Preschool Halloween - Two Spiderman's: Mine's the little one!

Stats

Today we had our well-child visits.
Saff is 9 months.  She is 17 lbs and 5.5 oz (21%) and 28" long (62%).

R is 3 years old.  He is 27.4 lbs (9%) and 36" tall (17%). 

Both seem super healthy despite some minor runny/stuffy noses.

I did have a couple of questions regarding R.  His growth is consistant, but he is terribly tiny.  As you can see he is only 8 inches (though I'm not sure that's totally accurate) taller than his 9 month old sister and about 10 lbs heavier.  The doctor is not concerned at all by his growth as he is steady for him.  I have also had concerns regarding his chocolate reaction.  She still thinks that it might be reflux, but N and I aren't convinced that's what it is.  Either way, he can not have chocolate without horrible nighttime waking and "freak outs".  So for now, N and I will sneak our coco treats and continue to treat him in other special ways.

Birthday jumble

So Saturday was R's birthday party.  Sunday was getting ready for the garage teardown.  Monday was R's actual birthday.  Today is my birthday and they tore down the garage.  Got all that?

Actually the dumpster arrived at 6:45 a.m. and I had to move my car in my jammies.  This was sort of a precurser to how my birthday would go...  I had to work in R's co-op preschool today because of his birthday.  We brought in glazed pumpkin muffins, but I digress.  So we all got ready, the construction crew arrived at 7:30 and we were out the door at 8:15.  I dropped Saff off at a friend's house (who didn't yet know her kids were sick) and went off with R to preschool.  I worked there for a couple of hours and then went back to pick up Saff.  My friend was kind enough to feed us.  When we got home... this is what our back yard looked like...

But they had issues.  The tree removal guys did not get all the stump and roots out.  So our crew had to call in another stump removal service to "fix" it.  So meanwhile, the dogs are locked in the house and barking at every man who walks from the backyard to the front.  The kids need naps and I'm running low on energy.  I finally get them to sleep (thank God for our sound machine) and this guy shows up with his stump grinder which wakes the kids up...

When N finally gets home, I'm a bit worn out.  So, I went and picked up sushi all by my lonesome and I made him promise me a "raincheck" on my birthday activities.  After I'm done here, I hope to pull out the sewing machine and get crafty!

Your friendly neighborhood Spiderman... birthday!

Prep...

He requested that everything be either "Spiderman" or "Blue". We let him take the lead. My only dissappointment was with the "natural food dye" blue cupcakes and frosting. Neither turned a true blue...

Here's the birthday boy and our guests...

Happy 3rd Birthday little boy! You are loved by so many people!

Nature's Playhouse

So, I bit the bullet and decided to visit Nature's Playhouse in Clawson today. I'm always on the hunt for things to keep us occupied (and warm) during these fantastic Michigan winters. Well, it was AMAZING!

First let me prefice this by saying that my kids and I (yes, I am including myself) do really well in a Waldorf setting. I think we all get easily "overstimulated" at play dates and other types of "drop in" places. We really enjoyed the Bluebird House, but this place is A MILE AND A HALF from the house. Yep, can get in and out and home for lunch and naps no problem.

Nature's Playhouse was so calm and relaxing... and quiet. I LOVED the quiet. It reminded me of a yoga studio. The lights were slightly dimmed, the colors muted and soothing. And let me tell you, the toys and props were AMAZING. It's like they bought one of everything in big name wooden toy catalog. I'm not always great at knowing what to do with my kids in a new environment and Paul (one of the owners and former Steiner kindergarten teacher) did a great job of engaging R in a very subtle way. Both kids had a blast and PASSED OUT right after lunch.

They have both classes and drop-in play. So (*hint*hint* Nonna) a gift certificate would be a fabulous Christmas Present.

Farm swap and more...

The farm swap items have arrived! Woohoo!

Saff's very good at pulling herself up now. She's even started to cruise a bit.

Finally, goodbye favorite shoes.

You only lasted a little more than year, but what a year. You went through an entire pregnancy and all the crazy Michigan weather. I continued to wear you with holes, but now you are literally falling apart. You will be missed!