Happy (Safe) Halloween!

This post is sponsored by The Motherhood and Energizer. All opinions and cute kids are my own (or Jenny’s).
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This year will be the 11th annual Halloween celebration for Jenny’s family and mine. How our babies have gone from this:

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To this:

halloween kate and joshua

… is beyond my comprehension.

Not to mention the fact that we’ve added these kids to the mix:

halloween three kids

Beggar’s night is one of the things I look forward to all year long. I love, love, love it.

But here’s a little secret – it also makes me nervous. All those kids, all those cars.

We try to keep driving to a minimum that night – I get home as early as I can, and Jenny and Bobby try to arrive at our house well before the appointed hour, so that our cars are parked before the kids hit the streets. But, of course, our kids are still out there while other people are driving – and really, my nervousness has increased, if anything, as they get older. Sam’s much more likely to run ahead of me now than he was when he was dressed as a poison apple and safely confined to his stroller.

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My word, is that kid cute?

Anyway, this year we’re partnering with The Motherhood and Energizer to bring you Halloween safety tips. Here are a few ideas to keep your kids safe while they’re having the time of their lives collecting candy from strangers neighbors.

Plan a route ahead of time. Create a route that avoids major intersections, but does have safe crosswalks and sidewalks. If there are no sidewalks, be sure to walk facing traffic as far to the left as possible. Always look both ways before crossing any street.

Keep a portable light on hand (or head). As the sun sets, you don’t want to be caught in the dark. Energizer portable lights ensure you’re ready to hit the streets on Halloween night. (Something tells me Sam and Joshua would be all over this one!)
Energizer Headlight_6LED

Pick the right costume. Choose lightly colored costumes, while avoiding head-to-toe dark selections. Make sure the costume fits properly and shoes are comfortable. If possible, avoid masks and opt for face paint so that vision is not impaired.

Walk, don’t run. Take your time and walk; don’t run from house to house on Halloween night. Use Energizer portable lights to be aware of decorations or other obstructions in yard and on sidewalks to avoid trips and falls.

Be selective. Only visit well-lit houses and avoid stopping at dark houses. Remind your children to stay in groups and never accept rides from strangers or enter homes without a parent or guardian.

Charge your devices. Make sure to charge cell phone and ensure that your flashlight has fresh batteries. Energizer® MAX® with Power Seal Technology is long-lasting and no leaks guaranteed. Use your cell phone for necessary communications (and adorable photos), otherwise keep it in a purse or pocket to avoid distractions.

I’m looking forward to incorporating these tips into our trick-or-treating plan, in order to minimize stress and maximize fun!

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5 Reasons 7:30 Preschool Is Ruining My Life

Before I start, let me direct your eyes to the category this post is filed in. It’s called “whine”. Yes, I know this is a first world problem. But I’m going to vent about it anyway. BECAUSE OMGEE 7:30 IS A HORRIBLE TIME TO START PRESCHOOL. Here are 5 reasons why it is specifically horrible for me.

1) I have to pry Jonah out of bed every morning. Normally this child would probably be up on his own by 7:15 but when I get him up at 6:30-6:45 weekday mornings, he is NOT HAPPY. His unhappiness has a trickle down effect, which is not really a trickle but more like an extremely powerful and violent geyser.

2)  I have to shower at night. I hate showering at night, it always makes  my hair HORRIBLE. So my hair looks horrible until I can find the time to flatiron it. In order to shower in the morning, I’d have to get up at 5:15, because Bobby gets up at 5:45. I cannot bring myself to do this…yet. Typically I get up about 6:20 and get dressed before getting Jonah up. 5:15? I can’t even think about that right now. I know many of you do it, so again….whine.

3) Jonah and I have to leave before the rest of the family. We have to be out the door at 7:15 and they don’t leave until 10 minutes later. This causes me to have to “drill sergeant” Sophie through her morning routine even more than I used to, so I can do her hair before school. Sophie is SLOW, acts like she has ADD, (why should I brush my teeth when I could be taking inventory of  my stuffed animal collection??) and also does not give a crap about my time constraints. So basically I scream at her all morning until it’s time for me to leave. Warm Fuzzies abound. ALSO, this means Bobby cannot park behind me when he gets home from work. If he forgets, major panicked car-moving ensues.

4) I typically only have time for ONE cup of coffee while I’m slapping on my makeup trying to get out of the house. This does not lend itself to a cheerful Mom. Also, I have already forgotten Jonah’s backpack a few times this year and I NEVER EVER forgot his or Sophie’s before. Ever.

5) 7:30 preschool  is over at 10:15. WHAT? Basically I work like a dog up to the minute I have to go get him…and my productivity is shot  WELL BEFORE noon every day. Womp. Womp.

So yeah, I pretty much hate 7:30 preschool. But I said it before and I’ll say it again (through gritted teeth) – it’s worth it to have Jonah’s awesome teachers that he had last year. So I will soldier on. And maybe now that I’ve vented, I won’t even complain about it anymore. (Yeah right.)

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Insta-Friday: Because I got nothin’

Once in awhile Emily or I link up with our friend Jeannett at Life Rearranged’s Insta-Friday carnival. Only trouble is, Jeannett is kind of a slacker about posting it in a timely manner. But I’mma give her a pass because she has four kids and pretty much lives at Disneyland. SO…eventually…you should click on over there, too. But NOW! See what’s been happening in MY world!

On Sunday, Cortney skipped church, so my friends Cyrissa, Tess, and I used the power of instagram and text messaging to make her feel like a big ol’ pagan. Because judging and shaming…is what best friends do.

On Sunday, my BFF Luanne’s daughter got married and I instagrammed it up!

Sophie and me before the wedding. Do you like my Lands’ End dress I scored on end-of-season clearance for $5 at Sears?? I do. Or I DID, until halfway through the wedding when Sophie patted my belly and said it looked like there was a baby in there. Ummm…I still like the dress. NOT SURE how I feel about Sophie.

 

The of course, wedding selfie with my darling husband:

And naturally, wedding selfie with the bust of Charles F. Kettering, inventor of the electric starter for cars. Everyone should thank him! (Wedding was at the Engineers Club in Dayton hence the bust.)

Oh, right, the bride and groom were there too:

Moving on, the next big thing in our lives happened Monday when SOPHIE GOT GLASSES!!!! So exciting, and she is adorable in them. Sadly, she is nearsighted like her mama and will probably end up blind as a bat like I am. I got my glasses in 2nd grade also.

The week kinda went downhill from there. I went to ALDI and got SUPER-EXCITED about all their organic stuff:

And then naturally Jonah and I took a selfie:

Is he not the cutest???

Well, that’s the photographical fun I had this week. How was YOUR week?

Don’t forget to go visit Jeannett at Life Rearranged because she’s awesome. Have a great weekend!

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