What most of us commonly refer to as "sweet potatoes" are actually yams.  When they were passing out names, why didn't they just give sweet potatoes a stupid name like "yams" instead?  It would've made it a lot easier.  Talk about confusing...

We took Roxie in yesterday for her 9 month checkup.  She is the same length that Alice was at that age--29-1/2".  However, she weighs a little more coming in at 21lbs 12.5oz.  After taking inspiration from my friend's recent post, I sprung a flu shot on Alice while we were there.  I was already planning on getting one myself, but was still on the fence about the kids getting them.  After asking the doctor, he said it would be a good idea.  That settled it.  I told Alice about the shot and she was quite nervous.  This is how it went down:

 

Me: Do you want a flu shot or the flu?

 

Alice: A flu shot...

 

I also bribed her with ice cream.  My shot was first, and I barely noticed the needle going in.  Roxie was next--one short cry and she was ok.  Unfortunately she will need does #2 in another month.  Alice was up next and was pleasantly surprised that it barely hurt.  Whew!  I didn't realize until later why she had been so nervous.  She told me that it didn't hurt as bad as the last time she got a shot.  As I thought back, I remembered that the last shot she received was while she was lying on a cot with a semi-splinted broken leg.  As they jammed the needle in her leg, she screamed and jumped causing her leg to move.  It was horrific.  This time was MUCH easier.  She even got stickers afterward.  I am expecting the girls in our family to be healthy this flu season.  Although, I'm sure Jake will be healthy too--he always escapes illness.

Kids...what are you gonna do with them?  Well, for starters it would be nice if my oldest child stopped putting her hands inside of toys and getting them stuck.  Alice decided that she wanted the blue ball that was inside the ball popper so she reached inside the tube--way down the tube--and got it stuck.  Luckily with the help of a shiny screwdriver, she was freed.  Roxie has been very out of sorts lately with teething and a cold (which I am 90% sure is not related to each other).  Her 3rd tooth popped through last week and she is still chewing on her fingers--are there more in there?  No sign of any on the top yet.  But she did wake up this morning with a nasty, nasty case of dried snot.  Check out the photo--unless you are easily grossed out.  Kids...

This year Jack and Piper joined Alice in our neighborhood for trick-or-treating.  Since all the houses are really close together, it makes it easy on the kids--less walking to do.  They made out like bandits, even coming home once to empty their buckets and head back out into the cold.  We have a really cool senior housing complex in our neighborhood that loves having the kids visit on Halloween.  The kids make sure to make that one of their stops.  Roxie and I stayed at the house and gave our handfuls of dum-dums to the trick-or-treaters.  After the kids had gotten 2 buckets for of candy each, they called it quits.  We all loaded up and headed over the Ben and Shannon's for hot chocolate and hot apple cider.  Mmm, mmm...