Up until today’s October snow storm, the whole family has been enjoying the fall. Eli and Margot both love picking out and playing with pumpkins (and Eli is a huge fan of toasted pumpkin seeds).
Margot is starting to talk. Her first word a few months ago was “dog,” and she’s able to say “again” (as in “read this book again, now, for the fourth time in a row”), “thank you” (which sounds more like “dang”), along with “No” (accompanied by vigorous head shaking), “done,” “hop,” “up,” “hug,” and “Mommy” & “Daddy.” She has a great sense of humor, loves peek-a-boo, and enjoys taking something from Eli and then running away as fast as she can.
Eli can’t wait until Halloween. He’s gotten dressed up for his school’s Halloween parade and loves his Happy Rainbow Ghost costume. He’s finally warmed up to preschool, and he even spontaneously told me that he made a volcano at school (vs. his usual insistence that he did “nothing” at school).
A typical day begins around 6:30 when Margot wakes up and joins us in bed. On a good day, she’ll sleep for another 45 minutes, but often she’s ready to face the day. Deirdre and I take turns sleeping in, and Deirdre claims that the kids always sleep later on my day. We play together or read until Eli wakes up at 7 something, and then breakfast begins. If we stay home, selections include mush (cream of wheat or oatmeal), waffles, yogurt, cereal, and bacon & eggs. Eli makes his preference known, but also must have everything “cold” and immediately, including mush (which makes a huge mess, but if the guy really wants to eat uncooked oatmeal, who are we to stop him?). Other times we head to Watchung Plaza for breakfast, usually to “see Camille” at Bluestone or to “the crepe place” or “the bagel store.” We primarily travel by wagon, although Eli is starting to take his scooter more places.
Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, Eli goes to school at Union Congregational. On Thursdays, Deirdre, Eli, and Margot go to Music Together.
Margot usually takes a nap at 1.
After dinner, Margot looks forward to a bath. She rushes upstairs and tries to get into the tub on her own. Eli, on the other hand, rarely looks forward to a bath, and never wants to wash his hair. And like his oatmeal and waffles, Eli prefers cold water in the bath, which is always a bummer for Margot, who likes hot water.
We wind down the evening with a video selection that includes Penguins of Madagascar, Mater’s Tall Tales, Dr. Seuss, or something we’ve borrowed from the library. Then we read a lot of books (we’ve started having to read to Eli and Margot separately) and head up to Eli’s room to sing songs (and occasionally read one more story). Then I hold Eli’s hand for a while until he gets sleepy, and Deirdre puts Margot to bed.
At this point, we’ve got 4 inches of snow on the ground, and there are trees down everywhere!
I’ve posted some pictures some of our autumn fun to flickr. 
