Happy Halloween!

This is one of the best Halloween weekends I can remember, ever.

Everything finally aligned correctly and we were able to make it to Neewollah, the celebration that Independence, KS, holds every year. We invaded Dan and Ginny's house (thank you again!) and set off for the Kiddie Parade. Brenden wanted to dress up as Luigi and Tim agreed to be Mario to match him. Karen bought Lauren her costume this year and I decided to match her for the parade, too. I had no idea what to expect when we arrived and I was amazed to see so many kids! We made it most of the way without any mishaps and then...clunk! Our wagon broke! Luckily we were able to salvage all the parts and Lauren barely budged. We don't have very good luck with wheels on our vehicles!

Mamma cat and her kitten, with Mario and Luigi.

That night we celebrated Dan's 80th birthday. It was such a nice dinner! Somehow I completely forgot to grab my camera during dinner so I don't have any pictures of the birthday boy. I think he enjoyed himself, and the all you can eat fried chicken. We had a great time toasting him with some funny Irish toasts and Brenden and Lauren both behaved beautifully on their very limited naps. We hope you had a very Happy Birthday, Dan!

The next morning was the grand parade and the weather could not have been more perfect. We saw several bands, lots of great floats, and Brenden had a blast grabbing as much candy as possible. Lauren was even able to get some candy, although we didn't let her eat it. Such mean parents, taking a sucker away from a 6 month old.

The police sirens were LOUD.

That night we made our way to the carnival. Brenden was ready to ride some rides! He surprised me by choosing the ferris wheel to ride first. The biggest must equal the best in his mind. Tim and I decided to ride along with him and we had a great time with a pretty view of Independence. Somehow I made it through without crying at all. (I'm insanely scared of heights, especially when they include seats that wobble. No...I don't fly well. Why do you ask?)

We did it!

After that Brenden rode all the rides he was able to over and over. We bought him an "all you can ride" wrist band and we definitely got our money's worth. When we asked him what his favorite ride of the night was he very enthusiastically said, "The motorcycles!" I think he rode it at least 10 times. When Tim laid him down to sleep that night he gave him a big hug and said, "I had fun!" You can't ask for more than that.

Whee!

Lovin' it!

After a yummy breakfast on Sunday we headed back home for our neighborhood festivities. Anna and Chuck, our neighbors, make a big dinner every year and invite everyone they know, so we were able to enjoy some really yummy enchiladas and tostadas while the kids ran around having a great time.

At 6:30 pm it was time for the "parade", which is really more of a moseying down the block kind of thing. Afterwards, my mom and dad sat at our house and handed out candy with Lauren while Tim and I took Brenden trick or treating for real for the first time. He did great saying "trick or treat" and "thank you" at every house.

It's a-Mario! And a-Luigi!

Rawr!

The weekend was filled with lots of family, fun and, of course, candy. I would say it was as perfect as it could get.

To see more pictures from October, please click here.