There's a new sheriff in town

A quick picture from Will's Halloween party this morning. I guess there are actually two new sheriffs in town. 3 1/2 is such a wonderful age for Halloween. He's beyond amazed at all of the costumes and decorations. He's still little enough to be scared by the scary stuff so I don't have to look at anything gross. He doesn't care that another friend in his class has the exact same outfit as he does. In fact, he thinks it's pretty cool. Most importantly? He forgets about all the candy he got trick-or-treating in my office and Grandpa's office, so when we recycle it on Sunday, he won't even notice.
Happy Halloween to the cutest 3 1/2 yr old in all the land.

Beautous and the Beast

A few weeks ago I bought the newly released "Beauty and the Beast" movie for the kids. It's been a big hit. We've watched it for the last three Fridays in a row. During the first viewing, both Will and Reina were scared at a few scenes but we managed to get all of the way through it. We dance to the songs and Will likes to sing along. It makes me giggle to hear him walking around the house singing "beautous and the beast."

We're dealing with some serious teenager attitudes around here. Reina's answer for just about everything is "no." Reina, are you hungry? No. Do you want to take a bath? No. Do you love mommy? No. The only 'yes' we get is if we ask her if she wants a lollipop.

Will's latest speech development is to point out when he thinks I'm not listening to him. For the record, I listen to just about every word he says. He's just not always happy with my response. This morning, he yelled up the stairs about something and I thought he was talking about cartoons. I responded that I would turn on Curious George in minute and he hollered back, "Mom, I'm not talking about cartoons. I'm talking about Halloween candy!" Needless to say, no one in our house gets to eat Halloween candy at 6:45 a.m. Not even me....

Reina's Halloween costume

I had to wait until it was a little closer to Halloween to reveal Reina's Halloween costume because I didn't want you to be overwhelmed by cuteness. Have you ever seen a cuter garden gnome? She needs to be standing in someone's flower bed with a birdbath and a pink flamingo. You can't see quite the entire outfit in this picture because she won't stand still long enough for me to get a shot, but there's a little skirt and pink elf shoes. It's too much cuteness! We went to a local church's Halloween party last night and it was a good preview of next Sunday's level of excitement and sugar high. There were some great games and activities for the kids. Will started off the evening with the donut game. (You have to eat a donut tied to a string with your hands behind your back). Listen, if there's a donut involved, Will finds a way to compete. I don't have very much time to update you on Bronco Baby activities because there have been too many of them lately and I'm tired. But I did want to record the fact that Glenn went to his first professional football game today. Unfortunately, the Broncos played awful but we managed to have a little fun anyway. Hey look - it's the elusive Bronco Baby parents!

Hodge podge

Lots to blog about, little time to blog. So here's a photo montage of a few of the highlights from the past week.

It's a girl and her daddy! Or as Reina says, "Daggy." We'll be featuring a special post about The Beard soon, so stay tuned. Both kids are fighting colds this week (again) so Reina's face is a little shinier than usual. She's still cute though! Speaking of Reina, this girl loves her shoes. And brother's shoes, and mommy's shoes, you get the picture. We took the kids to get flu shots yesterday afternoon and I brought them home for naps, instead of taking them back to school. They tag-teamed their naps, meaning Reina fell asleep while Will was still awake and then she woke up right as he was falling asleep. It made it really easy for me to get some other work done that afternoon. Yup, that last sentence was dripping with sarcasm. So anyway, Reina wakes up, finds things to amuse herself with and comes trotting out wearing her brother's shoes. The scary thing is that they almost fit!

This post is pretty Reina-heavy but that's mainly because she's the only one who will sit still long enough to get her picture taken. She was looking so grown-up after her bath the other night that I had to take a few pictures. Pretty in pink! Parents are so irritating! Stay out of my picture, mom. It's Reina on Blue Dog! Here's a picture of a slightly younger and more enthusiastic Will on Blue Dog.

We were down in Denver for part of the weekend and took a quick trip to the zoo. The weather was perfect and both kids are so animal-crazed that everyone had a good time. Most importantly? We had ice cream! Remember this drama? Well this time, she got her own cone and everyone was happy.

It's the elusive 3 1/2 yr old! It looks like that picture was taken through a window. I don't know what that smudge is on the camera lens. Chocolate/vanilla swirl ice cream? Maybe....

Holy cow, who's this big kid? Will's looking and acting more and more like a big boy and less and less like my cute little squishy baby. It's fun and a tad bittersweet at the same time. I wonder if the momma giraffe in the background feels the same way about her baby boy? I've been keeping a list of all of the weird things Will comes up with lately but that's another blog post. Here's a preview: We watched "Beauty and the Beast" last weekend and now he walks around the house singing, "beautous and the beast..."
One last event to record for all of eternity. I ran a half marathon in Denver over the weekend. I've run a few other ones and my only goal has been to just finish the race without barfing. This year, I decided to have a time goal in mind. My goal was 2 hrs 30 minutes and I finished in an astonishing 2:28:33. Yeah! 90 seconds to spare! I was pretty happy with my time and I don't think any 11-year olds beat me this time around. I wanted to memorialize my jogging hat on the blog because I'm getting some pressure to throw it away. What do you think? Yeah, the white stuff is sweat. Lovely.

