This is long overdue, but Nolan had his 18 month well-check on September 6. He weighed 22 lbs. (with his cast on) and was 34.25 or 34.5 inches tall. String bean. He and Beck are different in a lot of ways...most ways, actually. One example is that Nolan will eat pretty much anything. And, he seems to eat about three times as much as Beck ever ate at his age. Despite this difference, they're about the same size when you compare them at the same ages. However, Nolan is taller than Beck was, and I think Nolan might actually catch up to Beck at some point. I venture to guess they might be wearing the same size a year from now. Nolan's feet are also bigger than Beck's were, and I'm on my last pair of hand-me-down shoes for him. I've also pretty much run out of hand-me-down clothes for him, so the boys will either have to share clothes next summer (and I'll be doing a lot of laundry), or I'll need to find some good deals.
Now on to Halloween! Beck's birthday! The election! All very exciting stuff that I'll cover quickly. Halloween was lots of fun. The boys participated in the Halloween parade and their respective class parties at their day care the day before, and then we trick-or-treated in our neighborhood on Halloween. It was Beck's first experience with real trick-or-treating (we previously just trick-or-treated at businesses in our old neighborhood - which was during daylight). He loved it, and Nolan did, too. Other than the occasional Dum Dum sucker from the doctor's office, Nolan had not had much candy prior to this Halloween. I think he ate three or four pieces in quick succession and was begging for more. I cut him off and he threw a fit, but then he almost threw up and I think he realized he didn't need anymore. I hate being the sugar-regulator. They each had a small treat after breakfast the next morning (nothing like starting off your day with a sugar buzz), and then I had Paul take all of their candy to work. Out of sight, out of mind.
Beck turned 4! We had a HUGE party (by our standards). There were about 20 kids and 20 adults, and we rented a HUGE bouncy castle. It almost felt like our wedding, where I didn't really get to have a conversation with anyone, but it was a blast. It was Beck's "golden birthday" (he turned 4 on the 4th), it was also sort of a housewarming party for us, and we rarely entertain, so what the heck. He got lots of great presents (thank you! we're working on thank you cards) and I think he's pretty proud to be 4. His well-check is next week, and hopefully I'll be able to post his stats.
The election! I think most of you know I'm pretty much a lifelong Democrat, and I used to be sort of politically active. Not so much anymore. It's just not at the top of my priorities. But, this election reminded me about how much I do care. I'm pretty excited about many of the election results. Heidi Heitkamp was elected to the U.S. Senate in North Dakota (the first woman to be elected to the Senate in ND). Barack Obama gets another term to do his thing. The country voted "yes" and "no" in ways that move us closer to equality for all. I'm feeling proud and optimistic.
