I took the boys for a walk to the local elementary school this Saturday while Stuart did some yard work.  I accidentally took the wrong route (or longer route), so the boys were laughing at me and calling me “Bad Momma”.  We enjoyed our walk and checked out the houses with Halloween decorations.  But Connor was walking very slow at times that even Logan tried to rush him so we could make it to the park there before sunset.  When we arrived, we went directly to the bigger kid playground.  Logan seems very happy to learn that this would be his school soon.  The boys ran around the structure chasing each other, and they also played as handymen fixing the structures.  For the rest of the time, the boys spent watching another couple of siblings playing together on the structure too.  They were well entertained until it was time for us to go home.

    The next day we tried a bike ride to the trail near our house.  It has been awhile since Logan got on a bike, so he was a bit rusty and the nervous-nelly he usually is with slopes.  Connor on the other hand tried to ride superfast to beat Logan.  We managed to ride around our neighborhood and saw the trails.  But we decided that it was a good first ride for them, so we turned around to ride home.  We did stop by the school again to allow the boys another quick play.

    We all finally had our vaccines on Friday.  Stuart picked up the kids early and brought them to my office, then we headed over next door for the vaccines.  There were no lines, so we had a chance to chat with the nurses for a little bit.  I had told Logan and Connor before the day that they could choose between a shot to the arm or a liquid to the nose, but Logan insisted that he did not want either one.  Thus while we were in the clinic, we just defaulted on giving the boys the FluMist while Stuart and I received the shots.  The boys watched us getting the shots, and did not react to it.  Then when it was Logan’s turn, the nurse (trying to trick him) asking if he wanted chocolate and strawberry flavor, but Logan declined both of them.  I made the executive decision for him to get the chocolate liquid, and the nurse proceeded to give it to him.  Logan turned his head with the first round, so some leaked out, but he did ok with the second nostril.  We kept with the strategy and asked Logan to inhale and tell us if it was the chocolate favor, but he said “I did not smell anything”.  Connor’s turn went fast.  He stayed very still and received a dose on both nostrils quickly.  The nurse instructed him to sniff in and asked if he smelled chocolate, Connor gave a small smile and a small nod.  He was sweet and gullible.

    Tonight started at dinner time, we noticed both boys seemed to have a sniffle.  By reading time, they became more congested and had a runny nose.  We had to have a tissue box and a wastebasket next to us while we read.  The exact onset of both of their symptoms made me wonder if it is related to the FluMist but today was day 3 already.  I guess we will have to wait to see how they both are doing tomorrow, but hopefully it is vaccine-related.

     We went to a pumpkin patch this morning; we got there before the crowds arrived.  We started with the hay ride together, then Connor and I rode the short train ride while Logan played at the hay maze with Daddy.  We then walked around the field in search of a pretty pumpkin while the boys had their fun with the hay straws.  We took a break to try their pumpkin bread, and even Logan liked it.  Connor wanted to go into the small petting zoo, but he was quite shy to pet the animals when we were inside.  He finally took the offer from the zoo keeper and petted a couple of chickens and a goat.  We took turns pushing a wheel barrel and we finally chose a couple of pumpkins to take home with us.

    I went in to work for a few extra hours today, so the boys had some daddy time.  They went to check out a local park in our new neighborhood, then brought home some lunch to eat.  When it was time for quiet time, Logan went to his room to play with Legos while Stuart took Connor to nap in our bed as his usual weekend routine.  But the funny thing was five minutes into laying down as  Stuart was almost dozing off, Connor suddenly said “Daddy, you go now”.  I guess napping with Connor is a special treat for me only.

     Since school started, Logan has been brought to the office twice.  The first time was a few weeks ago with one of his friends.  The two of them apparently agreed on their stories which was Logan chasing the friend to play tag, but when the girl asked Logan to stop, he did not.  So the girl bit Logan.  The teacher iced Logan and gave both of them a talk about being respectful to each other.  Two days ago I got another call to report Logan had fallen at the playground; he scraped his elbow and he complained of a head ache.  Logan told the teacher that someone ran into him and knocked him down.  While I was talking with Logan over the phone, the teacher talked with the recess teacher and found out the real story.  Logan was actually the one running; he ran into someone and fell down.  The teacher did not mention about any impact to the head.  While I talked with Logan, he was soft speaking as usual and told me about some pain in the elbow and the head.  After some questioning, he just said the side of his head hurt and he wanted to go home.  I asked him to stay in class, but I would check on him by phone in an hour and he should tell the teacher if he felt worse; Logan agreed with the plan.  When I checked in later, the teacher reported that Logan was doing fine and was running around as usual during their PE.

   We have noticed Logan being a bit more assertive in playing these days, and he has been getting into a bad mood a bit easier or not listening as well.  I can totally imagine him getting in trouble at school.  Hopefully this is just a brief growing phase.

      This weekend while we were out exploring the backyard, poor Scottie was eyeing us through the backdoor.  We normally keep Scottie indoors for awhile after each move in the past, but since he is older now and we want to let him enjoy his moments, so we let him hang out with us in the back.  Scottie really had fun, checking out every corner of the backyard.  The boys and I had fun keeping an eye on him and brought him back whenever he tried to wander away.  Today Scottie wanted out again when Stuart spent sometime outside.  He was hanging by Stuart while he was watering the plants.  But next second, Scottie was gone.  Stuart went to look for him but unsuccessful.  Over the next few hours, Stuart took a couple more walks but had no luck.

     When I returned home, there were still no signs of Scottie.  We were starting to get quite worried that Scottie was stuck or lost and unable to return home.  Just then, I received a call from a neighbor from two doors down who found Scottie at her house.  Although Scotties tag still has our prior address, at least it has my correct phone number.   The neighbor showed us to their backyard and Scottie was just comfortably laying there next to the water bowl she offered him.  Scottie was slightly dirty but looked content in my arms.  He jumped right into eating after I cleaned him up at home, and took a long nap afterward.

     The neighbor also shared and warned us that she had seen coyote and bobcat in the neighborhood.  So I guess now both Scottie and us have learned a lesson and he will be staying indoors at least for now.