There were Devils and Monkeys and Cool Kids

Halloween was last week but it seems like it was forever ago already. Now we're in November and gearing up for Thanksgiving (which will be the bomb since we'll be with Bryce's entire family, including all four dogs!). I'm not ready to think about Christmas. Oo boy, things sure move fast from here to the end of the year, don't they?

At 16 Tyce is at the awkward age where he's too old for trick-or-treating but there's not much going on besides that. He went to a fun group date night (with Maddy) at his friend Nick's house a few weeks ago where they played miniature golf and then carved pumpkins. He and the YM/YW also carved pumpkins at a Mutual activity. So when I presented four gorgeous gourds to the kids for our FHE activity Tyce wasn't as impressed with the novelty as the other kids were. But he was a good sport and helped out Cameron. I'm afraid Halloween night was a bit boring for him.

Harrison and Mary emptying pumpkins for FHE. Those two are both meticulous when it comes to details.

Cam wasn't in the mood to do the physical work and Tyce wasn't feeling creative so they collaborated on one pumpkin; Cam was the idea man and Tyce made it come to life.

Hard at work.

Cam and Tyce made a vampire (in front); Mary made a kitty cat (on the left), Harrison carved a Y (on the right) and Mary used the spare pumpkin to do a cool wolf howling at the moon.

The Saturday before Halloween we went trunk-or-treating at the church building. Tyce went with his friend Paige's family to help with their ward activity.

Cameron was a sock monkey. He fell in love with this hat and was super pleased with his costume.

Harrison was a Blues Brother. His whole outfit hinged on the fedora.

Ninja sock monkey and a very cool kid.

Mary was a devil.

Cam and Bryce (the football player) at trunk-or-treating.

Mary and Taya--she is Sally from the Nightmare Before Christmas.

I was a somewhat plain witch. Nothing fancy for me this year. I did experiment with black nail polish though. Truth be told, I couldn't wait to get it off.

The boys had a school parade at the elementary school. Mary was allowed to wear her costume to junior high but she was unsure if any of her friends would follow suit so she wore normal clothes. Tyce had proficiency testing and students at the high school were FORBIDDEN to dress up; I can only imagine that being a teacher that day would have been fun. Ha.

Cam waving to the crowd.

Harrison said, "It's okay if you look at me!" which was a reversal of his previous mandate: I could come but I couldn't make eye contact.

Lots of cute kids on a beautiful day.

That night I made Mary's favorite homemade macaroni and cheese. She is very picky and so when I find something she will eat I am sure to put it on the menu. However, I had to run an errand and when I came back she was gone! Off to Sara's house to eat dinner before trick-or-treating. The other kids like that meal but don't love it like Mare does. Psh. I spent all that time for people to eat two bites--the lure of candy-hunting was too great to enjoy dinner.

But cute table, right?

 It was a gorgeous night and so I sat on the porch instead of waiting inside. This was good for two reasons: 1) I could socialize a lot with the neighbors, and 2) I didn't almost die of anticipation of the doorbell ringing. I swear, in years past I've had a mini heart attack every time that bing bong rang through the house.

Lots of goodies.

The neighborhood girls: Sara, Mary, and Bella. Bella was a slinky Cat Woman. Sara was wearing a skirt and heels and when asked what she was she said, "I don't know. I just like this outfit."

After they got home the boys got straight to sorting and trading their candy. They have so much they could hardly carry their bags by the end!

At least the three kids shared with us; I got the Almond Joys because I'm the only one who considers those a top-tier treat. Bryce likes Reece's peanut butter cups and Tyce is a fan of Snickers. I think sugar made up 90% of our diets that night, which is the way it should be once a year.