Happy Halloween

We went out trick-or-treating tonight. I say we because my sister Carol came over to hand out the candy so Robin and I could both dress up as as Cruella and Perdita (the mother dog from 101 Dalmatians) and accompany Amy. The weather was almost balmy (by Manitoba standards anyway) which made for a great night.

The first house we went to was to friends down the street, so Amy felt very comfortable being there. We then went to another house on the way home. It was then that Amy started to understand that this was a good thing and soon was suggesting that we go to "this one!". By the last few houses, she was telling Robin, "Dada stay, Amy self" as she ventured up the steps alone. Little Miss Independent!

Once home, Amy helped doling out the candy . . . until a few kids with scary masks came by and that was it. She wouldn't go to the door again!

Trick-or-Treating at Denny and Eryl's

Last night, we went to Denny and Eryl's for a practice run at trick-or-treating. When we arrived, Amy squealed with joy as she spied the many pumpkins on the steps, all lit up. I was eventually able to convince her to abandon the pumpkins and venture in.

The mouse ears, of course, did not last long, but she soon became adept at twitching her mousey nose (sort of!).

Grandma Molly was there and Amy enjoyed sharing her loot with her.

I think she's primed and ready to go for tonight. We've been talking about what she can expect tonight and have done lots of role play. Hopefully it will be better than last year when she was just completely overwhelmed!

Carving the Pumpkin

We carved our pumpkin yesterday and Amy seemed to really enjoy it . . . except for the yucky, slimy seeds inside.

This is Amy's impression of the face we carved.

I love the way she really investigates the inside of the pumpkin.

Amy-isms

Amy's language development is amazing but there are some words and sounds that she can't quite pronounce. A couple of the words are "hangaburger" (hamburger) and "caboola" (cucumber) which are consistently mispronounced. One of the consonant blends that is beyond her is the SP combination. Spoon is "foon", the end of the table is "Daddy's fot", and the computers have a "face" bar. This is especially funny when she is reading her favourite book One Duck Stuck. The duck gets stuck in the muck and when he finally gets out, the last word is spluck. You can guess what she says instead!

October 25th - FCC Playgroup Hallowe'en Party

Today was our FCC (Families with Children from China) playgroup Halloween Party. We took another shot at the mouse costume and it actually lasted the entire hour and a half, minus the ears of course.

Amy does enjoy her crafts and some people might be the lucky recipients of them soon!

October 24th - Tea Party

One of Amy's favourite things to do is hold court over tea. Luckily, both Giraffe and Daddy are only too happy to oblige!

October 23rd - Love is in the Air

Amy was invited over to Ben's house for lunch and a play date this afternoon. During lunch, Amy decided that she wanted to get a little closer to Ben, so she literally did by sliding into his chair and eating his lunch. Ben seemed quite pleased with his suave manner with chicks!

October 21st - Aboo Azoo

We went to "Aboo Azoo" (or to some, Boo at the Zoo) with Amy's friends Izzy and Sophie. We were invited for pizza before the big event by Sophie Skunk and her parents. After dinner, everyone got into costumes. This lasted until we got to the car, when it was pronounced that "Amy no like" and that was the end of the mouse!

It was Toddler Tuesday at the zoo and not as scary . . . supposedly. Someone still wanted to be carried the entire way through (but I finally put my foot down and told Robin he had to walk!).

October 19th - The Daily Grind

Amy doesn't watch much t.v., but she does love to "work" on her (okay, sometimes Daddy's) computer. This is a typical day at the office with her co-worker Giraffe in the next office, collaborating on the Sesame Street project, snack always within reach.

October 10th - Apples

Robin's Grandfather had an apple orchard, so when we were deciding to buy our house, having an apple tree in the backyard was a sure sign for Robin. This year's harvest was exciting for him as he had a helper.

Amy and Daddy examine the job ahead.

Notice the matching headbands. It's important to dress up for special occasions such as this.

October 9th - There's Deer in the House!

There seems to be an overabundance of deer in our house! I guess our visit to Park Omega made quite the impact on someone and her Daddy. It works in my favour when I would like to get Amy to eat some food. I simply pretend to drive my car, roll down the window, bang the morsel of food on my pretend window, and a deer materializes out of nowhere to gobble up the offering.

And yes, I know she's naked. She's always naked!

October 8th - "Gotcha Day" - One Year Later

One year ago, our lives changed. We walked across the street in Nanchang a family of four and returned a family of five. Amy is the light of our lives and I can't imagine life without her. As my Dad is so fond of saying, "she has changed all our lives for the better".

Robin and I thought of what was happening exactly one year ago many, many times on the 8th and were both near tears of joy all day. This was shocking, not for Robin who cries at Tim Horton commercials, but for me who is not so inclined to be emotionally sensitive. Having a child has definitely changed me.

The following day, we had Greg, Margaret, Megan and Gillian over for dinner to celebrate the girls' day. It is amazing how similar they are not only in stature and language, but also in the love of going naked! I spoke with Amy a number of times throughout the day about how we were having company and she needed to keep her clothes on. All was fine until, during dinner, Gillian suddenly disrobed and all was lost! Within minutes, both Amy and Gillian had all their clothes off and were dancing around naked. Thankfully, Robin restrained himself and kept his on.

Unfortunately, we've had a mishap with the camera and a number of pictures have been deleted, including the ones from this night. Darn, they were awfully cute.

September 21st - Toronto

Sean, Kristin and Doug drove up to Ron's from Toronto on the 20th to spend some extra time with Amy. While Doug and Sean drove back to Toronto that night, Kristin stayed over and came to Toronto with us on the 21st. I dropped the three of three of them off at the Toronto Zoo while I went to do some shopping . . . and enjoy a quiet coffee.

September 20th - Cobourg, Ontario

We drove from Quebec to Cobourg to visit Robin's brother Ron and his wife Elinor. While we were there, Elinor, Lindsay (Elinor's daughter), Amy and I went to the beach in town. It was a beautiful fall day and someone couldn't resist the call of the lake! She was soon down to the buff and in the water. What a great day!

September 19th - Montebello, Quebec

Robin had to go to a conference in Quebec, so Amy and I joined him. We stayed at Montebello, which consists of a number of beautiful log buildings built during the Depression. It was once a private hunting lodge and grounds, but has now turned into an amazing resort and spa.

Part of the grounds has been turned into Park Omega, a type of zoo and animal reserve. The park has a trail that is 10 kms long and people are asked to stay in their cars as they drive through. Amy and I first went on the 18th with my niece Stephanie, but it was such an adventure that we returned the next day with Robin.
The gift shop is at the head of the trail and this is where you buy your carrots. The animals in the park are accustomed to having people drive through with their windows open, feeding the animals carrots as they go. What fun! With Stephanie, we bought three bags, but with Robin, we bought five. This was still not enough as the deer finished them in about fifteen minutes.

Here's Robin not noticing the red deer waiting patiently for their treats.

Here are the deer waiting not so patiently and nibbling on his shirt as an appetizer!

They did startle Amy a little, especially after one rubbed his lips on Amy's knee to see if she was edible!