Happy Halloween

Oh no, a monkey escaped from the zoo! I think I'll keep him.

We had to practice Trick-or-Treating before visiting our neighbors. Only one was home and this monkey become pretty shy.

Next stop, Boo at the Zoo. Harrison is mimicking the birds and we're looking silly.

The boys are scoping out the monkeys. Harrison felt a special bond with them. Happy Halloween!

Anthropologie

Yeah, our Anthropologie is now open. I'm always so inspired after a visit.

This is the area outside of the dressing room. Cool.

Kid Music

There's some really bad and annoying children music out in the world BUT there's also some creative and jammin' music too. Lately, we're been listening to They Might Be Giants, Here Come the 123s. Ryan prefers High Five while I like Seven (which is about a bunch of numbers 7s going to an apartment and eating cake).  Click HERE to watch the video "I Never Go To Work."

Pride and Sadness

After all our "hard work" the pumpkins are finished! I think they look fabulous. Above is Harrison's on the left and Ryan's on the right.

The arched cat is mine and Lucy's is the one with mice chewing it. She never gets around to carving hers so every year a family of mice moves in and makes it their home. 

Okay, here's the sad part. The next morning, as Ryan was leaving for work, he discovered someone had kidnapped his pumpkin! Harrison and I saw one in the road a couple houses down. Unfortunately, upon closer inspection it wasn't ours. Harrison said "that makes me sad." At least, we'll always have the memories and pictures.

Website Wednesday - Scale of the Universe

People seem to comment more on Ryan's pick for WW so here's another suggestion from him. Click HERE to see the Scale of the Universe. You'll find out how big AND small we really are. Some of the objects are pretty crazy, like the Giant Earthworm that's around 21 feet!

Carving Time

It's that time of year to carve our pumpkins. It's been so warm lately, we've had to wait so they won't completely rot out. 

Harrison is more than willing to help but he did keep saying "this is hard work." I think we heard that about 23 times.

Monday Surprise

Mondays are my least favorite day of the week. The weekends seem to fly by and then there's always Monday which drags on and on. On this particular Monday, Harrison went roaming around the town with Bob. When he came back he had a bouquet of flowers in his hands. Bob said he wanted to get some flowers for Mama. He already is such a thoughtful person. Thanks for making my Monday special!

Mr. Silly

Harrison found this book at the library (Happy Birthday, Jesse Bear written by Nancy White Carlstrom and illustrated by Bruce Degen) and he can't seem to put it down. We've read it about ten times today and on the last page, he always asks the same question.

H: What are they doing? (pointing to the top picture)

Me: They're resting. They're exhausted. They've had a long day of birthday preparation and fun.

Me: What's going on in the bottom picture?

H: Oh, he's cutting logs and then I'm going to put them all in a dump truck.

For those of you who don't know, "cutting logs" also means snoring. Last week I said Nana was cutting logs on the coach. He somehow remembered :)

Here's a few other funny things he's said lately.

H: Dada, I want some couscous. (This was said in his bed before he fell asleep.)

H: Black juice makes the world go round. (Since his favorite color is black, we call any dark juice, black.)

H: I just don't like naps. (He said this upon waking from a two hour one.)

Plant ID?

Isn't this plant the coolest? It's not bamboo but I'm not sure what it is . . . I asked the museum but now I forget. Anyone know? They stand about 3 feet high.

Zanny Zoo Time

I took the day off  and spent it at the zoo with H and his cousins. I think Harrison is trying to climb through the hole. Always curious.

Oh NO!

Lately, Harrison has been insisting on wearing his socks with his sandals. He's ready for retirement.

Website Wednesday - Wilderness Downtown

If you haven't experienced Arcade Fire's Wilderness Downtown, click HERE. Amazing.

More Chalkboard Paint

Our mailbox was looking pretty ratty so I decided to paint it a nice green color. Well, every time Harrison went by it, he told me to paint it back black. The two-year-old wore me down and I choose black chalkboard paint. Thanks for harassing me, little man. It looks better this way.

Thanks Uta!

We received a special package all the way from Germany. Harrison is pretty excited about learning a second language ;)

Are You Listening?

The other day, I was talking to Harrison and had a funny feeling he wasn't paying attention.

