Spooky Around Here

Cassidy Trick-or-Treat!
Taylor with a genuine smile
Taylor at the arboretum

When Dave and I came out here in 2006 to look for a place to live, we came near the end of October.  Our realtor must have thought we were wacky because we took more delight in the Halloween decorations than we did in some of the houses we saw.  Neither of us remembers California as being over the top when it came to Halloween, which is exactly what happens here.  Seriously, it rivals Christmas in the audacity of the decorations.  So we've decided to jump on this bandwagon.  It helps that Taylor and Cassidy think Halloween is almost as cool as Disneyland.

So Cassidy and Taylor have gone round and round regarding what costumes they would be for Halloween this year.  We had choices of blue butterflies, Buzz Lightyear, a monkey, a dog, a mermaid and more.  They've matched the previous 3 years (7 months: Jack-o-Lanterns, 19 months: flowers, 32 months: chicks).  There was no way this was happening this year.  So while we thought about costumes, I also decided to re-create a cardboard box decoration for our front yard similar to the one I did for their birthday last March.  Crazy times, I tell ya!  Oh and we have about 10 pumpkins from our garden decorating our front landscaping.  It's actually kind of pretty.  Back to the costumes, though....  

We decided to go to the Disney Store and see their costumes last week.  In my good fortune, I waited until costumes went on sale!  Cassidy had kind of determined that she wanted to be Peter Pan, so I knew I could go there for that costume.  Taylor was still undecided, but was kind of thinking Wendy or still a blue butterfly.  Cassidy's costume is  very cute, but unfortunately they didn't have the matching hat and sword, so I'm still working on that.  We convinced Taylor to be Tinkerbell, and she thinks its fabulous.  Her wings even light up!  Oh, and again, just so we're proud of my shopping: 40% off!

So THIS weekend the Halloween madness has begun in earnest.  Lots of people have had their decorations up for about 2 weeks already, but the parties have all waited until this weekend and this upcoming week.  We had 3 events planned for this weekend, and we have -phew- just completed two.  

Yesterday we went to the Arboretum for the "Trick or Trees" party.  We actually ran into a couple of people that we know, which was kind of fun.  There were story tellers, games, food, and, of course, candy at this little event.  The girls really enjoyed making crafts.  Cassidy made a little bat and Taylor made a Tootsie-pop ghost and a googlie-eyed leaf creature.  They also got to take home a pumpkin each.  The weather was somewhat chilly, and we did have to wind up putting on their jackets, but the costumes were still cute, and really, nobody cared anyway.  The girls did love seeing all the other kids and some adults in costume too.  They kept trying to follow and touch this adult that was dressed as a giant turtle.  They thought he was a dinosaur.  All told, it was a lot of fun.  The weather, unfortunately, prevented me from taking a ton of pictures.

So today we had three events to choose from.  Because it was Sunday (holy day and all), nothing started before noon (ug), and we chose the one that started promptly at noon.  The girls got to go to downtown Naperville and go store to store for trick or treating.  It was a balloon effect.....  We turned the corner and there were a few other kids in costume, then we came out of a store and there were a few more, then a dozen more, then a football team's worth of kids, and on and on until there were more kids than cars driving around.  It was nuts!  The girls couldn't believe that their bags seemed to be bottomless pits in terms of how much they could hold!  It was funny at the end to see them trying to lug these trick or treat bags along with them because they were simply stuffed with goodies.  Taylor was so happy she forgot how to talk and would only squeak and point.  Cassidy, queen of the 'pick-me-ups,' was able to walk the entire time.  Almost every single store was open for the event and to lure people into the shops.  I can only think of the few parades we've been to in the area that brought more people out.  Amazingly, the girls held back from eating the candy.  They asked a few times, but they actually listened to us when we said they'd be better off waiting.  I am sure it was difficult for them because the other kids all seemed to have red, oozy candy drool falling from their chins.

Halloween is still 6 days away.  We have a party on Wednesday and then the actual "holiday" ahead of us.  I swear I should call the dentist now for next week.  It's gonna be gross!

(Oh and then we got home, they munched on tons of candy, and then it started hailing.  I forsee lots of moaning about the weather again soon.  Be warned.)

Grandma and Grandpa Hill Visit

Grandma and Grandpa Hill arrived yesterday evening.  The poor girls were so anxious all day!  And they were actually kind of mad that G&G weren't waiting for them when they were done with school.  Let me tell you that it was a long 3 and a half hours between getting home and having them finally arrive!

There was lots of screaming and jumping around when their little car pulled up, and they were just so happy to see them.  I guess they're finally at an age where they recognize their grandparents because they allowed themselves to be picked up and hugged repeatedly.

Cassidy and Taylor also refused to let ME read them bedtime stories, and insisted that Grandpa do it instead.  I mischievously picked out a tongue twisting book, Fox In Sox, for him to read, which is an impossible little tale.  I think he was more perturbed by the Strawberry Shortcake book that Cassidy picked for him though.  It's Berry dorky.  

Today's adventure is taking both grandparents to the girls' school.  They're going to be the helpers!  Should be very exciting, and I know at least the older part of my family will have a nap this afternoon!

I'll edit this post later with more updates about how it went and continues to go.