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Loved this.

The Crew’s Halloween Fun

The Pumpkins

It was Britta’s first year to use the saw!

The Crew are true Homestar Runner fans. We stuck with our annual  theme again this year. . . well, everyone but Freja, that is. I guess she has carved Marzipan one too many times.

I must say that pumpkin carving goes quite smoothly at our house these days as everyone, but Britta,  is pretty self-sufficient. My regular job is to sift through the pumpkin goop for all the seeds so that we can roast them . . . yum!

 

Hermione Hair

Freja wanted authentic ‘Hermione Hair’ for Halloween.  “Hermione hair like the movie, not the book.” She insisted that rag curls would do the trick . . . we couldn’t stop laughing at the initial result. Her hair was so curly! It looked more like Hermione’s hair though as it relaxed throughout the day.

     

 

The Garb

 

Check out that cute stinger! It was especially cute when she walked.

Sisters!

This was Leif’s last year of trick-or-treating—next year he will be twelve and he’ll move on to new ways to celebrate. He was recovering from an illness, so unfortunately he didn’t go out with a bang like he had hoped.

Hans and David both had parties to attend . . . Hans’s was a costume party and David’s wasn’t. David helped pass out candy until it was time for his party.

This Mama couldn’t get enough of her little Bumblebee . . .

 

Trick-or-Treating in the Northwest

Mostly it just drizzled but at one point it started raining hard enough that the use of an umbrella became  necessary to keep my little Bee warm and dry. Britta insisted on carrying the umbrella herself, along with her bucket-full of treats. It was quite the challenge for her but she was determined (and stubborn). After a long, and very slow walk up the hill, we called it a night.

The Most Heartwarming “Boo” Ever . . .

Around these parts, maybe around most parts, there is a little tradition connected with Halloween called “Boo-ing.” It goes something like this:  A friendly, and completely unknown spook , or group of spooks, mischievously deposits Halloween goodies on a dear one’s front porch before they ding-dong-ditch their home. When the folks living inside unknowingly answer the door they are pleasantly surprised with the found sweeties and the thoughtfulness of the spooks who delivered them. Because they are so appreciative they return the trick to two of their favorite friends and so it goes until Halloween arrives. The spooks who left the treats also leave their calling card (a photocopy of a “Boo”) that the recipients hang on their door to alert other spooks that may come to call  that their home has already been visited this season.

As Halloween approached my younger children mentioned how they “couldn’t wait to be Boo-ed.” I didn’t think much about it as I had other pressing things on my mind. Soon we were merely days away from Halloween and still, the spooks had not come-a-calling. I didn’t realize how sad this had made my children until one day after school it happened. We got that exciting, doorbell-ditching-ring and this is what we found.

This was a “Boo-ing” of the home-made, very best, hand-crafted kind. Some considerate and empathic young neighborhood spook or spooks of the male-variety (we’re nearly certain) overheard my wee ones on the school bus, earlier that day, expressing their grief that we had not yet been “Boo-ed” and they took matters into their own hands. They crafted their calling card, raided their family’s pantry for fruit snacks, and used profuse amounts of tape to secure their offering—they sensed a need and they met it with enthusiasm. I’ve never felt more proud to display my “Boo” sign. Children’s kindness . . . you can’t beat it. It warmed the heart of this Mama—and that is just what my heart needed. I suppose this is evidence that even Halloween can inspire goodness and giving. Some parents somewhere should feel very proud of their special little spooks . . . I certainly do.

Award-Winning

If there were an award for the saddest, most neglected fuchsia in the neighborhood . . . I would get it.

I’m sorry little fuchsia, I don’t know how I let this happen to you . . .

Look who’s not a BABY anymore!

Britta, kicking back with a book in her bouncy seat . . . reminiscing about the good ol’ days of babyhood. Funny girl.

It’s that time of year . . . again . . . already

School started last week and it’s a bittersweet time. Sweet in that I am truly grateful our children love school and learning and that they were so excited to begin a new year. Bitter in that not only is it hard for me to turn over my children to another’s care day after day but  the beginning of each new school year serves as a painful reminder that our children are each one year closer to being out of the nest . . . my nest. And this, my friends, is the saddest of sad thoughts for this Mama Bird. Each year I take photos, give hugs, smile, tell them I love them, wish them a happy day, smile again, and then head for the door *quickly* before the tears come. It’s always a long walk back to the car.

 

 

These two will be in the same class this year. We’ll see how that goes!

These two, being in high school and all, do not fancy their Mama following them to the bus stop with the camera, or to school for that perfect desk shot. So I had to restrain myself. Next week they’ll be starting early morning seminary—which means an earlier start for all of us!

On the upside . . . we’ve been blessed with great schools and wonderful teachers and the beginning of the new school year means that I will get to spend even more one-on-one time with this Cutie-Patootie . . . and that is definitely something to look forward to.

The “Pants Incident” (as referred to by Freja)

This is what happens when you have a cheeky brother named Leif . . .

Points to anyone who could tell that she is wearing her brothers’ underwear . . . several pair of them!