Trick or TREAT?

Last year Finn was still a little young to get the concept of Halloween. Not the case this year. After explaining how it worked, you could almost see the wheels turning in his head. Three little words + cool costume + smile + outstretched hand = FREE CANDY (and mom doesn't object?) Best holiday of the year, so far! Needless to say, Finn was all about Halloween this year. He practiced saying "trick or treat" and you could almost see the awe on his face when, lo and behold, it worked, and he got lots of candy.

For the big event, we went with our friends, the Simons, to Old Town, Alexandria. They block one street off and all of the houses along the route go all out with candy, decorations and spooky surprises. There are hundreds and hundreds of kids, and that is probably underestimating the crowd size. The best part is the people watching, so many fun and creative costumes to see. Finn loved it and kept a death grip on his candy basket. Everything was going great until we happened to run into the Big Bad Wolf. Finn took one look at him and it was game over. We were going to the car, that very minute. In his defense, it was a scary looking wolf and the fact a big man was wearing it, didn't help matters. Even the promise of more candy, wasn't enough. Finn was done. Once we got back to the car, he was okay, but still wanted confirmation that the wolf was walking the other way, away from us. He also wanted to be reassured that it was just "pro-tend" and the wolf wasn't real. We let him pick out a few pieces for the ride home and that seemed to make everything okay.

Fireman Finn is on the scene and ready for action

He wasn't sure about it at first and needed a little assistance

But after a couple of houses, he was an old pro

Finn and his buddy Cookie Monster (Darren)

Finn and his daddy posing in front of the fire hydrant

Summer and the cutest Elmo ever

Mommies and their trick-or-treaters

The Simons

Enjoying the "fruits" of his labor

Inspecting his stash

Hmmm, did mom have too much time on her hands???

Halloween @ Rose Park

Rose Park, our little neighborhood recreation center, holds a costume parade/pumpkin painting every year. Crazy would be one word to describe the scene . . . chaotic would be another one! So, were else would we go? It had rained all day and was hot & humid (hence, the shorts!), but we were there, bullhorn and all. We missed the actual costume parade (because someone didn't want to wake up), but we were able to paint pumpkins and partake in the general madness. Finn started shedding his costume when we got there and by the end of it, was only wearing his boots. It was a fun[ny] time watching all of the firemen, monsters, animals, doctors, superheroes and conductors run around. By the end, it got to be too much and we ended up on the playground.

Testing out his emergency equipment

Finn, with his buddies Evan (monkey) and Jake (ferocious tiger)

The Chief and the captain

Kelly and Jake

Painting pumpkins

Enough of the Halloween business, let's PLAY!

School Picture Day

Tuesday was picture day for Finn's class. I would think this would be one of the toughest jobs in the world . . . negotiating with countless preschoolers, to sit still, keep your hands to yourself, look forward and SMILE . . . just so mom and dad will pony up and purchase these little mementos. Anyway, I cannot wait to see the results. Finn had his new outfit all picked out (courtesy of Baa) and we were almost out the door with, wait for it, no drama! But of course, that isn't possible. Just as we were leaving, he spotted his fire helmet and insisted on wearing it. I've learned that to even make it out the door it's best not to argue. Right before we got in the car to leave, I asked him to smile like he was going to smile for his pictures at school.

Let me say again, I cannot wait to see those pictures!

Halloween Trial Run

Finn decided he wanted to be a fireman for Halloween a long time ago. I don't know if I have mentioned it or not, but he is WAY into first responders, mainly those manly firemen. He watches Fireman Sam everyday and we have to simulate fires and rescues multiple times a day. So this costume was a no brainer. That being said, I ordered it online nearly a month ago thinking it would give me plenty of time to return/exchange if it didn't fit. As of Sunday, it still hadn't arrived, so after emails and maze of customer service representatives, it was finally determined that I would be getting a refund because the costume would not be coming. Great! One week before Halloween and I have to scramble to find the one size 3T fireman costume in the DC area (which apparently, doesn't exist). So, we improvised and I found a "make believe" fireman's jacket and I'm making his pants (don't faint, I'm just gluing neon stripes on black pants). Obviously, he thinks he looks awesome! So, Halloween is saved. Thanks for nothing, Overstock.com!

By the way, the megaphone is a WORKING megaphone, which means you will hear us coming from many miles away. Stay tuned for the real pictures from Halloween trick or treating!

FBCA Fall Festival

The church we've been going to (and where Finn goes to school) held a fall festival this past weekend. With Mark in L.A., Finn and I decided to give it a whirl. Since it was just the two of us, and I was already playing sherpa to all of his stuff, the only pictures I have are of him eating (or sitting). I just didn't have the energy to chase him around to take pictures. He had a blast though and my only regret was not getting there earlier. There were 3 bounce castles . . . Finn picked one and refused to leave; slides, trains, carnival games, balloon animals, face painting and SNOW CONES! You name it, they had it. I wished I could have gotten more and better pictures, but these will do. You get the idea . . . he had fun!

Eating snow cones

Eating cotton candy

Showing off his buddy "Al" the balloon alien

Finn and Al get ready for the choo choo

Roosevelt Island

Recently we found a new spot that we like to go to on the weekends. Roosevelt Island is just across the bridge from us and is the great little nature preserve "island." It has great walking trails, access to the Potomac river, and great views of the city. To be so close to the city, it feels like you are in some remote woods, except, it's usually pretty crowded. Apparently, lots of city folk like to pretend they are in the country too. We took Finn "hiking" (because it sounds a lot cooler than walking) a month or so ago and this time we decided we would take Lily. She has really missed her daily swims, so we thought this might make her feel better. Our only problem was trying to keep Finn from joining her.

Rock climbing

Lily chasing rocks . . .

and squirrels

Pumpkin Picking

Fall is in the air and that means Halloween is right around the corner. We decided to get in the the fall spirit with a trip to Burke Nursery Pumpkin Patch this past weekend. After baking most of the summer, the cooler temps are a welcome change. I love these fall festival type events. So much to do and so nice to be outside. The place was crawling with little kids and big ones too. We tried out every slide (more times than I could count), played on the pirate ship, moon bounce, mouse maze, mountain climbing, truck riding, petting zoo, barrel rolling, whew! Finn picked out pumpkins for each of us. It was a tough call . . . there were so many to choose from and he spent a good 15 minutes making his selection and then changing his mind (which he comes by honestly!)

My little(big) Pumpkin

So many to choose from . . .

Slide, slide, slippity, slide

Walking the plank to the pirate ship

Ahoy, mates.

Getting ready for the barrel roll

Whoopsie

I'm not going to lie, it was lots of fun

weeeeeeeeee

Dad takes a turn

The only 'pony ride' he was interested in taking

And now for a little comparison . . . .

Pumpkin sitting 2009

Pumpkin sitting 2010

Finn and Dad, 2009

Finn and Dad, 2010