A lot of pumpkins, Grady, and Mickey

Julie called me one Saturday and asked if we wanted to go to the pumpkin patch with them.  It was a beautiful day, so I said, "Sure, why not?"  I think we were all a little surprised when this "pumpkin patch" turned out to pretty much be this guy's yard.  The boys had the most fun running around in the dirt and sitting on the guy's tractor.  It was totally random.  And (I haven't told Julie this yet) when I went back the next day to pay the guy (who was nice enough to let me come back since I didn't have cash), I smelled some very strong herbal scents emanating from him when he came to collect my five dollar bill.  That just made me giggle the whole way back to my house...such a random place.  

Tim, Case and Julie 

Case (8.5 months), Grady (newly 2), and Trey (3 years 4 months) 

The whole McGuire clan 

Tim and Case 

Trey and Grady trying to share the tractor

The next day we went to the zoo with Julie and Grady.

Pumpkin carving...naturally...

Trey wasn't nearly as helpful as I'd hoped. 

Last night we joined Jason and Stefanie on their transportation adventure.  We rode the max out to the airport with the goal of watching airplanes.  When we got there, the boys ran around the airport for a while (at least in the part they could run around in without having tickets), and then we got on the max and went back to town.  And when I say a while, I mean about five minutes.

Trey and Declan making funny faces...well, Trey making a funny face.

Checking out the bridges 

This might be a good place to mention how much of a pill Trey has been lately.  Dinner after our transportation adventure was not very much fun, and today has been pretty up and down.  It feels like we are going from one meltdown to another without any predictable triggers or idea of how long or intense they will be.  He's testing the limits in every possible way in all domains - eating, sleeping, toileting, playing, dressing...what else is there?  I have been more impatient with him than normal, and that makes me feel pretty crappy.  Luckily, I have a lot of friends who have had three year olds, and they tell me "three is hard."  What I have been feeling today is: "It's a good thing I like my job because I can't wait for Monday morning."  

Here is Trey refusing to let me take a picture of him in his Halloween costume. 

Yet, five minutes later out in the driveway, he was cool with it...go figure.

Cutest Mickey Mouse I have ever seen. 

We went to the Children's Museum this morning for their Halloween activities.  Trey had no interest in the Halloween activities and spent the majority of the time in the Dora exhibit.  Julie, Tim, and the boys came to meet us, but I didn't see them much as I waited near the rocket ship for Astronaut Mickey to want to do anything else.

Minnnnnnnnnieeeeeee, where arrrrrrrrrrrre youuuuuuuuu? 

Trey could stay on this stage for the whole time we are at the Children's Museum. 

I think we would have ended up back here if it wasn't for the rocket ship.   

Astronaut Mickey 

Trey and I made Halloween sugar cookies this afternoon, and Julie and Grady came over to help us decorate them.  Trey LOVES these cookies so much, and it dawned on me as I was moving them from the cookie sheets to the cooling racks that this is just another thing for him to freak out about on a daily basis.  Not sure why I did this to myself, but oh well.  Too late now.

After cookie decorating was over and fighting about sharing toys was ended, Julie helped me with some of my sewing.  Stay tuned for my post about the advent calendar I am making.  I'm almost done with it, and I am excited to show it off.  I'm not a very crafty person, and even though I didn't make this calendar up on my own, I'm feeling proud of the end result.

A Sunday afternoon with red wine, sequins sewing, and my sister...

couldn't ask for much more.  

Pumpkins, parties, and more

I don't know about you, but the days are flying by.  Monday morning comes way too quickly, then the next thing I know it is Thursday, and all of a sudden it's Sunday night again.  Work has been busy for both Randy and myself, and we have had some busy weekends to boot.  It's been a fun time, but combine our busy schedules with a very emotionally dysregulated three year old (can you tell I work in special ed?), and Mama is exhausted.

When Randy and I went wine tasting for our anniversary, we joined a wine club at Cor Cellars.  We thought all of their wine was delish, and you only have to commit to four bottles a year.  You get to pick up two in the fall and two in the spring, and they are located just a hop, skip, and a jump away from Hood River, one of our favorite places to go.  Sounds pretty perfect to me!  Their first wine pick-up was a few weeks ago, and they also brought out several library collection wines for wine club members to taste.  We enjoyed their wines, grabbed our two bottles (plus an extra 2006 Cab from their "library"), and went to Hood River for dinner at Pfriem.

