Monster March '08

We enjoyed beautiful fall weather for this year's Monster March. Naomi and family, my mom, sister and niece all joined us for pumpkin bread, cider and cocoa to energize ourselves for the big march. Here are a few shots of our trek.

Naomi proves that she is one hot chick as she prepares for her 2nd Monster March. Last year she was a ladybug.

We arrive at the tail end of the parade start. Max and Syd are ready to march!

Aunt Shelby is kind enough to carry Max part of the parade route when he decides strollers are for sissies. That's his bandleader pose. He was getting a bid carried away with the marching theme.

A certain 6-year-old witch decides this would be a fine time for a stroller ride.

A group shot of Max and Naomi and their caretakers.

The Perfect Pumpkin

Full disclosure....no, we didn't actually buy this pumpkin. I mean look at it, it's really heavy. We went back to the barn and bought one the size of Max's head. Much easier to carry! Although Max did choose the big pumpkin above by himself. I think he did very well!

That's Alex's mom next to him. She came up and we spent a busy weekend at the pumpkin patch, Zoo, all over!

Things in Things

I realized that I haven’t done a very good job at updating on what Max is up to. That was supposed to be my purpose after all. Max turns 14 months today and is a confident, mischevious, sweetheart boy. He struts around the house investigating everything with curiosity. Books are a new favorite and I love when he comes barreling over to me with a book, hands it over and crashes into my lap. When music comes on he begins a rather spastic baby bop dance.

His language is developing as well. Although mostly babble, he can say meow, oo oo (owl/monkey noise), mama, dada, and ball. Ball is his personal favorite and he calls everything “ball”. Although he can point to the ball in his book so we’re assured that he does actually know what one is.

Recently Max has developed an obsession with things in things. The most obvious example of this is Max taking his bath. He insists that everything (toys, bottles, washcloths, etc.) be in the tub and not on the ledge. If anyone dares to set a shampoo bottle down, Max will immediately swipe at it to knock it in the tub. His love extends to playtime as well which is quite convenient when it comes time to pick up his blocks. Then again, it’s not so convenient when he secretly tosses items in the trash. Surveying the trash for items that don’t belong has become routine in our house.

Speaking of things in things, for those of you that haven’t found out otherwise, I have a “thing” in me (a.k.a. Baby #2)! We’re excited to welcome this newest member to our family this Spring. I’m certain Max will pass on all of his critical learnings.