Goats, Goats and more Goats

Angela here!  The past week has been much better for Hudson and not nearly as traumatic.  Still a tad dramatic, but hey, that's just what our son does.  Monster Mash was "decent" for the Hudman.  We started off with the petting zoo where he thought the goats were dogs.  He tried to kiss them and stick his face through the gate.  Then he got nervous when one goat got really close and wanted food.  Thankfully Lolly stepped in to supervise.

Then we visited the cops and the firemen.  He was not sure about sitting in the police car....

Or riding the special train....

Luckily, cousin Anderson was very supportive and kept his arm around him the entire time.  Sooo adorable!  Everyone laughed (including strangers) as poor Huddy bawled his eyes out for the longest 45 seconds of his life.  But unlike the haircut, he recovered quickly from this traumatic experience.

We then tried to do a family photo.  Obviously from the pictures below, we were unsuccessful.  All the kiddos are on the move and can never sit still.  Notice cousin Anderson trying to pull baby Claire back in.  He is the older cousin that has the duty of keeping the family together.....

The best I could get.

On Sunday, the cousins went to the zoo.  There was a trick-or-treating event where the kiddos could dress up.  Anderson gladly wore his devil costume.  Hudson is still not sure about his costume, so we decided to save that drama for actual Halloween day.  The below pic is the boys watching a flamingo squawk.  Hudson was not impressed; Anderson clearly thought the bird was too loud.

Then we went for the goats again.  Hudson was still convinced they are large dogs.  So he did what he always does to poor Penny Lane...he went up to each and every goat and gave them a big hug.  He likes to give an "ahhh" when he gives his hugs.  Both Chris and I do a big "ahhh" anytime we see Hudson do something sweet or cute.  Clearly we are teaching him to be over-to-top and dramatic and I think it is backfiring in some cases.  But this time it was super cute!

http://youtu.be/H8Z27PV_stE

Countdown for Halloween is on!!!  Happy Wednesday everyone!

Halloween prep and First Haircuts

Angela here!  I've had a whiny boy on my hands lately.  Chris says that Boston turned Hudson "into a man," but I beg to differ.  We've been getting ready for Halloween and Hudson seems to cry at everything we put him in.  I can't understand why he doesn't like to humor his parents and try on multiple outfits and shirts and watch us laugh at him.  Lets just say that Hudson HATES dressing up and DESPISES anything on his head.  He is going to be a devil this year and we've been "practicing" wearing the outfit.  He hood scares him and the tail annoys him.  But he does like running around the house with the pitch fork trying to stab the cat or dog.  The pets have been getting extra treats for having to deal with this child.

The shirt says "Don't scare me, I poop easily."  The day he wore it to daycare, he exploded through his cloth diaper and ended up with a couple outfit changes.  My response was: "It's not my fault; his Lolly bought the shirt!"

These pictures were taken before we went to daycare.  And he had already pooped once!

But the glow-in-the-dark jammies were a big hit.  We would turn off the lights and he would stare at his legs saying "woawww" as he tapped his knees.  It made the bedtime routine a tad longer, but it was cute to watch. 

Notice that big curl in the left picture.  This is the last pic before his baby-mullet had to be trimmed....

Yes, my son is 15 months old and JUST NOW getting a his first hair cut.  It was a dramatic evening for the both of us.  Chris has been working out of town again, which meant I had to get Hud's haircut done stat.  Chris has been adamant about wanting to cut his child's hair, and the entire family had to intervene and tell him no.  Not sure if anyone remembers how Chris butchered poor Penny Lane last year after giving her a trim.  So let me remind you....

I was too embarrassed to walk her for about a month.  Poor pup.  So with that picture in mind, Hudson and I went after daycare this week for his first trim.  He was terrified of the drape, so we had to take that off.  And then he didn't want any trucks, not even games on my phone.  He screamed the entire time; the stylist and I laughed the entire time.

He didn't have enough hair for the full $15 cut, so they only charged me for a bang trim.  Woohoo for a discount!  I had to laugh at that too.  But the back looks sooo much better now.  The baby-mullet is gone!

When we got home, he still couldn't collect himself.  He cried at everything.  Poor guy, it was clearly a traumatic experience for him.... 

So I did what every mom does to make their child perk up.  I gave him hummus.  Nothing says happy-baby like a face full of chickpeas....

And thus, I had a happy baby with a clean plate AND a cute hair-do! 

Tonight is Monster Mash at daycare.  All the kiddos are wearing matching neon shirts and there will be games, inflatables, a petting zoo, firefighters, and of course, lots of candy.  Last year was a bit overwhelming for me because Hudson was only a couple months old.  But this time I plan on overloading him with candy and letting him run wild.  Those pictures should be funny :)

Boston is for (history) lovers...

Hello gang! I've been away far too long letting mom do these blogs, but after the crazy time I had in Boston last week, I decided to put my trains and trucks to the side and let you all know that dad is on his way to turning me into a history buff!!  I wonder how much money that can make me when I grow up??!!  

