Epiphanies

I guess I have had a few epiphanies in the last day or two.  So I will share them with you.
1) Emails have been flying fast and furious regarding the classroom "fall festivals"  and I have been ignoring them because I have been too busy sewing costumes for halloween and the Wizard of Oz (you really should go see it this weekend and next.)  Last night the epiphany came.  Elementary schools make a big deal out of holidays.  I am doing homeschool kindergarten for Jonny.  I had better make a big deal out of the holidays.  So instead of going to bed I stayed up to make bat and ghost cookies and print out Halloween crafts.  After the kindergarten Halloween party I threw today (toilet paper mummies, decorating sugar cookies, stenciling pumpkins, don't eat pete, etc) Jonny's enthusiasm for learning is restored.  And I'll remember my lesson for next time.  It won't be a "Holiday" party- it'll be Christmas.
2) When you remove your bathrooms' wall coverings to make Halloween costumes (it was vinyl/fake leather looking stuff) you have bathrooms in need of urgent painting.  Oh well.  I have been looking at that fabric and thinking "Halloween" since we moved in. 
3) Since I had all this fabric hanging around (literally) I really wanted to make everyone matching cowboy outfits.  I thought to myself this Halloween will go down in family history as "that awesome Halloween we were all cowboys" or "that dorky Halloween that we all had to be cowboys."  Until this morning (when Amelia left for school in cowgirl vest and skirt and James pointedly left his outfit home) it did not occur to me that it could be both of those at once. 

Other news-
-James is the cutest member of the Lollipop Guild and I can't wait to go see him tomorrow on stage.  I'll take some pictures of him BEFORE applying the stage makeup.   He's also really enjoying math.
-Due to schedule conflicts, I took the kids to the church Trunk or Treat solo.  I instructed the kids to stick together so I could hand out candy.  I was a bit nervous as I manned my post handing out boxes of Nerds.  Toward the end of the night, I could hear the crack of cowboy guns and I knew my little posse was nearby.  Sure enough they came into view together, obedient in all things (for that night anyway.)   I got a lot of heartwarming reports on how Amelia looked after Simon helping him keep up with the over-eager older boys. She sure has grown up over the last year.  I am impressed with her maturity. 
-Simon chooses to use the potty by himself almost all the time now.  I'll give him a reminder when I notice him standing funny but that's not often.  It's a relief to have him at this stage of potty training.  I won't call it done yet, but he's really close.
-Jonny is doing awesome in his swimming class.  He is in the floater level and loves it.  He has always been enthusiastic in the water.  The best parts, he says are when he gets to try the 12 feet deep water (with life jacket) and the secrets his teacher tells him.  (here's one of the secrets: astronauts train in the water)
-Rachel is a sitter now.  She can balance by herself for a while and even play with a toy.  She is also experimenting with food.  So far she likes avocados but not green beans or oatmeal.  (Yes avocados.  It helps my scrawny babies put on weight and maintain their growth curves.) 
-someone broke the on/off button on the camera so no pictures for now. :(

The Difference One Year Makes

Last year, I was shopping at Costco with Simon when he had an epiphany.  You can but things at Costco.  I guess he just thought you walk past a bunch of things that you can't buy, to get to the food that you can buy. 
I think he said something about a tv being turned on and I said they left it on to make people want to buy it.  Then he exclaimed "You can buy tv's at Costco?!" like that was the most incredible thing he ever heard.  As we proceeded through the store, he asked incredulously if we could buy all sorts of things including pants.

Contrast this with today's excursion.  We had just dropped off Amelia at a birthday party and were on our way home.  Jonny and Simon asked if we could stop at Costco.  So we went in and window shopped down all the aisles that I never turn on- the ones with toys and seasonal gadgets.  We admired Christmas ornaments and wrapping paper.  After each item, Simon asked if we should buy it.  I said no we're just looking.  Then we went down the toys aisle and pushed buttons through packages and things.  Simon went from "should we buy it" to "can we buy it."   As we neared the end of our jaunt, he got desperate.  "BUT I NEED IT!" he cried.  I just had to laugh when I saw what it was he was referring to:  a game of Star Trek Scene It.