Happy Halloween!

(Jenn) Here's the post you've all been waiting for! This is the first year Henry really understood what was going on for Halloween. We have been reading Halloween books and talking about trick-or-treating all month, so this morning when I woke him up and said, "It's Halloween!" he knew exactly what was in store. He was very good at saying "Tricka Treat" and "CANDY!" all day long! Henry dressed up as a garbage man. It was the perfect costume for him this year, due to his obsessions with garbage, trucks, and real live garbage men. He worships the garbage men in our neighborhood, and they know him and wave to him every time they pass! I'm pretty proud of Henry's costume too -- my creative project of the month. I can make costumes that don't involve sewing -- hence the duct tape!

Today we had a busy and fun day. In the morning, we went to the MOMS Club activity in Rutherford. The kids visited a senior center and Trick-or-Treated on Park Avenue. After coming home for lunch and a quick nap, we left for the Hoboken Ragamuffins Parade. We went with the Stephensons from our branch and met up with some families in the Jersey City Ward. We went to this parade last year and had to go again this year! I just love seeing the fun costumes and accessories some of the people come up with! We also trick-or-treated a bit in Hoboken before heading home. Henry visited the houses on our street before coming in for dinner. He ended up with quite the loot!

For the die-hards, there's a slide-show below:

An Extra Christmas Gift

If you are interested in donating an extra Christmas gift to a family in need this year, look at this list and let me know what you can donate. Just leave a comment or email me (jenny.iverson@gmail.com), and I will remove your item from the list! Feel free to email me for more information. Here is a list of the items still needed:

Clothing
Women’s pants (size 12-14) [got some]
Women’s shirts (size L) [got some]
Women’s skirts/dressy shirts (12-14, L) [got some shirts, skirts, dresses]
(Women’s clothing – maternity)
Men’s pants : black slacks, khakis (32-34)
Boys clothes, church clothes, pajamas (5t, 5/6 kids) [got black pants, sweater, hoodie, shirt, church outfit]
Boys clothes, church clothes, pajamas (18 months) [got Christmas outfit, some other clothes]
Baby boy clothes (0-3 months, 3-6 months) [got Christmas outfit, some other clothes]

Shoes
Women’s dress shoes (size 8 ½)
Men’s dress shoes (size 11)
Boys sneakers (size 6 – 6 ½)

Furniture
Sheets/bedding for 2 toddler beds
Child’s bedroom furniture
Crib
Changing table

Household Items
CD player/radio
Mirror
Picture frames, large and small
Towels, bath size
Towels, hand size
Kitchen towels
Wash cloths
Vacuum
Toaster

Baby/Child Items
Car seat, 40+ lbs.
Car seat ,20 + lbs.
Car seat, infant size
Toy chest

Toys
Power ranger toy (no guns)
Other toys ages 4 and 18 months

Other gifts
Scrapbook/scrapbooking supplies
4 CTR rings
Christmas ornaments/decorations [got tree, lights]
Money, spare change
Gift cards

A Beautiful Week

(Jenn) This past week was a vacation-at-home for me as I got to spend lots of time with friends. Shug, my roommate and amazing friend of many years, came to visit from Alaska! I talked Brittany into staying with us until Shug came (she's been living with us for the past few weeks), so they both stayed in our place for the week. I got to feel what it's like to live with roommates again! We had a lovely time: mostly lots of sitting and talking, going for walks, cooking, etc. It was just like old times, and amazing that we're still just as close as ever. Henry loved having both Shug and Brittany here, and he just went along with whatever we wanted to do. Ben and I both stayed up later than we have in years -- ah, the single life!

On my favorite day of the week, we took a drive up into New York (a town called High Falls) to see the autumn leaves and go apple picking. This time we went to a smaller, organic orchard run by a crazy guy named "Mr. Apples." It was beautiful, and we were the only ones there. We had such a nice day picking apples, visiting a waterfall, playing in leaves, and eating soup at a little café in High Falls. On Friday night, Amy and Dave came down from Connecticut to visit, and they stayed overnight. It was great to be able to spend time with them and get to know Dave a little better! On Saturday morning, we took a trip to the temple while Shug and Brittany babysat and then met us in the city (they bravely took Henry on the train themselves!). We went to the Museum of Natural History and then out to lunch at Alice's Teacup, a charming little restaurant and bakery.

