James Brandon + Rebekah Zoe!: October 2007

Happy Halloween!

See, even Bear has a costume! (Actually it's a bib Uncle Mark and Aunty Lisa got for James!)

Bear gets the blame again ...

Uh-oh, looks like Bear has been up to his old tricks ... This time he emptied the contents of James' rubbish bin/traaaash can all over James' bedroom floor. I think Nanny could be right ... we got an email from her this week which said: "I think you had better leave Bear there when you come for Christmas - he is obviously quite a trouble maker!" But it looks like James still has a lot of love for him ...

Playing in the back garden!

"well, howdy little lady .."

What a difference a year makes!

Yesterday we went to Dan's office for their halloween party. He was just a month old when we went last year. This year wore his west ham football kit because it was too hot for the monkey or the pumpkin outfit! James had a great time!

"ok, Dad, let's go and check out all the decorated departments ..."

Each department had decorated their area. Even Daddy's department had made an effort. In fact there's was the darkest and scariest but it didn't phase James. He was just happy to explore!

James never seemed to get scared by any of the decorations but his eyes were like saucers taking it all in. The eyes of this cat flashed and just before there was something that you walked over and it made noise.

People were handing out candy from their cubes and to start with James was a bit suspicious but he soon enjoyed picking things out and waving them around.

Lots of people were dressed up and they were worried about scaring James but he didn't seemed phased by that at all (maybe that's how Mummy looks in the morning ...). I think he's too young to be scared at the moment.

When he saw this he actually went "wohhhhhhhhhhhhh" and stood studying it for a while.

In the lunchroom James got given a special halloween goody bag to colour. He actually got quite into it - how come he doesn't hold a pen like this when we're doing art projects at home??!?! Once he was finished colouring he could load it up with all his sweets.

"Hmmmm, I'll have one of those ... and one of those .. and ..."

We had to tell James he couldn't trick or treat from the vending machine ...

Follow the yellow brick road!! The wizard of oz department. James was a pro trick or treater by this point and just followed the yellow brick road helping himself to "caaandy" along the way!

Checking out the bounty ... It's a shame he's too little to eat most of it! I suppose Mummy will HAVE to dispose of it somehow ...

Uh-oh, not another dog!!! James playing with one of Ida's dogs.

Working with the boss ...

James decided to show George (Dan's boss) a few tricks. He had fun playing in George's office. (Let's hope he didn't break anything!!!)

James: "So it's really quite simple, George and Daddy, all you need to do to improve the audio quality of the latest Creative soundcard is to add THIS code ... I've been trying to show Daddy on the computer at home but he keeps telling me off for breaking the keyboard!"

Daddy and George: "Ohhhhhhhhhhhhh! NOW we get it ..."

NERD ALERT!

This was in Dan's department ... For those of you not geeky enought to get it ... it's the "BLUE SCREEN OF DEATH" ! Don't ask. ;0)

It's pumpkin carving time!!

Well, we bought the pumpkins at Half Moon Bay and so today we decided to carve them!! This was the FIRST TIME EVER FOR ALL THREE OF US!!! What an American experience! It was actually alot more fun than I was expecting and it was sweet watching James watching what we were doing ... and probably wondering what on earth we were doing!!

James did get a bit bored and wandered off a few times but for the most part he stuck with us and liked getting all mucky and scraping out the insides.

The finished product!!!

The one on the right is a 'free-hand', made up design and for the one on the left we used a pattern. Not bad for our very first attempt at pumpkin carving!!!

Clean up time!! I think James enjoyed this more than the pumpkin carving. He watched Daddy with the hose for a while and then kept chasing the spray and running through it. He was really funny to watch.

I like the reflection in this one.

"Quick!! RUN!!!!!"

I love the face expressions.

He was really funny chasing the spray around and deliberately running through it. Good job it was another unusually warm day!

A Royal Banquet

Don organized a medieval banquet as a fundraiser for the youth group tonight ... and guess who was the royal family?!?! I suppose it's in our blood ... We sat at a special table at the front of the church and made everyone bow and curtsey when they approached us ... I think the power could go to our heads ... Actually we felt a bit conspicuous .. but it was good fun!

This was a jousting/stick fight thing. We knighted the winner (with someone's walking stick as we didn't have a sword!). Don and his team did a really good job of setting everything up to look medieval, and the food was yummy too! AND I enjoyed calling Don a PLEB all night ... maybe a little TOO much ... ;0)

How lucky am I? I've got TWO Prince Charmings!!!! ;0)

"I know, son - I don't want to wear these stupid crowns either ... We're going to have to grin and bear it - British stiff upper lip and all that ..."

Bear gets the blame ...

This morning while I was getting dressed "somebody" ransacked the DVDs in our wardrobe. When I asked James what happened he looked at me, picked up Bear, held him up to me and said "BEAR! BEAR!" then threw him down and ran off ... Poor old, Bear. He's been through a lot lately. ;0)

Thanks, Uncle Mark ...

Uncle Mark's parting gift to James was his GERMS!! He got a cold mid-week and passed it on to James. He's been doing ok and is getting better but has had a constant runny nose which he keeps wiping all over Mummy (and Bear)!

A proper little footballer ...

Uncle Mark got James a West Ham football kit for his birthday. I know Grandad Green and Uncle Tris might not be too impressed but we thought he looked very good in his kit. Maybe this could be a halloween costume ... ? THANK YOU, Uncle Mark!!!