Halloween

Our ward holds a Halloween party nearly every year up at a ranch just out of town. Everything about it is perfect -- brilliantly-colored leaves rustling in the trees, warm sun against a cool blue sky, friends gathered around a crackling fire, a chili cook-off in the barn, children playing in the leaves and decorating cupcakes, everyone roasting hot dogs and giggling at our costumes, kids shouting from a tractor-pulled hayride around the farm. It is a real midwestern harvest festival and I look forward to it so much every year.

As is customary we didn't end up with a single photo of our whole family (Seriously, someday my children will look back and think I was a single mother!) But I did dig up this cute photo of the kids and me with our good friends the Rosens.

Michael and I dressed up as the nerd couple, and we were quite the sight if I do say so myself. Also, that costume was FAR too easy to assemble. Nerdy clothes? Right here in our closets! Ugly makeup? I've got plenty. Super-nerd books to put in my bag? Which edition of Plato should I choose?! Side ponytail? Are you kidding I had one my whole childhood! And an actual conversation:

Me: OK, I've got the gum massager to put in my pocket. Dang it, I don't know what happened to my pocket Constitution, it would be perfect! It's got to be around here somewhere.... (scrounges in kitchen drawer, where obviously one would keep a pocket Constitution.)

Michael: (Comes out of office waving small book in the air) Oh, no worries, here you can borrow mine.

That's right folks, we BOTH have them, and right at hand in case of emergency.

Also, in the photo you can see Jed dressed up in his Stripling Warrior CTR costume that Granny Zo'An made him. There is a cool leopard print cape on the back of the breastplate, but you can't really see it in this shot. Beneath the costume you can glimpse his Zombie shirt.

And here, of course, the final glory. The little princess dressed up in a fluffy little wisp of an outfit, with gauze and ribbons and bows aplenty. She has the cutest billowy skirt on but you can't quite see it here. Also, a sweet crown with bows down the back that here has been converted to a necklace. I confess some bias, but she really was the darlingest Halloween princess in town.