I Have the Coolest Teen!

After we went trick-or-treating tonight, I saw this on Momma Jorje's Facebook status:

"It's Halloween. Tonight a lot of creatures will visit your door. Be open minded. The child who is grabbing more than one piece of candy might have poor fine motor skills. The child who takes forever to pick out one piece of candy might have motor planning issues. The child who does not say "trick or treat" or "thank you" might be shy or non-verbal. The child who looks disappointed when he sees you...r bowl might have an allergy. The child who isn't wearing a costume at all might have SPD or autism. The child who is screaming at the top of her lungs probably can't help it. Be nice. Be patient. Its everyone's Halloween. Make a mom feel good by making a big deal of her special child."

There was one mom who we were able to help a little. She had a little boy who was around 5. I couldn't tell what his costume was, but it was handmade with 2 pieces of poster board - hanging over his shoulders like a sign. She also had a little girl who was around 2. The baby was screaming non-stop. Not the usual "I'm tired" or "I'm having a bad time right now" scream. This was ear-piercing. She kept throwing her candy on the ground and then screaming to have it back.

The poor mom just didn't know what to do. Near the start of trick-or-treating, I heard her say, "If you don't stop, we'll have to go home." The look on that little boy's face was so heart-breaking. I just knew that this little girl probably had more than the usual "Terrible Twos" going on. I could just tell by his face that this would probably be one more time that his little sister's needs were going to come first. (Think of it from a five-year-old's perspective.)

I really didn't want to interfere. That was until one of the other parents LOUDLY made mention of what a terrible parent she must be. This snotty woman made mention of the "shitty" costume and the "bratty" baby. The mama looked like she was going to lose it - even though it was dark, those tears welling up in her eyes were clear as day.

My oldest offered to walk the little boy up to the houses - I was still trying to get my anger under control! So, I just stood with the mom and we talked. The little girl calmed down. It seems she was over-stimulated by all of the decorations and didn't want to go up to the houses. It was just too much for her. Plus, she was extremely introverted and hated going anywhere with people she didn't know around. Every time they started up the walk of a house, she thought they were going to go inside - where there would be people she didn't know. Over and over, they walked up to a house, she freaked out, then they walked away. This repetition caused her to just completely lose it and scream non-stop. My son's simple offer to walk with the little boy fixed it. Two houses down, the little girl stopped crying and was happy to sit quietly in her stroller and observe. She only cried when someone got in her face to say, "Oh, aren't you so cute!" (I'd have cried, too! LOL)

I don't know the mama's name, I don't know anything about them. We didn't get into that stuff. But she thanked me for walking with her - she said it made her feel a little stronger to have "someone on her side." The little boy was so happy with my son. He was holding hands with him and I don't think his smile could get any bigger. He had quite a haul of candy and I just know he was feeling rich!

I am so proud of my son. While I stood there, not knowing what to do, he stood up and did the perfect thing. I'd probably have said something nasty back to snotty woman. Possibly starting a yelling match, most definitely bringing even more unwanted attention to the mama. When I told my son how proud I was of him, on the way home, he looked at me like I was nuts. "What for?" "Uh, helping that little boy have a great Halloween." He just shrugged his shoulders and rolled his eyes at me. "Mom, it's not like I wasn't going to the houses with Little Guy anyway. What's one more kid?" I'm not sure if he was just playing it off, or if he really had no idea how wonderful his simple action was and what it meant to the mama, her daughter, and her son.

I wish I had seen Mamma Jorge's status before we went out. I'd have shared everywhere. Maybe if I'd have done that, it could have gotten to snotty woman before she had gone trick-or-treating...

A "Real" Post! {Finally!!!}

Man, my whole week has been nuts! It would seem that I got in way over my head. Well, actually, things wouldn't have been so screwed up if I hadn't caught a nasty cold a couple of weeks ago. You never realize how great it feels to be healthy until you're sneezing, coughing, and trying to keep up with a little one - all while trying to let a fever do it's work to kill the germs inside!

