Chicken for dinner...here chicken chicken chicken

I just had to post this. It was actually taken in October at a pumpkin patch near our house. They were out of pumpkins. Murphy's Law.

Aidan and the neighbor boy decided to try and mow down the friendly feathered farm hands.

Here we go a Grizzwalding.....

Since it didn't rain down here in Argenta the entire summer, we didn't dare cut down a tree in the area. We felt it would have been a tinderbox tree with a high fire hazard.

Therefore, we cut one down near Papa's house up north the Friday after Thanksgiving. "Allegedly" the tree farm had a selection of white pine, our favorite tree. Upon arriving, there were MAYBE fifteen white pine to choose from; almost all of which looked like a large Charlie Brown Christmas Tree. After a good laugh and a few grumbles, we took the best one. Papa chased Aidan around some trees pretending like he was a bear. Ethan got a cold nose.

Turkey day fun

We drove up to Papa Don's house and stayed the night, then went to Lynn's for a wonderful Thanksgiving. Michael and Danelle were there from Washington. Food and festivities were fantastic. Alliteration at its finest. All the cousins were there for the first time in almost 2 years.

Aidan was having issues with taking pictures...ergo there aren't any of him being a normal child.

Ribbit

Check out this huge bullfrog I found last week in our creek!!

I'm so Norman Rockwell

These were taken last week at the peak of the fall color. It's of the few blocks of "main street" in Argenta. It was actually quite picturesque, but I missed the best light by about a half an hour. What the picture doesn't show was the best part about the whole scene. There had been a hard frost the night before and many of the leave were falling off; trickling down slowly and covering the road. It was actually quite romantic movie-like to drive down the "tunnel" of trees with those leaves softly floating down around the car.

All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth...

Two on the bottom.....two on the top soon to follow. I think they'll be in for Thanksgiving. It's been tough because Ethan has a cold too, so the drool, snot, coughing, and tooth pain has been such a joy. Are you noting my sarcasm?

Party time

We had a party on Sat. the 10th for those who couldn't make it to Detroit and Ethan's baptism. Papa Don, Uncle Ben with Michelle, Grandma Beth, Great Aunt Judi, Sue, and Brad, Jessica, and Jaida came to visit. We had ribs and burgers and lots of tasty treats. Jessica and I made a Melisty Mart BP gas station run for marshmallows, chocolate, and cinnamon sun chips (graham cracker substitute). Aidan decided he didn't want to make s'mores in the roaring bonfire. He wanted to incinerate them instead. He liked the ball of sugary fire on the end of the stick. Then he had the nerve to ask me to make him a toasted marshmallow, but he didn't want any "black" on it!! *laughing*

Papa was the only one who stayed the night. I think he was just glad that we didn't put him to work that weekend. Because, of course, we have a no freeloading policy. I think he didn't come down earlier because he didn't want to pull any english ivy...he was just waiting until I was done with that.....Oh how little he knows how much work we have in store for him later....

Historic Trinity

We went to Dearborn and Detroit, MI, on the weekend of November 3rd and 4th to have Ethan baptized at our old church in Detroit. While it was wonderful to see old neighbors, friends, and Jeremy's old Ford buddies, we were for lack of sleep due to everyone having a horrible cold. Poor Ethan and Aidan having the brunt of the snot and hacking cough. We cut the trip short and didn't get to visit friends and relatives in southern MI and OH.

Great Aunt Lynn and Uncle David were Ethan's sponsors. Grandma Holly with Colleen, Grandma Beth, Aunt April with Austin, and Ford/UofI friend Calvin also came to the baptism. Thank you to all for a wonderful time!

Trick or Treat T-Rex Tamale

Okay Okay I know I'm a few weeks behind in the blog.....

We had a great Halloween! Great Grandma Cherie made Ethan a hot pepper costume and also sent the dinosaur for Aidan. That dinosaur has many Halloween miles on it. My brother Ben wore it about 20 odd years ago and many other cousins have pounded the pavement in search of candy in that green tailed monster.

We gathered up a group of boys (and girl) from the neighbors and cruised the 'hood' for treats. They were all very polite. Not many houses had their lights on and were giving out candy, but that just means less for mom and dad to steal when Aidan's asleep.

almost done....

Ran into a bit of a problem with the front walkway. Didn't have enough gravel to complete the project last weekend, and since nothing is open in podunkville on Saturday or Sunday, we had to finish it during the week. In the meantime, Jeremy sprained his ankle trying to do an apparent arabesque off the porch and fell on the bricks. Trust me, it wasn't graceful. Now I know where Aidan gets his klutz gene.

