of jeans lying in the background. Isaac had been carting them around that day saying, "Mommy wear jeans? Mommy wear jeans?" Apparently denim is awe-inspiring to a two year old.

Random Question Day

Being a mommy of young children, I have become accustomed to strangers speaking to us while out because they want to see the babies. No big deal.

However, someone must have proclaimed today "Random Question" day because here are the three inquiries people made of me today.

1. "Are they twins?" Get this...THREE different people asked me this one all before 11am today. Twins? Really? Did these people happen to notice that one "twin" is about 10 inches taller than the other and is speaking in complete sentences while the other "twin" is happily chewing on her foot?

2. "Aren't you the lady who walks all over town?" I am slightly embarrassed by this one because it makes me sound like crazy cat lady. Yes, I walk most mornings with my children in a busy section of our little town. Yes, our stroller is awesome. Yes, sometimes we walk from one location to the other rather than loading and unloading a car of babies (a feat I try very hard to avoid as much as possible). However, I do not walk ALL over town....just part of it.


3. "My husband wants to know how you are so skinny with two kids." This was the most awkward question of the three. I was loading the children out of the stroller into car seats (Seriously, I do look forward to when they can climb in and buckle themselves up...we will gain about an hour of our day back) at the gym when the couple parked next to me asked this off-handed question. I wanted to tell them that apparently I was the lady who walked everywhere...with her twins...and that's how I managed to stay fit, but I just muttered some reply about the kids keeping me busy, blah, blah, blah. The couple then finished eating their McDonalds, stomped out their cigarettes, and hauled the children from the backseat and trudged into the gym. Nice.

What random question have you been asked lately?

The Phillips "Twins"

Fall Fluff

Have you checked your calender lately? Apparently Fall is here.

However, my local weather forecaster just told me it is going to be 92 and humid today. Ugh. Perhaps Fall will make it to us by December or maybe casa de phillips should simply relocate to Vermont (Vermont because I once read residents there hold sap parties in the winter and it sounded positively delightful to sit around and make syrup with ones neighbors. Also, I don't think it is so cold in Vermont that you have to remove your car battery at night.....removing and then replacing the battery on a daily basis just seems a bit much to me. I have a hard enough time getting two babies out of the house on time as it is...I cannot imagine having to schedule time to reinstall my car battery every morning.)

Anyway, I digress.

Because Fall is here and because it happens to be my most favorite of the four seasons, I decided that we would kick off the month of October by visiting our local arboretum to see their lovely pumpkin display with friends.

Isaac has a great fondness of pumpkins (who knew?) and was in awe of the thousands of pumpkins he was able to carry, climb, roll, and pick-up. However, his most prized possession of the trip was a large crab apple (at least I think that is what it was...I am not up on my seed pods) that he carried around most of the time we were at the Arboretum. I finally was able to have him part with his precious blob of green by telling him we had to leave it for other boys and girls to enjoy (and because most likely I would have forgotten about it once we arrived home and it would have likely sprouted underneath a seat in my car).

Although many parents bring their sweet children to the Arboretum for a Fall photo shoot, I have been quite familiar to Isaac's new phobia of cameras so I had very low expectations of potential pictures (which was good because I had to chase Isaac with the camera and then act like I was not taking his picture). I did find it a bit alarming that some people brought their children dressed in fall clothing to the Arboretum to snap pictures....fall clothing meaning sweaters, pants, knit tights, turtlenecks in ninety degree weather. I imagine such parents wanted the perfect snapshot of little Suzy frolicking among the Pumpkins in the crisp Fall air....however, I just wanted to sneak these children a sip of water and blow on their sweaty heads because I feared they might succumb to heat exhaustion right by the Great Pumpkin.

Despite the heat, a fun time was had by all and we certainly enjoyed the company of friends. We ended the day with lunch at Sonic (which had a large sandbox in the outdoor eating area....I do not know if Isaac inadvertently ingested more sand than chicken tenders. I am sure sand has some nutritional value) and then was given the lovely opportunity to bond as Mommy and children while we sat on a local interstate for an hour due to a wreck. Ah, the glamours of city life.

Seriously....Vermont is looking better and better.