Me: Harrison, when I talk to you do you hear wah waah wah wah waah wah waah wah waaaah waaah waaah wah wah wah

H: Yes

Pumpkin Patch Party

So many to choose from and so many varieties!

Harrison has always taken a liking to older women. 

Silly Dada ran out of gas again.

A tunnel made out of hay proves to be extreme fun.

Hurry up, Dada, he's at it again.

Tough, cousinly love!

This pic is especially for Mr. H.

Finding just the right pumpkin is hard work.

Cotton Pickin'

Wait one cotton pickin' minute, is that a cotton plant on the side of the road?! SSSCREEECH. Never picked cotton before today. It's a must. New found respect.

Curious Monkey

Sometimes I'll let Harrison use a bowl of water to rinse his hands after playing outside. Today, he asked for water to clean his digger. I was peeking on the other side of the door when I saw this happening.

BUSTED! I'll just let this one play out and see what happens.

What's better than dirt? Mud, of course!

I've read that kids who play in the dirt/mud are healthier than ones that don't. These days we use so many antibacterial aids that we don't give our immune system a chance to build up. Play on, kiddo!

Website Wednesday - Under Consideration

Did you hear about the crappy new Gap logo? Well, Gap heard all about it and a week later switched back to the old logo. I was talking about this with a co-worker and he introduced me to this week's website. Click HERE to learn more. Under Consideration is a growing network and enterprise dedicated to the progress of the graphic design profession and its practitioners, students and enthusiasts. At times intangible, its purpose is to question, push, analyze and agitate graphic design and those involved in the profession.

The division called Brand New is uber cool. Its sole purpose is to chronicle and provide opinions on corporate and brand identity work. Click HERE to read all about the Gapgate.

Window Shopping

Design inspiration is the result of window shopping.

Healthy Boys

Remember the twins? Well, they're getting bigger and looking good. It always amazes me how fast the first year flies by and how different they look every month!

Get In My Belly

This is my sweetie boy's smile. Did you notice the band-aid on the cheek? Somehow the coffee table jumped out at him.

His Way

Harrison insisted to me that the goggles belong like this. Way to think outside the box.

Cozy Autumn

When decorating the house, I always hope to achieve a sense of coziness. I want guests to feel comfortable and kick up their feet and relax. Our house is a home.

Most of the autumn decorations will be able to carrying over into Thanksgiving (thank goodness). 

I'm pretty proud of my creativity for this piece. I found this vase at Hobby Lobby and added faux greenery and a real pumpkin.

All of these pumpkins and gourds came from a local nursery. I added a burlap square, which is becoming my favorite material right now. 

Can't forget Mr. H. The dollar store is great for themed window clings.

Simply Fab Wedding Dress

My friend Andria is getting married next year and I think this dress would make quite a statement for her. I would love to see the faces of all the guest when she walks down the aisle in this! Breathtaking. 

Website Wednesday - Photojojo

Click HERE to discover Photojojo. They publish an "insanely great newsletter on photography. More specifically, we scour the internet, rip pages out of magazines, ransack our friends' closets, and go through dumpsters to find teh very best Photo tips, DIY projects and Gear." 

Click HERE for the Photojojo Store. There are several really cool items like the Camera Lens Mug, Chalkboard Speech Bubble,  and Magnetic Polaroid Frames with a dry erase marker (prefect for a stylish fridge). Happy shopping!

Sorry Lucy

The other morning, Ryan and I overheard Harrison talking to Lucy. Here's what he said:

H: I'm sorry, Lucy. You don't have hands, you have paws. You can't pick up things. Sorry.

Lil Devils

Harrison is already gearing up for Halloween. He picked out masks for him and dada.

What a pair of sillies!

Fabric Wallpaper

I couldn't resist this fabric especially since it was 53% off the markdown price. Our back bathroom is pretty tiny so I decided it needed a little pazazz and this was the creative solution. 

All it took was about two yards of fabric, liquid starch, tacks, sponges and sponge brush. First, we tacked it into place with help from a hammer. Next soaked the sponge in the liquid starch and start spreading over the fabric. I discovered it works better to wipe the wall too with starch. Warning, the fabric will stretch. Let dry for about a day. Use metal ruler and exacto knife to trim the edges. 

The nice part is it's easy to peal off and doesn't remove paint or damage the wall. My roommate in college and I used this technique for our dorm room. I'll post another pic once I decide what to hang on the wall.