Christmas with Tori

We had our Christmas with Tori on Saturday, December 20. She blessed us with a wonderful meal of Chicken and Dumplings, along with a delicious brownie dessert. She had planned to bring over dinner a few weeks back but things did not work out. Curtis was so excited for Chicken and Dumplings.

Not only did she bless us with food, but she brought us gifts too. She gave Curtis and I gift cards so that we could go out on a date while she watches the boys. And while she is watching the boys, they will be playing in their new "forts" she gave them. She gave them a cardboard clubhouse that you can color, as well as a pop up tent with a tunnel. So so so so so fun. The only bad part is that both "forts" take up quite a lot of room in our 1100 sq ft. home!

Merry Merry Christmas Tori! We love you and may you always know that you are welcome in our home. We pray that the Lord does many things in your heart and life this coming year. We know that He has SO MUCH in store for you!

A First for Curtis

On Friday, December 19, Curtis had a first in his ministry career. Curtis had a part in officating a wedding ceremony. The couple that was getting married were kids that we ministered to while they were in high school. Corbin, the groom, was out our home many many hours during his junior and senior year in high school. It was a honor for Curtis to be a part of the ceremony.

The other important part Curtis played in the start of Corbin and Vanessa's new life together was performing their pre-marital counseling. They meant for three sessions prior to the wedding. I know that it was a big stress on Curtis, but I am so proud of him for doing it! It will be so much easier the next time, sweetheart!

More Funnies from the Odells

A week or so ago our friend Tori got the stomach flu. We usually pick her up for church, but we didn't because she was sick. When Curtis' parents asked us where she was, Cade responded, "She has the FLUid so she couldn't come." Priceless!

Just a week later Joel got the FLUid, and in just a few hours Cade did, as well. Cade was sitting on the toilet and was ready to be wiped after going poopy. When Curtis got into the bathroom, Cade said to Curtis, "Daddy, I have wet poopies." Curtis responded by saying, "I think you have diaherra buddy." Cade ran out of the bathroom running towards his grandma shouting, "I have DIARAMMA Grandma." Priceless

A now a sweet one from Joel. . .
When we sit down to eat at our table we hold hands and pray. Joel always holds whoevers hand is next to him, and when we close our eyes and bow our heads, he does the same motion. So cute. Then he will peak up and look at you to watch what you are doing.

I love my FLUID, DIARAMMA, PRAYING BOYS!

Christmas in Iowa!

We have spent the week before Christmas traveling all over the state of Iowa to see our friends and loved ones.

We woke Monday, December 20 to have our family Christmas before we set out on the road. Cade was so excited to open gifts and has been so patient waiting a few weeks with packages under the tree. Joel did not really know what the purpose of the wrapping paper was and that there was actually something inside the paper that he would enjoy. And usually Joel only got one rip before his older brother ripped open his gift. Cade got KidKonnects, MyBot Lego set, a dump truck, a few new books including Green Eggs and Ham, and Mickey Mouse character "action figures". Joel received a new pull toy that lights up and talks about shapes, colors, and numbers, a big Thomas engine and a soft Harold the Helicopter, a Trucks board book, and Mickey Mouse character "action figures". We also gave the boys Percy and Toby for their wooden Thomas railway set. I am proud to say that I bought all of the boys' toys a garage sales or at a consignment shop, which allows us to shower the boys with more surprises than one or two toys at full price.




















Our first destination was to Ames, IA to spend time with my parents. Cade LOVES my parents and spending time in their home. Joel says "MamMa, MamMa" and reaches for her to hold him whenever he can. My Mom had to be with my Grandma in Des Moines at a few doctors appointments so we did not get to see her on Monday. Cade looked at her picture that was on the counter in the bathroom mid-day Monday and said, "I miss Grandma Glenna." It was so cute and precious. Oh how he loves his Grandma Glenna. The boys had lots of playtime Monday, and when daylight came on Tuesday morning they both played in Grandma and Grandpa's bed while Mommy and Daddy got a few minutes to sleep in. (PS - My Dad's meal on Monday night was fantastic. I think Curtis could have ate the entire 3-4# roast himself. It was so delicious!)

