Happy Halloween!

We had a fun Halloween weekend! Yesterday morning, we hosted a Halloween party with 10 of our toddler friends and their parents. What fun! We did some Halloween crafts and had a backyard treasure hunt. We tried to march in a costume parade around the yard, but the concept was a little lost on our munchkins (they were each wandering around aimlessly) so it became a fun game of chase Mr. Erik! The weather was beautiful, in the mid 60s, and we all enjoyed being out in the sunshine.

This morning, Halloween day, we met Grammy and Grandpa Brown at the Chicago Botanic Garden to see the outdoor Halloween train exhibit. It was really amazing to see such an intricate model train system! The kids loved it, and the garden staff was spread throughout the pathway handing out treats. Afterwards, we walked through the various gardens for a bit, then enjoyed a nice lunch together in downtown Wilmette.
Tonight, we went trick-or-treating! We met up with some neighborhood friends and made our way down our street. Both kids got a big kick out of the whole thing - ringing doorbells, being greeted with a basket of candy, and most of all, checking out all the decorations. They both get pretty spooked at anything that makes sounds or moves, which happened every few houses. It's pretty funny for the adults to watch! Gavin has fallen in love with Smarties candies, and Cassidy seems to favor the M&Ms.
Tomorrow will be time to pack away our Halloween decorations. Before too long, I guess they'll be replaced with Christmas lights!

Pompano Beach 2010

We made our way down to Pompano Beach, FL for a 10-day visit with the warm sunshine. It was wonderful! Our visit coincided for a couple days with Grandma and Grandpa Reder's trip there, as well as another few days with Aunt Shannon and our cousin Ellie. What fun! We really missed Erik for the 4 days he had to fly back to Chicago for work commitments, but it was so nice to have the company of other family while he was away. And he returned near the end of the trip, so we got to spend the last 3 days back together again! Most days were full of warm, 84-degree sunshine. We spent every morning and afternoon in the pool, at the beach, or in the ocean. The kids are great little shell-seekers, so we came back with a bag full of shell treasures. We built sandcastles, watched airplanes and helicopters patrol the beach, and saw pelicans dive down into the ocean each evening looking for dinner. On the cloudier days, we visited the Palm Beach Zoo and Gumbo Limbo Nature Center, both big hits with the kids. We had some great dinners out and some relaxing nights in. It's always a wonderful break from life's routine!

Fun with Daddy in the pool

Cassie splashes in the surf

Gavin can hardly contain his excitement!

After a day of fun with Grandma and Grandpa Reder

Gavin loves to jump off the side into the pool

We had SO much fun with Ellie!!!
Post-dinner at Aruba's Beach Cafe

Our best sandcastle of the trip

Beautiful sunrises off the balcony!

Until next time, South Florida!

Happy Birthday Daddy

Last week, we celebrated Erik's 33rd birthday! It was on a Thursday, so we had a weeknight celebration as soon as Erik walked in the door. Cassidy ran to the hiding spot to retrieve Daddy's presents, and we surprised him with a yummy cake from our favorite bakery from our old neighborhood (Sweet Mandy B's, for you Chicagoans!). We decided to use just 3 candles rather than all 33 (although Cassidy wasn't completely on board with that decision!). The cake was delicious. There was so much leftover that we decided to freeze half of it for later. We've already been digging in to the frozen portions, so it won't last long! We hope all your birthday wishes come true, daddy!

The Circus Comes to Town

Every other year, our public school district brings the circus to town as a fundraiser for the schools. We decided the kids were a little young to appreciate/sit through the real show, so we opted for the even-better version - arriving at the site that morning at 9am, the circus staff allowed all young children the chance to meet the animals and watch the big top go up! We walked up close to the circus elephants, tiny jumping dogs, spotted horses, camels and even ferocious tigers (a safe distance in their cages!). At the end, we watched as the huge tent went up, thanks to the mighty strength of one of the elephants who pulled the ropes and tall poles into place. Maybe the next time around, we'll take in a real show. But for now, this was perfect!

Since fall has arrived, we also made our way over to Wagner Farm to pick out pumpkins for the front doorstep. This year, we put twinkling orange lights on the front bushes and some ghost/pumpkin stakes along the sidewalk path that leads up to our door. The kids love flipping on the lights each evening! So many people are putting up fun Halloween decorations these days (meaning, I don't really remember that growing up?!?) that we took the kids out for a drive around the neighborhood to check them all out. From the back seat, we heard on repeat from both kids: "I see some! I see some!" Gavin has fun repeating whatever his sister says. We're looking forward to trick-or-treating this year!

Grandparents Rule!

The kids have had some wonderful visits with their grandparents recently. Over Labor Day weekend, we spent some time in Rockford with G&G Reder. The kids baked cookies with Grandma, fed ducks along the Rock River with Grandpa, and swam in the pool with anyone that was willing! They had tons of fun, as always.