Boston, part 2

I had a great time in Boston! Kids and Glenn survived without me and I had a few days of rest, relaxation and long walks with my aunt and sis. It was a lovely Fall weekend in the Northeast. I heard that they are expecting snow and 50 mph winds this weekend so we really lucked out. I didn't take as many pictures as I should have, and none of my pictures contain people (that I'm related to anyway), but I wanted to share a few memories from my trip.

Here's the inside of the hotel we stayed it. The Fairmont Copley Plaza was beautiful and fancy and I felt like a hillbilly in my jeans and Wyoming tshirt. Here's a view of the lobby:

On Sunday, we took the train out to Cambridge so that we can wander around Harvard. We ended up wandering around a little more than we had planned but we did walk by this famous structure - for all of you "Good Will Hunting" fans:

Trinity Church was right across the street from our hotel. It's not an incredibly old building but the inside is amazing. If you are ever in Boston, add this to your "must-see" list. There's a rockin' gift shop, too.

On Friday, we walked The Freedom Trail. The guidebooks say that the Trail is only 2.5 miles but that's total phooey. It has to be way longer than that. But it's pretty cool. We walked by many buildings and sites that were crucial to the start of the American revolution. Hey look - it's Paul Revere's house! I think this is one of the oldest remaining houses in Boston.

Speaking of Paul Revere, here's his grave. We wandered through a few cemeteries. A bit morbid, but pretty fascinating too. Here's the Old North Church where the Boston patriots hung the "two if be sea" lanterns to signal to Paul Revere about the movements of the British Army. This church hasn't changed much since 1775 and I felt like I was taking a step back in time when I walked in. One of the interpretative signs along the Freedom Trail pointed out that Paul Revere probably did not ride through the streets yelling "The British are coming, the British are coming!" First of all, he was trying to avoid being arrested so he probably would have kept pretty quiet. Secondly, at that point in history, they were all British! There wasn't an America yet. So if he had said anything, it would have been "the Redcoats are coming..." It was quite the educational trip! The monument at Bunker Hill. Pretty impressive, it's like a miniature version of the George Washington monument in D.C. At this point in the day, my legs were starting to get reallllly tired. Luckily, we fueled up with some pastries from a famous local Boston bakery landmark on the way back.

This picture is solely for one Mr. Will Pauley. Firetrucks!!

I arrived back home late Monday night, tired but refreshed and happy to be back. One Tuesday morning, both kids woke up and were pretty happy to see me. Will immediately asked for his presents and so I pulled them out of my suitcase. Reina got lots of books and a cute dog/cat tshirt. I brought Will a tricorn hat and a bag of plastic Revolutionary War soldiers, complete with cannons, horses and some Hessian troops thrown in for good measure. Upon unwrapping his "soldier hat", Will informs me "But I didn't ask for a soldier hat. I asked for a COWBOY BELT." Yes, the days of him being excited by the little plastic bag of pretzels from the airplane are looooooong gone.

Here are the soldiers. We have the quite battle going on, on top of our coffee table. Given the precision at which they've been placed, I think it's clear that I bought the soldiers for the wrong boy in our family. Maybe he can trade his tshirt for the toy soldiers. Or he can go out and buy a cowboy belt and negotiate a swap.....

My conversation with Canyon

I'm taking an online writing class and one of our recent assignments was to practice writing dialogue. I decided to tackle something that's been weighing on my mind most of this year. I wanted to put it on this blog so that I'll have it to refer back to... when it's time to make a tough decision.

Dialogue with my 15-yr old dog

Me: Good morning ol’ girl. How are you today?

Canyon: I need to pee.

Me: Let’s go outside, it’s a pretty day!

Canyon: I’d prefer to just go right here on the floor but since you’re standing here looking at me expectantly, I guess I’ll go outside.

(Later)

Me: Here, let me help you up these stairs. I know you’ve been having trouble with them lately.

Canyon: Stairs suck. But I hate being carried. It’s embarrassing.

Me: Oh Canyon girl. I don’t know if I’m doing the right thing. I can’t decide if it’s time to let you go. I wish you could tell me what you want.

Canyon: I’m hungry for ham.

Me: Everyone says I’ll know when it’s the right time but I don’t know if that’s true. You’ve been my dog since you were 5 weeks old and I hate to think that you can’t hear and I know you can’t see very well and I worry that maybe you think I’ve stopped talking to you. I know I don’t spend as much time with you as I should but the two kids keep me so busy.

Canyon: I’m not a big fan of the kids. I like the husband though.

Me: I just wish I knew what to do. You hate the vet SO BADLY and I can’t imagine having to take you there for one last time. You are so smart, you know that building and you get all slinky when we pull into that parking lot.

Canyon: I think you worry too much.

Me: A long time ago, I asked you to stay alive until I had kids. You were like my kid and I couldn’t imagine life without you. You’ve held up your end of the bargain but I don’t know if I’m holding up mine.