We hit the road and headed to our wonderful friends home, Joel and Emily Penner, in Orange City, IA. The trip to their home from my parents was about 3 and 1/2 hours. Though we don't get to see each other often we have a wonderful history of friendship and when we get back together we have great unity and joy. Joel had big plans for our families to go sledding on Tuesday afternoon. I was thinking a nice little hill for our little children, but instead Joel decided on a steep Iowa "mountain". Our fearless Cade was the only child that enjoyed the adventure. He went up and down the hill 10+ times all by himself. Ella (age 3) went down a couple times with Joel and cried each time. Little Jake (13 months) starting crying immediately after getting out of the car. After I crashed with Joel one time I decided it would be best to stand at the bottom of the hill and enjoy Cade's fun! Big Joel . . . . one day, one day your children will LOVE the Iowa mountains! Our 24 hour visit was just perfect! Thank you Penner's for having us in your home. We really really really are Fonda you!





















Back on the road we went towards Hampton, Iowa to celebrate Christmas with my Dad's side of the family. My parents blessed us with a hotel room for Wednesday night so we didn't have to have a late night traveling back to Ames after the family party. We arrived at the hotel around 3pm, which gave us plenty of swimming time before the 5:30pm party. Cade was so so so so so so excited. In 2009, we were at the same hotel for Thanksgiving and he couldn't wait to go back! My brother's family arrived shortly after we got into the pool which made Cade's hotel experience just perfect! He loves his cousins and enjoys spending time with them. He did so well in the pool, putting his face in the water and even getting in a few doggy paddle strokes. He was able to touch the bottom of the pool in the shallow end, which really helped him this year. My brother's family also treated our boys to the Veggie Tales movie, The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything. Cade is thrilled . . . he has been asking for this movie for at least half a year!

















We had a nice time at my Aunt and Uncle's for dinner. My Grandma Bents blessed the boys with some of her favorite stuffed animals this year. Cade received a dog which he named Sir Bernard, after a story CD he loves to listen to. Sir Bernard has been sleeping with him every night since we have been home! My Mom and Dad have been working on a quilt project for my Grandma. They have taken quilts that my Grandma made 60 years ago, but never got completed, and have worked on finishing them. The three quilts have been quilted, but now my Mom is going to attempt binding them. My Mom brought the quilts to show Grandma and the rest of the family. My Grandma (age 97) is losing her eye sight so she had to get very close to the quilts to see the stiching designs. What a wonderful gift my parents have given her by completing the dreams she had so many years ago.




















The boys were really tired, so we headed back to the hotel about 8pm. Everyone went to sleep well, but at 1:45am Joel woke up and did not want to go back to sleep. Hotel rooms are always challenges, but at 2:15am the challenge got even greater when Joel threw-up on me. I got him in the bathtub for a bath and to try to calm him. Nothing seemed to help him and he continued to throw-up throughout the night. Around 3:15am, Curtis and I took Joel on a drive to try to get him to sleep, but that did not work either. I sat in the lobby with him until 5:30am when he finally gave up. Curtis got a bit of sleep but at 6:30am both boys were up and ready for the day. Joel was sick sick sick, and Cade was ready to see his cousins and go to the pool. Curtis and Cade spent a good 2 hours in the pool. They had such a wonderful time. Probably the biggest highlight for Curtis on our trip. He had great joy as the two of them shared playing games in the pool. Joel's sickness subsided and he spent most of the rest of the day sleeping on and off.

On Thursday afternoon when we were back in Ames I got to spend most of the late afternoon with my good friend Megan. We don't get to see each other except for maybe a couple times a year. We have know each other since grade school and she has been so so so faithful to me as a friend. I appreciate her genuine spirit, her heart for the Lord, and her heart to serve others. It was so good chatting while running errands. She is wonderful to me.

On Friday morning we awoke to a large snowstorm. It wasn't a blizzard, but there were a good 4+ inches on the ground. Our plan was to head down to my Grandma Sparks' early enough in the day so that Curtis could get a bit of ice fishing in. Unfortunately we did not accomplish this task and he was rather disappointed. I gave him hope that Christmas morning he could go out before all of the family arrived at 1pm for our Christmas celebration. After a nice evening with my Grandma, we got the boys ready for bed. Cade unfornuately could not fall asleep and at about 10pm lost his whole dinner on Grandma's upstairs carpet . . . yes, he threw-up, as well. Curtis and Grandma got the nasty mess all cleaned up . . . what wonderful servants, while I tended to Cade in the bathroom and got him a bath. We settled him into bed, but throughout the night he woke every two hours crying for me and taking a trip to the bathroom to vomit again and again. Curtis started to feel sick at 2:30am, but did not loose his dinner until 8:30am. Well, Merry Christmas!!! We did have a little Christmas opening with Grandma before we decided it was time to get on the road. So sorry Sparks family, but we didn't want everyone to be sick. We love you all. We made it home with just one potty stop, and without any vomit in the van or diaherra in our seats. Joel did throw up one more time on Christmas night. The poor baby.




















