Melissa & Doug toys

If you have small children you have probably seen or heard of Melissa & Doug toys. (Shameless plug alert)... My friend, Sunny, carries some in her store. Most of the things I've suggested to family for Ella this year have been Melissa & Doug toys. As I was adding things on her Amazon wish list, I saw this kitchen. Oh, the hours of fun I had playing with the pretend kitchen my sister, Megan, & I had. I want one for Ella. Of course, she's still a little small for it this year. That didn't stop me from adding it to her list. I have a feeling I've got her Christmas present next year all wrapped up (no pun intended). Anyways, I clicked over to the Melissa & Doug website to see more detailed pictures & what do you know, they are giving away one of the play kitchens on their blog this month. How awesome would it be to win one for Ella?! They have several ways to enter & blogging about the giveaway earns me 5 entries. So, this post just got me a little closer to possibly winning it. If you have a little budding chef, head on over to their blog & enter, too. If you don't, still have a look at their toys. They're high quality, well-designed & inspire lots of imaginative play.

What a pair...

We had a cute, cuddly elephant & a very scary grim reaper on our hands for Halloween last weekend.


I feel like Wesley's costume deserves an explanation. Most everyone that reads our blog knows that Wesley visits his dad every other weekend. It just so happened that Halloween fell on his dad's weekend this year, so he had the pleasure/responsibility of costume hunting. And, hunt he did. Wesley's first pick was Iron Man. I'm not sure how many stores were visited in search of said costume, but there were none to be found in Wesley's size. So, they moved on to a G.I. Joe costume. Same song, different verse. I never asked for details, but I assume they were to the point that they just had to take what was left. Anyhow, an hour or so of hair & makeup & my sweet, wholesome boy was transformed into a grim reaper. Anthony, Ella & I stopped in Dover to see him & take these pictures. We were there for a good 30 minutes, and I honestly don't think Ella ever recognized it was Wesley. She kept giving him the funniest look. I'm surprised she sat next to him long enough to get a picture of them together.