Happy Halloween...Almost

Our city held it's annual trick or treating day this Sunday, October 26th.
Although it was raining or snowing, temps were in the mid-40's with very strong winds.
Rowan really wanted to be a butterfly and Harvey got to wear the monkey costume I made for Rowan 2 years ago.
Although Harvey is walking quite well, he didn't want to get out of the wagon much. He ended up getting fussy and having to go home with mom just after 3 blocks. Rowan stayed on with Andy, but apparently she didn't want to stay too much longer either.
I had just put Harvey into his crib and I heard them enter the house. I don't think she liked the cold and the wind. Consequentially, her candy loot was much smaller this year.
As she napped, we sorted through her candy and took out the ones we though were not appropriate to eat....which really only amounted to about 3 things.
It was a good year.....no pennies, no popcorn balls, no pamphlets on morals, no orange and black peanut butter chewies, and only one Laffy Taffy (1 of the 3 things we pulled out). After her nap, Rowan will get to sort through her candy and get to eat something.
I hope that next time we go trick or treating, we will have a nicer day and kids that will want to stay out a little longer. But I can't really complain. We didn't have any injuries or meltdowns.

Beyond the Republicrats

My brother recently posted on his facebook account a quote that really spoke to me.
Up until reading this quote, I was pondering what I should do come election day. Do I vote for one of the two men constantly in the media? I didn't like either choice, but I wondered if I voted for a third party candidate or wrote-in my vote....would I be "wasting" my vote.
This quote helped me to come to the decision I've made.

“Always vote for principle, though you may vote alone, and you may cherish the sweetest reflection that your vote is never lost.”
- John Quincy Adams, 2nd president

Making Jack O'Lanterns

This was Rowan's first year of helping clean out pumpkins. She had a good time and did a fairly good job. After we scooped out all the "guts", she helped separate the seeds from the stringy stuff.
This year, I made my first attempt at roasting the seeds in the oven. I chose to make a savory flavor of pumpkin seed that called for garlic salt and Worcestershire sauce. Andy said they turned out good, but I know I did over cook them a little.
Sorry I didn't get a final shot of the pumpkins faces. After I put out other decorations outside, I'll get a photo and you'll be able to see our pumpkins then.

We made cupcakes!

Harvey really likes his cupcake. This is the first time that I've attempted to use food coloring made from a natural source. I think it turned out pretty good.
What you don't see is that after he was done with the cupcake, I had to clean a lot of crumbs off the tray and had to try to clean frosting out of his nose.
But the cuteness is well worth it!

Back at the Cabin

We went back to the cabin this past weekend. The temps were pretty chilly. We brought along some light coats and that helped a bit, but we should have had some gloves as well.
Rowan went on a couple 4-wheeler rides with Andy. She was so much more enthusiastic about riding this time. I remember a year ago she really dreaded the sound of the 4-wheeler. It makes me happy to see that she has lost that fear. Harvey seems to be less afraid of noises right now and he also got one turn on the 4-wheeler.

Yummy sucker!

I asked Rowan to show me what kind of faces she made for different emotions. Happy and angry almost looked the same. But when I asked her to show me "sad" it was very easy to see the big bottom lip come out in a pout. It was a fun exercise in body language.
Andy enjoyed warming up in the small patch of sunlight.

Rowan is such a nice sister. Here she is sharing her sucker with Harvey. It was his first sucker experience and all he knew was to bite down on it. But the sharing went very well for quite some time.

Harvey enjoyed walking the drive way with Grandma, Rowan and Mom. It was hard for him to keep up since every leaf and twig would slow him down or tamper with his balance. Here he is wearing Grandma's gloves. He looks like a cartoon with them on.

Maverick ran up and down the driveway. Luckily, he never knocked down either of the kids. It was a nice opportunity for him to run super fast.

Andy and I love this pic of Maverick. The camera seemed to focus on his face pretty good while letting the background become a blur with his speed.

Rowan enjoyed reading books while indoors.

