Hall Happenings: November 2011

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Nothing Like Halloween to Get the Creative Juices Flowing

Brownie Haunted Houses from Grandma Allphin

Painted Pumpkins

Paper Plate Skeleton

Window Puffy Paint Spiders

Carved Pumpkins

Witch's Brew Punch

And, of course, costumes.

I made Audrey's and Luke's this year. It was a little bit dicey at times, but my sewing machine and I are a lot better acquainted! Luckily, both kids were happy with their costumes and didn't mind the amateur quality. They both wore their costumes to school parades and parties, as well as trick-or-treating with friends.

Luke's teacher was Fancy Nancy. I thought it was really cute!

Max was a dragon (store-bought). Two costumes was all I could handle this year. He was still cute, though, and didn't mind a hand-me-down.

Luke Skywalker fit in well with two Darth Vaders. He handled the double trouble with ease, and I heard a at least one of the Darths say that he was Darth Vader when he was actually good. Best friends couldn't fight each other!

Happy Halloween!

Apple Orchard!

We usually go to Blake's Orchard in the fall, but this year we mixed it up a little bit. We opted for a less commercial orchard, Stony Creek, where the focus was on the apples. Raspberries were on as well, so we got lots of both fruits. It was lots of fun, and the kids didn't even miss the bounce houses and other stuff. Just us and nature. Ahhhh.

Posers

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

How I Ruined Luke's Birthday (A Tale of Woe)

The birthday cake fiasco of 2011 was all a misunderstanding.

Luke's birthday is usually on Conference weekend, and you could say that he doesn't quite appreciate that as a favorable thing quite yet. But, between sessions on Saturday we took him to the restaurant of his choice for lunch: Steak 'n Shake. He loves the paper cars they give the kids. And, he adds, the food.

Then, on the way home we picked up a cookie cake from Mrs. Field's - quite a splurge for us, but it was what he requested. I had the brilliant idea to use sparklers instead of candles. I was sure that Clayton had said that his family used to do the same thing all the time when he was a kid. Clayton claims he never said that. Now I believe him. Luke hated the idea from the start, as he is afraid of fire and fireworks, but I thought it would be so fun. It wasn't. Not only was Luke ticked off, but sparklers are not meant for cakes. They showered the whole thing in a layer of nasty-tasting black char that would not scrape off. We all gagged after one bite, and the whole $25 + cake ended up in the garbage.

We also didn't get the present he wanted, although Grandpa and Grandma Hall, as well as Great Grandpa and Grandma Allphin were more tuned into his wants than we were, sending lego sets. He was not impressed with Super Mario Brothers for Wii. At the end of the day, he declared it the worst birthday ever. I felt bad about the cake, but I think I redeemed myself by planning an awesome birthday party for the next weekend with Luke's friends. He wanted his buddies to come over and play football in the backyard. Perfect! We painted a field on the grass in the backyard and dubbed it "Luke Field". We made shirts for all the boys at the party, and Clayton led them in "training exercises". After a Gatorade break, they played a football game, and then switched it up to dodgeball. Dodgeball was definitely the favorite. We ended the festivities with pizza and cake - minus any candles of any kind. Luke requested no candles, and I wasn't about to disagree with him about that again.