Halloween 2015

I have just two Crack Monkeys still very much invested in the costume & trick-or-treating hoopla, which I've finally accepted. The older two join in on the festivities in their own way: Ryan tends to hang out with his friends on Halloween, and Ethan has become our official "Passer of the Halloween Candy." And, Scott and I usually get dragged along wherever Vanessa and Jeff go.

This year, Vanessa went as a bunny.

And, Jeff went as a Clone Trooper.

{Side note: I felt stupid for spending $20 bucks on his costume because just the day after buying it, I found two of Ethan's old Halloween costumes down in the basement. Both of which were, wait for it...Clone Troopers. How could I forget about those?}

Anyway, Scott took the bunny and the Clone Trooper to my parents' neighborhood so they could trick-or-treat with their friends there, while Ethan and I held down the fort (Ryan disappeared again after spending the majority of the day with his friends; he just made a quick pit stop to redo his hair, lol). I'm currently suffering from a three-day long migraine, so we decided a ringing doorbell and shouts of "Trick-or-Treat!" would not be in my best interest.

We hung up a "No Candy Here" sign on the front door, kept our porch light off, and settled in for the night. It was a little weird being able to hear people shuffling out on the sidewalk, but no doorbell while our house was dark and silent.

Scott, Vanessa, and Jeff got home at about 9pm, the latter two already filled with candy and weighed down with nearly full pillowcases of candy.Apparently one of their friends wanted to hit every house in the neighborhood, but the idea was nixed when they all realized how heavy their sacks were getting.

So another successful and enjoyable Halloween, even though it was a bit more chilly than last year. Wouldn't matter though; when there's free candy to be had, you can bet my kids would be willing to trudge through any kind of weather!

Halloween at dance school

One of the things I love about Vanessa's dance school is that instead of competitions, her instructors put on a lot of mini dance recitals. They serve as a sort of an update for the parents to see the things their kids are learning.

These mini recitals fall in accordance to most of the holidays: Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Valentine's Day. And then, there's the big recital at the end of the year, which happens in the spring.

It works for us because Vanessa isn't much of a performer, but she loves to dance!

We were invited to her mine recital tonight. Instead of a Halloween dance like they've done in the past, her teacher had them demonstrate some new moves and techniques they've been working on. It's mostly the same things they've learned before, but because we've had Vanessa in dance for the last few years, you can the definite improvement.

Here she is, waiting patiently in line. She looks so enthusiastic, doesn't she?

And, here she is doing her first pirouette.

You might not see it from the pictures, but she has improved so much in form and posture. And, I love that she really enjoys going to dance. So grateful for patient and loving dance teachers!

A dad's influence

When I was growing up, my dad was a big influence in my life. As it should be. Home should be the first place a child learns from, and their first teachers should be their parents. My parents have taught me by example and still do to this day. But, the influences of a dad are just as important as a mother's, and just as powerful.

All seriousness aside, today I witnessed that type of influence in action when I went downstairs to the family room and saw this:

Yes, my boys are playing the new Halo video game. Scott began the download last night so the boys would be able to play it today.

You might be wondering, "How does a video game tie to a father's influence?" And, here's the answer: Scott.

I play video games, too (hard not to when you grew up with the ever-changing game consoles), but not these. Scott, however, loves them; so when the first Halo game was released, he was hooked. He even joined a game night with several of his co-workers at the time, where they would gather at someone's house to play.

Yeah, he's a nerd. Or is he a geek?

Doesn't matter, I still love him, ha!

He got Ryan hooked on it first, which expanded into collecting as many Halo Mega Blok (like Legos) sets as he could. And, since Ethan loved to follow Ryan when they were younger (not so much now), he was soon playing the game and building the sets, too. Interestingly enough, they also got Vanessa to play, and she proved to be just as good as her brothers.

Jeff started playing when he was four, mostly with Ryan. We were amazed at how fast he caught on, and how good he was at it. In fact, one time, Ryan let him play against his friends (13 years old at the time), and Jeff beat them all.

They were all impressed that they got beat by a five year old, lol.

Anyway, today Halo 5: Guardians was released. The boys have been anxiously awaiting this day, and Scott, too, although he won't admit it. We have all of the Halo games, which have been played over and over again in anticipation for the new game. Ryan even asked if he could stay home from school today (sorry, son!), that's how much they love this game. And, when I sent a pic to Scott of the boys playing, his first words were, "NO FAIR!"

I love these boys of mine.

