Halloween

Today was our first Halloween in the new neighborhood. We weren't sure what to expect as the neighborhood is packed full of kids and we weren't disappointed. We were told by the neighbors that there was going to be a lot of kids. Since we are the biggest neighborhood for miles around we get a lot of transplants from the county. I like to hand out full sized candy bars so we bought a few boxes and an extra bag of small candy bars for an emergency supply. Luckily we didn't need to dig into that and we can return the bag of candy.

Alyce was dressed as Strawberry Shortcake and Luke was Thomas the Tank Engine. Alyce has been bouncing off the walls about her costume for weeks. Luke has been kind of cool to his. He likes Thomas for sure but I think he didn't like it going over his head. I had to wear it for a few minutes before he wanted it on. He didn't want the hat either but eventually that went on and stayed on all night.

Mom did most of the candy handing out while I took the kids around the neighborhood. I met up with a friend from the neighborhood Cris. Cris along with his kids Keegan and Kennedy made up our trick or treating party. We are trying to introduce Alyce to more kids in the neighborhood and Cris's daughter Keegan is around Alyce's age. Keegan is a lot more outgoing than Alyce so she can get a lot from the relationship. They were first introduced at the neighborhood Halloween party last Friday night. I wouldn't say they hit it off but tonight they ran around together like kids should. I think a few play dates will solidify a friendship.

While rolling through the neighborhood Alyce and Keegan were leading the way. Luke was picking up the 3rd position. The girls would start off saying "trick or treat", Luke running a few paces behind them would pipe in squealing "twik or tweet", and then run to catch up. At first Luke didn't get the whole candy thing but after a few houses he was able to fend for himself and started to pick out his own candy.

Towards the end of the block the kids were starting to run low on energy.  We had to skip the last few houses as Kennedy, Cris's other daughter, had to go pee. She probably told 20 people in a row the exact same thing. Upon finishing the loop I packed the kids up in the wagon and rolled the back to the house.

The thing I am most proud of was how well behaved my kids were. They didn't run too much and they said thank you to every person handing out candy. They even stopped when I said to as they were about to run into the street without looking both ways.

Hospital

Mom and I are sitting at the hospital with Luke. It's his first trip. The circumstances for our trip could have been worse. Mom took the kids to the park today after Lunch to enjoy the great weather. While there Luke missed a step and fell head first into a pole. He came up bloody with a cut above his head. Papa took Alyce while I met Mom and Luke at the hospital.


We are sitting in a room now waiting for some numbing agent to do its thing so Luke can get some stitches. They aren't sure how deep the cut is but it might require multiple layers of stitches.


Luke is being a real trooper this far. Especially since he is missing his nap. We'll see how well he does when the needles come out.

Luke Now Likes School

Over a month ago when we left Luke at school he'd shed a lot of tears as we left. Since then Luke's attitude towards school has changed. This week at school when Mom was dropping him off Luke was already playing with toys. As Mom was leaving Luke came up to Mom asked for and received a hug and kiss then went right back to playing with his toys. After school back at the house Luke said to Mom "I like school". It took a little bit but I knew Luke would like school. He just needed to spread his wings and leave the nest.

30 Month Screening

Monday Luke had a 30 month screening with our Parents as Teachers lady, Karen. It is the first time we've met her since we changed school districts. Mom tried setting up a meeting a while ago but the request must have gotten lost. In any case Luke did great on his test.

The screening was a bunch of questions asked of Mom about things Luke does. For some questions they tried to see if Luke could do what was asked of him. The five traits tested were Communication, Gross Motor, Fine Motor, Problem Solving, and Personal-Social. Luke was above average in all categories. Communications, problem solving, and personal social were pretty much normal for his age. Gross and fine motor were almost off the charts!



Mom was told that Luke knowing his shapes was something 4 year olds can do. We can't take too much credit for his success. Most of the credit goes to Team Umizoomi



We will have to work with him on the other things like following complicated sets of directions and some problem solving. I'm not too worried.

Space

This past weekend we used a coupon for a local ice cream shop called Spooners. It was our first time there and didn't really know what to expect. The place is set up to be an outside eatery with lots of tables, benches, and chairs. It was sort of late and sort of cool so we were some of only a handful of people there.

As we were eating our ice cream under the stars Luke looks up. While he's looking up he says "outer space". What?!? How in the heck does Luke know about space, outer space, or anything related to the cosmos? Who knows where Luke or his sister learns this stuff? In any case I think it's really neat he knows about "outer space".

Jumping

Luke can cross one of the last milestones off his list; he can jump. Right about the time Alyce's dance video came in he started jumping. He was trying to emulate what the girls were doing on the video. His first attempts were pretty pitiful but with our encouragement he's improved to a full jumper. His vertical distance is maybe an inch and a half. He seems pretty proud of himself whenever he does jumps. We encourage him when we can but most of the time we are trying to stop him from jumping on the furniture.