Trick-or-Treat | Round 1

In our city Trick-or-Treating isn't until Halloween Monday evening...but where I grew up, 42 minutes from here, it was tonight. So, I gathered up the boys' costumes, and headed back home for a few hours. It started off well; the mist was bearable. But by the time we got around the block, it was getting uncomfortable and the boys had enough.

"No more houses...." they each told me.

And that was OK! Because we're doing it all over again Monday night with their friends.

It was fun seeing the neighborhood again where I grew up; seeing my former neighbors as they answered their doors to my boys, not me, holding out their bags asking for candy, prompted sometimes by their mama ..."What do you say?", or "Make sure you say 'Thank you!'", or "This time..nice and loud - yell: Trick-or-Treat!" My gosh, it was like déjà vu...it seems like yesterday my brother and I were running up and down the driveways to get to as many houses that we could...I still remember the vinyl pants and the plastic face masks. You were lucky to make it home without the crotch ripping open!

It was fun to catch up with the neighbors that answered their doors. We briefly chatted about what their kids (my neighborhood friends) were doing now that we're all older, married, with kids...I was disappointed that a few houses didn't have their porch light on signaling they were giving out candy - I wanted to say 'hi' and get an update on them and their kids.

Maybe next year?

Here are the two munchkins all dressed up at Grandma and Granddad's house...awwww!

Happy Hallow's Eve!

The Teepee.

The other day Austin was interested in building a teepee. He set out towards the creek and collected all sorts of sticks, bought them back to his building site not far from the playset, and started building the frame. Then I suggested he add in some morning glory vines and hosta leaves to block the wind from blowing in the teepee. We did some more collecting, adding and stuffing the greenery into the crevices of the sticks. I cut some Juniper branches and we shoved them in, too. I cut some pampas grass and added the plumes to the top of the teepee. Voila!

Rainy Fun Day

I rushed out of school after bus duty today and picked up the boys for an outing. We headed to a local farm for the Conference Cross Country Meet. The boys came with me last week; the sunshine and dry weather was perfect. Today...it rained all day, but luckily the rain stopped a few hours before the meet. We donned our puddle boots, and had umbrellas to ward off the rain. It worked, since it didn't rain on us at all. Plus, I was excited to try out a new camera strap I got yesterday. It doesn't use the typical eyeholes on the top of the camera, rather the tripod mount.  Talk about a quick draw of the camera! It worked pretty slick.

Brothers' Bond

"Like branches on a tree we grow in different directions yet our roots remain as one. 
Each of our lives will always be a special part of the other." -Author Unknown

Like Summer

'Round these parts lately it has been more like summer. The temps are 10-15 degrees above average...and not a soul complains. Who would complain when Mommy Nature throws us some good weather? So we've been relishing...

The "Blue Truck" is officially done.

An opportunity and the mood to pose for his mother...

Austin's photography...

Austin's gymnastics...

And Ethan...just being Ethan!

Happy Friday!