Had all gone smoothly, I'd have managed to write one giveaway sponsor's review and a "real" post everyday. That was the plan. But, I found myself writing nothing, then trying to get all of the sponsor posts up before the hop. I was up until 5am on Friday morning putting the finishing touches on the Made in Michigan Giveaway Hop post - just in time. I still have one more review post to write and another great Etsy giveaway to post by tomorrow. Then, things will calm down around here. I'll be able to get the Mindful Parenting Collaboration post written (I did manage to get my inner work done while sick!) and a few other posts that I've been meaning to write taken care of. Hopefully, I'll be able to get back on track soon!

Other than being sick, I've been getting ready for Halloween! Last weekend, our town had a really great Harvet Festival - complete with Trick-or-Treating at the small businesses downtown. It is so neat to watch Little Guy's eyes light up at every single Tootsie Roll and Twizzler. He smiled HUGELY at every stop (I don't think he could stop smiling!) and his "Thank You" to everyone was so genuine! You see, we don't do a lot of candy around here, though I don't completely outlaw it. Up until this summer, in fact, fruit leather and raisins were referred to as "candy".

Today, the farmer's market held their own Trick-or-Treating! So, Little Guy got to dress up in his really cool Thomas costume again and get FREE CANDY from the vendors he's come to know all over the summer.

Oh, and we decorated pumpkins last night. Check out this post to see how we do pumpkins around here. It's more economical - and safer - than carving!

Showing off how strong he is!

And, finally, here are a couple of pictures I managed to catch this morning that ended up being nice little surprises when I uploaded them from my camera:

The River Raisin this morning. I really like getting photos of the river when the reflection in the water comes out so beautifully.

I love this one! The flower vendor has a blue tarp over her stall this morning. I just love how everything in the picture has that blue hue to it except the flowers.

Super-Easy Pumpkin Decorating!

The last few years, we haven't carved pumpkins. I always hated paying for a pumpkin, only to throw it out after Halloween. Yeah, we got pumpkin seeds from those carving pumpkins, but they weren't very yummy. So, I started to buy pie pumpkins and we do this to them:

It's so fun and easy for the kids to cut out eyeballs, mouths, and noses from magazines. Then, with a little glue, we make some pretty creepy pumpkins. I mean, really - Which is scarier? A pumpkin with triangles carved into it, or these weird-looking faces that just aren't right?

Plus, it's safer and everyone can participate. I mean, I know that my oldest is 13, but his knife skills aren't all there. I don't want him showing his kids a scar on his hand one day, saying, "You see this one? I got this while carving a pumpkin. Twenty-three stitches!" And then there's Little Guy who is at a point where, "I do it myself!" translates into: "If you don't let me do exactly the same thing as everyone else, I'm going to flip out into a pool of tears and ear-piercing screaming!" So, letting him try to figure out how to use scissors, then giving him a paintbrush and a bowl with some white glue it such an easy solution.

Just checking out the pumpkins.

This is a great way to explore some creative options in facial features!

We're planning on gluing on some marigolds and autumn leaves for hair tomorrow.

On Tuesday, I'll cut up the pumpkins and bake the seeds and cook the pumpkin in the crock pot, then puree it for pies, cookies, etc. No wasted money - and some healthy fall treats, too!

Do you have any good pumpkin recipes we might want to try? Let me know!

My Day Out with "Thomas"... Uh, Kinda {Wordless Wednesday}

Not really like those "Day Out with Thomas" posts I was seeing all summer. But, I think this was even better! We received this cool costume from Wholesale Halloween Costumes for the review I posted HERE.

BOTH feet have left the ground!

 Little Brown Bear's author, "Aunt Bett" (Elizabeth Upham McWebb), lived in our town. This is a statue of Little Brown Bear that sits in front of the library downtown. If you ever get the chance, check out your local library to see if her books are available - they're great stories for little ones! HERE is a list of her books.

 Downtown is starting to get "dressed up" for Autumn!

When I say, "Look at Mommy!" this is what I get.

This is "The Tea Store" (a.k.a. Health Matters) where we get all of our teas and vitamins. Oh, AND snacks when we're downtown!

 Nothing like heading to the library by our house to play with the really cool Thomas & Friends track while wearing your really cool Thomas costume!

And you just have to do some coloring, especially when the librarians just added fresh crayons to the box!

