Halloween 2011 (just in time for Thanksgiving)

Positives: free candy and the kick butt costume I made for jack.
Negative: this was the first year Emma ditched us for her friends. Stinkin' kid.

Before I begin, let me say that all my pictures are out of order. I uploaded them from my phone and Blogger won't let me move them. Sometimes I really hate Blogger.
One thing you need to know about us is that Halloween is easy peasy for me. Costumes are borrowed, recycled and usually whatever we find around the house. It is rare for me to spend much money on Halloween. This is the way I like it, much less stress for me.

Anyway, here we go.

*I also cannot seem to add any words to the bottom of this post. Sorry again and Blogger you suck and I hate you. That's the end of Halloween 2011! Check out our old Halloween posts!! See you next year!

Trick or Treating on Halloween night. We have a great neighborhood!

Jack hesitantly approaching a house with some scary decorations.

Actual Halloween Night Costumes. You've got Indiana Jones/cowgirl, Cosette from Les Mis, and our handy dandy iPhone.

One thing I failed to realize when making Jack's costume is how difficult it would be for him to walk as I didn't cut it high enough.  So poor Gary ended up carrying him like this a lot of the night.

And this is why I have slipcovers. Jack's first piece of candy for the night.

Jack's costume #1. Curious George for his preschool party. The iPhone was still in development.

A graveyard cake my sister and her husband made for our annual Halloween night dinner.

The front of the costume. You will have to scroll down to see the back. Thanks, Blogger.

This is proof I am a better mom than you. Hahaha what a joke. This was Laura's lunch for school on Halloween day.

The back of his costume. I am seriously proud of this thing. Thanks Charlene for making some apps for me! The light makes it look a little weird here but it was awesome in real life. This is also the perfect costume for him: The kid could care less about Superman or the Cars movie, etc. He is obsessed with iPhones. Now if I were a REAL mom, I would have made my girls into Angry Birds. But we didn't get that far.

This is the night of the church Trunk or Treat. Emma is a bag of jelly beans.

I thought this was cute! It's a spork set. There is a knife somewhere in the parking lot, but she was missing for this pic.

Emma ready for school on Halloween day. I love the fact she still thinks it cool to get in the holiday spirit.

Cake pops that a mom made for Jack's Halloween party at school. They were UNBELIEVABLY good!!!

A cute gift one of the kids made for her classmates.

Emma's Halloween lunch. Sorry it's sideways!

Picture of the Day

Have no fear, I will post my Halloween pictures soon, my dear!

(This picture is from our Halloween trip to Ft Wilderness in Disney. You would not believe the decorations that people put up there! This is someone's campsite! Fun, fun!)

p.s. is there someone out there who can make my blog not look like crap?? Thanks!

In which Jack discovers Halloween

The rundown:



A cool witch (are we now into the "cool" costumes? ugh.) and a zombie 80s prom queen.

A puppy.

He does not have the point of Halloween yet. Right now he is just annoyed. Just wait for it Jack. Your little toddler self has no idea that your dreams are about to come true.

Trunk or Treat.
It was hot out there.
I started the night out taking Jack to one of the cars. I had him say "Tick oh teet." Then he got a piece of candy. By the time we got to the third car he had this look on his face like, So.... I walk to a car and they give me a piece of candy? And that's it? Seriously? I don't know what is going on, but my little toddler dreams have come true.

The night of the Wompey's family Halloween party. We have our witch and our cheerleader. Laura loves cheerleading.

Indiana Jones. Not sure if that is a tough look or a tired look. Also, I think there is some stubble or something missing, and those pants are rather ironed. So he is more like Preppy Indiana Jones.

A random Parisienne. Can you tell by the poodle? Should I have added a baguette? Or maybe a sense of style?

I think it's the high class wig that makes it. Oh to be Audrey Hepburn.

This was our Halloween dinner which consisted of some really gourmet food. Take that, Martha.
No one can top mummy dogs. Hours, people. It took me HOURS.


The girls made jack-o-lantern faces out of the cheese, but I forgot to take a picture before they melted into jack-o-blobs. Want to hear something sad? I NEVER buy American cheese slices, but my husband did for this (that's right, I will gladly throw him under the bus). We accidentally left the unwrapped slices outside by the grill. Overnight. The next morning they were uneaten. Untouched. Not by the raccoons, cats, bugs, nothing. And raccoons are brutal--they ripped in half a tupperware container I had left outside just to get to the food. So what does that tell you about Kraft American cheese? Yikes. I won't be eating it again.

