Halloween 2023

We had our first doorbell ring by trick or treaters at 5:30 this year. Usually they start coming around 6pm. I got some pictures of the youngest two and dropped them off at the Ruth's since they were going trick-or-treating with them and a few other friends. This is a funny series of pictures with Wednesday and Joan of Arc. 

Eva and Brendan helped pass out candy. Well Brendan joined us after the won a really hard level in the video game he was playing. Can you imagine my eyeroll at that? Anyway, the little kids kept going to Eva for candy and not Jason so he eventually just handed the candy bucket over to her. I think he was a little bummed to not be able to throw the candy at them like he does every year. 

Our neighborhood was super busy with trick-or-treaters and we stayed about almost two hours until we ran out of candy. It was pretty cold night but we had a steady stream. The costumes this year were fabulous too.  Jason only gave our two Splenda packets. Our friends, the Deca's, came pass out candy too as their house is in a neighborhood up a hill that not many kids come to. It was fun to hang out with them. 

Paige and Darby came back to our house around 8pm. They had a pretty good haul of candy but were SO tired. They shared candy with us as we all watched Legend of Sleepy Hollow (which the kids told me is a tradition and refused to watch it until tonight). We ate a lot of sweets but luckily no one got a tummy ache this year. 

Three things I want to remember about this year:

1. The toddler who tried to give us candy in exchange for our candy. Every time Eva tried to put a piece in his bucket he would get another and put it back in our bucket. I am not sure if he was just a generous, sharing soul or if he didn't understand how this whole trick-or-treating things worked but it was so adorable. 

2. The little girl who was probably no older than two who was so enthusiastic about things. She ran up to us and yelled "Trick or treat!" in that cute toddler accent where the words aren't quite right. She beamed and held out her bucket. As she left she yelled it again. She was so cute!

3. The bishop's child who learned his lesson. This time he said "Trick or Treat" very nicely to Jason and when his friend tried to pull the whole "Happy Valentines Day" trick, he hissed at him, "No, no, don't say that!" He remembered the Splenda packets from Trunk or Treat. Haha. 

 

Red Ribbon Week

It has been Red Ribbon Week at HMS. It is actually a week and a half but I suppose that is so the kids can wear their Halloween costumes to school under the guise of a spirit day. Paige participated in most of the dress up days and Darby a few. 

This is Paige on the mismatched day. The funny things was that the yearbook came into band and took pictures on that day. Paige sits right on the end of the row and knows she was definitely in the front of the picture, looking so very goofy with her clothes and hair all crazy.

Neither girls wanted to wear this year's Halloween costume to school. Paige's would have been too cold and Darby's has a plastic sword (weapons are a no-no at school). You can see these costumes in the post about Halloween night. So Paige wore her narwhal onesie and Darby used most of Brendan's hobbit costume from when he was 11 to be Frodo. I think they look pretty cute. 

Pumpkin Carving

Every year we carve a pumpkin on a Family Home Evening night. It is a tradition that the kids look forward to. In fact, this year Eva said, "And now we have done our first tradition of the holiday season!" when we finished.

This year we did not have paint so the younger kids didn't paint pumpkins. I am not sure they minded. We are moving out of the little kid phase of Halloween, however, Paige and Darby still want to trick or treat. As usual, we played Halloween music while making our jack o'lantern. 

Jason carved, and Brendan and Paige scooped out the guts and got the seeds ready for roasting. Paige hates the smell of it too. Eva and Darby were making our FHE treat of Muddy Buddies.

And here is our finished product. It is a scary joker. I like it! Brendan carved a pumpkin for YM last week. It was a low battery sign, however, it has already started to rot and slump so you cannot tell what it once was. . 

 

Trunk or Treat

Another tri-ward Trunk or Treat this year. It was pretty big. The youth did the carnival booths again before the trick-or-treating commenced so we had to be there early. I got pictures of my kiddos before we left. 

Paige is a classic Wednesday from The Addams Family. She nailed the whole vibe.

 As a prop for Wednesday, we went to the thrift store to find a doll we could decapitate but when we found this one we decided she was creepy enough to just leave whole. 

Darby wanted to wear one of the history costumes I have from my teaching days. She fits in them now. I can't believe it. She was an 1860s Southern belle. 

This is the costume Eva picked out at Savers. She found the cloak (with pockets) and loved it so she built the rest of the costume around that. She is a pretty snazzy witch. The green hair really throws me. 

Brendan is Dr. Doofenschmirtz from Phineas and Ferb. He made his own "Inator" with a self-destruct button. he even got the posture down right but it is hard to look exactly like an animated character. 

Many of the young women were dressing as convicts so the leaders were going to be guards and wardens. I found this shirt online and had an easy costume. 

I am pretty pleased with this year's costumes. 

At the church, we saw that the Ingrams were back (Chelsea had been in Australia for weeks) so Paige set to trying to win Leo's affection again. The Ruths showed up and soon Paige was the ring leader of a few three-year-olds as Cassidy's niece LOVES Paige.