It is now Monday morning, and everyone is well except Joel. He has a awful diaherra. He will barely eat any food and is staying alive off of my breast milk. Our next adventure will start today as the Lambert family arrives in just a few hours. Christmas . . . . the MOST WONDERFUL TIME OF YEAR!!

Update on Joel - Forgot something!

I forgot to tell you about Joel's vocabulary advances.

Joel's main word that he uses for almost everything is, "some." When he wants something he will say, "some. some. some" until he gets whatever it is that he wants. I figured out that he got this from his Momma because I usually say, "Would you like some milk?" or "Would you like some cheese?" Whether it is a toy or food, it is "some."

His other favorite word is, "Momma" or "Mom". He calls all important people Mom, including Curtis and Cade. We have yet to hear "Daddy." And I think that we have heard some version of "Cade" come out, but it is not a regular occurance.

He has said other words: cheese, grapes, ball, Thomas.

Besides saying actual words, he is very good at screaming/yelling. He gets this from the wonderful example of his brother - yippee! :(

He knows what it means when I say "Let's take a bath" because he goes right to the tub. Yesterday when I asked if he wanted to eat, he went to the kitchen. I am sure more words will come. The "some" is pretty cute at this point.

Cade's Quotes

Cade has been saying the cutest things lately. I always wish that I would write down the words as soon as he says them but I usually don't have a pen and paper right there and I am always in the process of multi-tasking somehow.

Today, I haven't been feeling well (bad headache) and I went to lie down on the couch while he was drawing me pictures. He said, "Mom, it is like you are in a nursery home. I will draw you pictures so you will feel better."

On Sunday, when we were having a big blizzard, he looked outside while we were eating breakfast and said, "We don't need to go out and use Pop's snow blower. God's using His snow blower already."

A week or so ago at church while we were singing some Christmas songs, I sang into Cade's ear, "Hallelujah." He quickly grabbed his ear and said to me, "Mom that was loud, you are going to give me an ear affection (infection)." I laughed and laughed and laughed. It was so cute.

Cade has been into tellin jokes lately, as well. He usually chooses to tell jokes when we are eating. His choice of jokes, Knock Knock . . . We have taught him a couple of Knock Knock jokes that actually make sense, but his never make sense. He usually uses objects that he sees in the room when he says Knock Knock. Too cute! What cracks me up about Cade's jokes as well is Joel's reaction. Because we all "laugh," Joel puts his hands in front of his mouth, leans forward, and out of his mouth comes a loud laugh. Too cute!

Update on Joel

Since Joel has been sick since the end of September we have now reached the point of staying home almost all the time. During the school year I usually take the boys out to the library for reading time, to church to play in the gym or nursery or church story hour, and to Explorers Bible Study each Wednesday. Plus we usually have some errands to run to the bank, post office, or a Pampered Chef delivery. In the last three weeks I have tried to cut back on all of our activities. I have left the house to go to my Pampered Chef shows, but other than that I have only left the house handful of times usually without the boys to run some errands. It has been a tough 21 days for me. I have been reminded that I need sunlight, fresh air, and people. I know that it has been best for Joel to not be exposed to any yucky germs, but I am looking forward to getting back out into the world after the new year.

Joel's cough and wheezing has subsided. We are now dealing with thrush. Cade had thrush when he was about 8 months old, so I knew how to treat the problem. Hopefully in a few more days the thrush will be gone. I think Joel has eaten a whole 2# container of strawberry yogurt!

Joel's appetite has also picked up. Not just a little, but A LOT! He is hungry all the time and wants real food. He is still nursing, but I can tell that he is not satisfied with just my milk like he was a little over a month ago. He LOVES grapes. He is actually sitting here beside me eating grape after grape and continues to ask for more. He will also eat pasta, pears, pineapple, oranges, yogurt, applesauce, and tomatoes (something Cade wouldn't touch). I have not found a good source of protein for him. I have attempted PBJ sandwiches but it is too sticky for him. He doesn't care for lunch meat, crumbled ground beef or sausage, or chicken. Hopefully as we keep exposing it to him he will start to enjoy it.