But, most of all, I love that Scott has such an influence on them that encompasses almost everything in their lives, including video games. It's fun to see them bond over them as they play together, or even discuss strategies and weapons.

It's also really funny to watch them (Scott included) argue who gets play next. I'll have to remember to get a picture when Scott gets home from work.

Gotta love it.

Pumpkin Carving 2015

We waited a bit to carve our pumpkins due to the fact that we have a bunch of jokers in our neighborhood who think it's funny to go around and destroy other people's pumpkins. I hated the idea of seeing the kids' pumpkins smashed and scattered all over our sidewalk like last year, so we decided to do our pumpkins tonight, then keep them on the back porch until Halloween.

Vanessa already had an idea of what she wanted to do, while Jeff took his time perusing the idea book. He wanted to make sure it was a design that Daddy, er, I mean Jeff could do, ha!

 The start of Bonnie from 5 Nights At Freddie's.

 Ryan didn't really have a plan; he just started randomly stabbing at his pumpkin, lol.

 Ethan didn't trust himself to handle the knife, so he asked Dad to do it.

 But, he has no problem scooping out all of the pumpkin "guts."

They're getting to that age where it's harder to get them all together at the same time, so I will gladly take whatever I can take! The Crack Monkeys are growing up so fast; I hope I can preserve at least a little bit of their childhood.

Pumpkin Patch Adventures 2015

We really slacked with pumpkin carving the last two years, so this year, I was determined to make it to the pumpkin patch. It took a bit of maneuvering (we hurried home after Ryan's lacrosse game and had to pick up the other kids from my parents' house), but we made it!

It was slim pickings, but we really couldn't complain considering it's the week before Halloween. But, the kids made do, and took their hunt for their "perfect pumpkin very seriously.

Trekking down the long path, keeping an eye out.....

Vanessa was the first to find hers. She said the hole in it made it unique!

Jeff found his next, and was oh, so happy, if you couldn't tell.

However, in the next moment, he declared it was too heavy and decided to roll it wherever we went.

Ever the picky one, Ethan took a bit to find his. But, when he did, it was so fast, I almost didn't get a picture.

And then, there's Ryan. Pleased with his choice or just his weirdness shining through in public?

And, here's a rare moment of Scott and Ryan not trash talking each other. What in the what?

Now onward to making a mess in the kitchen as we decorate!

Ethan the Dinosaur Man

One of Ethan's interests has always been dinosaurs. I remember when he was younger, he spent an afternoon reading about them, and ultimately memorizing everything about his favorite ones. If asked, he could tell me what a specific dinosaur ate, its height, what age it was from, and whatever else he deemed important to know, no matter how minute. It always amazed me at how much he remembered.

Not a lot has changed. He's still into dinosaurs and continues to read books and watch videos about them. However, I didn't really fathom just how much dinosaurs interest him until the Jurassic World movie was released. It seemed to renew his interest and passion for these animals, and in the weeks before and after the movie was released, Ethan tried to soak up everything and anything he could to learn about the dinosaurs being introduced in the new movie.

Sadly, movie tickets made it really expensive to take the whole family (we all wanted to see it), so we kept putting it off. We even made an effort to see it while we were in Hawaii, but for some reason, none of the theaters near us weren't playing it. So Ethan resigned himself to waiting for the digital release.

In preparation for it, he watched all three Jurassic Park movies. We have the first two on DVD, but bought the third one on Amazon because Ethan had never seen it. So by the time Jurassic World was available on Amazon, Ethan was ready.

I wish I had taken a picture, but he was glued to the tv the entire time, his popcorn and soda forgotten beside him. He cheered and got excited throughout the entire movie, and afterwards, we had a long discussion about what he liked about it and what he didn't. His excitement was contagious; his whole face was lit up with a smile as he talked, and that made me smile.

There are only a few things that really get Ethan excited, so when we find one, we have to follow his lead and grab onto it with an iron fist. And I think this one, dinosaurs, we'll be holding onto for a long time.

Last day of fall soccer

Jeff is so sad today. He had his last game of the season today AND it was picture day. Luckily, they took pictures before the kids got sweaty and muddy.

It was a fun last game, and afterwards, his coach handed out their awards. We love Coach Ari; he loves the game and loves his team, and he really wants the kids to learn the sport well. At every practice, he's always teaching the kids how to properly kick the ball, defend their goal, and how to work as a team. The kids have really pulled together as a team, so it's always a letdown when the season ends.

Thanks, Coach Ari! We'll see in the spring!