She got pictures with Cassidy at the photo booth put on by Darby's YW class. She was supposed to be somber as was the character she was dressed up as but she can't be too serious around Cassidy. 

She also invited her friend from school, Esme, and she came. Paige was so happy. Don't be fooled by the picture, she was in character. ;)

Leo was supposed to be a hobbit but didn't want to wear his costume. His dad was eventually able to coax him into it (bribe with candy) so I got a few darling photos that I sent to his mom. 

Brendan and two of his D&D friends were the only priests who showed up so he had to man the booth the entire time. I did sneak in a picture of him with Josh dressed as a Jedi.

Here is a picture of Eva with some of the Young Women and leaders. Darby was at her class' booth the whole time but she and I got a Polaroid picture together.

Jason parked for ease of getting out but when the trick or treating started no one was coming to that part of the parking lot. So we moved our chairs to an open parking spot and gave out candy from there. Jason did the Splenda packet things again for rude or uncostumed children and he gave out six this year. Sad. Everyone was pretty worn out by the time it was over so we left pretty soon after the candy was gone. 

A few things I want to remember - when we ran out of candy my sweet kiddos Paige and Darby gave up their own candy to the little kids who came by. Also, my wonderful kids stayed and helped at their class booths even past their shifts when their peers wandered off or didn't show up. It isn't always fun or easy to be reliable and responsible but it will serve them well in life and I am proud of them. I know their leaders were grateful. 

All Region Auditions

Darby's choir teacher suggested that she try out for All-Region Choir this year. She decide to give it a go. She has been staying after school for a few weeks now to practice with her teacher on possible selections. The day before they sent out the cuts that they were going to use. This morning very early I took her (and Paige who wanted to come) to a far East middle school for the auditions which started at 7am. There were over 600 kids that auditioned. The rules of the waiting room were very strict - no devices, no leaving and no singing. However, there were board and card games so we ended up playing those while waiting. 

Her choir has about 11 students trying out but some schools require the whole choir to try. Luckily, Darby was assigned number ten and since they went into the warm-up room in groups of ten, she was in the first group for soprano 2s. We still need up being in the waiting room until 8am or so but then she was called back. I played games with Paige and made friends with another choir mom whose daughter was sadly, number 87 and would be waiting a while. 

Almost an hour later Darby came out. She looked both relieved and disappointed. She told me that she was so nervous that her voice broke a few times. She said it was the most nerve wracking thing she has ever done. She was not pleased with her performance and was sure she did not make it into the All Region Choir. We got milkshakes on the way home as some sort of comfort. I am very proud of her for putting the work in and doing something uncomfortable. 

Later that night - At the end of the Trunk or Treat I got the text that Darby had made it into the mixed choir for All-Region. She was ecstatic. Most of her friends made it too. Next week she has rehearsals and the concert is in a week. 

Missing

Paige and I had a date last night. When I came home Jason told me that there had been a helicopter circling the neighborhood. I saw on the Nextdoor app that a fourth grade girl from Lundy Elementary had not arrived home after school. The principal, at the request of the mom, put out her picture and information. I also got a text from Lisa Esplin (who used to work at Lundy) about the missing girl. The information was supposed to be passed along to all the people we know in the neighborhood. So I did. There were police all around the neighborhood and the helicopter had been called in to look for her. 

People on Nextdoor recognized this girl as one who had run away several times before and had hidden in their backyards or gone into their homes through a doggie door. However, this information that she was a flight risk wasn't on any other site and people all over the city were panicking as it went out on local news and websites. So much speculation about a kidnapper targeting the area. People were shaming parents who let their kids walk home from school. It was getting a little out of hand.

A lot of neighbors went out to look for her. They went up into the mountains and checked the arroyos. Jason offered to join the search party in the mountains if needed. Everyone was asked to check their backyards and cars (if they were parked on the street). We even had a policeman come to our door and ask to check our shed. Video footage from security cameras saw her on our street going through backyards. Due to our barking dog I was pretty sure she hadn't been in ours but I left the lights on anyway. 

Around 10pm she was found. She had slipped into her neighbors house and hidden there while they had joined the search party for her. I am not sure what the fallout of all this is ( I am sure the family has been asked some serious questions) but it was nice to see our community come together and help. I just wish the mom had given out the full information way before she had been missing for four hours. Knowing she is probably hiding and not taken or lost changes how you look for someone. I am glad she was found. 

One thing about all this that amused me happened when I walked the girls to school the next day. There is this gate to the drainage ditch in the arroyo behind our house that has been mangled for several months now due to a car accident. It has just been a gaping hole for a while now and the posts blocking it in the cement have been laying there since April. Well, now that a little girl went missing they finally fixed it, and in record time too. It makes me roll my eyes. A day late and a dollar short, that is El Paso.