Feeding goats at Cor Cellars 

Play area and a delicious IPA?  

Sounds about right to me.

Kerry had told me about this climbing wall across the street from Pfriem.  Of course, we had to check it out.  It was harder than it looks to help Trey get to the top.  I helped for a while, but was very happy when Randy came to relieve me.

This one was easier, if you can believe it.   

Grabbing an ice cream cone on the way out of town

Trey was invited to a birthday party for Vivi, the daughter of our old daycare provider.  I thought it would be super fun for him to see all of his old friends at the party, but he seemed a little overwhelmed and stuck to himself a lot.  I was reminded, again, about how for some reason I have such trouble making small talk at events with a lot of kids and their parents.   Trey and Vivi fell right back into place with each other, and it confirmed my sadness that Trey doesn't go to their house anymore. 

In the middle of the present opening chaos

I think Trey would have crawled right into Marika's lap if he could. 

I got a fitbit this summer, and I have been having fun with trying to get 10,000 steps a day.  It is basically impossible to do this during a work day unless I go on a walk or exercise somehow.  I am finding this increasingly difficult to do since I have to leave earlier for work in the morning (and Trey's sleep habits make me way too exhausted to get up and exercise before 5:30) and I'm way too tired to do it at night.  Insert lunch break walks...

If I'm at the office, we have a loop we do around the parking lot which is one mile if you go twice.  We also just discovered a nature park across the street which has a loop that fits in perfectly to a lunch break.  When I'm out in the districts, I try to walk if the child has a lunch break.  This is from a walk I did out in Eagle Creek.  I'm not sure how this lunch break walking thing will go when it starts raining.  I guess that's what raincoats are for...

Trey's preschool took a field trip to the pumpkin patch, and I was able to take the afternoon off and join them.  It was such fun to be with Trey on his first field trip. I know it was way more important to me than him, but I was still glad I got to go.   

Learning about potatoes

(Trey is in the blue coat and red boots.) 

The entire preschool 

On a hayride out to the pumpkin patch 

Trey and one of his friends running out in the pumpkin patch

This was taken shortly after we had to yell at them to stop running because they were almost to the corner of those trees you see. 

Trey and some of his buddies on the hayride back 

While you can't really see their faces, these are the two kids who Trey probably hangs out with most.  

We are currently trying to schedule playdates which has turned out to be more difficult than I thought.  Who knew we were all so busy? 

This is the book I am reading now.  I was super excited to read it because I have enjoyed her other work and it has received great reviews, but I literally can't read more than 5 pages without falling asleep.  I usually give books about 50 pages before I give up, but I am giving this one more because it is supposed to be good.  Now I'm just over 100 pages and I still don't think there's a plot I could explain to anyone.  I'm trying to decide if it's really good and I'm just too tired to appreciate it, or if it's not that great.  I want to love it, I really do, but the due date at the library may make my decision for me.  It's going to take me a damn long time to read a 499 page book if I am averaging 5 pages a night.  

Fall Fun and Photo Dump Part Two

Is it just me, or have the fall colors just come out of nowhere?  Last weekend was so beautiful and I could not stop staring at the red, orange, and yellow leaves.  I kept pointing them out to Trey as we were driving, and he said he could see them, but half the time he was staring somewhere else, so I'm not quite sure.

I remember back in June, just before Trey turned three, when Randy and I felt like we were getting a run for our money.  We thought, "Oh shit, is this what 3 is going to be like?"  It lasted a few weeks and then got better.  Right now it feels like we are in the "Oh shit, is this what 3 is going to be like?" part two.  I'm wondering if there's a limit he hasn't tested or a routine he hasn't completely revolted against.  It's exhausting, and it makes me irritated and impatient with him, and that makes me feel...well, shitty.

There are so many parts of fall that I love: the weather, the leaves, the brewfests (of which we have missed both due to weather and illness), the events, and the new books.  Did you know fall is a big book release time?  Well, it is.  I'm in a book extravaganza right now.  I started reading She's Come Undone while I was waiting for some new things to come in at the library, and now I have too many things at once.  If I don't answer your calls, texts, or emails over the next few weeks, it may be because I have two books to read in the next three weeks (plus finish the one I'm on).

