Happy Halloween!

Since I don't know if I'll actually post on Halloween itself, I figure I'll wish everyone a happy and fun Halloween a little early!

Halloween is personally one of my favorite times of the year, since it's a bonifide excuse to dress up, give out, and get candy, and the historical information behind it is also pretty damn neat.

I mean then again I do love me some interesting and obscure Monsters. I did a paper once on Black Shuck, after all. I think that was the most fun I ever had researching something in college.

I think it's even going to be pretty nice weather for it. Maybe a little cool but not freeze you to your bones cold. I'll cross my fingers for it anyway, and I bet a lot of kids out there are doing the same. It's always a little annoying when you work super hard on your costume and then you hide 90% of it under puffy layers of warm things to keep from being Mr. Freeze instead of Batman.

Apparently later today we're having some sort of Live Action game up and down the street based on a book called "Hunger Games". Our Lawn is going to be the 'graveyard' area I think since it's across the street from the hosts house, has a large lawn, and a view of almost everything. Tilmani's a little unsure, but I already gave permission. *cough* So here's hoping that all goes down alright and I don't have to threaten an teenager with a cold blast of hose. I am a mean and evil person when I'm tired, after-all.

We'll probably have our usual weekend game gathering, at which I figure on making some crock pot Vinegar BBQ and maybe a side of sweet potatoes, and then hand out some candy.

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MiniMonster has pretty much cut the three teeth up top that he was working on, and ambitiously... seems to be working on TWO MORE.

I swear this kid has got it into his head that he's going to be biting chunks out of things by thanksgiving. He's sure trying hard enough! He needed some new socks, and we bought him some little leather soled slippers, since the weather is getting colder, and his feet are getting bigger. We tried buying him some shoes but Tilmani's estimate on his feet size was... *cough* a little off. I think you could fit both his feet into one of those shoes, so fortunately the slippers fit, but I bought those while MiniMonster was actually along.

He also decided to say "Hi" to the phone last night when his father called, that was a fun moment. Of course then he kept saying "Hi" for the next ten minutes, which was also cute. I guess you can't blame the guy for enthusiasm!

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Discovered some fun new web comics: I recommend "The Not so Epic Adventures of TJ and Amal", which was a fun find. Really gorgeous art too! Otherwise not a ton of stuff, but I'll keep you posted.

I mean I'm sure anyone on facebook has figured out I'm addicted to "Mouse Hunt". (HA! I made the Pumpkin Pummeler Trap! Dang that thing is hysterical... though I apologize to anyone annoyed by the updates regarding my mouse hunting triumphs.

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And you probably notice I sprouted an award. Leez of "Gnome Season" apparently decided to pass along the "Blog With Substance" award, which she also got and is convinced she doesn't deserve. I'm kinda tickled by getting a blog award... though I'm sure my 'obligatory interview' stuff will be pretty boring.

1. Thank the blogger who gave me the award.

^_^ Thanks Leez! And you do too deserve it.

2. Sum up your blogging philosophy, motivation, and experience using five words:
..
Love, Learning, Family, Friends, Creativity...

3. Pass this on to 10 other bloggers that you feel have a substance in their blogs.:

...Yeah I definitely don't know ten. Leeze has already got it... so: Erica (Adventures in Surrogacy) and Wanda (Langham Fat Farm) I choose you! *throws a pokeball*

Cabbage Patch Drolls

So apparently there is an article on the web on how kids should be sleeping through the night at three months old. This in spite of pretty much any other source and experience I've personally had saying MOST kids won't start this until at least six months, since, you know, they're eating constantly, they're in a giant new strange world, they're growing... then somewhere around six months as they finally start getting used to and exploring everything, they start teething, crawling, trying to stand and walk.... more new things that put a lot of stress on the body.

But they're supposed to be sleeping through the night. Because an article, which admits it doesn't cover all the factors... says they should.

I find this... to say the least, hysterical in the most bitter kind of way. Especially because I know there are people who will take this to mean that if your child isn't sleeping through the night as though you hit the magical "You're three months old now, Sleep!" button, that you, personally, are somehow a failure as a parent.

Kids aren't magical wind up toys that do everything for your convenience and comfort, they're little people who are getting used to being in a giant new world full of new experiences. They don't come with magic on/off switches, they don't start out with a self cleaning option, and they don't control the interruptions that sometimes come in the night.

Last time I met a little chubby cheeked, permanently smiling kid that did whatever anyone wanted, it came in a cardboard box with a little birth certificate that said "Cabbage Patch Kids".

*GRUMP*.

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It was a pretty interesting weekend though, I have to admit. Saturday Tilmani and I got to go on our date, though I also went outside and put some pumpkins on our stone wall by the steps as part of decorating for Halloween. While I was outside doing this, I kept hearing someone call "Buddy! Buddy get back here!"
I figured it was someone's dog, as there are a few on the street, and didn't think much of it... until I heard the distinct sound of horseshoes on pavement. I looked up and there was a horse coming down the street!
He took one look at me, did the horse equivalent of an 'don't mind me', and bolted up the kitchen side of our house into the back yard to visit with the horses that stable behind us. His rather frazzled keepers spent about 10 minutes trying to narrow him down from one side of the house to the other, since when they pursued him up behind he came down the other side into our driveway, then turned around and went back because of a car pulling out of the driveway. ((I imagine the driver was at least as surprised as he was.))

He was eventually safely caught, and escorted off the property unharmed. MiniMonster got to see him walk past the kitchen doors again, he thought that was enormously exciting.
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The Date was great. We went to the Elegant Ewe, where I got a thousand yards of "Dream in Color" sock yarn in "Purple Paisley" to try and make the Spanish Armada shawl with. ((If I can actually pull off some decent shawls I might actually try and put one on my Etsy. Although if someone wants one in just plain basic knitting, I can do that very easily. Price would depend on the yarn.

We went to the Candy Store, and I got some of my favorite candies, we went to Michaels and got a new scrap book ((I need to go print photos))
Yeah it was just a blast.

Sunday was good too, we went to a joint Birthday Party for Aunt Kris and Papa Tom, Mini got to taste the Lasagnina, and was nuts for Butternut Squash with brown sugar. I'm gonna have to try and make it for him some time, since I'm more than happy to encourage any veggies he wants to eat, and there's not actually a ton of brown sugar in it.