OK, know what he's doing here? Well, let me just say that when your kid is really interested in a leaf on a bush, pay close attention. As I was snapping the picture, I saw his hand go up to his mouth. It was a berry (?!) that he was after. I'm so glad I caught this before he popped it into his mouth!

So, that was my "Day Out with Thomas" - as I said, I'm sure it was better than any other one!

Thanks, once again, to Wholesale Halloween Costumes for sending us this really neat costume to review. I love the candy catcher pocket in front even better than before - Little Guy could carry his own sticks, leaves, rocks, and nuts (lots of black walnut trees around here) so I didn't have to!

"Trick-or-Treat, It's Thomas!" {Wholesale Halloween Costumes}

I have always prided myself in my ability to make Halloween costumes for my kids. Until this year, that is. Little Guy loves Thomas the Train and, with lots of goading from the Oldest, has talked non-stop about wanting to be Thomas for Halloween. So, I decided to get started early - I've done the last-minute costume thing and it's not fun. I found a box just the right size, measured Little Guy, cut holes, and sketched out the design. Before painting, I wanted to make sure it would fit him, so I tried to try it out on him. He hated it. I mean, one second he was a happy little boy who was going to try on his Thomas costume, the next minute he was a kicking, screaming toddler who managed to tear apart a very well-made, sturdy box. So much for the make-your-own-Thomas-costume idea!

Luckily, a few days after this fiasco, I received the opportunity to try out a costume from Wholesale Halloween Costumes! I mean, how lucky can a mom at her Halloween costume wit's end get? Before heading straight for the Thomas section, I decided to look around a little - you never know what you might find. I was amazed at their selection of Halloween costumes for kids! They have a huge number of costumes, from pirates to princesses, TV characters to classic characters kids have dressed as for years... anything you could possibly want.

Too many choices for me, so I narrowed my browsing down to Boys Costumes. The first thing I noticed was that the costumes are really made for boys - they come in jumpsuits, shirt and pants or tunics that are worn over clothes. All of these are definitely Little Guy-friendly. And they're really cool costumes, too. I remember the days when your costume was either homemade, or came in the form of an ill-fitting mask that you couldn't see out of and never stayed on and a plastic apron-like thingy that you tied on around your neck and waist. Those days are gone, baby!

 And then I saw it... the PERFECT Thomas the Tank Engine Costume!  This thing is awesome, and I know that he'll wear it all year round. In fact, our entire neighborhood has already seen his costume because he wore it everywhere we went the day it arrived.  It's a tunic-like costume, so he wears it like a big shirt - no mobility issues! And, being in Michigan, it can be hard to know what the weather will be like. I was in pre-labor with Little Guy on Halloween in 2008 and it was a balmy 70 degrees out. Last year, his first Trick-or-Treating experience, it was rainy, windy, and freezing. This costume is large enough that I could put a winter coat under it, and it's light enough that he wouldn't sweat to death if we are lucky enough to get a nice Indian Summer Halloween (is that P.C.?!) Another neat feature of this costume is that he doesn't need to carry a bag for his goodies. It is designed with a built-in "candy catcher" pocket! Our town is full of houses with porches, so he'll be able to use both his hands for balance on the steps.

Oh, and a couple more things -  Wholesale Halloween Costumes is very customer-oriented!
The costume came in a neat bag with a hanger, so we can hang it in the closet when he's not wearing it. They also have a wonderful customer care section on their site where you can find the answer to almost any question. Oh, and if you can't find the answer, you can reach them by phone, via a contact form, and even live chat! And, along with our costume, came a Return/Exchange Procedures Form. This company doesn't wait until you have a problem to let you look up the rules on returns - they let you know the deal up front, before you even take the costume out of the package. I have to say that this really impressed me. It shows that they really want to make sure that the customer knows what to do if any problems should arise. I can't say that for a lot of companies - even the big, expensive ones! Oh, and they even direct you to where you can print out a prepaid return label so you don't have to go stand in line at the post office forever and then pay to ship your product back.

Speaking of price... these costumes really are at wholesale prices. The price of our Thomas the Tank Engine Costume was only $23.50. They even have one priced at $19.90! And they have a flat rate shipping fee to the continental US of only $5.90 ($6.90 expedited) no matter how big your order is. I just hate finding the perfect item for an amazing price only to find out the shipping costs twice as much as the thing I want to buy! You don't have to ever wonder about that here!

