Happy Halloween 2009

We did not think this was going to happen this year due to sickness (of all of us, and particularly Alec) but it all came together at the last minute. Alec declared his desire to be a pirate at the 11th hour (proving me very wise indeed, to have a pirate costume at the ready, just hanging in the closet with no where to go) and was satisfied to visit just a few houses. Perhaps best of all, he was a very enthusiastic sharer of candy, offering us all something from his bag, with the pride one only experiences from "bringing home the bacon". Happy Halloween to all!

Virginia

In September, we took a trip to Virginia for some surf, sun and sand. It was lots of fun. One of the best times we had was experiencing "Shell Beach" (pictured above). To get there, you can hike or bike but the former is just about impossible with the bugs (which we found out the hard way). It's also pretty much deserted on weekdays in September, as well as has sand covered in beautiful shells and waves that will seriously knock you right over.

"Hey - Cows Don't Take Pictures"

Not that we haven't had any fun with Mountie costume, as evidenced by these two photos - in one Alec is a Mountie taking pictures of a crime scene. In the other, Alec realized that I, as the cow that he was charged with leading home, was uncharacteristically taking a picture. He was both shocked and cross by my un-cow like behavior.

The Halloween Costume, That Wasn't

A couple of months ago, Alec proclaimed that he was planning to be a Mountie for Halloween, at which time I tirelessly set out on a long and expensive journey that has resulted in a very beautiful costume, complete with authentic hat, jacket, custom-made pants and very mountie-ish looking boots.

By the time I had gathered many of these items, Alec had begun to extole the virtues of being a 'pumpkin robot'. I feared not, thinking my powers of persuasion would prevail.

Little did I expect that there was a three-way pact among 3 year old boys in the works, destined to bring my downfall. That's right, unbeknownst to me, Alec agreed with Jason and Jackson to go as a superhero team - Jason as Superman, Jackson as Spiderman and Alec as Batman.

How, you ask, can I argue with that? I can't. Batman it is.

Randoms

Here are a few things that are interesting to me today (then again, I am under the weather, so it could just be the meds).

1. Alec's personal property corner. Anything Alec puts in this corner belongs to him and only him (no matter from where it originates). No one is allowed to touch it or even move it. You may notice the corner of some white plates (formerly mine, from the kitchen) not to mention the corners of two cheques/money orders kindly provided by Grandmom and Great Grandmom for Halloween (which he grabbed, clutched and ran with at first site; note the stickers and cards were a hit too)!

2. One of Alec's play scenes involving a pirate ship to which Owl (from the hundred acre wood) brought treasure which he found "in the sand". Owl then caught a pink fish to be cooked in pirate celebration, battled a bad pirate (with a sword) and battled spider man (with a cannon). He also did lots with the sails, about which I cannot provide an accurate report, but it certainly involved green string.

3. Alec's cardboard violin. Now, I wouldn't say he loves it but if you tell him that his teacher will come to the house to "help" him practice if he doesn't choose to do it on his own, he'll tucka tucka like a dam.

Rocket Ship Run

Here is Alec in his "rocket ship" (2 old chairs, one pillow, one egg carton (for rocketship controls/buttons), one bankers box, several pieces of green construction paper, markers and stickers) wearing his "robot costume" (disposable aluminum trays with space stickers, tied together with yarn).

If you love him like I do ...

You might also want to see these shots. :-)

Men at Work / Men at Play

As for this weekend, a big highlight was a playdate with Alec's best buddy Jason. Evidently, construction is a mutual interest, as is chase. Not hard to see why they get on like a house on fire.

"GIVE ME YOUR HAND"

I couldn't believe the chivelry I saw when Alec slide down the inflatable haystack after a girl (whom he did not know, perhaps his age or a bit older) slipped to the bottom. He offered her his hand and tried to pull her up. I believe her feet did most of the work in the end - but it was still a sight to behold.

Alec in a haystack

We do also love a haystack ... perhaps not as much as the pumpkin patch, but we still love it.

A few pumpkin patch scenes

You might recall, we love a good pumpkin patch! Here is some of this year's action.

A Word or Two About Thanksgiving

This year, Alec made the most of the Thanksgiving holiday by making a turkey toothpick holder and doing the "turkey pokey" (I kid you not) at a morning playgroup and then enjoying a family dinner (pictured here) which involved (for the very first time) sitting at a (relatively) unsupervised children's table (if you don't count the supervision and guidence given by his older cousins, which you should because they only asked for direction when a major issue was on the rise, e.g. "Mom, How many rolls with butter is Alec allowed to eat before dinner?" and "I think Alec wants some gravy now ... ; nevermind, I think Alec is going to have my gravy now).