Halloween is so much fun for the kids. Both boys were very excited to see that mommy had gotten pumpkins at the store in mid-October. So were so cheap one week (18 cents/pound) that I bought a whole bunch and have been using them to decorate the front of the house. Jacob and James quickly laid claim to specific pumpkins on the doorstep that they wanted to carve. Below, Jacob is working on cleaning out his special pumpkin.
Once he realized how much work was involved in the cleaning out process, Jacob said he was all done and mommy could finish it (which she did). He really enjoyed eating all the seeds we cooked.
James got to do the cutting and carving completely unassisted this year. He was so excited. One of his favorite parts is cleaning out the pumpkin. He thinks the goop is really cool. He also knows that when it's all clean and the seeds are separated from the goop that he gets to eat the cooked seeds!
I don't remember what I made, but Julia was sure enjoying licking the mixer paddle! I realize this has nothing to do with Halloween, but it's a cute picture!
Let the carving begin! Jacob started to try cutting into his pumpkin, but it's still a little bit to hard for him.
James, on the other hand, was completely ready and willing to do all the carving. He even drew on his own face for the pumpkin. He did a great job.
We moved our freshly carved pumpkins to the dining room, where it was a little darker,
so we could light them.
Jacob was upset because the candle in his pumpkin wasn't bright enough (it was a new candle that needed to burn some wick!). So after a few tears, we changed the candle and turned that frown upside down!
Jacob's pumpkin is on the left. James' is on the right.
Jacob kitty. . . For at least a month prior to Halloween, Jacob was going to be Spiderman. In fact, he was still Spiderman until the day before Halloween. Suddenly, on all hallows eve, Jacob told everyone who asked that he was going to be a kitty. WHAT?!?!?!? Well, fortunately for Jacob, his fantastic Aunt Jen had made a bunch of kitty ears for her daughter's birthday in August. Grandma brought several pairs home with her. He's also lucky that mommy just happened to have an eyeliner pencil in her bathroom. I don't know how we would have given him a nose and whiskers otherwise! He also inherited a Halloween shirt with cute little kitties on it from my cousin's daughter. What a lucky guy. He's still Spiderman occasionally, though. But he's now moved on to Iron Man.
What was James this year? Can't you tell? He was Obi Wan Kenobi, the most famous Jedi Knight ever! He didn't want to wear the mask that came with the costume, but if you look at his right shoulder, you'll see the jedi crest (from the animated series, Clone Wars).
Sweet little Julia, our ladybug girl!! She was so adorable. I was a little concerned that she wouldn't wear the wings. I've tried putting wings on her before and been very unsuccessful. She was very eager to put them on and be a ladybug. She really liked wearing the ladybug "ears."
Trick or Treat!!!
Julia was all too eager to chow down on her goods after coming home. She was so cute. She walked around the house carrying her pumpkin, saying "trick or treat" and "candy."
Our Halloween decor from the street's view. If you look closely, you will see the kitty in the window with a few bats. What you can't see are the skeletons we made out of milk jugs. Good ol' Mr. Bottle Bones!
The kids with their loot. We generally let the kids eat whatever they want when they get home. Julia and Jacob ate a lot more than I expected them to. I thought for sure they'd be sick the next day. While they didn't toss their cookies, I don't think they felt all that great. Neither one of them ate much for real food until dinner time the next day.
This year, we tried something new with the candy they reeled in. I convinced them to trade all but five pieces of candy for a new toy. James thought this was a great deal. Jacob took some serious convincing, but eventually came around. James got a bey blade (if you don't know what these are, they are just the coolest toys for little boys since sliced bread--I actually don't understand the fascination, but he's thrilled!). Jacob got some superhero action figures--Batman, Superman and Metallo (apparently Metallo's heart is made of kryptonite). Julia fell in love with a My Little Pony toy called Twilight Sparkle--she actually reads four different books and sings as many songs (her mouth moves when she talks and sings too!).
