Holidays

The one thing that helps me deal with the fact that summer is ending and that winter is beginning is that it means the holidays are right around the corner.  I have always loved Thanksgiving and Christmas but have never really been big on Halloween.  That has changed though over the past few years.  Having little ones to dress up is really fun.  And this year being the first year that Colin actually understood what was going on was especially exciting.  Tessa was a kangaroo and Colin was Woody from Toy Story.  Keith was amazing and was somehow able to track down the last Woody costume in St. Louis.  The only size that was left was 2T.  We thought that would be perfect seeing that Colin is just shy of 2 and a half.  What we didn't factor in is that Colin is taller then most two year olds.  So although the costume fits you will see that it is a little snug.


At first we had a difficult time trying to convince Colin that he should wear the hat but once he realized that neighbors were handing out candy to kids in costume he was all for putting the hat on.  He was willing to do anything to get his little hands on some candy. 

Here is our sweet little kangaroo, yes, this was Colin's costume from when he was a baby.  It was just too stinkin cute to pass up using again.


I learned two important things about Halloween this year 1. It is ok to bend the rules a little for one night and allow your kid to eat candy and stay up past bedtime.  We have video of Colin in his costume talking about how much fun he had trick or treating.  That video alone was well worth breaking a few rules for and 2.  Leftover Halloween candy is excellent bribery to use for potty training.  (yes we are still potty training, yes it has been months, yes he is out of diapers and in big boy underwear, yes sometimes it still takes a little bribery to get him to use the potty, no you are not allowed to judge me for this).

With Thanksgiving and Christmas quickly approaching I have been thinking a lot about what outfits I want the kids to wear for the holidays.  Is it weird that I have already spent time thinking Tessa's Christmas outfit?  There is just something so cute about little girls Christmas dresses!!  Realizing that it really is probably a little earlier to start shopping for Christmas outfits I thought I better focus in on Thanksgiving.  I had this idea to get a white long sleeve onesie and put a little Turkey applique on it for Tess to wear along with a matching tutu.  I know several stores where I could buy this exact outfit but I figured I would give myself a little challenge and will try to make it myself.  When I told Keith about this he suggested that I make Colin a tie to match the outfit I make for Tess.  Well I talked my mom into going to the fabric store with me today.  Here's hoping that the actually assembly of the outfits will go smoother then the purchasing.  If you have never been to a fabric store before prepare yourself to be overwhelmed.  Oh and you might want to leave your 2 year old who is in to everything at home for this shopping trip.  Here is a little sneak peak at what I bought today.  I will be sure to post updates regarding my progress and the finished product.