Trick or Treat

Happy Halloween!

Friday's News and Notes

In honor of the November 7 general election, this is a special politics edition of News and Notes. (DISCLAIMER: This week's News and Notes reflects the views of crazy liberal Mommy, and not moderately conservative Daddy or politically indifferent Colin. I get pretty hyped up around election time -- I was a political science major after all.)

Don't know who to vote for? Click here. Need a little healthy competition to get you in the mood? Click here. Can't wait until the election is over so I'll stop bugging you to vote?

I'm sure it will surprise no one that I plan to vote for Martin O'Malley for governor. In a rare display of political propaganda on this blog, I submit this quote from the Washington Post to try to sway any of you that are on the fence:

In the process, [O'Malley] made an enemy of Baltimore Orioles owner Peter G. Angelos, who was once one of the most prolific supporters of Democrats in the nation but who now has hosted a series of fundraisers for Ehrlich.

As to not violate the equal time rule, I will also point out that Senate candidate Michael Steele will be hosting a chat on washingtonpost.com this morning. It should be an interesting discussion.

Enjoy your weekend! Don't forget to fall back tomorrow night.

Third Anniversary

Daddy and I were married three years ago today at our church in Darnestown, MD. Our wedding was exactly what we wanted -- a small gathering of family and friends, good food, and lots of '80s music. It was a wonderful day. (Our honeymoon in Hawaii was pretty great too!)

The three years since our wedding have been quite eventful. We sold our townhouse in Germantown and bought a house in Rockville. We welcomed another nephew to our family. My parents moved back to Maryland after almost 10 years in Rhode Island. We adopted a dog to join our two cats. And, in May 2005, we learned that our family was about to grow again. Over the following nine months, we watched this

grow into this










and then into this
and, today, into this








Daddy and I often say how lucky we are that we found each other. I don't think we understood how lucky until we welcomed Colin into our lives. A lot of people say that their wedding day was the best day of their life. I think the best days of our lives are yet to come.

So, cheers to my better half. Thank you for the past 3 years and for the many years to come.

The Great Pumpkin

On October 14, we went to the Homestead Gardens Fall Fest with the Frankos. At first, Colin wasn't so sure about the pumpkins, but once he discovered the straw, he was a happy man. Plus, he got to show off his cool Halloween shirt and new shoes. We picked out a pumpkin for our Jack O'Lantern, but it's still sitting in the garage waiting to be carved. We hope to have it done in time for this Saturday's Halloween parade.



















We also bought some burgundy and gold mums for the front porch to show support for our favorite football team. However, after last weekend's disappointing performance, we are thinking of removing the mums. The boys have the bye week to regroup and come back and show us that they deserve to be on our porch. Still, our allegience to our beloved Victor Valley College Rams was tested with the heartbreaking loss to the rival Grossmont College Griffins.

Our Little Food Critic

Last Thursday, Colin made his first visit to Chez Cheerio.

At first, he was intrigued by the restaurant's offerings.
















Then, he found that the food made a pretty good toy.















Finally, he tasted his entree.















I'm pretty sure Chez Cheerio will be getting 1 star in Colin's review.
















Postscript -- later visits to Chez Cheerio have been much more enjoyable.

Friday's News and Notes

Wow! A late News and Notes this week! I can't even blame work -- I stayed home today (this is when my laptop comes in really handy).

Our new chairs and ottomans were delivered today. We ordered them from La-Z-Boy in Rockville. We looked at tons of chairs before we decided on these. They're perfect for curling up with a good book and a cup of hot cocoa!

The winner of Project Runway was decided this week. I have to say that I was really disappointed -- the winner was my least favorite of the finalists (I won't say who won in case you haven't seen the finale yet). Now I have to settle for Top Chef until the next season, or at least until American Idol 6 starts in January. (DISCLAIMER: This comment does not reflect the views of the entire Brust family. I'm the only one who enjoys reality TV.)

Big game for the Terps tomorrow against N.C. State. A win for the 4-2 Terps would mean that they're one game away from bowl eligibility with 5 games left on the schedule. A loss would mean that the Terps will need to beat Wake Forest and either Florida State, Clemson, Miami, or Boston College.

It looks like it's going to be another beautiful fall weekend! I hope everyone has a good one.

OBX

We spent the first week of October in Avon, NC. We couldn't have asked for a better week -- it was sunny with highs in the in the 70s and 80s all week. We also loved the house we rented, Irish Mist.

Our week started with a thankfully uneventful drive to the Outer Banks (last year, we drove down in torrential rain). We made the trip faster than expected, and even had a chance to stop at the Sonic in Nags Head. Yum! After checking in and emptying the car, we picked up the crib we rented from Ocean Atlantic Rentals (after the failure of the pack and play in Valley Forge, we knew that a crib was needed). I would dispute the "quick and easy setup" description, but otherwise the crib was a good choice.

After waking up to this on Sunday, we spent a lazy day watching football and climbing on things. Well, technically, Colin did most of the climbing. Thank goodness those bar stools had rubber feet. He spent most of the week either pulling up on them or crawling under them!



On Monday, we visited the North Carolina Aquarium at Roanoke Island. Colin really enjoyed watching the fish, but was a little disappointed that they wouldn't stay still long enough for him to catch them! Personally, I thought the otters were pretty cute.









We visited the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse on Tuesday. Colin wasn't quite ready to climb the lighthouse, but the nice ranger let us pose at the bottom. We also made our first stop at Uncle Eddy's Frozen Custard in Buxton.







Wednesday, Colin had his first beach experience. He wasn't quite sure what to think about the sand, but it sure was fun to play in!








We tried to make our annual trek to Ocracoke Island on Thursday, but a two-hour wait for the ferry quashed that idea. Alas, we had to make a second stop at Uncle Eddy's on our way back to the house.

We drove up to Nags Head on Friday for a yummy breakfast at Stack 'Em High and some shopping at Christmas Mouse. I'm still disappointed that we weren't able to find a "Colin" ornament. Cole? Yep. Connor? Yep. Colin? Nope.

We left Saturday in the wake of a nor'easter. Our drive home was much longer and more stressful than our ride down, but we made it home safe and sound with a minimum of whining (sorry Daddy, we'll try harder next time). Can't wait to go back next year!

Friday's News and Notes

Another week, another brief to write, another super quick News and Notes!

The high today in the DC area is supposed to be 59 degrees. On Tuesday, our high was 80 degrees. Goodbye summer!

Daddy and I watched this week's episode of Lost last night. Am I the only one getting a little annoyed? I want some answers, darn it!

We had our first Cheerios experiment last night. To say it was unsuccessful would be an understatement. We'll post pictures this weekend.

Have a great weekend!

8 Month Stats

Colin had his 8-month appointment yesterday. He weighs in at 22 pounds and is 27.5 inches long. His weight is still off the charts and his height is in the 50th percentile. Our doctor said that a concern with "larger" babies can be a lack of agility and coordination. Luckily, we don't seem to have that problem!

He only had to get two shots this time and I hear that he was a model patient. We were given the OK to start finger foods, so expect pictures of Colin trying to eat Cheerios soon. We think that Rory is going to become Colin's best friend! We also think that we're going to have to start Rory on an exercise program to counteract all the flying food he'll be eating.

We're Back!

Colin, Daddy and I just got back from a wonderful week in the Outer Banks. We still need to download the pictures, but we'll post an update later this week.