Joel loves music, and he brings me a smile everytime he starts to move/dance when music starts. Even if it is just a little snipit of music he is bouncing! His favorite cartoon is the show, Little Einsteins. It is a show on the Disney Channel that focuses on classical music with four children going on adventures to solve problems like helping a hurt animal or taking a delivery to someone. The show interacts with the child by having the child clap, pat, or move their body in a certain way to help the characters solve the problem. Joel interacts with the characters by patting clapping and waving his arms in the air. It is so cute!

Joel is almost 17 months old. . . just a few more days. He is wearing 12-18 month clothes. I have pulled out 18 month jeans and onesie shirts, but they are all a bit big on him. I have started to have him wear these big clothes, though versus have too short of arms and legs. At this age, Cade, was wearing 24 month clothes. It is so fun to see how they are different. I have Joel in a size 5.5 shoe, which is too big, but was the smallest I had so it works. Cade was wearing a size 6 the summer he turned one.

Cade's Singing Debut

The Odell family was signed up to sing for the special music at church this past Sunday. Bev asked Cade if he would like to sing with Pop and her. Surprisingly, he said yes and seemed very excited for the opportunity. In the past, Cade has not wanted to be up front to sing when the Sunday School kids have sung, so I was a bit taken back with his positive response. Bev asked what song they should sing and Cade responding saying, "I think Amazing Grace. It is my favorite." The two practiced a little bit on Friday night, but he really didn't have to practice because he knew as many of the words as he would know on Friday as he did on Sunday. Grandma picked up Cade a bit early for church so that the three of them could "practice" before the service. He told Pop he didn't want to sing the "toils" verse, so it ended up they sang verses 1 and 4. So very cute. May this be the start of Cade being able to minister to others with the wonderful voice God has given him. And of course the video will not load. Sorry.

Thanksgiving with The Odells

As we returned from Grandma's farm we headed straight to Tom & Bev's home where the Lambert family had arrived a few hours prior. Cade was sad to leave his cousins in Iowa, but couldn't wait to see his Kansas cousins. As a matter of fact he asked to see Jake just 10 minutes into the drive . . . a long 4 hours it was on the road! All was sweet when we stepped into the door in Wyanet and he could play to his heart's content with his cousins.

Jake and Cade are the best of friends, but that doesn't necessarily mean they do not have conflict. Surprisingly, though, we had very little conflict throughout the weekend. The two just crack us all up with the adventures they went on. One of the funniest things over the weekend was when the two boys came down the stairs wearing two hats of Nana's that we believe they found in an attic somewhere. They were being "detectives" they said. It was very cute, so take note of the detective hats in the photo below!

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving on Thursday with delicious food. Curtis loves to cook, especially at Thanksgiving. He brined the two turkeys that we cooked the night before. One turkey the men fried outside, and the other one we used The Pampered Chef roasting pan in the oven with. The two turkeys were so moist and juicy. This year Curtis also made a sausage stuffing with the deer sausage we had processed. It was fabulous and everyone loved it. I also made a yummy grape salad and a pumpkin maple trifle. Bev had a beautiful table of decorations and food.

On Friday, Bev, Kim, and I decided to do some shopping. Kim and Bev went at midnight to Wal-Mart and got a few deals. Kim said it was mass chaos. They got there 10 minutes after midnight and when they got to the toy isle where Kim wanted to get a gift, it was gone. She couldn't believe it. The two didn't get to bed until 1:30am, so Bev was a little slow getting around by 8am for our departure. We headed towards Peru and went to Target, Kohls, Hobby Lobby, and Staples. We got some great bargains. How I wish I could have gotten more because they just seemed like fabulous bargains, I was glad that I had self control and did not go overboard. I really enjoyed my time with Bev and Kim. It was probably the highlight of my weekend. Hopefully we get to do it again after Christmas.

On Friday afternoon Curtis and Chuck went hunting. Though they did not see any deer I think that they had a nice time together. Chuck was frozen to the bone, but some delicious Casey's pizza warmed him up. The evening ended up with some family time singing hymns with Grandma Bev playing the piano.

