It’s beginning to look like…Halloween!

Rick & I have never carved pumpkins together – even though I think most couples could say that at some point in their courtship they did that sappy romantic activity. But not us.

It took two kids for us to want to make the mess.

Here is our story.

Mallory helped us get the “gunk” out of the pumpkins. She was all about helping except she wouldn’t actually reach in and pull the guts out. These pictures don’t tell the whole story – the pumpkins were basically empty by the time she really got dirty. Carson did enjoy banging on the pumpkins too but seeing as how he was in the beginning stages of his now 3+ day fever, he wasn’t really into it.

We emptied the pumpkins on Monday and carved them on Wednesday. And yes, we cheated and used a book full of stencils. But I promise you that the first two pumpkins on the left were totally done freehand by me. Mallory kept arguing with me that the M was for her – but it was really for Mommy. Her pumpkin is the one on the far right. Makes total sense, right? The scariest one is Mallory’s? Nice work, RB. I guess I’ll let her have the M one ;-)

The classic pumpkin is Carson’s and I realized a millisecond too late that I should have had the pumpkin have two BOTTOM teeth, since that is the look our sweet boy is sporting these days (still only two teeth – going on 3+ months now!)

We also cheated and got some of those little electric fake candles that flicker and Mallory kept telling us she would get the “light-flashes” for the pumpkins. I think she meant “flashlights”.

So – more about my sweet baby being ill. He felt warm on Tuesday morning so I took his temp. It was 102°F (of course this is AFTER I got up and got showered and ready for work – argh). So I called into work and stayed home with my sick boy. We did a little cuddling and he did a good amount of sleeping. He wasn’t overly fussy or anything so we had a decent day. His fever hovered between 100.5 and 101.7 all day – and since he can’t go back to daycare until he’s 24 hrs fever free, I knew I’d be out on Wednesday too. But when he had a 101.9 fever Wednesday afternoon and wouldn’t sleep and couldn’t get comfortable – we headed to the doctor.

And when the sign outside the doctor said that if you had a fever over 100 or a cough/sneeze/runny nose that they ask that you wear a mask. 

My poor baby.

He smiled & flirted with the pediatrician and they declared him ear infection-flu-h1n1-pneumonia free and we were told to treat with fever reducers.

His temperature was back to normal this morning and he got to go play with Aunt Emily & Uncle Mike so I could work but then his temp jumped back up in the afternoon so I’ll be off again tomorrow. The only plus side is that now I don’t have to take vacation time to go to Mallory’s Halloween parade at school tomorrow. But at this point, I’d rather take the vacation time and have a healthy baby. He seems sooooo miserable with his croupy cough.

The only things that comfort him are nursing and when his sister makes him laugh. Luckily there are no shortages of those home remedies.