Grandpa shared some special time with Rowan. He had her help him plant some garlic in a pot out on the back deck. I hear she did a good job and even got to help water when all was done.

We also got to go out on the boat a couple times. Our time on the water was limited since it was chilly. Andy, Dennis and Janea went out fishing one afternoon while the kids napped. A few fish were caught but only one made it home for eating. I was very proud of the large mouth bass that I caught, but it was too small to keep (although I thought it was biggest fish I ever caught on that lake). We took the kids on a trip around the lake too. Harvey sat very still for the first 2/3 of the trip, but soon got antsy.

Thanks to the kids, we didn't have the best sleep in the loft. Other than that, our trip was fun and we had some great food prepared by Grandma and Grandpa. We can't wait to try out the toaster oven some more next time we are up.

Out at the park

We went to Riverside Park last week. Rowan tried to show Harvey all the fun things she likes to do. But for Harvey it was a bit of a struggle to keep up with her.



Finally, made it!

The Evidence Against Soy

So far, I've usually used the blog for posting updates and photos on my family.
Now I'm thinking of expanding the content of the blog to include my thoughts, links to articles and other issues I find of interest.
The intent is to just provide information - not to start a conversation or debate.
My hope is that I might be able to provide useful information to help improve the lives we lead.

So with that said....
I'm providing a link to an article that discusses the negative attributes to soy products.
I became interested in researching soy when I was considering milk options for my children (especially when I weaned them from breast milk). Since we have a hard time obtaining raw cow milk (for various reasons), I have started using whole, organic goat milk as a first non-human milk since it has great digestibility. As time passes, I intend to transition my son to whole, organic cow milk (hopefully raw). At one point, I did consider other milks such as rice milk, nut milks and soy milk. I believe that none of these have the correct proteins, cholesterol and fats for a developing child.
Anyhow, if anyone is interested in investigating and comparing milks, I'd be happy to send you links. I am opting to not post them all here, since I want to keep this post from becoming too complex.

Here's the link: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/10/07/the-evidence-against-soy.aspx?source=nl

If the direct link doesn't work, try going to www.mercola.com and typing in "soy" in the search box.

Thanks!

Kids Keep Growing

Here is a little update on the development of the Weisensel kids....

Rowan will be turning 3 very soon. Her birthday is at the end of October and she will get to share her birthday party with her dad once again. I think it will be a few more years before she gets her own party.
She is still the little boss and wants Harvey do things how she sees fit. Sharing is still minimal, but every once in a while she shares without being prompted.
Rowan is still riding her little pink trike she got from Aunt Julie. She has outgrown the baby bike at Grandma Allord's house.
Rowan can do most things on her own now (opening doors, buckling herself into the carseat, pottying...) but she has developed a habit of using the phrases "I don't know" and "I can't!"
Most of the time she does know and she really can.
Her most recent accomplishment (much to our dismay) was coloring on our computer area with a Sharpie. She got the desk, keyboard, mouse, monitor and her own lips. She was in big trouble and we learned just how much elbow grease one really needs to clean permanent marker off an LCD computer monitor!

Harvey is really enjoying being 1 year old. He is walking everywhere and making naked escapes while I try to diaper him.
A few days ago he really focused on going up and down the sun room steps. He would go back and forth while holding my hand. He really wanted to walk down like everybody else. He can now comfortably get down those two steps without crawling. He is now determined to walk down the main staircase as well. He will not crawl down backwards. He will hold the railing and wall and walk down. Only at the bottom (where the rail stops short) does he take my hand to descend the last two steps.
Harvey is now also allowed to walk on the new deck. He doesn't like to be stuck in the baby walker anymore. He can climb onto the bouncy horse, teeter totter and little play car all by himself. He is slowly learning how to propel himself on the play car - with a big smile on his face.

