Halloween

We have the best neighbors!  Today was the annual Halloween party, pet parade, and fun.  We waited on John Chris to come home, but when it didn't look like he would make it home from work in time, we headed out.  The hay ride was a big hit with the boys, but Ridley was a little unsure.  We then trick-or-treated around the neighborhood with our buddies and scored lots of candy.  Ryland and Reed had to empty their bags in the wagon to have more room.  Ridley had a great time walking from house to house, and everyone commented on her adorable witch costume.

Painted Pumpkins

We didn't carve pumpkins this year and instead, we painted some.  We all picked a design on Pinterest and got started.  I selected an Emoji.  It perfectly shows my ever present state of mind this month, and the kids love Emojis.

Ridley selected a white Hello Kitty.  It was looking great until she decided to add the brush water, which caused the paint to run.  She didn't seem to mind one bit, because she was thrilled with the final product.  

Reed painted Steve from Minecraft, and it turned out great.  We didn't have a peachy flesh color, so we had to get creative with paint mixing.  

Ryland went scary this year.  His picture was of a creepy clown face, so I knew he was going for something a bit more "mature".  The other kids didn't seem phased, and the pizza delivery guy loved it.  

BOO!

A fun way to get in the "spooky" mood for Halloween is to pull pranks on your neighbors.  Today, we ran a secret mission to BOO! the Nesters.  We packaged their tricks and treats and created a plan to sneak over to surprise them.  It was a great, but we didn't plan on Addie to be hanging out in their living room looking out the window.  Busted!  The boys made the drop on their front porch, with screaming laughter.  Such fun times!

Halloween

Halloween has always been one of my favorite holidays.  I love that it is silly, carefree, and full of candy!  This year was a bit different for our house, because we were running a little behind.  We realized that we had not carved a Jack-o-Lantern, so we decided to carve on right before we went to the neighborhood party and trick or treating.  

Since it was chilly out, Ridley wore her Halloween themed spider outfit instead of her sleeveless costume.  She still looked adorable!

Here is the small crew that made it all the way around the neighborhood.  We had lots of others give up, but these kiddos were troopers.  Aren't the Special Forces Officer and Captain America precious?

WOW!  Look at all that candy!  

Happy Halloween

We finally finished up our Halloween projects in the nick of time.  I have no idea were the month of October has gone, but it is officially time to have some spooky fun.

The boys drew faces on their pumpkins for carving guides.

 

 

Reed got upset when he couldn't hold the knife and do the cutting.  He was all tears until John Chris pulled the top off the pumpkin and showed him.

 

 

Ryland wasn't interested in cleaning out the pumpkin at first.  After John Chris and I dug in, he warmed up to the idea of getting a little messy.

 

John Chris and I put the finishing touches on the boys' firetruck wagon.  We added working lights, a ladder, and some lettering. 

 

When it got dark out, we headed out to trick or treat.  The boys loved their transportation, and they had an awesome night.  Ryland was all about getting a full bag of candy, and Reed walked every one's ears off when they came to the door.

 

Halloween treats

 

Ryland is my Halloween fanatic.  Everyday when Reed takes a nap, we do something special together.  Today he requested to finish his Halloween treats for his class.  We assembled the goodies and chatted about how we are going to transform his wagon for trick-or-treating.

Halloween treats

One of my favorite times of the year is Halloween. I can't explain, but I just love it. I have noticed Ryland really likes it as well. He was very excited to help me get out the decorations and put together the treats for his class.
Ryland checks out all the goodies that will go in the bags. We have silly straws, bubbles, stickers, erasers, suckers, and funky teeth for the bags.

Ryland carefully stuffs the adorable owl bags for his class. We practiced counting and talking about school. He told me all about his teachers and friends. He is excited to dress up for Halloween and looking forward to the parties and trick-or-treating.

Halloween

Ryland was a fisherman for Halloween this year. We thought this would be a fun and cool costume that he would enjoy, and he loved it. The fishing pole was a big hit! He was super happy to wear the costume again, and he couldn't wait to put it all on.
It was nice to trick or treat this year in our new neighborhood. They had a parade earlier in the afternoon with the local high school drum line that Ryland loved. There were lots of participating homes, and several went all out on the decorations. We walked to a few houses near our house before we headed back home to hand out candy.

I wanted to get a quick photo of Ryland and Esmeralda, the witch, before the night was over. He loved talking to her everyday and even gave her sweet hugs. Ryland was getting really silly at this point in the night, and he started eating his catch. What a wonderful Halloween!!!!!