Halloween 2016

Somehow Halloween has morphed from a single night into an entire sugar-fueled season. We started with the squadron trunk or treat which, though small, was a candypalooza. I think there were maybe ten cars? The girls each came home with more candy than they would ever need and actual Halloween hadn't even happened yet.


Natalie planned her costume before we moved and it was actually pretty good for an entirely kid-made getup.  Obviously, she's dressed as a mermaid and she used things we already had around the house to make it happen. One of Samantha's bras for the seashells, an old leotard for modesty, Abigail's peacock wing from last year for her tail, and some matching leggings for warmth.


Samantha was going to be a lot of things before she settled on an angel out of desperation. We found the costume at the BX right before we left for the squadron party. Before that I don't really remember what she wanted to be! This costume is fitting for Sam because she tries so hard to be the perfect angel in everything she does.

Emily and Abigail were invited by some guys from seminary to attend their ward's trunk or treat. We've definitely had to be creative with costumes this year. Abigail's "pumpkin" costume is more of a suggestion of the season than an actual costume. Emily found her hippie costume on the clearance rack at the BX in the hour between school and leaving for the trunk or treat.


October 31st finally rolled around and I was excited to do the base's Zombie Run as a family. The girls however,  were coerced into running. The ultimatum was run or don't trick or treat. Harsh? Yeah, but running for 1.5 miles is a small price to pay for unlimited free candy. In the end, Jared to work and Emily had practice so it was just me and the three youngest girls running.


Abigail ran the 5K while Samantha, Natalie, and I ran the shorter 1.5-mile kid friendly course. Samantha finished third overall in the 1.5-mile race and Natalie would have been close behind if not in front of Samantha had she not gotten ahead of us and then taken a wrong turn. Yes, I lost a child during the race. Mother of the year right here! She ended up running part of the 5K course before realizing her mistake, cutting across a field, and finding the right path again.

The course was spooky - the sun was just setting and a misty fog had settled over everything and the spooky setting coupled with an undead army pursuing us and spraying us with "blood" made for a different race experience.


Jared was a superstar dad and took the girls trick or treating this year while I stayed at the hotel and watched TV. They came home hours later loaded down with sweets. They were gone for so long that I was starting to worry that they'd gotten lost in the maze-like base housing area! I shouldn't have worried, they were just collecting candy for as long as they could.

The girls had a couple of days of unfettered access to their candy and then we struck a deal - pick ten pieces of candy they wanted to most and give up the rest in exchange for cash or a toy of their choosing. I was surprised when Natalie and Samantha took me up on my offer but was happy to get rid of their 2.5-gallon Ziploc bags of candy. By that point they mostly had lollipops left anyway and who wants that?

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What is Faith?

Image
What would you say if someone asked you what faith is? In Hebrews 11, Paul defined faith as "the assurance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." The assurance of things hoped for - faith is knowing that because of Jesus Christ, we can hope for a brighter future. I feel as if hope and faith are one and the same. Life can be heartbreakingly difficult sometimes and even though I know that challenges are there to help us learn and grow, I sure wish I didn't have to go through those hard times. When I have felt surrounded by struggles and I couldn't see any way that things would ever get better, the only thing that has kept me moving forward is hope. Not the kind of hope that is sort of wishful like hoping your team wins a World Cup game, but hope that is sure because it is based on Christ. Having faith in Jesus Christ is having hope and knowing that His promises are sure.  The evidence of things not seen - faith in God grows when we see Him working in our...
Read more

Anxiety, Friendship, and Insecurity

This post has been kicking around in my head for a while now. My emotions have been closer to the surface lately - which can be both good and bad.  For a couple of weeks last month it was a bad thing and I found myself crying at pretty much everything and feeling alone and friendless even when I was surrounded by people. You'd think I'd be better at making friends after almost forty years of moving and having to form new connections at each new place. Instead, the older I get, the more difficult the process becomes. Even after I make friends deep down I question if we're really friends. I think these feelings of insecurity are part of what makes me willing to do almost anything for my friends. If I do nice things for you maybe you'll continue to tolerate my presence? I think I do a pretty good job hiding my insanity. I can fake confidence really well - smiling and laughing and making small talk. And then I go home and overanalyze and question every little thing I said...
Read more

Four Decades

Image
Birthdays are markers in our lives. Moving from one decade to another is a milestone that is not marked by an accomplishment or an important decision, but simply your age. That's something you can't control as time keeps moving forward whether we're ready for it or not. I can honestly say that I'm not bothered by turning forty and that I still look forward to my birthdays. But there's no denying that those milestone birthdays (you know the ones, they end in zero) are a big deal. A time that, for me, leads to some looking back to see if I've accomplished anything worthwhile in the previous decade of my life or in any of the decades of my life.  So I found photos of myself at all those other ages that end in zero. Maybe if I take it a decade at a time it will be easier to see what I've learned? Seriously, whose dog is this? Italy, 1981 Okay, this first one is already breaking the rules as it's not from a milestone birthday. I have two pictures...
Read more