Spooky Town

To state that Timmy is excited about Halloween would be a gross understatement. He has been planning, talking and reenacting the holiday for nearly a month. "This is Halloween" is constantly playing through Alexa, and "Nightmare Before Christmas" is playing on my television several times a day.  

One of his favorite activities involves decorating and transforming our house into "Spooky Town." Happy pumpkins, scary ghosts, glittery bats and a carefully crafted collection of "Tongue Monsters" adorn just about every surface (below four feet). He spends hours crafting and decorating, all while happily singing "This is Halloween."

Outside we have our spooky inflatables blown up and happily heralding the impending holiday. Plastic hands are sticking up through the ground, and Jack-O-Lantern buckets are hung from our low tree branches. Our driveway and road have been decked out for the season with hand drawn ghosts and "boo" written everywhere.

His excitement for Halloween transcends decorating. Timmy has used the holiday for inspiration to play new games. Yesterday we spent hours outside playing "Mummy," which is basically tag with the addition of my screaming brains as I chase him around the yard. I don't run very fast, so my time as prey is always short lived.

If he is this excited for Halloween, Christmas should be a lot of fun this year!

 

Sick Day

I woke up this morning so happy that it was finally Saturday. I quickly realized that it was only Thursday, and I fear the disappointment will set the tone for the day. Scott is fully recovered from his cold, but I am currently in the throes of the virus. I feel crummy!

Mom's don't get sick days, so I'm going to have to suck it up and keep plowing through the hours until bedtime.  Scott has Parent-Teacher conferences today, so he won't be home until about 7 tonight. It is going to be a long day. Hopefully I start to feel better once I get moving.

Yesterday Timmy discovered the joys of cracking hickory nuts on our driveway. He spent nearly two hours with a hammer, breaking the nuts to 'help' the squirrels eat. Hopefully he will be happy to repeat the activity because it kept him busy and allowed me to sit and rest.  It's about time the nuts were benefiting us somehow!

First Cold of the Year

School has been in session for a month, and we are dealing with our first communal family cold of the year. Scott began to feel miserable on Sunday. He hasn't been ill enough to stay home from work, but he feels bad enough to be cranky and tired.

Now the ickies have trickled down to the rest of us. By last night we were all feeling off, and I knew that I would be waking up feeling yucky. My prediction held true, and this morning I'm nursing a headache and a scratchy throat.  Timmy is still sleeping, a surefire sign that he isn't feeling well, so I'm fairly confident that today will be spent watching the Grinch and Polar Express on the couch.

Hopefully the ickies will be a short staying visitor in our home. Robby and I have plans this weekend to attend a WWII weekend in Gettysburg, so we don't have time to be sick. Here's to quick healing!

Band

Timmy and I had fun during our Nana Getaway, but now we are back to reality. We came home yesterday afternoon, with enough time left in the day to both help Robby with his schoolwork and to make dinner. Sigh. I don't miss the heat, but I am already missing the schedule free days of summer.  
We are all struggling to adjust to the chaos of the school year!

Robby introduced a new activity into our family with his guitar lessons. He loves learning the guitar, and I am proud of his dedication to practicing an hour each night. (Perhaps I am even happier because I don't have to remind him/ nag him into practicing. He actually does it independently.) 

Robby's dedication to learning to play the guitar is goal driven. He really wants to join a rock band at his music school. In order to be matched in a band he needs to demonstrate basic chord skills and the discipline to practice on a regular basis. We began the lessons in August with the hopes of him being ready for band by October. 

Low and behold, yesterday afternoon I received an email inviting Robby to join the "Southern Rock" band at his music school. He was so excited when I showed him the email. The smile on his face definitely lit up the room! After learning the the invitation, he immediately texted his Daddy and called his Nana to share the news.  

I'm so excited for him!

All Aboard

All Aboard!

Yesterday my Mom and I took Timmy on a special trip: a visit to the Island Of Sodor to go for a ride on Thomas and his friends. Okay, we actually went to the Strasburg Railroad but we might as well have been at Sodor. The station was transformed for the big Thomas the Train event, complete with everybody's favorite blue engine and his sidekick Percy.

Timmy was excited about going for a ride on Thomas, but once we arrived at the event he became shy and nervous. He clutched my hand and cautiously watched all of the activities from a distance. It wasn't until we practically forced him to go onto the small crank train that he began to loosen up and have fun.  

After he began to relax, Timmy had a fantastic time. He was particularly fond of our train ride, grinning from ear-to-ear and happily waving to everybody we passed along the route.