So Cute It's Scary...

Oh, Halloween...one of my favorite holidays. Wait! I think I say that about every holiday. I am deciding that my level of love for each holiday is based on how many decorations I have for it. Coming in with a whopping 7 tubs and definitely needing to purchase at least one more for the things acquired this year, Halloween is definitely the second place finisher only outdone by Christmas. So I think I can definitely say it is one of my favorite holidays. I love figuring out costumes and getting all the details just right. I love putting out not-so-spooky decorations on the day of Halloween to entice the kids to come to our front door. I love creating a fun and festive mood inside our house for the entire month of October. I love knowing that when I take down the regular decor to put up Halloween decorations, I won't be putting the regular stuff up again until January. Halloween marks the beginning of the holiday season. Once Halloween is over, it seems that Thanksgiving is upon us in moments and Christmas is close on its heels. So I relish in Halloween and all that it has to offer.

Things I loved most about this Halloween...

School parades and parties = fun for all.

Cute skeleton jammies that glowed in the dark.

Claira's "Ewww...Gwoss" reaction to the inside of the pumpkin.

Grace's freehand face on her pumpkin and Claira's scribbles on hers.

Making fun Halloween food like little mummy pizzas and bones with blood for dipping (refrigerator breadsticks & marinara sauce).

Claira learning to say "Trick or Treat" and knock on the doors. Her little "Thank you" was adored by everyone who heard it.

Grace teaching Claira to say "Trick or Treat" and knock on the doors.

Everyone's reaction when they opened the door to find the cutest little 50's girl and most adorable g0-go dancer anywhere on the planet asking politely for treats not tricks.

Lolly #1 (not unwrapped yet)

Lolly #2

Lollies #3 and #4 (see the discarded one in Matt's hand)

Lolly #5

Lolly #6

Lolly #7

Lolly #8

Claira devouring candy faster than she could acquire it--she literally opened every "lolly" in her bag (about 10), licked it once or twice, then moved on to the next one.

Favorite Moment: Claira opened a piece of candy as soon as one lady handed it to her, and then handed the lady the garbage in return. It was pretty funny!

Claira trying to steal Grace's candy even though she had plenty of her own. She is a firm believer in the idea that the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence--everything Grace has is better than what she has.

Grace sorting and counting and sorting and counting her candy then after eating a piece, maybe two, putting it away for later, which probably means Claira will eat it later.

Claira being scared of everything--masks, wigs, gloves, etc. She pulls her little hands to her chest and says "Scared" in the cutest voice you've ever heard.

Grace being true to her go-go dancing character and adding that lifted leg in most photos taken of her (although Matt & I agree that while it was a cute costume, it made her look too old--I think it was the straight hair and earrings).

Creating fun memories of another successful Halloween as we visited dance eras of the past--50's (Claira), 60's (Gracie), 70's (Matt), and 80's (Alicia--please excuse my deer-in-the-headlights eyes).

Just a side note: I didn't buy a single piece of my costume from a costume shop--Forever 21 was the perfect place for the clothing and Claire's had all the accessories, including pink mascara and lace gloves. The 80's are coming back--Heaven help us all!

Happy Halloween Everyone!