Jakob started his Halloween costume planning with the hopes of dressing as Darth Vador. While Jim and Jakob do enjoy Star Wars, I was less than attached to idea of making a Darth Vador costume. I have fond memories of my homemade costumes and want to continue this practice with Jakob as long as I can. I had some ideas for it, but feared it would turn out cheesy and leave him wishing I'd just bought for him the even cheesier $19.99 costume at Target. I was rescued however by our second visit to the Rodeo this fall when Jakob decided being a cowboy would be much more fun! The cowboy plan further developed with a souvenier cowboy hat gifted to him by his Grandma Stratman. We shopped together to pick out his fabric and he knew right away he wanted his vest and chaps to be out of the cowprint fabric. The rest was pretty easy - boots from WalMart, flannel shirt from Target, and handed down jeans from our friend Tyler.

October was a good month for us.

We visited a new pumpkin patch and much to my dismay, it was nothing like the one we've always gone too. I left sad, longing for the all the great photo opportunities I would have had at the original place. But replaced by great would-be photos, was the company of our friends. Jim was very busy completing his teaching portfolio so we joined Jakob's friends Jack, Liam & Grace. The kids had a great time playing in huge tubs of dried corn and picking out pumpkins in the field. After the little friends left, Jakob and I tried out our first corn maze. We found all of our points and it was interesting walking amongst all of the corn... not something I'd ever experienced before. I imagine that we've started a new tradition, as Jakob really liked it.

Last week we attended a grand opening of a nearby outdoor shopping experience. I LOVE that this is so close to our house. It's the kind of place I used to drive hours to enjoy.

Jakob REALLY enjoyed himself. Here he is dancing to a Beatles band from Las Vegas. Anyone who has had the chance to be around this kid when music is playing, knows he LOVES music. He can't help but to move to the music...

Jakob trying his hand at chalkboard writing in his Papa's classroom over the weekend. We made a quick stop on our way to the rodeo... the rodeo, well that's a whole post of its own!

When will I learn? Really?

I have been experiencing some major issues with dairy lately. Trying to avoid it at all costs, lest I be quickly repaid with acute illness. But this morning I tried coffee with half and half successfully. I haven't made coffee at home in weeks and I really LOVE coffee so this was a sacrifice. I was cautious, drank almost a whole cup but not quite. I felt fine all day. Fine enough to forget how terrible I've felt these past few dairy dapplings that I was seduced by a 60-calorie chocolate raspberry pudding cup. It was delicious and while I didn't lick the container clean, I enjoyed the afternoon treat.

Now I'm miserable. My stomach hurts and now I have no interest in eating any of the dinner I've been cooking for the last hour.

Maybe I'll learn after today... agony.

Do you have any idea how many blogs give away stuff? Great stuff? I had no idea. but I'm learning.

I came across this blog from another that I love, The Nesting Place, and I think she said it's the friend of her sister who just opened a shop. Well she's giving away an adorable bag and if you link back to her, your entry counts as double.
So nothing like dusting off the ol' keyboard and blogging again.


Here is her gorgeous shop - I'm in love with her personalized shell jewelry. I really hope I win and that I can add onto the order a monogrammed shell bracelet or necklace.

As of my last post, we were nearly buried up to our chins in endless snow it seemed. The snow finally melted and our summer hasn't been as hot and humid as winter was cold and snowy... not yet anyway.

I had the honor of attending Jakob's preschool Valentine's Day party this afternoon. It won't be often that I have the chance to be at his parties as they usually fall on the same day I'm having one in my own classroom. We made his Valentine's and he helped a bit. He is a pro at using his Grandma's Cricut scrapbooking machine, so he cut several of the hearts. He was less than thrilled about smearing glitter glue over the top of them, but he did it on a couple.

I love the world of little people, their curiousity, their honesty, and their ability (or rather inability sometimes) to solve a problem with a friend. I played a preschool version of Twister by Leap Frog today. I managed to deflect the hard plastic colored cube from smacking Jakob in the head. He attends an all-ability center and from spending a little time with this particular classmate, I thought I should be on guard when it was his turn to roll the cube... he threw it with quite a lot of force and I realized he was still developing the dexterity to do things like throw or roll an object. It's easy to forget that not all children at almost four can do this yet.

One of my own first graders made me giggle this morning. I was out of half and half for my coffee and I asked her if she would like to go to the cafeteria to buy a carton milk for me. I gave her a dollar and a note. She returned to the class with my milk and I thought I asked her to put the milk on my desk. We started class and I looked over to see her drinking my milk at her desk! She had misunderstood, but was more than willing to go get another. I might have to start giving cartons of milk out as an incentive!

I love snow. I am giddy at the sign of the first snowflake. I realize that spring is more than a month away, but I'm ready for warm weather and the snow to be gone. Today's quarter-inch of snow, sleet, and ice leave me less than thrilled.



I remember when we would visit St. Louis from California, winter was fun, a novelty of sorts. Then we would fly home and be greeted by the warmth again as we departed our plane and walked out into the warm, balmy, smog of Los Angeles or Burbank. Now we have winter, all winter long... it seems to arrive somewhere around late Ocotber, early November and sticks around sometimes as late as the end of April. It reminds me of the book I read to my class, Old Man Winter.