Thomas Tidbits...: October 2015

After most of October being in the upper 90s, Fall (weather) has finally arrived in Austin, and it's amazing. The nights are cool in the 50s and days warm up to 70s/80s... so beautiful and reminds us of why we live here.

We've had a great October with ACL, pumpkin patching, cheering on the Royals during the playoffs and World Series, and lots of park/bike/outside time soaking in the weather. Justin and I celebrated our 5th Anniversary on 10/23 with dinner and My Morning Jacket concert. Super fun night celebrating with The Hacks!

I've recently realized how grown up Eleanor is. She's been very particular about her clothes (hates anything with sleeves/certain fabrics/designs/etc). So, I decided to take her shopping. To an actual store. I buy almost everything online, so this was a stretch for me. Anyway, she loved picking out clothes and trying them on in the dressing room. We then had a lunch date and had such mature conversations... where did my little girl go???

Eleanor has talked about certain boys at school having a crush on her, loves watching movies of all kinds, and can actually carry a pretty good tune. We're phasing out her marathon naps and only allowing her 1 hour of nap if she chooses or needs it. Otherwise, she has quiet time with us and then quiet time in her room by herself while Brother sleeps.

Fisher idolizes his sister and wants to do whatever she's doing. So, we constantly talk about how she has to set a good example for Fisher. Fisher has become Captain No. He literally says "no" about 314x/day. Buddy can't stand being indoors, and when he's outdoors, it's constant commentary - "Truck! Bike! Bus! Dog! Duck! Turtle! Baby!" And he won't stop shouting/pointing at the said person/object until you acknowledge that you see it too.

Here's a visual month in review:

We kicked off October with Austin City Limits. Erik Lund and Josh Ediger came in from KC to make the weekend a memorable one.

Phi Kappa Psi Boys

Parents Day out

We're not ashamed to have graduated to the chair/parent section

Eleanor and I escaped the frat house to have a coffee date. She exclaims, "Mommy, I really like our girl time!"

Cinnamon roll excitement

We went to Five Below, and I told Eleanor she could pick out one treat. This is what she chose (flossers) and shouts, "This is the most amazing thing I've ever seen!"

My handsome boys all dressed up for our family photo shoot

We left our bubble and trekked out to a pumpkin patch in Elgin. While we were less than impressed, the kids had a ball.

Train ride

The crew - Fisher, Eleanor, Grant and Landon. This is the best we could get of all four kiddos.

E's tree pose from yoga

Justin adding a level of PG-13 related material to our field trip.

Driving the tractor

Buds watching the animals at the petting zoo

Rubber ducky race

This mischievous boy on the prowl. I turned my back for about 30 seconds to find him operating the oven.

One of our new favorite spots in Austin - the rooftop at Whole Foods provides the best view for Fisher's favorite construction site in Austin. He could sit here for HOURS yelling "Truck" "Whoa"

All because I wouldn't let him ride his bike in the street. This was minute ONE of a full blown tantrum that lasted THIRTY minutes.

Static slider

Gearing up for basketball season since we don't have much of a football team to cheer for.

No big deal, just lounging at the dentist.

She chose scary teeth as one of her prizes from the dentist.

Lunch post dentist appointment.

This guy...

Buddy loves his bike rides with Daddy.

Sister works on her balance bike.

Real life bath time.

Fish and Grant cheering on the Royals for Game 2 at music class.

You have to watch this a couple of times. Starts with Fisher hysterically giggling to him completely focused on a movie that Eleanor is watching.

New hand-me-down boots that were never worn. Fisher was trying to get the hang on walking in cowboy boots...

We love Andy's gelato!

There is a giant park behind these boys, and all they can focus on are the trash trucks circling the neighborhood.

Fisher not only jams to music, he now pretend lip syncs.

Eleanor is all about Annie (the movie) these days, and surprisingly enough, Fisher will sit still and watch movies with her.

Rain play in the alley during a weekend FULL of rain.

We really packed in some good times to bid "summer" farewell. While it's technically Fall in Austin, the 90 degree weather makes me think otherwise. We're dying to wear sweaters and maybe not sweat the minute we step out the door at 8:00 am;) This coming from a former Chicagoan who wanted to burn her sweaters!

We had our make good trip to Grand Lake (Oklahoma) to visit Grammy and Papa Jack. Our original weekend was the weekend that a skull fracture landed Eleanor in the ER overnight. It's safe to say that it was WELL worth the wait! Grammy pulled out all the stops, of course, with lots of presents, sweet treats, activities, and a gorgeous lake view to wake up to each morning. The kids were in absolute heaven. From the pool, boat, riding lawnmower, golfcart, playground, piano, vintage toy trucks, the kids had the time of their lives. And thanks to Grammy and Papa Jack, Justin and I were able to venture out to the Yacht Club for a wonderful date night sans kids. All in all, the weekend was a huge success, and we can't wait to return.

Next up, Bama and Papa visit! More grandparental spoiling ensued, so kids were happy campers. It was great to have them here to help Justin while I ventured off to KC to host a baby shower for my dear friend, Erin, who is due in December. It was so nice being away solo - amazing the ground I can cover in just 48 hours! Grammy and Papa Jack hosted me, which was perfect so that I could check out their new (amazing) digs. And visiting on Grammy's 83rd birthday made it even more special.