(And, yes, I know I just posted about the Costume Swap. We'll be participating next year or donating our Thomas costume to a kid who doesn't have anything to wear!)

Disclosure:  I received a free Thomas the Tank Engine Costume in exchange for my honest review.  No monetary compensation was received. I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. All opinions are mine and not influenced by the company.

Green Halloween! { #CostumeSwapDay }

It may not quite be Halloween yet, but National Costume Swap Day is right around the corner! And it’s never too early to start thinking about how to make one of the best holidays of the year more eco-friendly.

Now, I've always been one to use whatever I have around the house to make costumes. Last year, the kids went as SpongeBob and one of the characters in an episode - DoodleBob (I think that's the guy's name!) It went well, but Little Guy really hated the box thing. For the first time ever, I'm getting him a costume this year - Thomas the Train. I tried and tried to think of a way to make him one (I can't sew very well) that would be comfortable. I had the prototype, tried it on him, and he HATED it. As in, nearly had a tantrum because it was just not comfortable.

Since I'll be getting a new costume this year, I know exactly what I'll be doing with it next year. Check out the information below for National Costume Swap Day. I know that you have some kind of costumes in a box somewhere (basement, garage, etc.) that you know you'll never use again. You're holding on to them because a) you spent good money on them and will NOT throw them out, b) you don't want to toss them into the trash because you'll be adding to landfills, c) they've been in the box for so long you just forgot about them! If you don't have Halloween costumes laying around, what about out-grown dress-up clothes? You know what I mean on this one, too. Is your little girl still trying to get into that leotard that is three sizes too small? Do you little guy's fireman boots hurt his feet? Take them to the nearest Costume Swap and exchange them for some new stuff!

On October 8, people across the country will get together for costume swaps in their own cities and towns. Swaps are a great way to go green by exchanging gently used Halloween costumes for new-to-your-kids. You’ll save the money you would’ve spent on new costumes for your kids and help the environment. In fact, swapping half the costumes kids wear at Halloween would reduce annual landfill waste by 6,250 tons—about the weight of 2,500 midsize cars!


If you’ve got friends and neighbors or a school or community group for whom a costume swap would be a good project, I encourage you to host a swap yourself or join with others. It’s easy, fun and a great way to build community around this money-saving and planet-saving idea. You can learn the simple steps to hosting a swap HERE. And be sure to register your swap so everyone can find out about it. Many neighborhoods and towns have already begun planning their swaps. Find one near you, then spread the word and help make it an eek-o-fabulous success!


National Costume Swap Day is sponsored by Green Halloween, KIWI magazine, and Swap.com.

Ready to get started? Find existing swaps—plus information to help you start your own at CostumeSwapDay.com.

Halloween!

This will be the first year my toddler gets to go trick-or-treating and I'm so excited. We watched "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" last night and everything I told him about going out on Halloween made sense to him when he saw the gang of kids knock on a door and receive CANDY! Now, since he's only two, "candy" is fruit snacks and I'm hoping to keep it that way.

I just put the finishing touches on his and his 12 year old brother's costumes. My oldest wanted to go as SpongeBob this year, so I figured I'd do costumes that go together. Therefore, my little guy is going to be "DoodleBob." The DoodleBob costume was easy - I just painted a box white and then made a rough drawing of SpongeBob on it. The large box that I made into SpongeBob, on the other hand, has had me up until 2am for the last few nights (I can only get the paints out after the little guy goes to bed unless I want "help.") Even though it'll only be worn once, I'm very proud of it!

Earlier this evening, we did our pumpkins. I bought pie pumpkins at the farmer's market last week so we could have our Halloween and eat it, too. Since I plan on cooking them, we couldn't cut them into Jack-o-lanterns. Instead, I got out all of my old magazines and cut out every eye, nose, mouth, ear, and hair I could find. Tonight, the whole family sat in the kitchen and taped these parts onto our pumpkins. We had a great time trying out different faces and showing each other! The pumpkins look creepier than anything you could carve, too. Our toddler had the BEST time and, since there were no sharp objects involved, he was able to make his own pumpkin with very minimal help.