Halloween

Parker's first Halloween was a blast.  On the 30th, we took Parker to Boo at the Zoo with our friends Tim, Courtney and their son Tucker.  I couldn't believe how great Parker did wearing his costume.  I thought for sure he would try to rip off the hat or his tail.  Instead, he wore it happily, took all of the lights, sites, and costumes in, and happily collected candy for his mom and dad to eat.

Parker the Fox and Tucker the Scarecrow

every area at the zoo had stops for getting candy and treats

going through the corn maze

Spencer did his best to point Parker to the M&Ms and Kit Kats

Riding the Train

One happy fox

On Halloween night, we attended the neighborhood party with a lot of our neighbor friends.  This family invites the whole neighborhood, who brings drinks and desserts.  They had pizza there for us all, and we had a great time.  After the sun sets, everyone takes off to trick or treat.  It was so fun to actually participate this year!

Erica and Merrick came by....I think he was ready for bedtime, so he didn't make it to the party with us.  But he was an awfully cute frog!

playing at the party

Family trick or treating

Parker's first piece of pizza- there is nothing he won't eat!

Oh- and Parker was a fox for Halloween.  Spencer's mom, Debbie, taught me how to sew last month, and we created the costume by tweaking a Simplicity pattern for a bear.  It was a very ambitious first project, but I think it turned out great.  Some people asked if he was a gremlin, which makes me laugh. I can see how he might be a little Gizmo-ish, but I loved how it turned out!

Here was the pattern.  We created our own ears, skipped the elastic waste, and embellished the tail.  I made the 2T size, but it looks like Parker will be able to wear this costume for several years- it was HUGE!  I loved learning how to sew, though!

10 Months

Dear Sweet Parker,

thinking about walking

What a great month!  So many new things, and you are growing up more and more.  You are trying to stand up by yourself a lot.  Today we counted- almost 20 seconds standing alone before grabbing something to steady yourself.  Your face is priceless when you do this- you smile and your eyes light up.  Sometimes, you will be standing unassisted without realizing it.  I think this will finally be the month you try to walk alone.  You cruise very quickly now, and with your walker, you zoom around at warp speed.

Standing all alone

You are also into EVERYTHING.  You could care less about age appropriate toys.  You'd much rather open all of the drawers and cabinets in the bathroom and play with all of the contents inside.  You love to pull open drawers in the kitchen and pull out all of the pots and pans.  Another favorite daily activity is going to your bookshelf and pulling EVERY book down.

Going through my drawers- I caught you!

Speaking of books- you are really into reading them now.  We've been reading together daily since your first day of life.  But now, you turn the page on cue, open pop up books on your own, and listen intently to the stories.  And now, on your own, I watch you pull down books, turn through the pages, and grab another book after you finish one.  I LOVE this- I have hoped so much that you would be a reader.  Keep it up, baby boy!  This will make you one smart boy.

my sous chef

You have the sippy cup down

10 Month Stats:
Weight: ~20lbs
Height: still 28 inches- when are you going to get taller?...
Teeth: 6
Diet:  4-5 bottles a day, which includes using the sippy cup more and more!  We are starting to feed you a lot of what we eat, which makes you so happy.  You want to try everything that we eat.  You even liked my spaghetti the other night!

Verbally, you are starting to make more sounds.  "Mamama" is heard constantly.  "Gaga" is frequent now too.  You have started with "ka", and you are just now blowing raspberries.  Dad doesn't believe me, but I am pretty sure you have tried saying "dog" this week.  So, it comes out more like "og", but it is pretty consistent when I ask you to say it.  You are still clapping a lot too.  It seems like you are trying to want to communicate more with us these days.

We love our playdates with our friends.  You are mesmerized by other kids, and I think it's time for us to soon start doing a mother's day out or something where you can socialize.  But your best friend of all is your sweet dog Jack.  You two are always wrestling and playing together.  You have started picking up the ball and rolling it to the dog- way to go!

Our first day at the park.  You love playing with Maddie- you just watch her and want to do everything she does! 

You and Jack are pretty much inseparable.  Jack lets you just abuse him, and he licks you constantly.

my little reader

Parker, we love you tremendously.  You make us the happiest parents on earth.  Watching you, teaching you, playing with you, and entertaining you.  You are truly my little sunshine- always laughing and smiling.  Cheers to another fun month all together!

Love-

Mom 

Cooking with Parker

So I have 2 new recipes this week- cajun slaw and pumpkin gooey bars....totally unrelated.  But both utterly delicious!  And cute little Parker was an excellent little sous chef.  Very eager to play the drums with pots and pans and lick the whipped cream off of the beaters....I'm training him well, eh?

Cajun Slaw

1/2 cup mayonnaise                                      1 12oz pkg brocolli slaw mix                   
2 T creole or whole-grain mustard             2 small bell peppers, thinly sliced
Juice of 1 lemon                                            3 scallions
2 T drained horseradish                               2 teasp Cajun seasoning
2 teaspoons brown sugar

Whisk the mayonnaise, mustard, lemon juice, horseradish, Cajun seasoning and brown sugar in a small bowl. Toss the slaw mix, bell peppers and scallions in a large bowl. Add the mayonnaise dressing and toss to coat.
*I didn't have scallions, so I threw in some chopped tomatoes instead- it was great!*

(This is from Food Network Magazine, May 2012 or at the Food Network website)

Paula Deen's Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cake

Ingredients

Cake:
1 18 1/4-ounce package yellow cake mix
1 egg
8 tablespoons butter, melted

Filling:
1 15-ounce can of pumpkin
1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
8 tablespoons butter, melted
1 16-ounce box powdered sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

To make the cake, combine all of the ingredients and mix well.  Pat the mixture into a lightly greased 13x9-inch baking pan. 

Prepare filling:
In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and pumpkin until smooth.  Add the eggs, vanilla, and butter and beat together. 

Next, add the powdered sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and mix well. 

Spread pumpkin mixture over cake batter and bake for 40 to 50 minutes.  Make sure not to over bake as the center should be a little gooey.

Serve with fresh whipped cream.

Like Father, Like Son....Parker very interested in the Coke cans

a boy after my own heart

I also tried something new tonight- I baked a spaghetti squash- it was AMAZING- the smell in the kitchen was intoxicating, and it was so incredibly simple!

Here it is after I scraped it out of the shell.  I also made a homemade spaghetti sauce and poured it over the squash like they were my noodles.  It was really delicious!  This might be a good way to get more veggies in my children one day if they ever get too picky....

Fall Days and a Pumpkin Patch!

I love the fall.  I love the cool, crisp air.  I love lazy Saturdays with football on all day long.  I love warm apple cider, pumpkin flavored treats, the changing leaves, and everything else associated with the season.

Some cool pumpkins for our front steps- I loved the texture on these!

Last week, Parker and I joined some of our closest friends and their babies at a local pumpkin patch, posed for some pics, and picked out some cool pumpkins to take home.  It was so much fun, and it just added another favorite activity for the season.  Plus- Parker looked precious in his little overalls.

After our trip out, we went to Erica's house for a delicious lunch and ended with Paula Deen's pumpkin gooey bars, topped with homemade cinnamon whipped cream.  There are NO words to describe this heavenly treat- it was out of this world.  I believe I will be making them very soon...

Madeline checking out the choices

too busy for Mom's kisses

Erica with her precious Merrick- he is getting so big!

So cute- I wonder what they are thinking

I can't remember Parker being this small- Merrick is so cuddly! 

While posing- Parker reached over to kiss Merrick's head- so funny!

Sharing some cheerios