Halloween snuck up on us this 
year so we never made it to a pumpkin patch for the requisite cute kid sitting amongst pumpkin photos. We did, however, do other fun things to commemorate the event. The day before Halloween we went to Montclair Village for the annual costume parade. We thought it would be fun for Noah to see all the kids dressed up. The event was chaotic and we choose a poor spot to sit (right next to the shopping carts full of candy to be given away from Rite Aid) but Noah got a balloon and seemed to have fun. He also got to see cops on motorcycles, horses and a marching band.
On Halloween morning we went to Boo at the Zoo which was fun. We did their scavenger hunt, checked out all the animals and rode the sky chairs, carousel and train. I think Noah's favorite part was seeing the elephants participate in an Easter egg hunt with pumpkins. It was pretty cute to see them hone in on the pumpkins and eat them like apples. Of course, the tiger and monkeys were a big hit as usual.
That night we had a dinner party with a bunch of friends.Noah was supposed to be a punk rocker, but in true punk fashion he never actually let us put his entire costume together. For the parade we didn't have the right hair product so his hair ended up being rather pompodour-ish. He looked more like a 1950's Fonzie type of guy...well, except for the Sex Pistols shirt and the studded belt. For the zoo we remembered to add buttons to the jacket (for that more authentic punk look) and we had better hair product,, but Noah wasn't nearly as patient with us. His hair ended up being half spikey, half mohawky and really weird looking. Too bad we never even got to spray paint it blue.
Surprisingly, Noah has not climbed out of the crib again. He likes his crib. He likes to sleep and more importantly he seems to like lounging in bed in the morning. He'll lay in there and talk to himself and his animals. He'll kick the wall, roll around or just lay there humming and singing. Since Booboo, Zadi and Great Booboo are coming soon for his birthday we thought it might be nice to go ahead and buy his big boy bed so Great Booboo has a comfortable spot to sleep when she's here. (We figured that Noah can sleep in our room in the pack n' play.) We found a nice Trundle bed with matching nightstand so we went to pick them up today along with a new mattress. The plan was to set it all up in his room and give him some time to get used to everything. But, he instantly loved the bed and wanted to climb right in and read some books. He also clearly expected to sleep in it tonight. Kenny was over for dinner, as he is on most Sunday nights, so Noah wanted Kenny to read to him and put him night-night in his big boy bed. I was a little jealous, because it was the first night, but he does love his Kenny. ;)
Before Noah got in the bath tonight Daddy asked him if he wanted to go peepee in the potty. He said yes, sat down and went peepee! I quickly ran down stairs grabbed some paper, drew a quick chart, and scrambled for some Thomas the Tank stickers I had just bought in preparation for such a milestone. Noah seemed a little confused by why we wanted to put a sticker on this hand-drawn chart because he likes to wear stickers on his hand. So, we gave him one for hand and one for the chart. After much clapping and praise we called Booboo and Zadi and Grandma to tell them what a big boy he was.
Our son has a girlfriend. Her name is Claire and she is a cutey pie with great big brown eyes and a sweet little bob hair cut. Wanda had previously mentioned that they seemed to really get a long. One day we were asking Noah about his friends at day care and noticed the way he really emphasized Claire. His voice literally got all soft and wispy. Jeremy and I laughed and said, "Oh, oh, somebody's got a crush."Then, about a week or two ago Wanda told us that Noah had kissed both Claire and Paige that day (!). Apparently, he showed Claire his appreciation for sharing a toy with him by giving her a kiss. Paige, another little girl, saw this ran over and asked for a kiss too, so Noah obliged. (What a little player!)Yesterday, when we picked him up Wanda told us that he is clearly quite smitten with Claire. She said that he will often wait for her to finish eating, many times resting his head on her arm or sitting on the floor by her chair. She again mentioned that they really seem to have fun together and even enjoy the same things like running, swinging and eating (they're her biggest eaters). Wanda called them "kindred spirits". My, my, my they do grow up so fast. (sniff, sniff)
