Halloween

The little lion in his natural habitat.
The little lion forages for berries.
Seriously, he will spend hours picking the berries off the monkey grass.
He will pick one, bring it to me and say "boobee."
The little lion earns his candy.
Jeremiah's job was to put the candy in children's bags. He actually seemed to enjoy it. You should have seen some of his facial expressions when some of the more scary costumed people came up. He definitely wasn't too sure about the whole thing. His other job was to say "bye bye" to kids as they left the yard. This he did with great gusto and enthusiasm. I figured he deserved some candy for his hard work and good sharing.
The little lion does not want to stop eating candy.
Once Jeremiah had gotten a taste of candy there was no going back. He spent the rest of the evening trying to get more. Many methods were tried. There was the try to sneak around mama and see if she doesn't notic method. There was the full frontal assault method. There was the whine method and of course finally the full out cry method. I stood firm. I figured a lollypop and some smarties was enough sugar for the evening.

Halloween has changed since I was a kid.
I remember being creative and making our costumes. One year my best friend Beccy and I made a kick butt double headed dragon costume. It was awesome! Now most of the kids wear store bought, cheap costumes, and some didn't even bother with costumes at all. Those ones only got one little piece of candy from me. I told them next year they had to earn it. Don't worry, I didn't bruise the self-esteem of any little ones, they were in junior high
I remember walking around the streets. Most of the kids I have seen tonight were driven in their cars up to the driveways where they jumped out, got their candy and then jumped back in. It seemed more like a s.w.a.t team operation.
I remember saying "trick or treat" before I got candy, waiting for the person to put the candy in my bag and hopefully I said thank you. Tonight only a few kids volunteered the "trick or treat", most grabbed for a handfull of candy, and I can probably count on my fingers the number that said thank you.

Next year Jeremiah can decide what he would like to dress up as, we will walk around our little neighborhood, and he had better use his manners or his mama will eat his candy! :-)

 

New table!

We love Jeremiah's new table! It makes snack and meal time so much easier. It is also the perfect place for him to play with his puzzles and I forsee it being a great place for art projects and play-dough! So the high chair is now in the attic and we enter a new stage of independence.

Yesterday we walked to the library for Monday morning story time. Lots of fun and a great opportunity for Jeremiah to interact with other kids his age. It is quite funny to watch about 15 toddlers all playing in the same room. One little boy wanted to hug every one and got quite upset when another little boy who absolutely did not want to be hugged ran away from him. I think that Jeremiah did quite well when he had to share a toy at one point.

Tonight is Halloween and I am hoping that Jeremiah will stay in his lion costume long enough to help me hand out candy.

 

Hay ride Part 2

 

Hay ride part 1

Mama & Jeremiah on the hayride.
Cherise & Jeremiah.
Chad & Cherise
In case you didn't notice, Chad was cold.
Blake (the one in all the camo gear, its a long story, he is also Chad's brother), Joni and Joni's nephews.

The hay ride was fun, and thankfully not too cold. In case you wonder about the photography, it is really hard to take pictures in the dark. It was a kind of point, shoot and hope you framed it right situation. :-)

 

Harvest Party

Jeremiah in his lion costume.
Unfortunately he doesn't seem to really like to wear it that much so we had to snap the picture quickly.
All 3 of us with Linda.
Jeremiah liked roasting things over the fire, but he didn't like standing too close becuase it made his face hot. This posed a bit of a problem for him.
Aaron won the annual chilli cooking contest!
I guess you will have to ask him for his recipie. It was quite a hit.

 

lazy saturday

Here is what I have done today:

- Walked in the park with some women from church.

- Let Jeremiah go home with his grandmommy for the afternoon.

- Went to Toys R Us with Aaron and bought Jeremiah his own little table and chairs (too cute, pics to come later).

- Sat on the couch to watch college football and woke up 2 hours later!

I think I can say it was a good day....

We are on our way to the annual harvest party. A fun night of chilli, hot dogs, marshmallows, hot chocolate, a roaring bonfire, hayrides and laughter with friends (pics of that hopefully to come later too). I am hoping that Jeremiah will wear his lion suit!

Stay tuned for future entry's expalining my new addiction to college football (abit crazy right?) and a review of a movie we watched last night.....

Comfort Food

Yes, for you sceptics out there, the picture up there is of an acutal chicken pot-pie that I actually cooked! Most of you know my aversion to cooking. And I especially hate to cook during the summer months when the kitchen gets very very hot. But since it has been cold here I have hauled out the comfort food recipies. Jeremiah loves this stuff and scarfs it down. This is my current favorite because it is incredibly easy and incredibly good! If I can make this come out good, so can you!

Deep Dish Chicken Pot-Pie
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 1/4 cup Italian dressing (I use abit less, more like 1 cup)
4 oz. Nuefchatel Cheese, cubed
2 Tb flour
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 pkg (10 oz) frozen mixed vegetables, thawed
2 refrigerated pie crusts (I use the kind that unroll)

* Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cook chicken in dressing in large skillet on medium heat for 2 minutes. Add cheese; cook and stir until melted. Add flour, mix well. Add broth and vegetables, simmer for 5 minutes.
* Line 9 inch deep pie plate with 1 pie crust. Pour in mixture. Arrange 2nd pie crust over filling, flute edges. Cut four slits in crust to allow steam to escape.
* Bake 30 minutes or until crust is golden brown.

 

Eye Opener

Yesterday was a busy day. I had an important meeting at DFCS and so left Jeremiah with some friends for the afternoon. Aaron picked him up after work and by the time I got home he was completely exhausted because he hadn't taken his nap. The little guy was asleep by 7:20. He didn't even want me to read him books, but just pointed at his bed and laid down all by himself. I thought we would get to sleep in a little this morning - but not a chance - we were up at 6:30!

