The Adventures of Max Max

Today I heard a noise in the kitchen, not unusual since Max thinks my kitchen is a playground. But I decided to check and see what he was up to and this is what I found...Max pushing one of my dining room chairs through the kitchen to the entry hall.

Here he got the chair stuck on the corner of the wall...this only slightly slowed him down.

He calmly walked around the chair, to the other side. And began to push it back through the kitchen, and I would assume that the dining room was his goal...notice the empty milk jug on the floor.

As he as pushing the chair back to where it belonged, he also noticed the milk jug as it got stuck under the chair. He proceeded to pick it up and put it on the chair to take with him. As a side note, the chair did not make it back to the dining room - Max got distracted (of course) and wandered away...Mommy put it back in the dining room.

Because They Amuse Me

My two cats never cease to make me smile....to think that in a few short months they have gone from hating each other (well more Flower then Mushu) to napping together in my bed. These pictures are from yesterday and they were doing it again today...in fact one time I looked in the room, it looked like they were cuddling or something.

The Great Pumpkin

So, with every intention of doing better and having regular family nights. This Monday, Greg (with much prodding by me) and I gathered our pumpkins from the trip to the pumpkin patch and got to carving...

Greg is really not that thrilled that I am taking pictures instead of helping...eventually he got over it...well sort of.

Max wasn't so sure at first, and then he knocked over the bowl of pumpkin guts. As you can see he thought he did something wrong, I of course laughed and took a picture...then he was happy to play.

Max had a grand time with this process.

I am not so sure Greg should have been allowed to have a knife...does anyone else think he has a slightly crazed look in his eyes?

Wesley really wanted nothing to do with carving pumpkins. But once he saw Max having fun, he decided to join in and then there was no stopping him...he really truly did start to have fun.

Here the boys are playing with the newly carved pumpkin, both were happy as long as they had a spoon to play with...just like Mommy and Daddy had.

Notice the mess on the floor and then all over Max.

Greg finally seemed to be having fun once he was able to start carving the face into his pumpkin. And then as he finished cleaning up the mess and the boys were in bed...I roasted the pumpkin seeds - I only slightly burned this batch...I will do better next time and I will make them spicier.

On our front porch...now if I could just remember to buy candles to go in them, I would be doing really good. Seriously, I have been to WalMart twice this week already and have forgotten both times.

Trunk or Treat...in the Rain

Last night was the our ward's Trunk or Treat...and it rained and it was being held outdoors. But I knew that there would be shelter so we put the boys in their costumes and we headed out to have a good time....
So, when I mention we planned to have a good time, I should reference that with the fact that Wesley was not happy about putting on his costume. He kicked and screamed and tried to get away from me. And being the good Mom that I am, I held him down and put the costume on him anyway because we were going to have fun.

Once the costume was on, he seemed to perk up and he did start to enjoy having it on or that fact that it would get him "candies"

Parading around with the costumes...Captain Awesome and Mighty Max.
Still part of the parade...notice the wet marks on Wesley's cape and pants. He loved playing in the rain...it did not seem to slow any of the children down last night.

Splashing in the puddles...notice the wet curly hair? He REALLY loved playing in the rain.
Getting ready for the candy...apparently the best part of the night in the kids opinion.
Wesley would rarely say "Trick or Treat" but he did say please and as he got braver...well then he just would reach into the bowls and help himself to whatever he felt like taking.
Max managed to stay dry but he so wanted to get down and play with the rest of the kids in the rain and puddles.
Picture of Max's Mighty Max cape (he is trying to get to the bath tub and does not want to stop for pictures).

So all in all it was a fun night...we headed home and straight for the bath tub to warm up the cold, wet bodies. And then all Wesley could do was ask for candies and then throw a fit when one piece was not enough...

Crafts

So today was my turn to host craft day at my house (once a month I get together with my sister in laws and mother in law to do crafts). I got the supplies back to my office/craft room but I did not get all (read: basically everything was still on the floor) of them put away. Well of course Max had to see what Mommy was doing (Facebook playing FarmTown, I know a minor addiction) and the craft supplies were just too tempting for him...

I tried to get the picture of him sitting in the middle of the supplies but he moved way to quickly.

So then, since the closet was open, he went after what was put away.

Don't you love the saggy butt of the onesie that is too big?

He stood up to gain better access to the drawers and really they are not easy to open...this kid is really good.

I tried to get a picture of his devilish grin, but he would turn around again before I could snap the picture.

There is a version of his devilish grin...this one is saying - now I will move on to the book case and pull off as much as I can before Mommy stops me.