Harvey still has 4 teeth on top and 2 on the bottom. But he really loves eating almost everything. This boy is a bottomless pit at most meals. If you ever try to sit down with a snack in the living room, you can expect him to zoom to your knee and start bouncing up and down - like he's saying, "please, give me a bite." One afternoon, I had all three (Rowan, Harvey and Maverick) at my knees. Maverick had the sad eyes. Rowan said, "me too. me too. me too." and Harvey was bobbing up and down. I don't even remember what it was I was eating, but it must have been quite yummy.

Not much else going on, but we will have the kids professional photos taken this weekend. I will post a link to share photos as soon as I can. I hope to have the actual prints in time for Rowan's birthday party.

Rowan hits the jackpot!

Rowan helped Andy sort the copper from the silver a few nights ago. She did a pretty good job. The last time we asked her to help out with this, she flung coins everywhere. This time she was fairly neat and tidy.

We told her that she could have all the pennies. The next day, Janea took her to the bank and we cashed in her winnings. She told the teller about her pennies. For some reason, the teller wasn't smiling that morning. I picked up Rowan so she could see the lady operate the coin machine. When all was tallied, Rowan walked out of the bank a richer girl....11 dollars richer.
When we got home, we took her money to her piggy bank. She had to fold the bills a few times, but eventually she got it all in there. She seemed to be happy that she got to put money in her piggy bank. Too bad bills don't rattle when you shake the bank.

Mom and Dad cashed in the "silver" and made a modest 58 dollars. We were pleasantly surprised and decided to spend our "fun" money on something fun.

Harvey's First Haircut

We took Harvey in for his first haircut since he was starting to look just a wee bit shaggy.
This is our "before" shot.

He sat on my lap since their kid chair booster was not really safe enough for him. I got a cape and Harvey got his own blue cape.

We are discussing what length we want the top, sides and back.

Rowan kept asking me why the lady pumped my chair up. Rowan tried to pump me a few times and we had to shoo her away.

Havey did very well for his first haircut. He never cried and hardly squirmed. He got to hold and chew an orange comb. Most of his styling was done with a scissor but he did get a little bit of shaver just above his ears and at the base of his head.
He just looks so dapper now. He is all ready for his photo shoot in two weeks.
Many thanks to Becky the stylist who had fun with Harvey. I'm sure the fact that he has 3 kids of her own helped a bit.

Gazebo

I've been meaning to take a photo and upload it to the blog. I've forgotten so many times, but now I finally can cross that task off my list.
As you can see, we haven't had "grown-up" visitors in a while.

I was so happy to find that the temps were lower today. It was about 65 degrees and Rowan requested pants and a jacket to play outside. I finally got to put on a sweater and drink hot tea while I watched her play. I hear tomorrow is supposed to be cooler and rainy - yipee! Finally, weather to drive away the mosquitoes.

End of summer fun.

Harvey was acting so cute, walking with his cracker. I just had to take a few shots.

It was very warm and muggy yesterday and today. Andy pulled out the sprinkler ball. Rowan didn't like getting wet at first, but eventually she became more comfortable with it.

I guess using the umbrella defeats the purpose, but helps Rowan's confidence.

More Birthday celebrating!

Harvey is very excited about his birthday meal and his birthday cake!
On August 30th, we visited my parents in Janesville. My whole family was there to celebrate Harvey and Grandma Donna's birthdays.

Rowan praying before the meal is served.

Harvey was itching to stick his fingers in the cake.

Mmmm....

This cake is so good, I think I will rub it right into my face.

Harvey did not enjoy his post-cake bath. It was kind of essential since he was rubbing cake and frosting into his eyes. He was very ready for a nap after all they birthday excitement.

Harvey got some more nice toys from Grandma and his Aunts and Uncles.
Thanks everyone for making his birthday so much fun!

Golf Outing

On August 24th, we participated in a golf outing with Andy's family (maternal grandmother's side). There were 9 teams of either 3 or 4 players. Our team included Andy's aunt Julie and Andy's cousin Hans, Andy and myself. I think I had the least amount of skill. I really surprised myself and didn't totally stink that day. I am truly not a golfer, but enjoy trying to golf. I just don't get any time to practice either. I get to swing a golf club about once every 3 years. Nevertheless, our team came in 3rd place!

