First Loose Tooth (Finally)

As of Saturday morning, we finally no longer have to hear about how Audrey is the only person in her class who hasn't lost a tooth. Somehow or another it ended up coming out in her sleep overnight, and despite a little paranoia by she and Brennan about how the Tooth Fairy gets in our house, or what exactly she does once inside (can't wait for Santa questions), the whole thing went off without a hitch.

Disney!!

We were lucky enough to be able to take another trip to Disney right before Halloween (just realized the timing of these posts is slightly out of order), which makes the 2nd trip for Audrey and Brennan - though he doesn't really remember the first - and the first for Millie, who probably won't remember by the time we take our next (and last!) trip. We were also lucky enough to have had Grandpa and Gma join us for the trip, though for whatever reason our recollection of the exhaustion we faced during our first trip (with 2 adults and 2 kids) was nothing compared to what it felt like this time around (with 4 adults and only 3 kids). Maybe the combination of 1 more kid and being 3 years older is all it takes. Whatever the case, we may need to bring the entire extended family with us next time for moral support.

But with the kids well-fueled by Mickey pretzels and (almost all) the sugar they asked for, we managed to take down almost every attraction and theme park Mickey offered - Epcot, Magic Kingdom x2, Animal Kingdom  and Hollywood Studios. At the young age of 4, Brennan may well have been one of the bravest kids in any of those parks by conquering almost every "thrill" ride there was (thank God for Grandpa and Gma to watch Millie while the rest of us joined him) - and all it took was some extra high soles on a pair of sneakers to give him the 44" he needed to pass the height requirements. Sadly, Dad learned pretty quickly that old age brings more fear and queasiness than your youth. But in the end, despite the 5am departure time from DC, all of the exhaustion and more than a few temperature tantrums, we ended up with great weather, great memories, managed to do a little something for everyone and even got Grandpa and Gma on a couple of rides.

Halloween

It's almost unbelievable how quickly four weeks can fly by. Halloween was another smash hit again this year, especially with Millie being almost old enough to really get into some of the fun. Audrey and Brennan even got to do a bit of trick or treating outside of the neighborhood this year, though the combination of being outside of the cul-de-sac and walking past a couple of eerily decorated houses meant a short-lived trip to Brennan, who was ready to turn around almost immediately. Of course having almost 20 similarly-aged kids in the neighborhood certainly lends itself to some Halloween shenanigans, and the kids all had a great time running around and over-indulging in all of the sweet treats they collected.  Is it even possible that at 6 and 4 they've already grown out of Lightning McQueens, and princesses, and ninja turtle costumes?

Apple Pickin'

We had almost given up hope on our annual apple picking exploits, but we woke up to a sunny Sunday morning last weekend and decided to go. This year marked the 5th annual trip for us and probably the 3rd in a row for the extended crew including the Lowden and Morgan IV cousins. Sadly, Aunt Betty was unable to attend. A fun time was had by all - except those who had strollers to push up the 45 degree incline to the apple orchard - and we managed to pick a bunch of apples and catch some pretty good views.

Rainy Saturday

Potty Training!?

Not quite yet, but we had one miracle pee the other day. We thought it might pique her interest, but so far the only outcome is Millie trying to take her diaper off at extremely inopportune times - so far that's included 1) in bed at night and 2) at the top of the stairs with a diaper full of deuce. They sure grow up fast...

(2nd) Haircut

After two years of waiting for the hair on the top of her head to catch up to the back, and realizing that wasn't going to happen anytime soon, we decided to take Millie for her 2nd haircut. Third, technically speaking - Nonna was responsible for the first one and the 2nd was Mom trimming up Nonna's handywork. So I guess that still makes this the first "official" haircut. Millie was a little leery of sitting in the chair by herself, but it was nothing Mom's lap couldn't help with. And we may have lost the ponytail option, but she's still as cute as a button.

BEFORE...





















AND AFTER