'Tis Hallows Eve!

Life doesn't slow down for Halloween. (Life doesn't slow down for blogging about Halloween either. Ha!) But we still managed to squeeze in Halloween festivities into every spare second. After tag-teaming it with the kids all day at soccer games, scout activities, birthday parties, grocery shopping, work and play dates, Nate and I finally met up (with all the children) for the ward Trunk-or-Treat party. We even coordinated our costumes.  On Halloween night we raced home from piano lessons (and Nate from work) just as the sun went down for a quick pizza dinner and Trick-or-Treating. We made a mad dash around the neighborhood, and then home again to study spelling and math facts. We shopped for pumpkins but ran out of time to carve them. No matter, the kids were so excited about their costumes this year, that jack-o-lanterns. . . and even candy. . . took a backseat. 

The boys were medieval Knights. Well, Clayton was more of a woodsman/assassin/outlaw/peasant.  The girls were, of course, princesses.  These kids lived and breathed in their costumes.  Our yard was a constant battlefield and jousting tournament.  Our living room became the Great Hall.  Elegant and jubilant balls were held (with live music!) in the piano room.  And, of course, every meal was a royal feast!

Here are the boys in action:

Brave Sir Isaac of Smithdom.

 Clayton of the woods.

 And Gallant Sir Brig.

The boys planned a battle in the backyard, got in costume, and ran out to fight. But Clayton was no where to be found.  Out of no where, he bombed them with origami fire bombs from his perch in the tree.

 Here is Brig trying to chop down the tree with his battle axe.

On guard! I love Clayton's footwork here.

Nate and I decided not to miss out on the fun this year and resurrected our Knight and Princess costumes (the only costumes we own!).  We had a good laugh reminiscing about the last time we wore these costumes - 12 years ago - in Chicago.

Here's a look at us back then. We were 24.  Newlyweds. Childless.  Ahhh. . . . The whole world was ahead of us.

Word had it that costumes were allowed at school on Halloween.  Fresh out of college, I assumed that meant everyone would dress up!  I even convinced Nate to join us (in costume) for our classroom Halloween party.  I also convinced him to bring pizza.

Turns out though, the kids in the school could barely afford clothes, let alone costumes. And the other teachers somehow completely missed the memo.

So. . . guess who was the only teacher dressed up in the entire school?????  Me.  

And guess how many students dressed up?  Lenora.  She wore her grandmother's gospel choir robe with a pipe cleaner crown.

And see the three girls (Knisha, Jasmine, and Lavictoria) in the background wearing South Summit High School cheerleading outfits?  Yeah, they wore costumes too (thanks to me).  Go Wildcats!   We were the only ones.

The kids in my class knew "Mr. Smith" was coming with pizza and they watched out our third-story window with anticipation.  Unfortunately, amid shouts and whoops and windows splaying open from my classroom, the wind picked up just as Nate got to the school and he dropped the pizza all over sidewalk.  It was a moment I will never forget, watching my poor husband. . . dressed as a knight. . . scraping up piles of cheese and crust. . . while being whooped at by a bunch of raucous 6th graders.

Back to 2013.  Here are a few pictures of the Trunk-or-Treat party.  Naomi's ladybug wings are magical - she's off the ground!

Princess Lydia was enchanting.

Isaac's primary teachers.

My girls stared and stared at Erica's glittery eyelashes.

A fellow clerk.  Nobody recognized them. Not even Isaac.

And my kids were too scared to come near this skeleton.  Even when I told them it was just Mary's dad.

On Halloween, we met up with friends from the neighborhood for trick-or-treating.  Lydia fell and bonked her head seconds before I snapped this picture.  Her forehead still carries the mark.

The lighting was terrible for pictures.  But the weather was perfect and the evening sky was spectacular!

So we didn't carve pumpkins. But I did make (and design) this cute table runner.  The spider legs are hard to see.  Next year, I'll sew some pieces of ribbon on for legs.

With the left over fabric I made skirts for Lydia and Eliza. (which I finished on Halloween day.)  Since the weather is getting cooler (thankfully!) and since Eliza refuses to wear anything besides a dress or a skirt.  I just sewed these skirts right onto a pair of stretch pants for them.

Aren't they cute?

Here they are next to the matching table runner.

Happy Halloween in 2013!!!!