Canyon: I was never your kid. We were roommates.

Me: I’ve had you my whole adult life and I guess I can’t imagine a world without you in it. Am I being selfish? Do you want to move on to the next step? You can’t jog with me anymore and the rabbits in our front yard are getting fat because nobody chases them.

Canyon: You’ll know what to do. I’ve always trusted you to take care of me. I’m alright for now. But I could use another piece of ham and if you can keep that blond haired kid out of my water bowl, I would really appreciate it.

Leavin' on a jet plane

I’m typing this from an airplane high above the Midwest. The airplane wi-fi keeps flickering in and out so I don’t know how much of this will get posted. I’ve left both Bronco Babies and their dad behind in Wyoming so that I can have a girls weekend with their Aunt Vicky and my Aunt Mary. I’m looking forward to it. It still hard to leave the kiddos but I know they are in good hands. We’ve had A LOT of quality time together lately so I think they’ll enjoy having their dad to themselves for a little while.

Everything has been so hectic that I haven’t had time for a proper update so I’m trying to steal a few minutes to jot down everything that’s been going on lately. Totally unrelated, but in an ironic twist of fate, my seatmates are a rambunctious 4-yr old and her little 15-month old sister. While it’s making me miss the kids, it’s also making me glad that I’m not flying with either one of them right now.

Back at home, Will and Reina are both getting over colds. Glenn took Will to the doctor earlier in the week because his pesky cough was getting any better. The doctor remarked that Will has pretty large tonsils so he’s recommended that Will gets tested for sleep apnea. When I first heard that, I had visions of us trying to get Will to sleep in a clinic while being strapped to all sorts of sensors and wires. Hmmm, the boy who insists that his pajamas be removed when there’s one drop of water on them… yeah, that’s really going to happen. It turns out that we just have to keep a small oxygen monitor on his finger for a couple of nights. Phew.

I made the mistake of googling “pediatric sleep apnea” and found all sorts of (un)helpful information. The daytime symptoms of pediatric sleep apnea are inability to concentrate, mood swings, temper tantrums and grumpiness. So every three-year old I know must have sleep apnea, right?

Speaking of sleep, Miss Reina is going through a delightful phase of not wanting to sleep by her lonesome. She’s been battling a cold, so I think that’s partially to blame. Last night, she finally stayed put all night and it was nice for all involved. Her vocabulary continues to increase. This week she’s been pointing to her nose and saying “nose, nose, nose, nose, nose, nose…” until someone notices. She can name all of her main facial features. I think she’s going to be a dermatologist. She’s also learning the art of “no” and “MINE!” While she hasn’t said “no” yet, she can shake her head as fiercely as anyone I know. She’s also throwing out the occasional “MINE” when someone (Will) takes something deemed especially valuable.

I’m going to miss my little monsters.

Likes and dislikes

I have a hundred blog posts floating around in my head, but life keeps getting in the way of me actually sitting down and writing any of them. Vicky and I have been canning in the evenings(anyone want pickles? We have A LOT!), Glenn's been hunting and traveling for work, I've had actual work-work to do after everyone goes to bed, and oh yeah - the new tv shows have started. Things are very hectic around here! So here are some lists (lazy blogger!) and a few pictures to tide you over until things slow down (in 2020?):



Reina LIKES:
Decorating for Halloween. Or un-decorating for Halloween. Pulling off all of the window clings and making eye contact with me and then cramming them into her mouth. All while I'm saying, "No Reina, don't eat those!" Will LIKES: Decorating for Halloween, too. Holding things out of reach of his sister's hands. All things Halloween. He wants to be a firefighter, Buzz Lightyear or Woody for Halloween. Yeah, I know. I already bought him a costume. It remains to be seen whether or not he will actually wear it. Will LIKES: Teasing his sister! Reina LIKES: Teasing her brother!

Reina DISLIKES: Being confined. Being teased by her mother. Bedtime. Sleeping by herself. Having her chupee taking away.

Anything you can do, I can do better

It's been kind of a rough week at the Pauley household. It's one of those "ber" months, which means hunting season and football and all of those other great distractions. Glenn had to travel for work earlier in the week so the kids and I were left to fend for ourselves. All that means is that we might eat a fewer less vegetables at dinner and breakfast is eaten in the car on the way to preschool. I also stay up way too late watching tv or goofing off. So that makes me tired the next day and less able to handle toddler chaos and blah blah blah. On top of all of that, Will's caught a cold and is coughing all over this house. I think we're all pretty happy that it's the weekend.

In the meantime, the great sociological experiment continues. Are gender traits learned or inherent? Check out Miss Reina Pauley here. Will comes downstairs wearing his Woody costume so she finds the jacket and after some pointed grunts and gestures, she gets me to help her put it on. She also finds the hat because you can't very well be a firefighter without a hat. My brother dresses as a cowboy? Well, I can too! I'm too tired tonight for more recaps, so I'll just leave with you a couple pictures of a cute 3 1/2 yr old. More about this crazy week later.