We also had a great birthday visit with G&G Brown. It was Grammy's birthday, and Cassidy loved the new fairy house that Grammy opened at her celebration! It will find a special home in her backyard garden. Cassidy also helped Grandpa in the kitchen as he prepared our brunch feast. She loves to join in when anyone is cooking or baking. The weather was pleasant and we spent a lot of time outside. The kids played with outdoor toys and smelled the flowers they discovered throughout the yard. And of course they had fun with their dog-cousin, Cooper!
This past weekend, Erik and I attended a wedding out of town, so Grandma and Grandpa Reder graciously drove in to stay with the kids for the night while we were away. Despite the weather getting a bit cooler, they journeyed out to the park and kept the kids busy! We came home to smiling faces. We are so lucky to have 4 wonderful grandparents who help us out with the kids in their free time. Cassidy and Gavin adore them all so much. XOXO, G&Gs!!!

A Busy September - Welcome Autumn!

September has been a very busy month at the Brown house! Here's what we've been up to...

Cassidy has adjusted to her new preschool and seems to enjoy her teachers and new friends. When you ask her what she likes best about her day, she almost always says either painting or playing with play-doh. Everyday when I open her backpack after school, I find 2-3 art projects, usually paintings she has done on the easel. We have an art wall in the kitchen that has filled up very quickly! This past week they worked on self-portraits - here's a photo of hers! Also, we gave potty-training a try a couple weekends ago - we pressed on for about 24 hours, at which point it was becoming traumatic for all involved, so we waved the white flag and happily returned to diapers for the foreseeable future. Like all kids I'm sure, Cassidy has a mind of her own on this matter (and many others of course!) so we will gladly follow her lead on this one. Cassidy has also given up her nap, for good this time - so we have 30 minutes of "quiet time" in her room each day when she reads stories to her stuffed animals or makes art projects - and then there's still plenty of time for she and I to play together before her little brother wakes up to join us. We do lots of "big girl" things during that time - playing in her tracing books, baking, watching movies, even her first pedicure. We're having fun! Sometime within the past few weeks, she also started referring to us as "Mom" and "Dad" rather than Mommy and Daddy. We have no idea why. Very funny and a wee bit sad, too! She became a little teen overnight.

Gavin is 18 months old now and is at a really fun age. He makes me laugh every day. He is in the midst of learning lots of new words, and I just love hearing the new things that suddenly pop out of his mouth each day. He's also having a lot of fun with his friend Henry, who is also 18 months. I am taking care of Henry during the days until the beginning of November, so while Cassidy is at school, the boys get into all sorts of adventures together. The best is when they dive into Cassidy's dress-up cabinet and come out as princesses and ladybugs. Priceless. Henry is an adorable little redhead, and with Gavin's white-blonde hair, strangers are striking up conversations with me left and right when we are out strolling. When Henry goes home at the end of each day, Gavin spends the rest of the evening saying over and over (as best he can), "Where's Henry?"

Erik is very busy at work, which has been the case for most of 2010! He's working primarily with one client, and the project is in the final phase that will likely end in December. Then, onward to something new! He has been challenged, but learned a lot in the process, as he says.

As for me, I had some complicated dental surgery this month that knocked me out of commission for a couple days. I owe both Erik and his mom a huge thank you, because they kept the kids and the house running like clockwork while I was resting and recovering. My surgeon said it would take 3 weeks to feel completely back to normal, and I also have to get used to daily life (mainly, talking!) with a retainer for the next 4 months - but all things considered, I am feeling great and glad that the hardest part of this process is behind me! Phase 2 comes next Jan/Feb, when I go back to the surgeon for 2 dental implants. Jealous, right? I know...

We are excited that the fall season has arrived, and in fact we've already done a round of leaf-raking in our backyard! We had some fun times with our extended families over the past few weeks too, which I'll get to in my next post. Until then, happy start of fall to you all!

Cassidy Starts Preschool!

Today was Cassidy's first day of 3-year old preschool! It went very well. No tears. She had a little sour look on her face when I had to leave the room at drop-off this morning, but I watched from the door and within moments her smile was back. She was quickly distracted with some colorful stacking pegs that were set up on the craft table. Two and a half hours later, I was back at school for pick-up, and was greeted with big smiles - she'd had a great day! She has 7 other kids in her class and a great new teacher named Miss Hannah. Miss Hannah plans to send out a daily email with notes from that school day. We already received her email for today, and she explained that today, the kids learned about the routines in the classroom and about each of the centers in the room. They read an Eric Carle book during circle time and had fun outside on the school playground. Once we were back home, Cassidy told me that her favorite part was "meeting my new friends and eating goldfish crackers."