How To Have A Good Day

1. wake up around 7.  read books and watch maru videos in bed. 
 (search "maru the cat" on youtube. you will not be sorry.)
 
2. have an indoor tea party / picnic.  work on "cheers"ing when you drink and ignore babyzilla knocking over the china and gobbling up the kix.

3. if you're < 2 take a long nap between 10am-1pm.  if you're > 2 take advantage of the two hours overlap.  maybe even shower.  more importantly, take advantage of the one-on-one time with awake baby.  

4. be prepared. get organized.  hummus doesn't hurt. 

5.  collect sticks and pine cones. walk to the mail box.  look for airplanes.
or all of the above.

6. paint.  use the pine cones you collected. who really wants them hanging around anyway?  

and don't bother naming the colors over and over.  just make a mess. 

7.  take a destinationless train ride. 

(this step requires a grandmother who is willing to drop you off and pick you up a few towns over.) 
 
8. watch blues clues.
9. make a train with cardboard boxes.  < 2 hop in for a ride.  > 2 push it all over the house.

10. be exhausted.  < 2 act cranky for at least half an hour before bed.   > 2 remain calm, ignore the crankiness, and put the little people to sleep.

(some days are better than others.  today was great)

Halloween Happened.

Stella caught on to the whole "trick or treat" idea quickly.  Anton mostly went along for the ride.

The costume shoot was several weeks later.  Anton was starting into 4 weeks of respiratory infections on Halloween (see above).  He was a happier elephant in November. 

 I was planning a Goodnight, Gorilla themed Halloween.  It was Stella's first favorite book.  She talked about the keys constantly.  I was going to be Joe the Zookeeper and get Stella a set of keys to go with her Gymboree monkey.  Ta. Da.  But things got away from me.  

Funny that I can't remember what had me so busy in October.