About my DFCS meeting. I like to think that when I was a DFCS case worker I was open minded and did as good a job as I could under my circumstances. I like to think that the majority of my co-workers across the state were the same. Yesterday shook me a little. Because I can't give details, all I will say is that I sat through a meeting in which 4 DFCS staff sat across from a couple approved by our agency who want to adopt a teenage girl and basically grilled them like they were on trial. I could tell from the tone of their questions that they thought that the only reason someone would want to adopt a teenage girl would be to use her for labor or to abuse her. By the end of the meeting I was steaming mad and doing my best to remain polite and businesslike. I understand their concerns becuase they do not know the family like MCC does.. But 3 of the DFCS workers were rude and condescending and one lady never even changed facial expression or made eye contact. Just plain rude and unprofessional.

I realized something yesterday, up till now in my work with MCC I have always given DFCS the benefit of the doubt. Because I used to be a DFCS caseworker I am sypathetic towards them. Not anymore. The meeting I participated in yesterday showed me why people that I talk to in the community are fed up with the system. I will still be polite and professional - but I will no longer assume that every case worker we deal with has the best interest of the children at heart.

I hate becoming cynical and jaded....

New Clothes

Now that the colder weather is here (it is colder here than in the Netherlands, what is up with that?) I am trying to find appropriate clothing for Jeremiah. The problem - he is just a tad too big for the 12 month size, but a tad too small for the 18-24 month size. So picture this, Jeremiah is running around the house in his new jeans. All of the sudden he comes running up to me holding his jeans in his hands! They had fallen right off while he was playing and running. In Kmart the other day they fell off and took his diaper with them as he tried to escape down the toy aisle....
I'm not sure who designs children's clothing - but do they really expect kids to grow 3 inches taller and 2 inches wider in just 6 months?
As for the hat. Many of you know of Aaron's attachment to hats. Jeremiah does not seem to have developed that attachment yet. He is wearing it in this picture, but believe me, 2 minutes later it was gone.

 

Darfur

Here is a website I found today created by Evangelical Christian leaders who are trying to get something done about the situation in Darfur. Please check it out and get involved - even if all you do is fill out the email to President Bush (only takes 20 seconds or so).

Room Makeover?

Ok - it's not really a total room make over. But our project this morning was to go to Lowe's and get a lamp and a timer (for the lamp) for Jeremiah's room. The purpose - I have heard that by putting a lamp on a timer you can teach your children to stay in bed until a certain time, the time that the lamp comes on. I am hoping to do this with Jeremiah since his wake up time is so sporadic, some mornings he sleeps until almost 7:30 and others he is up at 6:00. I am realizing that I function much better on days when I get up before he does and am able to take a shower, get dressed, have a cup of coffee and a tiny bit of quiet time before the day starts. So the lamp timer will be set for 7:00 and I will be up at 6:30. We'll see how it goes.
Anyway, I used the excuse of the new lamp to fix up the little reading corner in Jeremiah's room. I think it looks nice and relaxing, the perfect place to cuddle with some books for a while.

There was one aspect of the morning that has left me frustrated. My search for a red wagon for Jeremiah. Who would have ever thought that actually being able to put my hands on one to purchase would be so hard. The tractor & farm supply store (yes, we actually have one) does not have them even though they said they would start stocking them in September. Kmart has the small one that doesn't have the high wooden sides. I haven't been to Toys R Us or Target yet because they are further away and a certain little boy was getting cranky. I am determined to have a wagon for Jeremiah to play in while I work in the yard (plus the wagon would help me lug plants and rocks around).

 

Sunday with Grandmommy & Granddaddy

Most Sunday afternoons we go to grandmommy and granddaddy's house for lunch, naps and general relaxation. When we arrive in the driveway Jeremiah says "house house." One of his favorite things to do at their house is play outside, picking up (small) rocks around the house, checking on the flowers, and watching their new little dog Oscar. I couldn't resist snapping these pictures this afternoon.

 

It's the great pumpkin Jeremiah

No fall decor would be complete without a pumpkin. Since our plans to go to a real pumpkin farm have not come to fruition and since Jeremiah asks for a "nun-nit" (don't ask me why he says it that way) every time we got to the store, I broke down and bought one at Wal-mart. I thought it would be nice to get some cute pictures in the fall leaves, but as you can see Jeremiah didn't really want to sit still. They are not exactly Christmas card material - but they are cute anyway.
(scroll further down for pics on his new slide)

 

more slide

Here's more slide pictures. 

New slide

It was a welcome beautiful sunny day after the past few days of dreary fog and rain. After our nap today we went outside to play for a little while. This is Jeremiah on his new slide that he has been looking out the window at and waiting patiently to play on. He has decided that he likes to go down the slide on his knees. Go figure.

 

Rainy Days

Our weather forecast says that today should be cool and sunny. A break in the rain. I hope so! The past 3 days have been rainy and gloomy and we have not been able to spend any time outside. Yesterday afternoon I decided to take some pictures of how Jeremiah was amusing himself inside. Notice how almost every single one of his toys is out on the floor! I can't even tell you how many times we have done his puzzles in the past 3 days. While I was making dinner I found that Jeremiah had decided since he couldn't climb around on his slide outside he would climb on his table inside. Yes, climbing is a favorite pass time. As is jumping off the object with great enthousiasm- which we have to keep an eye out for.
We have a busy day today so I need to get this post up. I can't wait to get outside today for a nice long walk! And Jeremiah wants to play on his new slide.