Halloween 2008

I definitely enjoy Halloween more as an adult than I did as a kid. Make no mistake, I loved having a lot of candy to eat at will, but I didn't always enjoy the process of getting it. Anyway, Halloween is slowly climbing the ranks of favorite holidays. This year was no exception - I had a really good time.

The holiday started a little early this year. The second weekend of the month, I invited my nephew and niece over to my house for carving pumpkins and a sleepover. This was the first time that they were able to actually carve the pumpkins themselves - I just drew on a design according to their directions. Well...I tried to give them what they wanted, but when my nephew asked me to draw Anakin Skywalker's spaceship, I had to admit to them that I'm not an artist and could only draw basic shapes on their pumpkins. I'm sure I saw a tiny spark of respect for me sputter and die in his eyes. I'm no longer super aunt. Sigh.

B and P carving their pumpkins.
Mine is the one with the cool handle on the far right.

Pumpkin guts. Mmmm. What a great smell!

Mmmm. More pumpkin guts!
P took this picture and was quite proud of it.


The kids after a night of fun with their favorite aunt.
Me, of course!

It was a fun night. We started it out with dinner at McDonald's, by their request. Afterward we picked out pumpkins at the store. When P chose a really large pumpkin I warned him that he'd have to carry it up to my 3rd floor condo. He chose it anyway and carried it up like a trooper. With our jack-o-lanterns created and lighting up my balcony (I forgot to get a picture of the finished products), the kids snuggled up in their sleeping bags for the movie. I gave them popcorn, candy corn, and hot chocolate to snack on during the show (Return of the Jedi). Both of them had barely touched their treats before they were out like a light (asleep). I turned off the movie and read for a few hours (while munching on popcorn and candy corn). It was a good night.

As for Halloween, I dressed up like a witch, very original, eh? What can I say, it's easy, I have all the essential parts for the costume I created, and I feel comfortable wearing it to the office. My hair always drives me crazy because it never looks the part. This year, I chopped it off and braided it the night before so it would be crimped. Add mousse and hairspray and it looked decent.

Yes, it's out of focus - I'm no pro!

After work, I headed to my mom's house and hung out with my family all evening. My sister-in-law and I took P and B around Mom's neighborhood to trick-or-treat. Since she and I were also dressed up, people gave us candy, too! We had nowhere else to put it, so I took off my hat and stored our candy in it. My favorite candy: KitKats. Mmmm.

P and B dressed up as Anakin Skywalker and Ahsoka, respectively.


My sis-in-law, Audree, dressed as one of Dracula's
three brides (from Van Helsing).

My new nephew came to town with his mom and dad for the weekend. He was too small to go trick-or-treating, so his mom decided not to dress him up (I agree). However, he still dressed festively.

Little Robbie with Grandma.

I'm pretty good friends with Anakin Skywalker; I've been dating his friend and mentor, Obi-Wan off and on for several years. He couldn't come to the party (he was out fighting bad guys), so Anakin and I took a picture together for Obi-Wan to put in his ship.

Anakin and me


All the people who dressed up:
l to r: Rachel, her mom Rhonda, Audree,
P, me, and B.

Please know that I'm not smiling in this picture - I don't smile like that. It's too small to see that I've got my "witch face" going on.

Now, because I have it and because he's so dang cute - here's another picture of Robbie for you to enjoy. Doesn't he remind you of a little potato bug?

Robbie sleeping. Aaaahhhh.

And, now, the winner of this year's Scariest Mask Award:

My brother, Jason.

It's a good thing my brothers marry such good-looking women so their kids turn out so cute! :)