Saturday included some special time with Tom's sister's family. We enjoyed a nice brunch and then some socializing time. In the evening Chuck and Curtis fried up some fish that Curtis and Tom had fished for in Missouri. Tom had to work, so he did not get to enjoy the fish with us, but there was plenty left over so he was able to enjoy it when he came home.

Thanksgiving at the Farm

The week of Thanksgiving we headed over to Grandma Sparks' farm for some wonderful family time. Uncle Dan and cousin Justin were back from Oregon to work on a few projects around Grandma's house. My brother's family was also coming to the farm to spend time earlier in the week, along with my parents and Aunt Opal. Members from the Crock family would arrive on Thursday, Thanksgiving, but we left on Wednesday to get home for family time in Princeton.

While we were at the farm Cade enjoyed playing outside in the barn with Sage and Brody for hours upon hours. On Tuesday the weather was beauitful, but on Wednesday it was much colder. The boys started out in the barn, but were back inside in an hour or so. I am not sure what the boys were doing in the hayloft in the barn, I was simply praying that they stayed safe. When the boys came for a break on Wednesday, Cade has tons of dirt in his hair and down the back of his shirt. There was also a large stash of dirt in his ears. They boys were playing some sort of "turtle" game they told me. BOYS! It took me quite some time to get that boys head clean!

I stayed inside with Joel to try to keep him out of the cold and his lungs healthy. We did let him get a few moments of fresh air each day, but I think the warmer air was best for his pneumonia. Joel enjoyed pointing at all of Grandma's pretties. He was all over the house, talking to everyone who would listen.

We had a wonderful time with everyone. It was great to be at my Grandma's farm for a couple days. It feels like it has been years since I have gotten that priviledge. I spent time at the farm almost every school break while growing up. It is like a little oasis for me.

Fall Leaves

We don't have any trees in our yard, but we have two neighbors with large Oak trees. Many oak leaves end up in our yard. I try to get out and rake, but it is not always easy with two kids. The weather this fall has been really nice so I did get a good five bags raked. I made a fun pile at the end of the slide so the boys could slide down and end up in the leaves. Cade enjoyed a few slides down but it did not entertain him as much as it had in the past. He loved the leaves when he was one. Joel loves the leaves as well but his health has been so poor this fall that I have tried to keep him inside as often as possible.

Joel has been sick for at least 8 weeks. It started out as what seemed to be a common cold, but when his cough would not go away and his breathing became more labored, I knew it was time to go to the doctor. Dr. Mestan quickly recognized Joel's cold as bronchitis. He prescribed an antibiotic, as well as wrote a prescription for a nebulizer and inhalant medicine (to be used 2x a day). When we got the the inhalant medicine, budesonide, it cost us $175.00. Insurance has helped us out with the cost of the medicine, but it was very surprising.

Joel's cough cleared up throughout the week and I thought we were on the mend, but in just a few hours on Wednesday afternoon his cough and labored breathing was back in full force. This time at the doctor they gave him a pedi-pred shot, which he took like a champ (didn't even cry). We also got a different inhalant medicine, albuterol, to use with the budesonide. We had to use the albuterol every 3-4 hours to relax his bronchial tubes and then used the budesonide to help mend his sickness.

Joel's cough again cleared up and I thought we were doing better, but we found ourselves in the doctor's office again one week later. This time Dr. Mestan wanted us to take a x-ray to see if pneumonia was possibly what we were dealing with. And it is. We have continued on our breathing medicine, and Dr. Mestan prescribed another antibiotic to fight the pneumonia. We are now in our 10th day with the diagnosis of pneumonia. You wouldn't know that he is sick, but I can tell as I hear his breathing and cough. He has been playing like a happy little boy.

We will be going to see a pulmonary and allergy pediatrician in Peoria in January. I pray that he will be better by then, and we can possibly be able to see what has caused this problem and how it can be prevented in the future. As for now, I plan to try to "lay low" and stay out of the lay of other people. We do not need any other sicknesses.

I Want to Be Like My Daddy!

Hunting Success

Curtis began his bow hunting season on October 1st! He was so excited to get out and he seemed to start out with great success. He shot a buck in the first 30 minutes of opening day. After searching for the deer for nearly 4 hours, he finally gave up. He could not find it and was so down hearted.