Mom could only hang out for the first day, b/c the rest of the time she had to take classes for her job or something.  I'm too young to know the details.  Anyway, that meant dad had planned that day out to the MINUTE to make sure the fam got to see as much of Boston as possible.  And good ol' dad even told us he figured out a shortcut so that we wouldn't have to pay out the nose for parking and still be close to all the sights & sounds!   We left the hotel at 10am...and we finally parked our car at 12pm...dad's shortcut having apparently blown up in his face, as I heard him yelling about having to pay $45 for parking and saving no time.  Dad said it was okay though, b/c we got to see a lot of Boston by car.  :-)

  

Finally out of the car, we first stopped at the Public Garden so that I could run around.  I'm a dude, but I'm gonna go ahead and say it....the park was pretty!!  There was no trash on the walkways anywhere - soooo different than in Chicago!!  That said, I was off and running...with my dad behind me of course.  I couldn't believe all the wildlife!  There were ducks and swan and fish and squirrels....my goodness the squirrels!!   They were everywhere!   And they weren't like the squirrels I was used to back in Ohio - you know, that scurry away at the faintest of movements.  No, these guys just didn't give a rip!  As dad's Boston friend, Mike, told us "these squirrels aren't normal."  I became entranced by them; I watched intently as one was playing in the grass.  It then noticed me and came closer.  I gave a little yelp but kept watching.  Then it came closer.  I yelped a little louder and looked towards mom & dad for reassurance.  Then the squirrel moved suddenly and was right next to me.  I lost it and started crying and flailing my arms and stomping my feet scared to DEATH.  Not sure why, but my parents were laughing hysterically, saying they wish they could've taken a picture of it.  As for me, I never felt safe around a squirrel for the rest of the trip.  

To prepare me for Boston, dad bought me a book called Make Way for Ducklings!  Apparently it is a classic for children and was adopted by Boston as the city's official children's book (the book takes place in Boston's Public Garden).  So when we got to the Public Garden I was so excited to see the Make Way for Ducklings bridge and the island they lived on and the statue of Mrs. Mallard and her ducklings, Jack, Kack, Lack, Mack, Nack, Ouack, Pack, and Quack!   

  

If you are looking at the above picture and think I generally staying put and listening to mom & dad, then you are sadly mistaken.  A more appropriate picture is this one as we entered Boston Common:

                                      

I could not be contained.  I was running to ponds. Then to puddles.  Oh look a bench!  ...And is that a tree??!  That thing is huge!

I was everywhere. Mom though corralled me for long enough to take a semi-decent picture next to a frog statue which sits guarding.....duh, the frog pond!  

Before leaving the Common/Public Garden, I found the gate to one of the entrances pure entertainment.  It was the perfect set up to start playing peekaboo!   Which is exactly what I did and had a grand ol' time doing it.

After leaving the park, I crashed in the stroller and don't know what happened.  But dad insisted I include this picture of him and Mike in front of John Hancock's grave.   I'm told this guy had something important to do with signing some document.  It all goes over my head, but it sounded interesting when dad was explaining it!

I woke up just in time to have some pizza and do some more walking (and show everybody how big I am....."Hudson is THIIIIIIIIIIIISSSSSS big!!!!")

            

 



Next we went to see Beacon Hill, one of the oldest parts of Boston, and definitely the wealthiest.  My dad showed me around and said "son, these houses are all built in the Federal style; circa 1800-1850.  Can you say Fed-er-al? And these small streets were originally alley-ways for back entrances to mansions for the kitchen workers and people such as The Help."

          


It was a lot to take in!  In fact, it got to be too much: too much walking, too much picture-taking, too much of dad's facts....that I literally (and quite deliberately) laid down face first on the Boston sidewalk!

              

It's not that I was tired or cranky.  I found it amusing to be honest.  I couldn't believe I was walking about with all this history around me!!!  

The next few days were all with dad, while mom took classes back at the hotel.  Our first stop was to Concord....and everybody knows it is Concord's Old North Bridge where the Rebels first fired on the British and officially started the Revolutionary War!!  And in honor of my great grandma Dee Dee, dad also took me to see the graves of Louisa May Alcott (that's her grave in the picture), Nathaniel Hawthorne, Henry David Thoreau, and Ralph Waldo Emerson!  

My Dee Dee loves her graveyards!   We also drove to Quincy, where we saw the homes of Presidents John Adams and John Quincy Adams.  Here's me loitering in front of Peace Field (John Adams' grand home).

And here I am in front of John Adams' birthplace!  I was just so excited that my dad took time out of his day to take me to all these places!!

 The next day we met up w/ dad's friend Mike and his fiancee Jillian and they took dad & I to THE Fenway Pawk!

Back at Mike's house, dad learned that Mike lives right next to Forest Hill Cemetary.....another awesome graveyard.   So dad took me along and got pictures me in front everyone's favorite Revolutionary doctor.....Dr. Joseph Warren!  Don't make me tell you about him!   He also got me stylin in front of Francis Cabot Lowell's grave as well (you know, the guy that started the American Industrial Revolution, duh!).   

I'm with Dee Dee, I love graveyards too!   I only wish mom could've been there to enjoy it with me & dad.   Maybe next time...