This weekend we had to wait for the rain to stop and dry out the bricks before we finished the stairs and wall so the landscape block adhesive would work. Just one more day should do it...then we have to get a yard of nice black dirt to fill in around the new walkway. Will plant the landscaping next year. This gives me plenty of time to mull over the design and plant selection......

ugh-me monkey boy-ugh

hot chicks

Ethan grabbed a magazine from a lower shelf on the coffee table. At first he was looking at ways we should redecorate the house. I must admit he has great taste in color. But then he was distracted by a full page add with some hot chick. He was transfixed.....

Visiting Grandma Beth

Last weekend the boys and I went to Beth's house. The boys got some great grandma time and I got to fulfill my genealogical obsession. They went to a pumpkin festival....I went to the library and a cemetery.....go figure... We saw Judi and Jaida, Cousin Brad and Jessica...and lots of others...

A double dose of creepy crawlers

First: Aidan and I found a great caterpillar meandering across the driveway. We moved him to the tree so Jeremy wouldn't run him over in the truck. I think it's a Luna moth caterpillar, but I don't have my handy dandy North American field guide to butterflies and moths handy...will have to look it up.

Second: The tiniest is starting to get the hang of the crawling coordination. A few more weeks and he'll be a cruising machine.

Muscle man

Jeremy took DIY to the extreme on Sat. He rented a jackhammer and busted up the old steps to the house. We then finished digging out the trench for the new pavers. We'll get some gravel this week and fill in the appropriate base, rent a tamper, and prep for the pavers. Hopefully if it doesn't rain, we'll get most of the walkway done this weekend. The new stairs at the minimum.

Aidan's first preschool field trip

Aidan rode a school bus for the first time on Friday. We went to the Curtis Apple Orchard just west of Champaign. He saw the apple washing machine and the giant apple crusher/juicer.

He then got to munch on a donut and apple juice and play in the playground.

We stayed after everone left and picked some apples and pumpkins. Of course the morning had to end with a complete meltdown as we were going to leave. He cried and snuffled the whole 30 minutes home. Oh the drama....

Boys at play

We like digging ditches

FINALLY got all of the English Ivy out of the landscaping. Trimmed up the shrubs we're going to keep. Cut down the ones we aren't. Jeremy still has to rent a stump grinder, but in the mean time, he got an itch to start on the front walkway this weekend. We're going to remove the present steps and the rotting wooden "columns", move the steps to in front of the door, and replace the columns with something more elegant and less "country". There are a few shrubs in the way now, but we plan on keeping them and transplanting elsewhere. We've started to dig the trench for the new walkway. We're going to add the appropriate amount of compacted gravel and then sand before putting down the new cobbled pavers. Not like the hack who built the house and put the bricks on a half inch of sand right on the dirt. Can you say heaving and settling??? And he is supposedly a professional landscaper...still has his business in the area.....will never hire him!!

Hopefully it doesn't rain this weekend so we can get some more done before it gets too cold out. Jeremy has to rent a jackhammer because the old steps were brick laid over a solid poured concrete. I tried to break it up with our sledge hammer, but even all of my pent up frustrations couldn't crack the concrete.....

To Pick a Fight in Preschool....

No, actually Aidan was just bit by a mosquito right under his eyebrow near his eyelid. He went to bed fine, but woke up with his eye near swollen shut. He doesn't react well to bug bites. Luckily the swelling was mostly gone by picture day......BUT he decided to take a pair of scissors to his hair and cut a huge chunk out of it the day before school picture day.....nice huh!! Being a parent is quite interesting.....

Boys on the couch

It seems like everyone is sick in the household this week. All the boys piled on the couch to take a rest and enjoy a warm blankie.....

Bum in the air

Ethan likes to sleep with his bum in the air and his face planted in the mattress.

Happy boy...Messy boy

Prunes are just about as unappetizing going in as coming out....

Grandma

Grandma Holly came to visit on Thursday. She had business in St. Louis so when she was done she drove up to see us before going back to Chicago. She brought Aidan a drum made in New Mexico. He really likes it, and puts it up high on a shelf so the cats and dog can't get it. Next time she'll have to stay longer!

Let's go fly a kite

It was really windy yesterday, so I set up Aidan's Superman kite. The neighbor kids got jealous, so they had to come over and share.

English Ivy...the bane of my existence

Here's a before and after of the hard work I'm doing on the front landscaping. There's even more done than this most recent "in progress" picture. Did I mention that I don't like English Ivy?? I think there are about 100 spiders per square foot too..... Only one mouse nest so far. Thank goodness it was empty. Lot's of bird's nests too. Yah I know I need better after pictures....more soon.