Halloween 2009

Abby really enjoyed Halloween last year, but her excitement was nothing compared to this year! It started the day her costume arrived and still isn't over!! She decided she wanted to be a tiger this time, and she would take the opportunity to tell ANYONE who would listen all about how the waiter (aka the UPS man) brought her the costume!

There were so many fun activities going around town this year, that we actually stretched Halloween out over two nights! Friday night, myself, Grandma Gail, Uncle Brady, and Aunt Sam took Abby down to the Greenbelt to start out the festivities with a Trunk-or-Treat. There were lots of people dressed in creative and fun costumes, and they even had some games. Next, we were off to the Tautphus Park Zoo for the annual Boo at the Zoo event. It was really cool to see all the different lights, decorations, and costumes! There must have been a lot of planning that went into the celebration! Even the animals seemed more "excited" than normal -- one of the real tigers even got up and walked around a little!! We had so much fun that I think we'll make it a family tradition!

The next day was spent listening to Abby begging and pleading for it to be "Halloween time." When I finally answered it was time to go, she let out a shriek that I'm 99% positive could be heard clear over in Transylvania!! We got her all ready and headed to Grandma Gail's. She wasn't quite ready with supper, so we hit the streets for some warm-up trick-or-treating! Abby had no trouble remembering how it works from last year! After a few houses, we headed back to Grandma's where we bumped into Shrek and Fiona! It was fun to have them join us for a meal!

After dinner, Abby couldn't wait to get back to Trick-or-Treating, so we headed back to our own neighborhood with Aunt Kami and her family. All the kids were really funny about it, but nothing beat the way Abby would yell, "Trick or Treat!" Then after receiving her expected candy, she would say, "Thanks, and Happy Halloween Time!" She would immediately look at us, say, "Next house," and then turn tail and sprint for the next place! When we finally called it quits (about two or three blocks later), we couldn't believe how heavy Abby's pumpkin bucket was! She'd been lugging that thing around all night without any complaints about getting tired, etc.!! Anything for candy, I guess!!

Between the two nights activities, Abby's bucket was full clear to the top, and we have had to endure hearing, "Can I have some candy?" every 10 seconds! We finally put the candy in a ziplock up in the pantry where she can't see it constantly, and she's eased up on the begging. All in all, it was a really fun Halloween!

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Harvest Season

This year our family discovered a really neat place called the U-Pick Red Barn. A couple of local boys began a small scale farm by growing crops of corn, pumpkins, squash, watermelons. They named the place The U Pick Red Barn because they allow customers to come any time of day or night to pick the produce that they want and then use the honor system to pay for what they've taken! Pretty brave, but it seems to be working out pretty well for them. I'm always so impressed at how many decent people there really are left in this world!

We decided we would go check it out the Saturday before Halloween. Along with getting to pick out some really nice Halloween pumpkins, there were other fun activities available for children (and adults) to participate in. Abby was able to ride on a cute little train, find her way through a maze, and enjoy lots of fun displays of Jack-O-Lanterns and HUGE pumpkins! We enjoyed the unusually warm weather, laughing with Aunt Sam and Uncle Brady in tow, and spending time in the crisp Autumn air!

Hope you enjoy some of the fun with us!

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Say "What?" - Part 2

Couple more funny things Abby has said recently:

Last week, for no explicable reason, our turntable plate broke into several pieces while I was cooking in the microwave. I had done some research online to buy a new one, but decided to check out the local Sears before having to wait for one to be shipped. As Abby and I walked around the appliance section, she asked, "Mommy, what are we doing in this store?" I replied, "We're looking for a glass plate."

"Kind of like my Mormon book, right?" she asked. Truthfully, I was only half listening, but I caught something about Mormon, so I inquired back, "What about Mormon, honey?"

"You know, like those guys with the glass plates."

Apparently, she DID hear more than just the part about Nephi killing Laban!!


As a pre-curser to this next comment, I need to mention that we recently purchased a Tinkerbell movie for Abby. We realized she has watched it too many times already when she started quoting one of Tinkerbell's lines. The scenario goes like this:

Abby's daddy was getting after herfor misbehaving, but couldn't stay mad when her response was simply,

"Don't you judge me!" (Tink says this in the movie to a couple of trolls who tell her she isn't very nice.)

Anyone else get the distinct impression that Nathan and I are in for quite a ride with this kid??!!