Emma, before she eats the toxic American cheese.


Roy, "B" complete with his fake happy smile (darn you!), Gary, and Jenn. Don't they look soooo happy to eat my gourmet food? I'm the best.

Finishing the night with chocolate cake and ice cream. Jack LOVES this holiday. I have now moved into position 1 as the best parent ever. And all it took was a little sugar and toxic cheese. Your welcome, kids.

Two

What makes the perfect day?


A birthday shirt.


A balloon that cracked him up.

Three little friends (all girls, Jack would add) to help celebrate.

Later that evening, a Mimi to help give birthday kisses at a birthday dinner.

A fabulously ugly cake. But it tasted good, seriously. This is what happens when you don't get the lumps out of the frosting and then decide to throw his favorite candy--"meems"--on top.


A two-year-old digging in.
Told you it tasted good.
You were judging.


Getting a birthday song phone call from cousin Rebecca.

Miss Kymmie, the maker of the fabulous crocheted pumpkin hat.

One Grandpa, putting together his birthday present.


The debut ride.


Again, might I add that it tasted better than it looked.
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Halloween is in 12 days. Rats. That means I am trying to figure out costumes for Gary and I. The theme this year for the annual family Halloween party we attend is, "movies." Last year, as you remember, was "eighties."

So what to do, what to do? Any ideas from you creative geniuses out there?

I already have the kids covered. No coordinating costumes as a family this year. My kids know their own minds this year, and it is not a unified one, that's for sure.
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I forgot to add that I crack myself up. I dream of parties like this:


*source: HipHipHoorayblog.com

But my big decoration was a dollar store "Happy Birthday" banner that was still hanging on the wall from Emma's party at the end of July. Awesome, huh!! And yes, I finally took it down. Like a week ago.

abandoned

Gary is in Las Vegas for a week A WHOLE WEEK on a business trip. It is very rude and selfish. Do you feel sorry for me yet? You should. Parenting alone is no fun. For the first couple days when he was gone I read a book and watched movies that only I want to watch and it was kind of delicious. But now it is just quiet and lonely.

Gary likes the time zone in Nevada for his trading purposes and is entertaining the thought of moving (as if). So he keeps sending me emails of him in front of the Hoover Dam, or a pack of desert-y animals or something else he deems magical and I write him back with one line: I am not moving.

I mean really, can you imagine me, a tropical flower, wilting in the brown and dreary desert? Away from my beloved ocean? Let me tell you, people would miss me all hot in my suit on the beach.

I think not.

I got lonely today and hauled Jack to Michael's craft store to look for some Halloweeny/Fall-y decorations. I spent the last of the grocery account there. Should have remembered that because later when we went to eat Chinese food (Oh Charlene I'm missing that Indian buffet) the nice lady at the pay-for-your-food counter said in her thick accent, "D'its crying." And I thought, maybe that is an Asian joke, you know, like you spent so much the machine is crying. And she looked at me expectantly and again said, "D'its crying." And I looked back at her and nodded my head. And then OH! I get it. The card is not crying it's DECLINED!! So at least instead of being embarrassed I began to laugh my head off as I pulled out a different card.

Halloween Rundown

Better late than never....
Family Halloween Party
compare:

hopefully you picked up my earlier clue....
that's right-- we are ferris and jeanie beuller.

the after party

Halloween Day

halloween hair and socks--laura

halloween hair and socks--emma

dinner:

bones breadsticks

jack enjoyed the "bloody spaghetti and meatballs"
(I like the foot on the table)

jennifer brought the frankenstein cake

emma is an American girl colonial girl
laura is alice, of course

jack is babyzilla
(not much deviation from real life)

but it was too hot to keep that on so we switched to this.

I am a witch (I think?)
thank you jenn for including my things-to-go-to-goodwill pile

here we go!
we met up with a BIG group of friends.

gretchen is channeling the 60s

laura is off to a good start.

unfortunately, jack had to go home to bed and my camera
was in the bottom of the stroller when gary left.
so no more pictures.

but...

I will just say that at the end of the night we ended up at our friend's house. It was SO HOT that the kids all stripped off their costumes and jumped in the pool.
We stayed until about eleven.
Then jennifer and I watched "Ghosthunters" in the dark family room
and scared the snot out of ourselves.
oh, and we ate halloween candy.

That's Halloween in Florida for you!