Shenanigans and Weekend Fun ...

Whew! Last week the boys were full of it - and still are! I don't know if they can sense the changing of the season or if something else is up, but they have been extra rascally. For those of you who know my boys, you understand that is really saying something! Maybe it is because they are both finally healthy (hope I didn't just jinx that) and they feel well enough to just let themselves go be boys to the fullest extent. Whatever the reason, it sure is fun to watch them explore and conjure up all sorts of mayhem. Sometimes I swear I can actually see the little wheels and gears turning inside their minds as they plot their next deed -- or misdeed would probably be a more accurate description = )

Riley once again decided to exhibit his Picassoesque mural creation abilities the other day. In the short time it took me to change Gage's diaper, Riley managed to break into the "no-no" drawer that has a child lock on it and wrangled out a red crayon. He then proceeded to draw huge swooping circles and wavy criss-cross lines across a section of wall about 2 ft tall and 4 ft wide. Aaaaarrggghhhh! Of course, when I asked him what in tarnation he thought he was doing, he proudly boasted "Look! Circles go 'round, 'round, 'round and whoooooooosh! I draw!" He was so pleased with himself and his art! I somehow found it within myself to not scream out loud what I was screaming inside my head and politely, yet tersely, told him that while his self-expression was lovely, it is not ok to draw on mommy's walls -- ever -- we only draw on the paper mommy or daddy gives you. Riley then looked at me sweetly and said with a sigh, " 'kay mom" and bounced off to his room where I told him to stay for a little while. Thank goodness for Mr Clean Magic Erasers, they really do clean up almost anything! I am also thankful that it was a red crayon on burnt orange walls as I may not be able to look back on this moment as fondly if this had occurred in another with non-complementary colors!

Gage has almost completed his transformation into a full-fledged monkey. He hasn't met an object that he hasn't attempted to climb and conquer. He has now mastered climbing up the side of his crib (from the floor) to make his way up to the changing table. From there he loves to turn the light and ceiling fan on and off 1,729 times per day. Okay, maybe that's a bit much of an exaggeration, but you get my point - he does this a lot. He's also taken to climbing up on the recliner and while it's in the reclined position, trying to tip it over. Other fun climbing adventures include up on our glass kitchen table (very dangerous - we'll be replacing that soon with something more stable) or scaling the kitchen drawers using the handles as footholds. Boys are definitely a different breed. I'm still trying to find the best way to stop these unauthorized adventures. So far, timeouts don't phase him nor does spanking or redirection. This boy has a one track mind! But, we will continue to be persistent in letting him know that these things are not okay and hopefully the idea will stick with him. Wish us luck! Also, any ideas or suggestions are welcome = )

Friday evening we decorated for Halloween and had so much fun! We put little ghosts in the landscaping out front so that they're peeking out over the bushes and trees. They are just the cheap little plastic baggy ghosts on a stick, but they are cute nonetheless. Riley was such a big helper using the mallet and a long screwdriver to help make guideholes for the stakes to go into. That boy sure loves his tools. Gage was his ornery little jokester self and enjoyed going around and pulling the ghosts off of their posts almost as quick as we could put them on. Needless to say, we had to finish the project after Gage had gone inside for his bath because we were losing the battle. He is so quick! We also put up various decals on the windows throughout the house. It is so cute how excited they get every time they look at them = ) Their favorite part is finding the black kitties that are peeking out of jack-o-lanters. My favorite part is trying to get them to say Frankenstein = ) It doesn't seem like too hard of a word, but it sure seems to stump them. The variations that come out of their mouths are hilarious!

We rounded out the weekend with another trip to Deanna Rose Farmstead. We met Aunt Tracy there, as well as our friend Carrie and her daughter Taryn. The kids all had a great time with the animals as usual. We had a really nice visit with my sis. The boys were so happy to see her Sunday morning. They cuddled and loved on her for a good long time = )

Sunday afternoon we headed out to Gloria's for a BBQ. She has the farm decorated really cute for Halloween with lots of hay bales, pumpkins, and scarecrows. The boys had so much fun being out there on a weekend without all of the other daycare kids around. They ran all over the place and totally wore themselves out. This, of course, pleased Corey and I because they went to bed early without any arguements whatsoever = )

Here's a little shout-out to Grandma & PopPop Soukup. Corey had the TV on the outdoor channel this morning and a deer hunting show was on. The boys were totally engrossed watching the deer. When I went to change the channel to their normal cartoons they watch while eating breakfast I was pelted with numerous "NOOOOOO's" from both boys. They wanted to watch the deer instead of cartoons! There's your future outdoorsmen in the making = ) Corey was pretty proud of his boys, too!