Trick or Treat or something

Ahoy! Here is a sneak preview of Pirate Ben! Give him some candy or walk the plank! I’m not sure Ben really has any idea what to look forward to Saturday, but I know he is going to have a great Halloween. Ben and his band of pirates (cousins Ryan and Emily, plus Mommy) will be out knocking on doors looking for chocolate pirate treasure. He is also asking to have his pumpkin painted, so Daddy better hurry up and come up with some ideas for this year. Maybe we will follow the pirate theme there too.

Ben got to show off his costume a little early this week when he took a trip down to visit his Mommom. He was very proud of his fancy outfit, and insisted they walk around the building looking for more people. Needless to say, he drew smiles and attention down every hallway. And to top it all off, as is the routine down there, Ben got some ice cream from the dining room before leaving.

The title this week refers to a new saying that seems to have just popped up in the last few days. The other night while Mommy was trying to put him to sleep in his room, Ben was having a hard time settling down. As he stood, leaning back against the corner of his crib, Ben looked at Mommy and said “Can I have a TV in here or something, so I can watch Dora?” Two and a half and he feels the need for television in his room!

The next day while in Mommy’s car, Ben was telling her all about the mix CD I had made for him to listen to in my car. I put all of his favorites on there (although Ben tells it like he was the one to actually make the CD and pick the songs). Ben has even been singing a long a lot more lately. We noticed that he knows the words to more songs than we thought. Well, Mommy’s car doesn’t have a CD player, so after riding quietly for a few minutes, Ben questioned from the backseat “Can’t me watch a movie or something in here?” I finally got the phrase directed at me on my day off. We had played with his toys all morning, and as we sat around the living room, I guess Ben was growing bored, so he called me over and asked “Daddy, can we go to the mall or something?” And of course we did.

Speaking of trips in the car, Ben continues to ask us to drive by the inflatable Halloween decorations that are in front yards all over town. His favorites are still Snoopy in Gram’s front yard, and the giant Frankenstein just two houses down from us. Ben now calls him Frank, they are on a first name basis. Ben also says he is going to see Frank in Disneyworld, so I hope he isn’t too disappointed. As for Halloween decorations, Ben brought home his very own while shopping with Mommy and Gram this week. He calls it Snoopy, but its really a plush dog dressed as a witch in a boiling cauldron. The fun starts when you squeeze his paw and he starts to dance and flap his ears to Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire” You can be sure we will have video posted soon of Ben dancing to this!

So this promises to be an exciting week, and next week’s blog should be full of fun stories. Not only do we have Halloween this weekend, but we are also busy packing and getting ready for Ben’s big Disney trip which is only eight days away! There is a lot to do, so I am going to cut this off here and go get some sleep. Hope everyone has a safe and happy Halloween and gets lots of candy…or something!