The same day of the golf outing was Harvey's 1st birthday. He got to play with some cousins he'd never before met. After all the teams returned from the golf course, we ate a large potluck meal. Harvey ate his first piece of birthday cake (chocolate with some raspberry filling). He really only ate about 1 bite and then played with the rest of the cake.

Toofers

I know that they may be difficult to see, but I tried to snap two shots of Harvey's teeth.
He got the top four in on Saturday the 16th. The full moon must have brought out his inner werewolf. He did howl a bit around midnight.

Family Vacation 2008

This summer, we drove the family up to Patten Lake to stay a week at the family cabin. Grandma and Grandpa Allord drove up with us and stayed with us about 4 1/2 days. It was very nice to have them there. Their extra hands and attention helped ease the burden of watching our two kids. We got to take a nice boat ride (Harvey's first time), catch some fish, go on a very short 4-wheeler ride and take a day trip to Eagle River.
We were sad to see Grandma and Grandpa go in the middle of the week. We were left constantly wrangling the kiddos. Harvey was extremely interested in the wood burning stove. Although it was never lit, he managed to touch any part that would cover his little hands in black soot. Mind you, black soot is not the easiest to clean off a little boy that is very squirmy. The dog's water dish was upturned several times as well. Andy was able to fish off the dock with Rowan at the shore. She threw stones in the water, giggled, then threw in more stones. The first time she proclaimed to have to use the bathroom, we decided it was time to teach her how to use nature's amenities. After the first go, she thought it was the greatest thing in the world. It's always a proud moment when your daughter is stripping off her underwear just as two men motor past in their pontoon boat. "Rowan, sit down in the water!" She didn't sit, but at least she waded far enough to have water up to her navel. Pontoons go slow, and they were looking.
When we visited Eagle River we got to check out some neat stores. At the kids' toy store, they had a lot of cool toys. Rowan got a bucket of plastic food and a plastic fishing rod/fish set and Harvey got a nice "touch and feel" book. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa. All the toys were enjoyed by both kids. Rowan wanted to go out every day and practice fishing with her little set. Eventually she started to use the rod instead of just picking the fish out of the water with her hands.
The weather was in the mid 80's most days and there was a slight breeze most of the time. Rowan did get to play in the water, but there was no official family swim this summer. There really were no injuries, however the mosquitoes all decided Rowan had the sweetest blood. It didn't matter how much bug spray we put on her, she ended up with a million bites - which she scratched.....constantly. So, some bites ended up needing band-aids. Poor kid....she took one for the team.
Since the departure of Grandma and Grandpa Allord had a big impact on our fun cabin activities, we decided to leave a day early. If we were going to be chasing kids 90% of the time, we figured it would just be easier to chase them at our own house where we had more gates and toys.

We had a lot of photos from this trip, and instead of loading them all to this blog (which take a bit of time), I figured it would just be easier to post a link to the vacation album at photobucket.com .

So here's the link, you may have to copy and paste it in your browser:
http://s86.photobucket.com/albums/k81/janea1313/June%202008/Lake%20Patten%202008/

Approaching 3

I made Rowan scrub the wall. She colored on it with crayon and that is not allowed at our house. She did a good clean up job, but I had to put in some of my own elbow grease too.

And if you step out of the kitchen, make sure all off-limit items are out of reach. I guess I left the nail polish on the kitchen table. It was a good thing I had a plastic table cloth on the table. She got polish on her hand, the table cloth and two drops on the plastic place mat.

No, it doesn't get easier going into the third year. How much longer till college? 16 years? Good grief.

Andy's Score

71 As a 1930s husband, I am Superior Take the test!

My test results....

75 As a 1930s wife, I am Superior Take the test!

I saw a link to this 1930's test on a friend's blog and just had to try it. I was quite surprised at the results since I thought I consider my house a mess and I'm not all dolled up by 6 am everyday.
So funny!