Halloween Time

Halloween!

They each wanted to pose closely so you could see how big this pumpkin was next to their heads :)

this jack o' lantern needed the big guns for carving...

or power tools

you can faintly see Clay's head next to the floating jack

Henry impressed me and made spicy pumpkin seeds on 

Halloween evening, they were delish

Halloween sunset coming home :)

I showed up for the Halloween party at the school and parade. 

It is so cute to see all the kids so proud of their costumes!

happy 3rd graders

this was Henry's costume for school

he specifically enjoyed being creepy and awkward with his baby hands sweatshirt

hahahaha

perfect middle school costume

Here we are heading out to our ward halloween party!

Clay decided he wanted to be a hair rocker for halloween so I give you this!

Nothing better than your sunday school teacher showing up almost unrecognizable 

hahaha

This was a dream come true for me to be a hair rocker with my husband

the kids were completely amused but would not have anything to do with it

"-you guys are so weird"

although Chester told all his friends I would be coming to his school as a rocker for the party...well, that didn't happen. I can only dress up once :)

Lucy ran a face painting booth at the party then off to a church youth dance after playing in a basketball tourney 

earlier in the day.

I love the energy of this teenager!

Henry really has decided he does not like Halloween.

But threw a cape on for us and I gave him some shadowy eyes.

Audrey had planned and executed this costume earlier in the month:)

She is a planner obviously and we made these cuffs out of raffia and elastic!She found everything else. 

Chester wore a medieval costume I made 3 years ago. He was a character from a video game but he let people think he was a knight or hunter :)

It was the first year I did not go out trick or treating

 with one of the kids!(and just like that, it's over)

Lucy and her friend Mackenzie took Chester and his friends Blake and Jano out for the evening. They had a blast!

Henry stayed home and Audrey ran around the school neighborhood with a group of girlfriends.

It was a successful Halloween💛

a couple of days later Lucy and I headed to the cultural museum in Longmont for a school assignment for spanish class: 

take a selfie at a Dia de Los Muertos(Day of the Dead)event

the Georgia O'Keefe altar

I learned that in this culture death is regarded as a birth into a different realm or life. How beautiful. 

Our western cultures seem so out of touch with this or distance themselves from these sorts of ideas and philosophies.

I found the whole exhibit joyful and a gift to see.

But we are very much alive and constantly busy with school, family, church and activities!

Lucy finished up volleyball for Fairview's JV team

Clay with some brotherly love from Anders and Nathan, finished up our driveway!

Fall is making the rounds of finishing up around here

but our grass is still green! It's never stayed green this long

some very LARGE raccoons were trying to finish off our pumpkin the other night but they retreated

other goings on, 

Chester joined our local Cub Scout pack. I volunteered to be the assistant bear leader. He absolutely loves it. He has kids from school who attend and great leaders. I'm really, really pleased with this decision to do this. Our ward had no boys doing it his age and I'm really seeing this as a huge blessing for all of us to be a part of the community!

cleaning up on bear awards at the last pack meeting

We are not finished with Colorado though!

 It has been good to us and lots of growth going on all around this Milkbarn of ours. 

I just read this quote and thought I would share as it validates my thoughts on life and where we are at and how I want to be open to all things:

"Do not rely on planning every event in your life-even every important event. Stand ready to accept the Lord's planning and the agency of others in matters that inevitably affect you. Plan, of course, but fix your planning on personal commitments that will carry you through no matter what happens." - Dallin H. Oaks