Better late than never {Halloween 2012}

Thanks to Leila, Halloween is fun again.  

It may have taken three Halloweens to get myself back into the crazy holiday, but our trick-or-treating experience was well worth the wait.

Flashback to Halloween 2010...She slept most of the day.

Baby-blob Leila- 1 month

Flashback to Halloween 2011...The pumpkins were a hit and she had her first taste of Halloween candy.

Ladybug Leila- 13 months

Halloween 2012...Fun!  Fun!  Fun! (Photos courtesy of Jordan at mphotographer.com)

Zebra Leila- 25 months

Okay!  Ready to fill those bags!

Soooo big going to the door all by themselves!

This Mickey Mouse magic wand was a hit

Slightly obsessed with all the Halloween decorations

Checking out the loot

Looking forward to all the holidays this year with my favorite two-year old!

Two-year old Favorites {Children's book Edition}

Books are one of the greatest sources of entertainment for toddlers.  Leila loves to hear the same stories over and over again.  She enjoys pretending to reading them, looking at the pictures, and simply pulling them off the bookshelves.

Reading from the dictionary (baby genius!)

Leila's favorite picture book changes almost every time we introduce a new one. When we do introduce a new book, she always asks for it to be read at least three times in a row in that sitting alone.

Being a former elementary teacher means I have more children's books than one person could imagine.  Most of them are still boxed up for when she's older but I have brought home some repetitive, rhyming, or simple text books with great illustrations for us to enjoy now.

1. Mother Goose by Scott Gustafson:  Her all-time fave, especially since Jeff changes all of the names in the rhymes to Leila.
2. No David by David Shannon:  She loves all the books in the series.  I just discovered there is a Christmas version called, It's Christmas, David!  We need this one for sure.
3. Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes  by James Dean and Eric Litwin:  This one has a free song to download that is really catchy.
4. LMNO Peas by Keith Baker:  I swear I read this at least once a day because I like to read it too.  It one has excellent rhyme and rhythm.
5. The Runaway Bunny by Margaret Wise Brown:  We have the board book version.  The repetitive text makes it a favorite of Leila's.  I like it because it's about a mother bunny and her child.
6. Fire! Fire! Said Mrs. McGuire by Bill Martin Jr.:  A great rhyming book with simple text and a surprise ending.  They don't make the version I have anymore so I linked the newest edition.
7. Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! by Mo Willems:  These books crack me up.  It's the only one I have in the series but I know she'd love the others just as much.  The pictures are simple and the text meant to be read with a lot of expression.
8. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr., John Archambault and Lois Ehlert:  Another one with great rhyme and rhythm which makes it fun to read and listen too.

What is your toddler's favorite children's book? Maybe I need to add it to her 2012 Holiday wish-list.

  

Want more lists like this?  Check out the others in this Two-year old Favorites series: {Food Edition} and {Toy Edition}.

The Great List {11.02.12}

Friday has arrived!  It means the end of the work week for most, but to me it means it's time to reflect on the great stuff that happened this week.   

1.  Halloween was a blast!  A two-year-old can be touch-and-go when it comes to their mood, but both Leila and Charlie had a successful night of trick-or-treating.  Leila could care less about the candy (this year) and was more focused on all the costumes, decorations, and crowds of people instead.

2.  Leila has started turning treating items as babies.  This is good, of course, since in about 4 months she will be a big sister and EVERYTHING will be baby for a while.  She carried my new hairbrush out of the store as a baby and then above you can see she is treating her Mickey Mouse pumpkin wand like a baby.

3.  Jeff's been working a lot of late days and even on Saturdays some weeks.  To combat the monotony of our extended time together, Leila and I joined the play gym, Gymboree.  We got a great deal for the month and will follow it up with the free month I won in a raffle.  It will be our special Mommy and Leila time each week!

4.  I am back to meal planning for two weeks now!  After my parents left it was difficult to get back into the swing of things.  I relied on them for dinner for two weeks, a great break, but it got me out of the habit.  I am learning the best method for me and will be sharing recipes as I try them.  

“Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn’t learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn’t learn a little, at least we didn’t get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn’t die; so, let us all be thankful."   — Buddha

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Come back here each week for my newest list and don't forget to check out Betsy's list each week too.  Warning...positive thinking is addicting!

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Thanks kid. Halloween is fun again!

Halloween hasn't been my thing since, I don't know, about 1991.  Right around the start of high school, Halloween lost it's fun factor.  Maybe it was the fact that I was too old to go trick-or-treating without feeling like a creep.  Or maybe it was that I started caring how I looked in my costume, or more importantly, how I looked to other people.

Then came college Halloween.  The parties were fun, but the candy was missing.  The costumes got skimpier and more creative.  I just couldn't keep up. I didn't care about winning any costume contests so I drank, people watched, and called it a night.

After college the trend of skimpy or creative costumes continued.  I officially gave up.  I think I wore the same pink wig three years in a row for lack of a better idea.  

As a teacher, Halloween was a holiday that made me want to drink the second the calendar changed from September to October.  I embraced the chaos, played into with the hype, and prepared myself for a long month.  At the end of the day on October 31st, I would rip down all the Halloween decor in the classroom and pretend the kids weren't going to show up half asleep or high on sugar the next day.

Now, as a mom of a two-year old, Halloween is fun again.  I know I will be knee deep in holiday craziness for years to come, but for now I am enjoying the Halloween festivities.

On Halloween morning Leila couldn't have been happier to put on her costume. She squealed with delight and was equally pumped that I threw on my tried-and- true pink wig.

Thanks Leila.  Thanks for bringing the FUN back into Halloween!