Let's talk about She's Come Undone.  Wow.  Wally Lamb really is something, isn't he?  I read I Know This Much Is True in summer 2012, and I remember it well.  It's a long one, but it is so good.  She's Come Undone has been staring at me from my bookshelf for years, but I always ignore it and read something else.  Well, it has really changed the way I view really overweight people.  Lamb does an excellent job taking the point of view of a teenage girl who feeds her loneliness and pain with food which causes her to become obese which just perpetuates the cycle of anxiety, self-loathing, and destruction.  On Tuesday I was at a middle school testing an 8th grader who was pretty overweight.  She sat across the table literally whispering her answers to me, and my heart was breaking.  One reason I love reading is it gives me new perspective, and this book is a great example of that.

The books I have on my stack are Jeannette Walls' newest and Elizabeth Gilbert's new novel.  It has received rave reviews and I can't wait to read.  I'll keep you posted.

Here are some pics from the past few weeks:

I have been collecting some pumpkin recipes and tried a few of them a few weeks ago.  I made some low calorie pumpkin muffins which were okay, and Trey and I made some pumpkin snickerdoodles which were pretty good.  Trey loves making cookies, but what he loves more is eating them.

I babysat for Grady and Case a few weeks ago, and Randy and Trey joined me for a bit.  We got some pictures of the three boys together which may be a first.  I just can't wait to see these boys grow together.

I have a feeling this is going to be a frequent expression of poor Case when he is with these boys. 

 Three blondies and Aunt Kristin

Randy and I took Trey to the zoo one weekend day and got to see Baby Lily play with the elephants.  I just can't get enough of this baby.  I can't wait to see the baby lions.  I hope they go on display at some point.

Checking out snakes or fish or something Randy likes 

Getting a ride on the train before it closes down for construction 

I picked Trey up at daycare one day and he looked like such a little boy to me.  Every so often it strikes me that he's turning into a real kid and not a baby anymore. I know he hasn't been a baby for a long time, but it still shocks me at times how grown up he seems.

We were doing homework one night (yes, he has homework...sigh), and I turned the paper over and asked Trey if he could draw a face.  He busted this out on his own.  I don't know how old you're supposed to be before you can draw faces, but I was impressed.  I've never seen such motor planning from him before!  (Poor kid is doomed to have a special educator as a mom.)

September 25th was the 8 year anniversary of my mom's death.  I received several thoughtful messages from friends throughout the day, but, to be honest, the "death day" (as Julie and I call it) isn't an especially hard day.  Mostly, it's just hard to believe that she's been gone that long.  I think that Julie and I both do a good job of keeping our mom "alive" in our minds by thinking and talking about her on a regular basis (and not in a weird way).  I know that we both have done this more since we've had kids.  Mom would have been an amazing grandma, and one of the most heartbreaking things of her being gone (of which there are many) is that she isn't here to be Grandma to our boys.

I took this picture on either the morning she died or maybe the morning after as I pulled up to my parents' house.  It was an amazing moment for me because it looked like the sun rays were coming from the backyard of our house.

On the 25th, my dad came to Portland to go to dinner with Julie and me.  He had a love fest with his grandsons before dinner, and then the three of us went to Decarli for a delicious meal.  

Obviously, there's someone very important missing from this family photo, but I do have to say that Julie and I are blessed to have such an amazing father.  He has been such a rock for us, and he is an amazing teacher of how to treat other people and be an honest, loyal citizen.  We have always been a close family, but our relationship with our father has definitely deepened over the past ten years.  

Making brownies for a dinner party 

Trey and Grandpa doing a little reading 

Celebrating Grady's 2nd birthday 

Tonight I am babysitting for Grady and Case while Julie and Tim are out celebrating their fourth wedding anniversary.  It's a pretty tough job to watch two well behaved boys who take about five minutes to go to bed.  

What's wrong with a little pre-bedtime Elmo?

In the midst of working, parenting, keeping up a house, trying to get decent sleep, and feeling stuck in the grind at times, I am reminded of how lucky I am to have such special friends in my life, an amazing family, and good health.  I'm looking forward to a fun weekend coming up, and hoping for some quality time with my special boy.  Cheers to the fall!