Make Shift Kitty Bed

This morning before work, Greg decided it was time to cut his hair. So, being the good husband he is, he removed everything from the bathroom in order to keep it from getting covered with hair. But being that he is male (sorry guys, sometimes it is just true), he neglected to put the stuff back in the bathroom when he was finished. And by the way, the broom he used to clean up the bathroom when finished, is still in the bathroom. And as for me, well I just have not had the chance yet and really he needs to clean it up himself (I think I may be a little hormonal and I just don't want to do it). But bathroom rug in the hallway does seem to make a good cat bed.

Pumpkin Patch

Now that Wesley is a little older, Greg insisted that we get pumpkins to carve. Last year we did not do it because quite frankly I was pregnant and cranky and I did not want the mess. So, this year we set out to The Berry Ranch to pick out pumpkins. We hopped on the the tractor pulled hay ride, in search of the perfect pumpkins... Greg and Wesley on the way to the field of pumpkins. Wesley loved the hay ride, and looking at all the fields around us. He especially liked the tractors that pulled the trailers.

Max and Mommy on the hay ride. Please note that this is the last time that we saw him happy on this little adventure. After this picture he started crying and did not stop until we had returned to the place where we paid for our pumpkins. And when I say cry, I mean full blown squealing temper tantrum and all because he wanted a nap.

Wesley holding his pumpkin...the rule was that he had to be able to carry it himself (in order to get the super cheap price). This is the only picture from the pumpkin field because Greg was in charge of the camera and with Max in melt down mode, I was rushing them through the selection process.Max finally settled down, really I think he just gave up. Poor kid, next year we will not be making this trip without naps. These last two are my favorites...Greg got us a wheelbarrow to get the pumpkins to the car. Wesley loved riding in it with three pumpkins...Max got a free one just for being with us and Greg was able to pick a huge one...Again, he just had to be able to carry it from the field to claim the great prices.

From Baby to Toddler

And Mom is so not ready for this transition, I want my baby to stay a baby for a little longer and Max is determined to catch up to his big brother. Wesley did not walk until he was nearly 15 months old and here it is the day before he will be 11 months old and Max has been experimenting with walking all weekend. He will be running through this house quicker then I ever imagined. Also, noteworthy for Max - he now has 7 teeth...way below Wesley's average of 12 teeth by 12 months but we are fine with this. Max will eat practically anything, unless it is green and then he spits it back at you. He also is having a hard time with Mommy and Daddy feeding him...we are apparently not fast enough and he would rather feed himself. Unfortunately he is just not eating enough foods to stop the baby food at this point but we are getting much closer. Max will wave, he will clap, and he will pick up, get out, or touch anything and everything in his path. With Wesley we did not "baby proof" the house, with Max we have installed the cupboard door latches and every door in the house must be shut - especially the bathrooms because toilet water is just too tempting. Oh, and toilet paper tastes yummy. And before my Christmas tree can go up I must purchase a fence to put around it (Wesley never touched my tree the last two years, he didn't even touch the packages except to use them as blocks to build with...love his imagination) and I think some sort of baby gate is in our near future to keep him more contained (because he is super fast on his knees...on his feet scares me).

Sorry there is not a new picture...Max has been sick with a fever and in no mood for a picture session. But of course there will be new pictures at a future time. Maybe a video of him walking when he really takes off :o)

Awesome!

My boys are awesome, and to top it all off...Wesley's new favorite word is awesome. Everything in his world these days is awesome and well, it makes me smile. Max is just so cute and I can not believe that a year has almost past (one month to go)...he waves his pudgy hands, babbles, hates waiting to be spoon fed (he would much rather feed himself), and is so close to walking (I believe he walks when we are not looking because I have seen a few steps but he stops when he notices me looking). I love Wesley's imagination, the blue tub of blocks is where he takes a "bath", he talks to people on an old cell phone, he "cooks" using mommies pots, pans, and utensils, my flour canisters are drums, his view finder is binoculars . Max has the most infectious laugh...a deep belly laugh mixed with the baby giggle - I hope he never loses this. Wesley is now asking for coffee - I am trying to figure out where he learned this since we are not coffee drinkers. But I am beginning to wonder if all of those hours watching Gilmore Girls while pregnant and then after and really it continues still is effecting him and teaching him about coffee. Yesterday, I made hot chocolate for me and Greg and Wesley asked for some coffees. That is the other fun thing in Wesley's world lately - words that should not be plural are suddenly plural...it is grapes juice (which really? it makes sense, the juice is made from more then one grape. Max has learned to turn off the TV, change the channel, and turn up/down the volume - this is still as annoying as it was when Wesley figured it out.