(25/31) The Thirty-First

I'm afraid I fell off the blogging boat a bit.  This is weak, but here's my pitch:  Though my daughter might not get there "on time", she will eventually and we will celebrate all accomplishments free of schedules & calendars.  Which is why I have not abandoned my 31 for 21 quest.

Trekking on. 

Ha!  Or I could pretend I'm just easing into the NoBloNo-thing which also involves daily writing but I'm not, I'm just busy and tired.  I think there's also a daily thankful blogging theme this month but one project at a time.  I'm in a bit of a mood (if you can't tell) and I'm thankful for running water and our health and our jobs seems forced.

Thankful for family & cousins.

I had a hard time getting excited about Halloween this year.  The Boy wanted to be a ghost for at least a month, until he ended up in a box store with Matt and was swayed by the cheap Thor costume.  He was still adorable, naturally, but he was out the door with his cousins before I got any photos.  This is from my MIL.

Thor, and his super-hero cousins.

I was also cheap and repurposed The Girl's birthday tutu, adding wings, and some really awesome antennae.  She understood it this year, stuck out her basket and signed "Thank you" for the candy but she's had some tummy trouble lately and didn't last too long.

Done!

I don't have too much else right now.  This is just me easing back into the blogosphere.

Hallowed ground

....Los Angeles, that is.  It was odd being back - such beautiful weather, such yummy Chinese food (delivered!), and yet such an oppressive mass of people.  Funny how you adapt.  Never thought I'd get used to driving by lonely cornfields either but here we are.

We spent Halloween with Matt's oldest friend & his partner, but one little girl was Not.Having.It.  There were tears and Rolling About on the Floor.  We ended up putting her in the stroller where she seemed perfectly content to let her brother collect all the goodies, never dreaming that he had no intention of sharing.  Oh, the inhumanity of it all!

We trick or treated in a lovely neighborhood that took its festive duties Very Seriously - huge outdoor movie screens playing Thriller and Ghostbusters, fog machines, bubble machines... and hundreds and hundreds of kids.  There were lines 30 kids deep just to get to the front door of some homes.  Craziness.  Also?  Next year at home is going to be a crushing disappointment. 

Thanks Mike & Nick!

Do I win last place for the latest Halloween photos to be posted?  Yeah!  The grand prize would probably be the single lifesaver some random guy on the street gave my son.  We were polite and thanked him but, needless to say, threw away all the lifesavers the next morning.  I also pulled out all the Whoppers, but for selfish reasons.  Cannot resist the Whoppers.

A Seasonally Inappropriate Non Sequitor

Both my sister & my mom have lodged formal complaints to the blogger-in-chief so in an effort to mollify the family – yes, am still here.  No, nothing tragic has happened.  Yes, we will return to regularly scheduled programming shortly.  I’ve been working crazy long hours lately on top of long runs, a sniffly child, helping with homework (in first grade!?!), etcetera… But no one wants to hear my excuses. 

Introducing Operation Interlude:

Pumpkin baby pie

Whither the chubbiness? Now

He’s all ribs. Beanstalk!

Random, previously unpublished baby picture, taken 74 months ago (Probably taken by Auntie M).  Nowadays he has math homework.  Now how the ____ did that happen? 

Happy Halloween

Well, we're back!  A vacation, it was not.  But we got to see Gigi, the beach, the rocketship park, and we ate at Rubios.  Twice.  After the Great Plague passed.  More on the trip later, but in the meantime, Happy Halloween! 

Green Pumpkin Goop

The Big Night:

Falling

This is why I wanted ivy. 

No school yesterday so the boys decorated...

with Bordello lights, naturally.

I don't think you can actually hang vampires, but nice try guys.