Happy Halloween

Grandma's Ghosts Queen of the Nile

She loved the lip gloss Beware the Ides of October!

3 cheers for Gary who took over pumpkin duty and let me sit it out!

While Gary and I vacationed in Catalina my mom braved the craft store with the kids and then oversaw the production of about a million fabric ghosts that were supposed to hang from a tree in the front yard. Instead, Sam and Grace tied them to everything in sight. They were in the bushes, on the railings, in the yard, everywhere. The end result was satisfyingly spooky to them and thrilling for me to know that I didn't have to be involved in the making of them. Grandmas rock!

Sam and Grace went with the classics this Halloween. Grace was Cleopatra and Sam was Julius Caesar. The outfits were ordered over the internet, causing much reflection over why I normally drag the kids to the costume shop and spend hours debating the merits of every sword/shield in the joint. Shipping fees are such a small price to pay for the hours of my life I got back!

They enjoyed the trunk-or-treat at the church on Friday night and managed to keep some of the candy we were handing out to trick-or-treaters on Sunday night, so they didn't miss out on too much loot... even with Halloween on a Sunday this year. Costumes for next year are already being discussed. It's never too early for them to start planning...

Marathon Man

He did it!

Gary completed his first marathon. It was good to see him overcome so much in recent months to train for and finally complete the Richmond marathon.

Sam and Grace made signs to cheer him on. Both were encouraging in different ways. Sam's depicted other runners tripping, falling, and bleeding, thus enabling Gary to WIN the marathon!

Gary's mom and dad came down from Northern Virginia to cheer him on. It was great to see.

I jogged a block back to the car and was winded. I'm amazed at 26.2!!! Way to go, Gary!

The Coolest Ride Ever

We had a blast at the state fair of Virginia. Basically we paid a fortune to be able to milk a cow and watch some lumberjacks. But the coolest ride of all had to be this bubble ride. You sit in the thing and they inflate it with a leaf blower, close it up, and push you out onto the water. You then get to channel your inner hamster and try to move the ball by running in it. Here are Sam and Grace doing their thing. Too bad I was too big or I would have been all over it!

Photo is from Gary's phone, so not the best quality.

Cousins Ahoy!

Sam & Grace had a great time with their cousins this weekend. They all dressed up and attended a pirate adventure put on by the county. Sam managed to throw out the first pitch for the dunking booth... and dunked the lady! No one was more shocked than I. They had crafts and face painting, "pirates" performed sea chanties, a bouncy pirate ship, and other fun stuff to do.

The hit of the afternoon was the letterboxing treasure hunts (AKA wild goose chases) we were sent on through the woods in the park. There were 4 different hunts. You had to do the first 3 to get the clues to fill in the hints for the 4th. At the end of the 4th you would find that mythical treasure chest filled with gold coins. We did three of them and then found ourselves lost on the 4th. Coincidentally, we emerged from the woods near where we'd parked the car. That's where I threw in the towel, promised all the kids ice cream, and got the heck out of there. We never did find the treasure, but I got a nap. I say things worked out just fine, after all. Aargh!

New Developments...

Two new things have happened around here:

1) The kids learned how to work the ipod and choose songs on demand

2) They are big enough to unlock the attic at will (where the old Halloween costumes are located)

The result: