Thank You Pop, Grandma D, and Rene

William hugging Rene's card
William reading the ghost card

Not sure what he is doing with Pop and Grandma D's card

There we go...that's a better hug

William was excited to get a pumpkin card from Pop and Grandma D and a ghost card from Rene.

Halloween Parade

One happy skunk with a sucker

Daddy and William watching the police cars

We took William to the Edwardsville Halloween parade tonight. It was his first parade, and I have a feeling we will be going to many more parades in the future. He loved watching all the people go by, and he was dancing to every band and song played. He got a sucker at the very beginning of the parade and sat in his little chair pretty much the rest of the night....bright lights and sugar....I will have to remember that.

Trick or Treat Part 1

William has a big drink after a long night of fun
Trick or Treat

Candy from your parent's bowl is the best!

Our DJ the skunk

I can only post 5 pictures at a time, so there may be several posts. Tonight William got to trick or treat because Edwardsville celebrates Halloween on 2 nights. The first night kids trick or treat and on Halloween there is a big parade downtown. He had a great time. He loves being dressed up in his skunk costume and liked getting candy at the houses we went to. He was pretty wound up....at one point he was rolling in the leaves on our front porch. He only had one fun size bag of mini m&m's so I really can't blame the sugar.

Trick or Treat Part 2

Our little skund rolling in the leaves

Aunt Maggie and William

He loved these two little girls and was so sweet giving them candy.

"Cosmo"

William has just recently started calling our dog Cosmo by name. It doesn't quite come out like Cosmo, but it is close. The video is a little windy at the beginning.

Willow Creek Pumpkin Race

Every year our neighborhood has a pumpkin race. Families decorate a pumpkin and attach wheels to it. The pumpkins are placed in heats of 2 and raced from the top of a hill. The kids really get into it. This year we brought William without a race entry, but next year we will compete.

Relleke Pumpkin Farm

We went to the pumpkin farm today, and William enjoyed all of the excitement. He was fascinated by these large wooden cut outs of farm animals. He also liked visiting the petting zoo. He had a good time running around in the pumpkin patch, and finding all of the funny looking pumpkins.

Climbing a Tree

Tonight, I held William up in a tree in our front yard. He was so impressed with himself. He kept saying, "I up high, tree, mommy."

Trick or Treating Dress Rehearsal

After a kit-kat bar
Trying to get to the loot

A flower for his mommy

Today, I took William to Main St. for the Merchant's Trick or Treat. It was a great chance to let him get used to his costume. He loved to pick the candy out and put it in his bucket. He kept saying "pee- yew, skunk" as we walked along.

Fireman's Hat

William was given a plastic firefighters hat at the open house a few weekends ago. It is really the only hat he will wear. He loves to put it on and run around holding it so it doesn't fall off.

William Speak

I had to post this so that one day I will remember to tell William about it. For the longest time, he has been saying "i-du-why." We have know idea what it means, but he usually says it for something he knows but cannot pronounce. He will also say it when he wants you to look at something.

The video is from a few months ago, and you have to wait until the very end to hear his "word."

Animal House???

William has been really into animals for a long time now. His vocabulary is really growing, and he can explain to us what his little brain is thinking. I was unaware that houses are for animals and that hippos live in really BIG houses across the street from Grammy and Grandpa's. Enjoy the video.

Sunday Adventures

Today started out with quite an interesting ordeal. William and I were shopping with my mom. He fell down and somehow managed to twist his arm while being picked up. We knew something was really hurting him because he was crying and would not move his arm...even when offered a new train to hold.

So, we picked up Aaron and off we went to Children's. The pediatrician was excellent, and diagnosed William even before examining his arm. It turns out he had Nursemaid's Elbow. Children under 4 are prone to this because their ligaments are "loose." I understood the doctor to say that the ligament gets caught between the bones when the arm is pulled while being twisted. If you want a better explanation follow this link: http://pedclerk.bsd.uchicago.edu/nursemaidElbow.html

There were no x-rays needed. In fact, she did a quick adjustment of his arm and left while he was crying. She came back with an orange popsicle for him. This is the true test, to see if the child will turn their arm and hand to reach their mouth. He ate the popsicle and we were good to go.

Tonight, Grammy made William dinner because she felt sorry for him. He had a blast playing in the backyard with Daddy and Grandpa.

Our Big Boy

As many of you know, William has always been on the smaller side, and at one point in time fell off the growth chart. Well, I am happy to say that at his 2 year check up today he is really growing. He now weighs 26 lbs. 10 oz. which is the 30th percentile, and is 34.25 inches which is the 44th percentile.

No pictures yet today, but I had to share the great news!

Opening Gifts

At one point William exclaimed "COOL!" while opening all of his trains. We didn't quite catch that on film, but you can still see his excitement.

William's Party

William had the best time today at his party. He loved both the cakes and asked to blow out candles several times....we only let him do it three times. Let's hope he wished for something good. He got a lot of wonderful gifts. His favorites were trains....of course. In fact, every time he opened a gift he asked "more trains?"

Aunt Claire's Cakes

William's very own cake
They taste as good as they look



Aunt Claire made the most amazing cakes for William's party today. He loves animals, but especially hippos...so the cakes were perfect.