Shug left early this morning, and then I dropped Brittany off at the train station at noon (she's moving to Brooklyn -- she found a temporary place there). I'm really missing the company already, and I think Henry is too! Henry has been mentioning Brittany and Shug in all of his prayers this week, and when he wakes up in the morning he immediately asks, "Where Brittany? Where Shug?" When we dropped Brittany off today, Henry cried for several minutes (probably because he thought he was going to get to go on the train too, but it was still pretty sweet :). We spent the last few days of the week trying to figure out how we can all live closer to each other. We won't be able to do trips like this for the rest of our lives! Alaska is definitely too far away! I wish I could just buy an old house in a beautiful cul-de-sac with big trees, and all of the neighbors would be my best friends and family. Let me know if you have any ideas on how to make this happen!
If you're interested in seeing pictures of our week, watch the slideshow below:

Bear

(Jenn) So Ben is really particular about what kind of toys Henry is allowed to own because he wants him to be manly in all respects. I'm not allowed to buy him anything related to kitchens or babies. It took a lot of persuasion (and deception) just to get a Little Tikes shopping cart from a garage sale for $2, which Henry absolutely loves. I wanted to get one of those doll strollers, and maybe even a little boy doll, but as far as Ben was concerned, that was out of the question.

Well today, Henry showed Ben that he can express his feminine side without dolls! Who needs dolls anyway? Today after church, "Bear" became Henry's baby, and it was pretty fun for me to watch him take care of it. As I was getting lunch ready, I heard Henry saying, "Diaper change, Bear. Change you. New diaper. All done Bear." Then he wanted to give Bear drinks from his sippy cup, and then he put Bear in the high chair. Once Bear was ready to go in the high chair, Henry did what a good parent ought to: he wheeled the high chair into the living room and said, "Car Show time, Bear" (If you have talked to Henry recently, you will know that pretty much the only thing that he cares about is Pixar's Cars. Naturally, a good little daddy would let his Bear watch Cars as much as possible).

I'm always excited to see that Henry wants to emulate me in every way. Of course he wants to take care of Bear, push his shopping cart, and help empty the dishwasher -- so he can be like Mommy! What toddler would want to sit at a desk all day making calculations? At least for this time in his life, I can be Henry's hero.

The Phantom of the Opera

(Jenn) An unexpected and rare bonus at Ben's work this month gave us a good excuse to do something we've been wanting to do -- attend Phantom on Broadway! I had seen the play in London and LOVED it, but Ben had never seen it! We both absolutely love the music and know it backwards and forwards, so it was something we really thought we needed to do while we were in New York.

Everything worked together for us. Brittany, our friend from BYU days, has been staying with us for a couple of weeks while waiting for an apartment in the city to work out for her (she's attending Columbia University right now). We have been fully taking advantage of her presence in our home by leaving and conveniently forgetting to take Henry along! She is now Nanny Brittany, and Henry is finally starting to really warm up to her. Brittany stayed with Henry while I went to meet Ben after work.

Anyway, it was great for me to get to go ALL BY MYSELF to the train station with no stroller, diaper bag, raisins, or dump trucks! At first I guess it felt a little strange, but I got used to it pretty fast. I met Ben at a place for dinner, and then we did a little shopping before heading to our show. Of course, Phantom was breathtaking. We had orchestra seats -- center section, about 15 rows back -- it was perfect! The voices of Christine and the Phantom were really amazing. We both came home singing with our heads in the stars. It was a magical night! Unfortunately, this is the only picture we took (these digital self-portraits are always a little scary. It took a few tries to get one without double chins). We meant to get one in front of the theater but forgot :(

Apple Picking

(Jenn) On Saturday, we went apple picking with Henry's friends, Evan and Aden, and their moms and dads (who happen to be our friends too!). We went to Riamede Farm in Chester, NJ -- about 45 minutes away from us. It was a beautiful day, and we had a great time. We tasted plenty of apples while we were picking them, and then we went home with $17 worth of apples! We probably got way more than we needed, but we just got carried away with the picking. Today Cindy, Jessica and I got together and made apple pies, but I still have LOTS of apples left and will have to come up with something to do with them! The apples are delicious and very flavorful. Definitley a Saturday well-spent!