Trick or Treating 2012

Our family continued our yearly tradition of trick or treating with the Armstrongs in West U. We brought over some Thai food for dinner and ate before getting the boys dressed. Daddy arrived from work just as we were still getting everything--and everyone--ready.

Andrew was of course Optimus Prime. Ryan went as Han Solo while Linda dressed as Princess Leia. Max was Luke Skywalker, Rush was Darth Vader, and Griff even dressed up as Yoda. It was pretty awesome!

So, it was finally time to go trick or treating!! Andrew and Max led the way while Rush followed a little behind. But all the kids did great! They didn't forget their manners too much. I was very happy with the way they walk ahead of us and didn't run too far. And they all did a wonderful job with being safe and watching when they were crossing streets.

We ended up going up and down their street and one more before calling it a night. The boys seemed quite pleased with their stashes. We hung out at the house for a little while longer before calling it a night ourselves since it's a weeknight.

Happy Halloween, everyone!

SLDS Halloween Parade and Party 2012

This morning was the Halloween Parade and Party at SLDS. Andrew thinks this is one of the funnest days at school during the year as do most of the other kids at school.

At drop off, all the kids were really excited and loved looking at each other's costumes. Then, it was time for the parade.

The kids in the class did a great job in the parade. Some were very sweet and even waved at me when they passed me by. Andrew even stopped to give me a hug, which I thought was very sweet. And then Zachary, who was right behind him, gave me a hug too. I loved it. After the parade, we congregated in the courtyard for photos.

Then, it was time for the class party where the kids dined on cupcakes and juice boxes. Jeannie brought wooden jack o lanterns for the kids to color for the craft. The kids had lots of fun with that.

It was a great morning; and Andrew had so much fun.

Transformers...Pumpkins in Disguise

When asked, Andrew initially said he wanted Daddy to carve the pumpkin this year and not me. Yes, I was a little disappointed, but honestly, I can see why he would pick James. But James has been working a lot this past week so it fell upon me to do it anyhow.

I gave Andrew some choices for our jack-o-lantern and thought of the Autobots icon. So, I found a template online and showed it to Andrew. O little Optimus Prime was sold after that.

It was my first time to use a template and only my second attempt to carve a pumpkin (last year being my first). Not too shabby if I do say so myself.

Brownies

Our little sous chef really loves to help Nonna make her awesome brownies. The last few times we have seen her, he will ask her if he can help her make them. And of course, he loves getting to taste the fruits of his culinary labor.

Union Pacific Houston Community Celebration

Mr. Donnie from Daddy's old work had told us about the Union Pacific event celebrating their 150th birthday. It sounded like something Andrew might enjoy and we didn't have anything really planned for the afternoon.

We got there around 3pm and the event lasted until 4pm. There were quite a bit of lines at each of the activities so we split up. Daddy and Nonna took the longest line which was to see the locomotive up close while I took Andrew to the simulator, which was a little bit shorter.

Andrew did really well on the simulator. He was very excited about being able to ring the horn and the bell and did a great job listening to the Union Pacific employee who was helping out.

Afterwards, we walked towards Daddy and Nonna. Mr. Donnie and his son, Ethan, had arrived by then and so we all chatted while we waited in line for the locomotive. Ethan and Andrew got along very well. It was finally our turn to see the locomotive, which is Locomotive No. 844, the last steam engine built for the railroad. Daddy took the boys up. After snapping a few photos, I went to the mini-train to go stand in line.

Unfortunately, I arrived just as the train was pulling out; and the gentleman told me it was their last trip. Sure enough, not two minutes later, Andrew and Ethan run up to the line. They were both really disappointed to learn that there wasn't going to be another ride especially Andrew. I thought he might start to cry. He was so sad saying "I'm never going to get to ride that train". But we told him that maybe we could go see it and take some pictures with it. And we also told him that we would keep an eye about when the mini train would come back to Houston and we would try to take him then. He put on a brave face and we went to go see it up close.

I am a little sad for Andrew that he didn't get to ride the mini train. I have to admit, it was pretty cool. But hopefully, we will have another chance to ride it again if it comes to Houston again. And if not, we will surely ride another train another day...

YMCA Fall 2012 Soccer Game #5: Team Houston @ Dallas

This morning, we had our soccer game after missing Game #4 while in Seoul. Nonna drove in this morning and it was perfect timing as she met us at the house before we needed to leave for the YMCA.