And just to keep our streak of frequent flier miles current at Dell Children's Emergency Room, we decided to pay them a visit last weekend. Fisher, in his wild antics, decided to attempt to lift a 12 lb weight (mind you, he weighs 25 lbs) and dropped it on his big toe. His toenail was immediately ripped out from the root, and his toe swelled up. However, the nail was still hanging by a chunk of skin. Long story short, lots and lots of blood and tears. Poor buddy was shaking like a leaf he was in so much pain. So, after a quick visit to the pediatrician, they sent us to the ER. They partially sedated Fisher, numbed his toe with a giant needle, completely removed his toenail, trimmed the nail, and then stitched it back on. While he'll lose the nail, it proves the best protection for such an intense wound while the new nail grows in. After he was bandaged and booted up, we were on our way. All in all, he was a brave boy, and his wound isn't slowing him down. At. All.

Eleanor Tidbits:

: Eleanor continues to love her new school, and it's fun to see her start forming friendships that she may have for many years. We look forward to upcoming school activities where us newbies can meet some of the other Athena families.

: Sister's current infatuations are: movies of all kinds (thank you Netflix and Apple TV!), swimming, tattoos, tracing letters and numbers, puzzles, and singing.

: Our daughter's mind is constantly working. We've learned that she literally doesn't miss a beat, even when we think she's tuned out. For example, I was driving her to school a few weeks ago when a commercial for a local dentist came on the radio. A few days later she asks, "Is Dr. [from the commercial] my dentist?"

: Another Eleanor original: As she's sitting on the potty before bedtime, she looks behind her and say, "Mom, do butts grow??" I reply, "Yes, Ellie, butts grow." Eleanor's retort, "Well, mine's not growing very well."

: Most of the time Eleanor is like a second mother to Fisher, regardless of the fact that they're less than 2 years apart. When Fisher was going to bed a couple of weeks ago, my old soul daughter cups Fisher's chubby face in her hands, leans in and kisses him on the forehead, and says, "Have a good night's sleep, Sweetie!" I mean, who teacher her this stuff?

: The day after Fisher's ER stint, Eleanor and I caught a nasty stomach bug. After we cleaned sister up from puke session, we went to her closet to pick out something to wear. She has this really cute cotton jumper that she'd never worn before (think light weight tank top attached to sweat pants). I said, "Eleanor, this jumper will be really cozy for you to rest and watch movies while you're sick." She put the jumper on and after immediately jumping in the air, exclaims, "Yep, I can really jump high in this jumper!"

: While I don't have Eleanor's developmental stats, she seems to be growing a lot taller and has finally grown out of her 18-24 month shorts, now that she's 3.5 yrs;)

Fisher Tidbits:

Stats:

Height: 32" (24%)
Weight: 24 lb 8 oz (49%)
Head: 48.5 cm (77%)

: I don't have the words or the time to explain how busy/wild/active/fearless our son is. The fact that we made it 18+ months before he landed in the ER due to self inflicted injury is a downright miracle.

: Some of brother's current infatuations: sweeping with the broom, buttons of any kind, using the stepstool to get whatever he needs that's out of reach, boats, trucks, trains, airplanes, construction sites (lots in Austin!), turtles, being silly/making people laugh, dancing, and Daddy.

: He's also becoming more verbal:

Da = That
Mo = More
Duh = Done
Bo = Boat
Sna = Snack
Truh = Truck
Choo choo = Train
Nigh Nigh = Good night
Chee = Cheese
Jew = Juice
Boo boo = Boo boo (learned this the week of his big boo boo)
Bee = Binky
Bay = Bear
Tur-tle = Turtle

: Fisher is mildly obsessed with Eleanor and wants to copy whatever she does. We've found that we have to have two of everything to keep all parties happy. When we drop Eleanor at school, Fisher throws a fit because he can't stay to play. Upon picking her up in the afternoon, they make out with each other as if they are long lost friends/siblings.

Buddy on a bike ride with Daddy. Pit stop at Thom's for a popcicle. Fisher and Justin are quite the duo these days. I didn't think there would be a day where I would take backseat!

Zero personality.

These first three photos pretty much sum up all sides of Fisher Thomas..

And then there's Sweet Eleanor

Fisher insists on carrying his lunchbox into school when we drop off sister.

Tram at the Dallas airpot en route to Grand Lake. Planes AND trains?? Fisher's in!

Daddy, the sherpa.

We made it! My boys on the lake.

Not sure who was having more fun???

Some morning tunes

Booooooat!

Lake life is exhausting.

Grammy showing Fisher makeup application techniques.

More engines?!? Yes, please!

A little game with Grammy and Eleanor. In Grammy's defense, she realized she missed an "e" in bushes, but I snapped the pic before it was corrected;)

Gorgeous view from the house

The perfect breakfast spot.

Captains Jack and Fisher

And Eleanor!

Why not feed the ducks and fish your snacks of Goldfish?

Frosted cookies, thanks to Grammy!

That's Fish's "cheese" face

Just a little convo during dinner.

Rainy day in Austin meant we donned rainboots for the first time this season. Fisher's new bit is to stand or walk with his hands behind his back like this.