He continued to go out hoping to see the big buck again and have another chance. On Saturday, November 6 he shot a doe from hos tree stand with a 40 yard shot (WOW!). He didn't call and tell us, but waited till he got home to surprise us. He took the doe to the Wyanet Locker for it to be processed. We recently got the meat and it turned out great. We got 30 pounds of deer sausage, summer sausage, deer steaks, and deer jerky. We have been using the sausage in many of our meals. Curtis made a DELICIOUS deer sausage stuffing for Thanksgiving - it was out of this world!

Curtis went out a week or so after shooting his deer and got the opportunity to shoot another deer. This time he shot another large buck. As soon as the buck was shot it staggered in a circle for 20 minutes before it saw a doe and took off back into the woods. Curtis thought for sure that the the buck would be found in the woods, but after searching for more than 2 hours the buck was no where to be found. The blood trail vanished and he could not find any sign of anything. Another disappointment.

Curtis still has another 2 months of hunting to go, but there will be many many cold mornings. Hopefully he will be able to bring a buck home to our freezer!

Spiderman Cade

Cade loves to dress up and be in character. Many times he enjoys being a super hero or a cowboy. He usually always has a belt around his waist and some sort of weapon tucked into the belt - gun, sword, or knife. We have many different dress up costumes and at times he enjoys wearing the actual costumes. For about a week he has enjoyed being Superman. We found a new costume at a garage sale and has been in character many hours during the day.

Cade's friend Evan came over to play one day. Cade really wanted to play Spiderman with Evan. Whereas Evan wanted to play with Cade's Geotrack trains. We made a compromise that Evan would dress up as Spiderman and then Cade would play with trains. Evan held up his part of the bargain, but it took Cade a few spankings to hold up his end. Cade loves to play physically when he has friends over, but many times the friends want to play with all of his toys. Evan is so gracious to Cade.

Brotherly Love

Cade and Joel are the best of friends. It is so fun to watch both of their faces light up when they see each other. In the mornings when they wake up and see each other Cade gives Joel and big hug, and Joel says "Hi" while shaking his hands and running over to the stairs to see Cade. One of Cade's favorite things to do with Joel is to bring his bedspread downstairs and then pull Joel around on it. Joel's face lights up and his smile is so big as his brother pulls him around. Though it seems a bit dangerous the two just work it out and have not gotten hurt, YET. The two are still learning to share. When Cade is well rested he is a sweetheart to Joel and let's him do whatever he wants. If Cade is in need of sleep, there seems to be a lot more issues in the department of sharing. Cade has taught Joel the sound of a cars and guns. It is so cute to see Joel mimic what Cade does. I pray that they will be great friends and wonderful brothers in the Lord one day. My heart's desires is that they will both have a passion for the Lord and His work. What a team they will be!

Princeton Trick or Treating!

Princeton held their trick or treating on Halloween, Sunday, October 31. We didn't have any church activities so we were able to participate. Grandma Glenna came with us and Grandpa Bill enjoyed a nice long nap on the couch!

As I started to get the boys ready to go out on our adventure Cade told me that he didn't want to go trick or treating. I am not sure exactly why, but I convinced him that Daddy didn't have the chance to go with him in Lake Forest, so this was Daddy's chance to take him. Unfortunately, Cade did not take a nap this afternoon, so this could have added to his grumpy attitude about going. His mind quickly changed after we went to a few houses and then ran into our good friends from down the street, the Crouch Family. Cade loves Hope and Eli, so he was so excited to play with them for a bit. He actually would have loved playing with them instead of going trick or treating.

Hope, Cade, and Eli!














Cade with our wonderful neighbor Melvina.












We visited a few houses in our neighborhood, but then drove over to another neighborhood in town which was packed with trick or treaters. In our neighborhood only every 4 houses or so had their light on, but in the Greencroft neighborhood almost every light was on. Cade had a good time, but didn't enjoy the walking. We were gone for about an hour and probably hit 20 houses or so. When he told him it was time to go, he was ready. He wanted to go home so that he could give his candy to people that would like to come to our house for trick or treating. So maybe next year we will just dress up and hand candy out at our house. He seemed to enjoy this much more.

Joel was so cute. He sat in the strolled sucking on suckers. After two suckers and a very sticky bat costume I decided to discontinue the consumption of suckers. To say the least, Joel was not happy. I did let him get out and walk for a bit but his pace was so slow and he didn't walk where we needed him to so that did not last long. His costume was so cute and he stayed very warm because of the thick fleece. He was just sooooooo adorable - I am a proud mama!