Andrew was very much concerned about scoring a goal in order to earn Boulder, another Rescue Bot, as his prize. He was on offense the first quarter and had some touches on the ball--but not enough to score a goal. And I could see the disappointment on his face. I think he even went to talk to James about how he didn't score.

He came back into the game the third quarter on defense so there wasn't much opportunity to score then of course. And then, in the fourth quarter, he was back on offense, but he wasn't able to score then either. He was running towards the back of the pack. He didn't play badly, but he wasn't as good as we have seen him. And he is entitled to an off-day so we weren't disappointed in him by any means.

James and I actually talked after the game that maybe Drew is putting too much pressure on himself about scoring a goal. He gets so down on himself when he doesn't score right off the bat. So, I talked to Andrew later this afternoon about how we will find other ways that he can earn his prizes and it won't be just about scoring goals. I told him we just want him to try his best out there and have fun.

As for the game, we had a few kids score some goals so we were very happy for them because it does so much for their confidence and self-esteem. After the games earlier in the season when they were getting killed, you could see the disappointment in their faces and how they were getting down on themselves. So it's so wonderful to get to see them finally score and be excited about it. We are very proud of our kids and thrilled for them. Go Team Houston!

Happy Halloween Mansion

Tonight, Ty, a co-worker of James's at Rice, invited us to join her family at the Children's Museum for Happy Halloween Mansion. Ty brought along her two children, Jonas and Ari, who are both older than Andrew, but were really, really sweet to him.

Since this was an event for certain membership levels (our family membership not included), it was less crowded, which was really nice. They also served dinner catered by James Coney Island, which is where we walked to first to try to beat the rush. Andrew totally devoured his hot dog!!

After we ate, we walked around and explored the museum. They had lots of Halloween-related activities such as ghost bubbles and blood races (red Kool-Aid type liquid). We also stopped by at various stations so the kids could get some treats and also get punches for the scavenger hunt in order to get a prize at the end.

It was a wonderful time and Andrew had lots of fun! I was very grateful that Ty was kind enough to ask us to join them and that we were able to go.

MDNA

Last night, Monica and I attended Madonna on her MDNA tour. This was my third time to see her. I didn't know the CD as well, but have listened to it over the past few months. And to be completely honest, it's good, but I don't like it as much as some of her other albums.

Daddy went to play soccer up at Rice while Andrew and I hung out at home. I ordered pizza for dinner and started to get Andrew ready for bed. Monica came over after work and ate. Soon thereafter, Daddy came home and we left for the Toyota Center.

We found parking nearby and found our seats at the arena quicker than we had anticipated. But we sat and chatted. Soon, Martin Solveig came onto the stage. He is a DJ as well as a singer himself. He played some remixes and sang a few of his own including his hit Hello. A surprise was David, one of Madonna's sons, who came out and hung out with Martin at the turntable for several songs, which was really cute.

Finally around 1030pm, Madonna took the stage. She sang a good mix of songs from her new album and old songs including some of my favorites like Human Nature, Hung Up, and Like a Prayer. The stage set and dancers were amazing yet again!! She definitely does not disappoint in that regard. Her creativity and artistry are incredible.

Monica dropped me off around 1am. It was a fun night and I am glad I was able to go. Thanks to Daddy for watching the little man so that I could see the Queen of Pop.

Five Little Pumpkins

One of the cute little songs they sing at St. Luke's during Halloween is Five Little Pumpkins. I can still remember when Ms. Farulo and Mrs. Quiroz sang it to the class back in the Twos Class and Andrew loving it back then. And now, they have been singing it in the class this year as well.

At pick up yesterday, Mrs. Hagler wanted to show me Andrew's artwork. She said she was really impressed with it (as she always is--not to brag), but she liked how he made a picture of the song.

The lyrics (as we have been taught) are as follows:

Five little pumpkins sitting on the gate.
The first one said, "Oh, my it’s getting late."
The second one said, "There are witches in the air."
The third one said, "But I don’t care."
The fourth one said, "Let’s run and run and run."
The fifth one said, "I’m ready for some fun."
Ooooo! Went the wind, and out went the light.
And the five little pumpkins rolled out of sight!

And here is a picture of his five little pumpkins and the other picture is of a haunted house.

Lastly, I am adding a video of the song. I know it's not the best video, but there weren't too many to choose from that had the same lyrics that we sing.