Our Handy Mannys

Cole the Roman Soldier

This year for Halloween, Zach and Alex dressed up as their favorite character, Handy Manny, complete with their own tools. They were so excited! To celebrate, we went down to Joe’s office to join their Halloween party and then stopped by Grandma Pat’s office to say hello before we picked up Cole on our way home.  After dinner, we went to visit Dar and Gary, Debbie’s parents and two people that Z & A love to visit, for some Halloween treats.  Then Joe and Cole, who wore his Roman soldier costume from a couple years ago, took them out trick-or-treating for the first time; they didn’t go to a lot of houses, but they had a lot of fun!

Check out all the great pics from when Z & A got their new toolboxes and from Halloween itself starting on page 4 of the Sept-Oct 2008 album.

In addition to those pictures, a ton of others from the past few months have been added, pictures that Debbie took with her own camera.  In the July-Aug 2008 album, you’ll find a few trips that Debbie, Cole, Zach and Alex took to the pool, a trip they took to the Children’s Museum, and a visit to a fire station with one of Debbie’s sisters and nephews, as well as some just general playing-around pics.  In the Sept-Oct 2008 album, there are a couple trips to some parks, including a set that Debbie took as a photo shoot to make special Autumn/Halloween present for the boys’ grandparents.  Those pictures are just adorable (OK, so I’m a little biased on the subject matter).

Tags: Alex, Cole, family outing, Halloween, milestones, work event, Zach

Our little strong-willed Zach has had no interest in using the potty.  We’d occasionally get him to sit on it, but he usually finds bathtime much more interesting and wants to go straight in.  Alex uses it every night before or after the bath and occasionally makes attempts during the day, but if you ask Zach if he wants to go, he replies with a resounding “No!”

Well, today he decided he needed to go #2, so I got him on the potty – and he actually went both #1 and #2!  We made such a big deal about it that I think Zach might actually be motivated to try that again. Here’s hoping!

Yep, it’s official – I’m a sappy mom who gets excited about poop – and the idea of not needing to buy diapers in bulk at Costco.

Tags: milestones, potty training, Zach

The Vandermarks recently got some opportunities to get out and have some fun with some friends – Alex and Zach with neighbors Brooke and Stella, and Karen and Joe with friends (and Joe’s co-worker) Phil and Heather.

Last weekend, Zach and Alex attended the birthday party of sisters Brooke (5) and Stella (3), and they had an absolute blast.  The birthday girls celebrated with pony rides and a little petting zoo complete with chickens, ducks, guinea pigs, rabbits, and a hedgehog.  The animals where huge hits with the kids, although Alex preferred to look from the outside and spent most of his time playing with the girls’ toys.  Check out the pictures in Brooke and Stella’s B-Day photo album.

Karen and Joe actually got a little playtime too recently when they joined friends Phil and Heather Rodemann on a trip out to Treasure Island to eat, drink, and laugh our booties off with comedian Ron White.  We spent a couple hours playing the tables (blackjack can be a mean, mean game…) and then went on the casino’s dinner cruise for a nice relaxing dinner on the Mississippi River (check out our pictures).  To cap off the evening, we saw Ron White perform. He is one incredibly funny person, but I think the funniest parts where when he screwed up his jokes and then just went with it.   We all had a great time!

Tags: animals, birthday, friends, playtime, Ron White, Treasure Island