Day 358: The Candy Man

Today's photo was snapped by Jackson of me earlier tonight when he came by to pick up his weekly Super Blow Pop sucker:

See, he and I and his siblings have a deal. They come by my room for gum and candy on a regular basis - but only once a week, on Sundays after church, do they get a Super Blow Pop.

Giving out candy is one the few ways that I, as an uncle, have learned to score brownie points with the kids. If any of you out there have any additional suggestions, I'm all ears.

Day 313: October Birthday Boys at the Nickelcade

Ben, Steve, and I, the family's October birthday boys, journeyed out to one of our favorite hangouts, the Nickelcade in Taylorsville, for some good-old-fashioned video gaming tonight as a sort of belated birthday party. They were both good enough to have also attended my b-day party at the Karaoke Cafe last month, and I was more than happy to return the favor.

Steve came prepared with a jar full of change, which he spent a good deal of time sorting out on the countertop by the register:

Once we got that straightened out, we spent a few hours playing some old favorites, including Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time, which the three of us played from start to finish.

Steve and I also played several rounds of Skee-Ball, which won us enough tickets to redeem for a handful of candy to enjoy on the car ride home.

Day 305: Trick-or-Treating 2012

The big day (Halloween) finally came today, and the kids were very excited, to put it mildly, to dress up in their costumes and to go out trick-or-treating earlier tonight. When I say "kids," of course, I include myself among that group, because Halloween is one of those holidays that certainly brings out the kid in me - which is really not that difficult of a task.

At any rate, I again dressed up as Bane, Batman's nemesis in the summer blockbuster The Dark Knight Rises, while Kylee (zombie), McKenna (ghost), Dallin (Boy Scout who has been attacked by a bear - pretty clever, really), and Jackson (Batman), along with one of the kids' cousins, joined me in this group photo out front, as well as some closeups of their costumes:

Since Jackson and I were characters from the same movie franchise, we took a few other photos together . . . and I was more than happy to let Batman triumph again in a mock fistfight:

And so, the post-Halloween doldrums may set in once again tomorrow morning, but at least for the next few minutes, it's still Halloween. I hope you all had an enjoyable holiday.

Day 288: October Birthday Bash

Earlier tonight, we gathered as a family both for our bi-monthly Sunday dinner together and to celebrate October birthdays. We have quite a few October birthdays in our clan, including those of Ben, Jana, Kira, Steve, and *ahem* yours truly.

After another hotly contested game of "Pass the Parcel," now-four-year-old Kira showed off the candy bracelet that was her prize:

Following that, gifts were exchanged, including Steve's Elmo t-shirt:

and Kira's Merida doll (from the Disney/Pixar movie Brave):

Though she is not smiling in the photo, she really did like her gift and told me so more than once.

I did not take photos of the gifts that were given to me, but I am, likewise, grateful to considerate and thoughtful family members for what they shared.

Good times were had by all.

Day 264: Sourpuss

I gave Jackson a new type of gum - sour gum - to try out today, as he is wont to drop by and ask for candy, gum, and other goodies. This was the result:

It's reminiscent of that same mischievous - and sour - look that we've all come to love.

Day 251: Boogers for Sale

I came across this display today while browsing among the shelves at Dollar Tree:


Can you see how they ended up at Dollar Tree? They're (I can only assume) finger-lickin' good!

Day 237: The Glasses Bandit

In case I haven't already mentioned it, I recently moved - for the fourth time in three months - back to Mike's and Jana's basement in Layton. The explanation would take quite a while, but suffice me to say that I am grateful to Dave and Jessica and their four amazing kids for putting up with me at their home in Woods Cross for seven weeks, and, likewise, I am also grateful to be back in a familiar and comfortable spot.

At any rate, one of the great things about being back in Layton is that I'm surrounded by four other amazing kids, including four-and-a-half-year-old Jackson, who provides me with plenty of photo ops and manages to help keep me entertained on a daily basis.

The other day, he swiped my glasses right off of my face until I gave in and gave him a treat he desperately wanted:

Sure, he had to resort to extortion, of sorts, but I say that he's nevertheless a clever kid.

Day 101: The Easter Bunny Does It Again

With the passing of time, at least one thing remains constant: The Easter Bunny still visits me regularly each Easter morning.

Thank you, Easter Bunny - whoever you are!

Day 99: Easter Egg Hunt

In addition to celebrating the Easter holiday, today also marked our bi-monthly family dinner at Mom's and Dad's place. Everyone gathered to enjoy a good meal together, after which the kids participated in the annual Easter egg hunt in the backyard. As you can see from these photos, each one of them was rather gung ho about it:

When we Plowmans do something competitive like this, we go all out and don't take any prisoners.

Day 98: Candy Bar! Candy Bar!

For a four-year-old, Jackson is definitely smarter than the average bear.

Whenever we play "Pass the Parcel" for our family birthday parties, he has learned that everyone who plays the game is a winner, because everyone who gets "out" gets a candy bar. Thus, the first "loser" is really the first winner and becomes the first one who gets to eat his/her candy bar.

As soon as the parcel falls into his hands, he holds onto it until the music stops and is always the first one out. That's a rather smart strategy, I must admit.