Happy Halloween!

We had a great Halloween. We dressed Calvin up as the cutest lion, with the most chewable cheeks EVER. Andy was from the Matrix, but the kids thought he was a vampire. I was a witch. If the camera had gone a bit lower, you would have seen my sassy orange thigh highs.

Calvin went trick-or-treating at the 6 houses closest to ours.

Then he played with his glow stick on the lawn, watched the other kids come and go, and dragged his grandma all over the neighborhood.

We went into the house and Calvin had the best time playing with his grandparents who dote on him shamelessly and give in to his every whim. He adores them. There was also a birthday party involved - we'll talk about that tomorrow.

An Opportunistic Climber

Today I was working in the office on a deadline I've had, so I had set Calvin up with toys in the entry where he was within my line of vision from the desk. Even though I could hear him talking to himself the entire time, every minute or so, I'd peek out to make sure he was still playing. At one point, I heard him laughing so I leaned over to take a look. He wasn't there.

I got up from the desk, walked through the living room, kitchen, and family room, but he was nowhere to be seen. I started to panic a bit, but I could still hear him laughing. I retraced all of my steps, and finally followed his voice to the last place I expected to see him - playing at the banister at the very top of the stairs. He had climbed both levels of the staircase completely on his own - and he couldn't have been more proud of himself. I am very proud of him as well. Unfortunately, along with that pride, I have a whole new set of worries.

An Old-TimeTrain Ride

On Saturday Calvin's grandparents took us to a steam train in the middle of Pennsylvania that has been running since the early 1900's. It was the most charming train I've ever seen. It was straight out of polar express, complete with the nostalgic whistle and all of the tiny details of wood, upholstery nails, paint, and a coal burning stove. I really did try to limit the amount of pictures in this post, but here are my favorites:

Conductor Calvin, happy to have a hat just like Grandpa's.

Everyone at the train depot waiting for departure.

As the train approached with its steam blowing, light glowing, and whistle bellowing, I thought it was magical... Calvin, on the other hand, lost it. He was terrified of the whistle, and all through the trip, whenever it sounded his little chin would quiver, his bottom lip would stick out, and he would start the saddest cry until we could calm him down. Except for the very last whistle of the trip, when his lip jutted out, but he didn't cry - go figure.

Waiting on the quaint train depot bench.

They charged a bit extra for the caboose, but it was completely enclosed, with two different levels for seating. There was the main car, and then up a few metal ladder rungs was a single seat on each corner with windows that opened for looking out across the country side. There was also a corner with a tiny coal burning stove and two old wicker chairs to warm yourself by the heat. So adorable.

Calvin at the top of the caboose, loving the view.

Calvin pouting on grandma after being frightened by the whistle.

You can't really tell, but it was POURING rain and everyone was soaked. The train stopped for a 10 minute break so everyone could get out and look around, and Calvin loved walking on the tracks with his dad and looking at the front of the train, despite the bad weather. I think this was his favorite part of the trip.

Our caboose conductor. A very nice guy, and a fun shot of the crew.

The boys enjoying riding up top.

A view of the gorgeous country side. I loved that it was raining so hard. It made it seem like something really special, watching the water run down the glass and listening to the pitter-patter on the roof and windows as we made our way through the Pennsylvania farm lands.

After the train ride, we drove further north and visited Andy's college. It was fun for me to see a little piece of his history. We then went to the bar and grill he used to frequent and had delicious sandwiches and waffle fries dipped in blue cheese. It was a perfect meal on a rainy day and fun to see where he used to hang out with friends.

We ate chinese take out for dinner, conversed about politics and family, looked at pictures, played with Calvin's birthday present (that deserves its own post), looked at Halloween lights, and then went home right at the boy's bedtime, so he slept all the way home. It really was a good day. Thank you Grandpa and Grandma Nelson for showing us a great time!

Alone Time

Today the boy was the orneriest thing ever, from 7:30am - 8pm. So in order to revisit happier days, I entertained myself with memories of a few days ago. I think most moms will tell you that one thing that goes when you have a kid is any sense of privacy. Especially since Calvin loves playing in the toilet these days, every time he hears the bathroom door open and close, he crawls as fast as he can and spends the whole time you're in there banging on the door and either jabbering or whining, depending on his mood. It's an even bigger disaster if I let him in.

However, the other day as I was in there looking for a bit of peace, Calvin crawled up to the door as expected, but instead of banging to get in, he slid a toy underneath the door. I pushed it back out, and there was a slight pause before he pushed it right back in. In and out, in and out, and on and on we went. He was getting very intense about the game. Sometimes the little block would fly in quickly and almost hit the opposite wall. Every time I pushed it out, he responded immediately and pushed it back in.

As we played, I was thinking how much I wish I had pictures of his tiny little fingers poking in and out through the crack at the bottom of the door. It was one of those weird times when your heart aches for the simplicity of the magic in that little moment. Imagine my happiness when two days after the event, I looked at the camera, and found that Andy had taken pictures of the outside from Calvin's perspective. I love them. I think they would make the perfect flip book.

Tiger by the Tail

Tonight the boys were playing and somehow Calvin ended up with his tiger's tail in his mouth, shaking it vigorously back and forth. Even when Andy picked him up by his feet (which he loves), he wouldn't drop the tiger. Andy swung him around the room for several minutes, and the tiger finally only fell out because Calvin was laughing so hard. It was very entertaining to watch.