But October also brought visitors, birthdays, illness and tricky treat (as Miles calls it).
Miles: Since he was the birthday boy I'll start off with him. He turned three (but if you ask him how old he is he'll waffle between 2 1/2 and 4 then look at me and ask "mom, how old am I?" Since Gpa Mark was in town he scored big with a bike. Previously he was using a very pink bike borrowed from a friend. His very generous parents got him an assortment of fighting instruments and gear from the Dollar Store. A foam sword that lights up and makes sounds for a dollar - c'mon. (Five swords(in case they aren't so sturdy), two shields, two breastplates, four helmets and two robot arms later for $13, PLUS they can double as a Halloween costume - fantastic)
He also started playing soccer (which he will end up quitting in Nov.)
And he got attacked by some pigs at the pumpkin patch.
Ben: Ben's contributions this month include making his kids birthday cake (after I had gotten Miles to agree to having ice cream only for his celebratory sweets). That was nice of him to do. He made his personally favorite birthday cake which I have so far refused to make every year - boxed cake with pudding/cool whip/crushed oreo frosting.
He also handcrafted this sign for the trick-or-treaters when we took our kids out and left a bowl of candy on the porch.
(Front)
(Back)The bowl had large Reese's cups so this was completely appropriate.
Avery: Missed an entire week of school due to an illness of some sort. I sent her off on a Monday morning and 30 minutes later I was called to come pick her up. I didn't notice anything wrong but she had a fever. I was sad that she would not qualify for perfect attendance but happy that I didn't have to wake up to make a lunch and stand at the bus-stop for a full week.
Me: Besides vacation I spent the month un-planting the garden. This is a lot of work actually. I will never grow zucchini or summer squash again. Mark my words. Too prickly, too invasive, not tasty enough. Plus I'm pretty sure I can get as much as I want from someone else's surplus that they bring to church. Our flower garden was disassembled as well. Avery got on her trike and braved the rain and dark to deliver Dahlia and Hydrangea bouquets to the neigbors.
