Christmas Decorating Time!

I (mb) love decorating for Christmas. I love the glow of lights and smell of pine for the whole month. Christmas clean-up is very sad. I am ready to have the tree up and Christmas village lit the day after Thanksgiving. Adam made me wait a week to get the tree! How frustrating! Well, Clark helped pick out the tree (sort of - he was cold and tired) while Clementine watched all nice and warm in her fleece and blankets and then we got to come home and start decorating!! The Metz halls have been decked for 2007 - Clementine's first Christmas!

No Rocks Here

Clark just went to bed after an exciting night of trick-or-treating. Right before he went upstairs to his room he asked if we could go trick-or-treating again tomorrow night. This was his first Halloween that he could really get into the hype.

We've been watching "Charlie Brown and the Great Pumpkin" and he goes around all the time saying, "I got a rock." Before we hit the streets tonight he informed me, "I not want rocks." I think someone should market Charlie Brown Halloween candy that looks like rocks. He was not disappointed. The bowl in the kitchen is definitely not filled with rocks. Thank goodness we work with teenagers that we can share this candy with!

Checking out her Halloween card from Grandma & PaPa - thanks for the Halloween package!

You can't see the jack-o-lanterns that Adam carved in this shot, but you can see Clark's pumpkin he carved with Ruth. He is very proud of it. He wants to make sure "everybody see it" sitting on the front porch.

Clark thinks he's picking out his one piece of candy to eat after trick-or-treating. What's really happening: Dad is surveying the loot to see what he wants to eat as soon as Clark goes to bed.

Imagination

Here are some highlights from our day at the zoo yesterday. This was a special outing because it was the first time that I (MB) took the kids to the zoo by myself. Clark was so tired when we left that he didn't complain about leaving the zoo (a first). His exact words as we were walking to the car were, "My knees tired. My foot start to hurt." Needless to say, he took a great nap yesterday as did Clementine - both of them asleep at the same time=my dream come true.

The picture above is what I saw when I turned around ready to say, "Come on, Clark, stay with Mommy," as we walked from one side of the zoo to the other. His imagination is going crazy right now. When I asked what he was doing he informed me that he was a cat in a tone that suggested I should have known that. Then he experienced a metamorphosis from cat to frog instantaneously. It took a lot longer to get to the other side of the zoo this way, but it was so much more fun than just walking. If Clementine didn't need me to push her stroller I probably would have pretended with him. O.K., so I probably wouldn't have got down on all fours and crawled around the Columbus Zoo, but I like to think that I would have been the kind of mom who does that with her kids!

Clementine was fascinated by the penguins and the aquarium - things she could see from her stroller.

At each exhibit, Clark had to find it on his map. He found the map on the ground and being very litter conscious picked it up and carried it around the rest of the day. He was especially cute while visiting "Chicken Nugget" and telling her where she was on the map. I couldn't believe he remembered this chicken from our last trip. He was eager to visit her and stood there talking to this chicken. Not only did he point out her location on the map, he also informed her, "You say bok."

It so much easier to take pictures of the two of them now that she can sit up! There was a perfect sized dip in this statue for her to nestle into. Mind you, she can still be a bit unsturdy so I am only an arm's length away (I can't believe my outstretched hand is not in the picture!) and this was a quick photo-op.

And I thought Adam took care of the kids while I was away. The cat's out of the bag now - Clark does all the work. What a grown up!

THE ALUM CREEK PUMPKIN PATCH IS BACK!

I'll take........that pumpkin!

Clark had just awakened from a nap, so he wasn't feeling very photogenic.

More of his imagination coming to life...he and Adam built Jacob's Field last night while I made dinner. Speaking of dinner last night...I made squash. Not only did I make it, but I also ate it. Not only did I eat it, but I also liked it! For those of you who know me, this is a big deal! What has come over me - eating vegetables?

At least our kids make us happy!

Clark was intrigued by mixing colors! Making purple was fascinating to him! I love watching those wheels turn and those eyes light up when he thinks he has discovered something that no one else has ever known.


Wow! Is this kid a Hasting or what?


Who is that kid looking at me?


Adam & I took a last minute trip to Cleveland last night to see the disappointing Tribe loss to the Red Sox in Game 5 of the ALCS. Adam is now on ebay restriction by the way unless he finds something valuable to sell on ebay to recoup some of the ridiculous amount of money we have spent on baseball this week. He has already been berated on how this goes against our attempts at a more simplistic lifestyle. Despite the cost & the outcome, we had a lot of fun just the two of us on a roadtrip to Cleveland to see a baseball game without a diaper bag or children to carry. I liked being able to see the entire game instead of having to listen to parts of it in the bathroom while changing a diaper or feeding a baby. Thanks to the Damrons for keeping the kids for us!

Oh, well, there is a lot more to life than a baseball team for us. Our kids remind us of that on a very regular basis! Earlier this week, Clark & I enjoyed painting his pumpkin from Gabby, our neighbor. He is a very meticulous artist and was eager to put the finished project on the porch for "everybody to see." Very proud he is of his masterpiece.


Clementine is able to sit up by herself a little longer every day! She has had a couple of topples, but she still keeps trying! That's our girl!

Happy Easter

Easter Fun

Easter Time

Last Sunday was our Easter Egg Hunt at church. Before they went looking for eggs, they were told an Easter story. Apparently, Clark was not all that interested.

More birthday pics...

"CARS!! YES!!"
Watching the "show." Thanks for the entertainment, Vick, and happy birthday, too.
Playing football with Brutus & "Shooka-nairn."

Teaching Brutus to play football.

Every time he sees his trike, he reminds us it came from Ho-Ho.


Ah, if only he would always be this excited about getting a toothbrush for Christmas!

The carousel at the zoo.

Don't be alarmed. This is Clark's smile. He's really having a great time. He loved riding this train so much at Winter Wonderland in Toledo!

Clark insisted on wearing a tie for this picture. In fact, he just brought me the tie and asked to wear it right now as I'm typing. Dad did a good job on the Brutus pumpkin, don't you think? Clark liked it. 

Trick-or-treating for the first time. Changing into his clown costume was proving to be too traumatic, so we just went out in the pumpkin hoodie that he loves. 

Picking out our pumpkins at the church pumpkin patch.