Halloween Isn't Over Yet?

Halloween in Utah is huge. We had some form of party for probably two weeks straight. In fact, by the time Halloween actually got here, Aidan's costume was ruined with black paint from his school party. Luckily he got a Spiderman costume for his birthday the week before and he was thrilled to wear it. This was the best year of trick or treating yet. We met up with Matt and Kiyo in their Sugarhouse neighborhood. The kids scored handfuls of full size candy bars. Lucy was a little disappointed because she only got two suckers - the rest was Reeses, Snickers, KitKats, and all the good stuff that I wanted to steal.

Aidan was so excited that he ran full speed from house to house trying to get as much candy as fast as possible. We kept having to get him to wait so we didn't lose him. Lucy ran from house to house saying "Trick or Treat, now I get candy" and "Dad, lets go to the next house." She seriously had the best time ever. Avery had a great time trick or treating with Sydney and Emma and running from the scary man (as seen in one of our pictures). We ended the night with the kids sorting candy and watching the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown. Classic.

Halloween Parade

The endless month of partying continued with the annual Halloween parade at school. The kids LOVE this. Lucy, on the other hand, cried the whole time because she wanted to "walk with the kids." After the parade, Aidan's class performed the Thriller dance. I was in charge of Avery's party, so I got to hang out at the school for most of the day. Lesson learned: next time find a babysitter for the two year old.

Mikey is Old. Again.

I completely forgot to post about Mikey's birthday. Amongst all his business, we still fit in a little partying. Underneath those coats is his big present = a DVR. We haven't had one since we moved into student housing. Since Mikey is never home, he never gets to watch anything, especially football. This little device now allows him to forward through a game in 5 minutes. Better than nothing, right buddy? Emily was fabulous and came and watched the kids while we ate at Blue Iguana. The following day we celebrated with birthday dinner (I already can't remember what I fixed) and pumpkin pie.

Lucy's Turn to Party

With all the birthday partying, Lucy was feeling a bit left out. On Thursday (Oct 27), she and I got to go to her Halloween party at school. She loved parading around showing off her costume, but was more interested in playing with a balloon than doing the crafts.




These awesome blurry pictures were taken as Lucy bounced on a balloon and it popped underneath her. I love the face.


Lucy had such a great time that I couldn't get her to leave. It took us almost half an hour to walk back to the car. I ended up carrying her over my shoulder as she kicked and screamed because she was having too much fun getting all the attention.

Aidan Now is 6

Aidan turned 6 on Oct 26. We started his day with Halloween Banbury Cross doughnuts, balloons, banner, and presents.

Most of his birthday celebrating happened the night before. He had his first "friend" birthday party at the bowling alley on campus. He had such a great time. Aidan's request was a Halloween party and a Costco cake. Lucky kid got them both.













One happy kid. AND to top it all off, he got his requested McDonald's birthday dinner. Love this kid.

Our Avery Baby Turned 8

Birthdays at our house always start out with streamers, balloons, and a pile of presents in the kitchen. Banbury Cross doughnuts are a recent addition too.




After breakfast, we dropped Lucy off at preschool and headed to Temple Square. Avery and Aidan were out of school for UEA. We had a great time taking Avery's baptism pictures, which turned out surprisingly well since I took them and know nothing about photography.













Aidan was a little trooper and had a great time exploring and collecting acorns.


Later that afternoon, we went to the Gateway to get Avery's ears pierced. She felt she had waited a lifetime to turn eight and the big day had finally arrived.

After ear piercing, we headed to Red Butte Garden for Garden After Dark. It was our first year going and the kids and I thought it was awesome. They loved the crafts, spooky lighting, and black lights throughout the garden.







We finished up the night with takeout from Cafe Rio, where Mikey finally got to join us. Avery wanted a Lion House chocolate cream cake, but because of time constraints she allowed me to make the way faster cupcake version. Happy Birthday Avery Girl!