Halloween & Michael's Birthday

This Halloween season has been so fun!

We went to our favorite pumpkin patch Monday and the boys loved running through the hay maze. The older woman who checked us out at the end had the boys each pick a free gourd because she said she had 5 little boys and misses this stage.  

We went to a murder mystery party with friends on Wednesday night and it was really funny. I keep laughing about how I was supposed to have a German accent and Jamie was supposed to have a French one and we kept tripping each other up with our pronunciations. I was the murderer, whoops!

We had fun watching the school costume parade on Thursday, then heading downtown for the annual trick-or-treating along main street and the surrounding shops. I LOVE this tradition. We went with Jamie and Benjamin and I was having so much fun watching the boys. I was feeling sad knowing it was the last time they'd go together and that Camden will be at kindergarten next year. But I can't complain because this year with him is a happy bonus!

That afternoon we had a potluck dinner at a neighbor's house on the next cul-de-sac over. My kids were really excited about the spider cupcakes. Then we took a big group picture and then trick-or-treated together and we were quite a sight. Probably 30 kids that stuck together for quite a while. The boys loved that the Behunins came over. Matthew even took Westin out for a second round of trick-or-treating after we were done and Westin just loved that. Michael has been on call this week and he did get called out just a little while before we headed home, but I was glad he got to see most of the cute trick-or-treating.

On Saturday we went to the Global Village Museum and learned all about Dia de los Muertos. I really love that holiday. I played a podcast I'd listened to about the holiday for the kids on the way there and we learned more about all the symbols and what they're really trying connect with on that holiday. Then we went to Comet Chicken after and had fun trying all the different dips with our chicken fingers. 

That night Kelbre babysat, and we went out with the Dimonds to get Thai food and then ice cream downtown. We love spending time with them. 

Then Sunday was Michael's birthday! We loved that he was home with us on he birthday this year! He opted to have his annual blueberry coffee cake be his birthday cake instead of his breakfast and he is rocking a new Spain soccer polo. Oh and he's been wanting an outdoor thermometer for our house because we had one when we moved in but it broke. I think it's such a funny thing and he's missed looking at it :) We loved celebrating Michael!

Extra bundled on our walk these days

Cuddled up for Super Why. Camden is really starting to read and it's so fun!

He calls this little dinosaur his baby and has to track it down all the time. 

I think his attachment to this is so funny.

Pumpkin patch time! Where we only took pictures of the fourth kid because the other three were running wild in the hay bale maze the whole time.

The boys love coming to this little patch every year.

Pumpkin night! Costco pumpkins are HUGE.
I mean, no one is surprised by that, but still. So big!

Votes in! The boys liked dropping them in the ballot box for us.

Murder Mystery Selfie coming at you from the boy's dirty bathroom mirror.
I sprayed some grey streaks in there and they were looking pretty darn natural... 

Michael's blonde wig looked the furthest thing from natural, on the other hand :)
The characters we were assigned were a blonde, flirtatious, gossipy boat captain and a german mystic.
Spoiler alert, I was the murderer! The mayor was my accomplice. Whoops.

Ready for school on Halloween!
I love their school's Book Parade.

The parade was supposed to be outside, but they moved it inside because of the cold.
I'd brought Luna so I didn't know what to do with her... but she was such a good girl by the boys' bikes!
I had a little window spot to keep an eye on her but she was totally chill.

Driving downtown to trick-or-treat.
Asher made me laugh so much when I turned around and saw that he was just silently sitting there with a smile while his head can't lean back at all because of his big firefighter hat.

Trick-or-treating downtown is one of my all time favorite days of mom life.
Just such cute kids in such a cute city in beautiful October. It's so happy.

Camden tried to stand 10 feet tall when he came as a police officer and got to meet the police officers.

Jamie's flippers were total dedication.

Neighborhood party time!

Look at these men in uniform... I'm the luckiest.

We had such a large crew trick-or-treating together from the neighborhood. 

The sorting and trading... the best part!

Guest readers all day at school

This kid loved the Halloween experience! He was the slow cute caboose but next year he'll be right with the crowd. I'll miss following along with him!

My dad snapped a picture of me reading with my boys and I love it. 
I love that they all four listen to the same books right now and play with the same magnets and trains.
They're just so much fun right now!

Westin was a cat sitter for our neighbor's bobcat.
Not really, but it was BIG.

The whole crew after our potluck dinner.

We visited a small museum downtown to learn about Dia de los Muertos

I loved reading about all the symbols that I regularly see but never knew the meaning of, like marigolds.

Michael's favorite thing was this ship made of cloves.

My favorite thing was this textured Peruvian quilt.
The pieces are sewn 3D because imprisoned women used to hide messages all through the quilt.
The quilts were never checked for messages because sewing was assumed to be women's work an of no importance or significance.

Camden got a Dunkaroo's straight out of Michael's childhood, in his trick-or-treating bag, and he shared it with Michael on his birthday. Sweet guy.

Happy birthday to our main man!

Do you think this shirt might be too small for Asher?
We think so too... but he keeps laughing when we do this so we just add it back into our rotation.
I think we're coming to the end though :)