Happy Halloween 2010

Happy Halloween 2010!  It's funny to think that yet another Halloween has come and gone; it seems like only yesterday I was sitting at the kitchen table with a 6-day-old Abigail and my mom, as we watched the boys go off trick-or-treating with Andrew and my dad.  Now, here we are again, another year passed and our favorite orange and black holiday upon us again.

Last year, we had some fun festivities for the boys, but the excitement was really in the fact that we had a new baby in the house.  We didn't have a Halloween party or even attend any parties, and I wasn't able to participate in much of the Halloween fun.  So this year, we had two (and a half, since Abby isn't too aware of holidays yet) kids excited for the big day and we went back to incorporating some extra fun into our October 31st.  The kids love to see their friends so we had a little Halloween party this year with a few families who the kids see and play with the most frequently.  The kids dressed up in theme costumes (how could I resist?) and the whole family went trick-or-treating this year, along with some of our friends.

Here, Miss Abigial is all done up in one of her few Halloween outfits.  This was actually on October 30th, but she had enough outfits to be able to wear them for several days prior to the actual event!  So far, all three of our children have worn this gender-neutral Halloween shirt.  However, with the boys being so much bigger than Abby is at her age, they actually wore this when they were 7 months old!  And here is our 12 month old in the same thing.  The little coordinating pants were too short for her but we had other orange and black pants as a stand-in.  You can't see it too well since her ponytail has calmed down by the time I took this picture, but the hairband she has in has candy corns on it.  Amy and I bought matching ones for our girls when we went shopping this summer.

And now, presenting for the first time in Technicolor :).... The Wizard of Oz!  Thanks to Nana, who sewed Abby's costume, and my friend Mary's mom, who had sewed the scarecrow costume for one of her kids, we have three of the four main characters plus a stuffed lion to make up for our missing friend without courage. 



Presenting our Halloween party.  This is the 3rd Halloween party we have done since Ben has been born.  Basically, we have had one every other year since 2006.  As you know, I enjoy doing crafty things and have the mentality that I would rather make something if I can than buy it.  I try to make things that we can use again, so many of the decorations and games you see have been things I have been able to re-use at our various Halloween gatherings.  It's so nice to pull out our collection each year and see how it has grown.

Joining us for the party was my mom (Pop has Bronchitis so he had to stay at home!) and then our friends the Kriebels, the Liples', the Savignanos, the 2nd Savignanos (yes, related), and the Browns.

A view of the dining room.  You can see the desserts and some of the games and decorations that I have made for the party.

Dessert consisted of scarecrow cupcakes and pumpkin cakepops in candy corn buckets.  I don't like the scary side of Halloween, especially with little children but actually just in general, so we incorporate a lot of pumpkins, scarecrows and friendly ghosts into our Halloween decor.

Cake pops.  Yup, I'm officially addicted to making these guys and they are so yummy too!

Scarecrows!

Decorations.  BOO!

Trick-or-treating baskets from Pop and Nana.

Halloween beanbag toss.  We didn't officially play this one, but the kids were throwing the beanbag through the holes and (even more fun!) sticking their heads through the holes themselves.

Pin the Nose on the Scarecrow.  I had made this for Benjamin's preschool class when I helped at his Fall Frolic and volunteered because I knew we could re-use it at the party.  So much fun!  The kids had a blast being blindfolded, spun around, and seeing where everyone placed the nose.

My homemade pinata.  I have always wanted to make one and since they are so expensive to buy (when they will soon be smashed apart), I spent 2 nights doing this instead.  Sooo easy and so much fun!  I do know for next time that it will turn out more sturdy than it seems.  I was convinced it would fall apart when I filled it so I put on another layer of paper machier.  It was too hard to break then and it barely even broke when one of the dads ended up having to whack it after everyone had two turns!!

Nothing says Halloween like a big friendly streamer spider hanging from the chandelier!



The food.  We had some cold-weather goodies and some festive Halloween treats as well.  The menu was:

Sloppy Joe sandwiches

Open Face Bologna and Cheese 'O Lanterns (for the kids)

Hot mulled cider

Apples with caramel dip

Pumpkin dip with ginger snaps and Nilla wafers

Pumpkin cheeseball

Fruit Cup 'O Lanterns

Scarecrow Cupcakes

Pumpkin Cakepops



Our first activity was a Costume Parade.  We live on a fairly busy street so it was cute to have the kids parading across our front lawn for all of the passers-by to see.  There were definitely some honks and cars that slowed down.  We cranked up some fun kiddie music and Andrew led the parade holding "Dorothy."  Someone pointed out that it is sort of ominous that we live across the street from a cemetary so this was the backdrop in some of our pictures.  Good free Halloween props, I suppose!

 

Next up was Pin the Nose on the Scarecrow.  Here I am, securing the bandana onto Hannah's head.  Everyone had a good laugh seeing where their friends placed their noses!

Next up after begging and pleading from Benjamin and a few of the other kids:  the favorite game, the PINATA!

WHACK! 

Finally, after one of the dads hit it off of the string...and it still didn't break...I had to open it by hand and dump the treats everywhere.  That's all that matters anyways, right?? :)

Candids!

There's no place like home...there's no place like home...

Abby and her little friend Allie.

Natey...the cutest scarecrow around!!

Brianna the giraffe!

The Savignanos!

Before we headed out trick-or-treating, all of the kids watched "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown."  Now this was a huge hit!  They were all laughing hysterically the entire show!  Note to self:  Great idea, Mom...and it gave the adults a few minutes to relax and eat dinner, too.

We headed out trick-or-treating at 6pm and were out for about an hour.  We live adjacent to a side street with about 12-16 houses on it.  So, it's perfect for the kids at this age, especially when they are all walking and it's cold and dark outside.

Daddy and the scarecrow!  Best line of the night:

(Lady presents candy to Nate)

Me: What do you say to the lady, Nate?

Nate: Ummm...I think I want that one instead of this one you gave me!  And by the way...thank you!

Ben leads the trick-or-treating efforts at this house.

The post-trick-or-treating party back at our place.  And...out come the basket of veggies starring Luca as the pumpkin and Gabby as the peas!  Cousins, only 2 1/2 weeks apart!

Amy with baby Luca.

Abby and her little buddy Adriana, aka Minnie Mouse (without her ears at this point).  Sharing...

All of the kids (minus Isaac and Allie Brown, who had left) on the couch.  Note the two "veggies" next to Abby.  How CUTE are they, completely oblivious to all of the chaos around them!!!