Halloween, etc.

Halloween has come and gone in a whirlwind, and we are now looking forward to turkey, potatoes, and cranberries (gravy for some, but the cranberry combo does it for me).

We had a great time on Halloween; trick or treating and chili dinner with our friends, the Hembrees (Makya's family). They just welcomed their third little girl, so they love a chance to get out of the house, while we love their company.

In early October, my mom stopped by to "porch bomb" us with fall goodies. Pumpkins, corn stalks, straw bales (wink), and gourds galore. The girls had a blast "helping."

Thank you, Mom. :)

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The night before Halloween:

Me: "You know, if we didn't carve pumpkins this year, they would never know the difference."

Jeff: "Oh yeah, Halloween is tomorrow! Girls, let's go carve your pumpkins!"

He's a go-getter, and a wonderful daddy, and I love him for it. I know I was being lame, and I'll make up for it with Christmas...

Kaitlyn's on the left, Austen's on the right. K's is a self portrait that was easier to actually cut out. This may be one of my favorite things ever.

Austen's leg warmers



These are now banned from our house for a while. My willpower does not stand a chance against them...

"Look, Mama...My hands have their costumes on!"

The girls decided on ballerinas a few weeks ago, and I was not going to protest since this could be done mostly from our dress-up closet (perfect on a tight budget!) I decided on making Austen's leg warmers to match K's, which I had intended to do anyway, and the rest had already been provided with hand-me-downs.

Well, as I could have predicted, just as I had solidified this image of my two, sweet, matching ballerinas with their mama-made warmers and buns, Kaitlyn decided that she wanted to be a princess. Again. Just like she is every other day while they play. Sigh...

My first reaction was sadness (and a touch of frustration, if I'm being honest). Then? I let it go. After all, this was about them, wasn't it? It was about them having fun and smiling ear to ear all day in anticipation and then all evening, marching from house to house with their friends, making memories. Austen was my sweet little ballerina, and Kaitlyn was thrilled to throw on the same "princess dress" (a.k.a. Costco Easter dress-turned-dress-up-dress) that she'd worn at a play date the day before. Still, my sweet girl. :)

So, I had a blast seeing photos of the adorable, home-made or store bought, put-together costumes (there are some amazingly crafty mamas out there), and I am smiling thinking of ours, too. If there is one thing I've learned in the past four years, it's to let go of expectations and go with the flow. Go ahead and have that picture in your mind, but be prepared to erase it and move on, because chances are that it will be replaced. No flexibility leads to an almost inevitable letdown, and then less enjoyment. Let go and enjoy. :)



My dad showed up like this, and went home like this. And we love him for it.

 

In other news, I dropped our camera right on the lens on Halloween night, as I was grabbing it to take costume pictures. Apparently, the 50mm 1.4 is a bit famous for being fragile this way. So, off to the shop it went, and on went the factory lens. Going back to that definitely solidified my belief that unless you are going to invest in a good lens, don't bother buying anything other than a point-and-shoot (my very limited, amatuer, "expertise" there). Yes, there is talent that goes into taking great pictures - not referring to myself here - but the lens really does make a big difference!

Our sweet neighbors who take care of us...

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Happy November!