Halloween ... finally

We have been a little busy around here lately, so better late than never.

As any parent knows, some days are better than others.  Today was one of those days.  Cooper decided tonight to not eat his dinner, be disrespectful to Poppa, and so on.  Unfortunate for Cooper, it was also Halloween.  By the time he had himself together, had apologized and so on, it was raining buckets which meant no Trick or Treating.  We did let him get dressed up in his costume and help pass out candy.  I don't think he knew what he missed until the next day at school when his friends were talking about it.  Hopefully, he will remember this and some day soon make the connection between cause and effect.  Some days being a parent stinks, but no one ever said it was easy.

And now for some pictures (and I hope Grammy and Poppa don't get mad, but these are too cute not to share).

And the costume choice is ...

Batman who made his debut at Squirrel-'O-Ween.  I think he can give Nutzy a run for his muscles.

 Flexing at the dugout.

It was packed with costumed kids everywhere, but Cooper did stop to pet the animals.

 

Halloween Prep

 Jack 'o lantern crafts with Grammy.

To carving jack 'o lanterns with Dad.

Only in our house would pumpkin carving require power tools.

Daddy trying to be funny and mimic the ever running nose that Cooper inherited from me.  At least it comes honest.

The boys had lots of fun getting ready for the holiday.


 

Notice anything odd?

Cooper thought he needed a little style adjustment. So during craft time, he gave himself a makeover.  Notice the short wispies in the front?  Good thing his hair was already short.

Wordless Wednesday - I almost forgot

We discovered the PhotoBooth app on my iPad, and someone thought it was hilarious.

Happy (not quite) Wordless Wednesday.

For more Wordless Wednesday posts, check out 5 minutes for mom, Go Graham Go, Two of a Kind, Working on a Full house and Parenting by Dummies!

Jill

Hard At Work

Do you ever think I will get him to work this hard again?

 He loves to help Dad right now.  Let's hope this keeps up for a little while longer.

Pumpkin Patch Adventures 2011

Cooper's class made their annual trip to the Pumpkin Patch.  J & I weren't able to go, so Grammy & Poppa braved the elements and a rambunctious, almost four year old.  They assured he was on his best behavior ... whew!

 Climbing on the hay bales while Grammy keeps an eye.

Spooky scenes were all around.

Looks like this witch took a wrong turn.

Looking for spooky characters on the hay ride.

"But Grammy, I want this one."

He wasn't too sure of this guy, but did end up braving a touch of his ear.

Hugs with Grammy after our picnic.

 He looks like he was having an awful time.  Right?

For more pumpkin patch adventures, check out 2010 and 2009.

 

Wordless Wednesday - Whose hanging out in your backyard?

For more Wordless Wednesday posts, check out 5 minutes for mom, Go Graham Go, Two of a Kind, Working on a Full house and Parenting by Dummies!
 

Hard at Work

All was quiet in the McCormack Household while this mysterious person was hard at work.

It's none other than "Not happy being interrupted."  He had lots of work to do, or so he said.

 

Wordless Wednesday - Tech Savy Already

For more Wordless Wednesday posts, check out 5 minutes for mom, Go Graham Go, Two of a Kind, Working on a Full house and Parenting by Dummies!

Some Cooperisms

Just found these in my draft folder from early October.

"Let's rock and roll."

"Mommy, you're my best friend."
"Why Cooper?"
"Because you gave me gummy fruit."
Glad I know where I stand.

"Eww Cooper.  Don't pop when I am wiping your bottom."  Can't believe I had to say that one, and glad I don't have to do that job anymore .... most days.

"Mommy, I flushed the toilet for you so you don't have to smell my stinky poop while you wipe my butt."  Thank you Cooper for being so thoughtful.

When J put in Star Wars, "You are the best daddy in the whole world."
One of the Stars Wars ships in the opening scene. "Daddy, that's a floating vacuum cleaner."
Cooper now runs around humming the theme song.  Terrific.

When J and I were hugging tonight, Cooper said "I want to get in there." He wanted us to pick him up for a group hug. Then he said "You're the guys I love." Melts my heart.
Mommy, You look like a princess in that red dress.  You are my princess and my Daddy's princess.

Family Outing - Geocaching

 J had a great idea for a weekend family outing.  We grabbed a map and a GPS, and went on our first geocaching adventure. 

The first cache was awesome ... easy to find, lots of treasures to look through, a book to sign.  Very cool adventure for a little guy.

One of the treasures was a neat little Indiana Jones creature that is traveling all over the world.  He started in France and now lives in his cozy little home here until someone helps him with his next move.  As this was our first cache, we left him for someone else to take on their next adventure.
 

He was so happy ... hiking boots, backpack, radio, and time with Dad on an adventure.

We couldn't find the next cache because of recent storm damage.  Hopefully, someone who knows about this cache can rescue it from the debrise so the next person can find it.  The next one was proving equally difficult to find until Cooper picked up this mushroom, which I promptly told him to put it down.  That's when J noticed there was something strange about the mushroom.  IT was the cache, and Cooper found it.  The mushroom had a little secret compartment inside with numbers on a piece of paper.  We searched and searched but missed the other two little caches at that site.  There is always another day.  J did some research about what they look like so we will be better prepared for next time.

Taking a rest for his traded treasure from the first cache.  He named him Captain Maco.

A little time spent pretend fishing.  While he was doing that, J & I noticed a woman and her son carrying around the mushroom.  We explained what it was and why it was hidden.  They were intrigued by geocaching and were going to look it up when they got home ... and hopefully put the mushroom back for others to find.

Definitely a fun afternoon adventure for all of us.