Happy Halloween!

Halloween was so fun for our family this year!

There's nothing like a pixelated family phone portrait!

Halloween started off with a field trip to the Pumpkin Patch!  At Quinn's preschool there is 100% parent participation on field trips.  I don't blame his teacher for not wanting to take the kids places alone and it is a nice opportunity for the families to get to meet each other.  It was a muddy mess, but was so fun seeing Quinn with his friends at school.  There's one boy in particular that he spent the majority of his time with, and it's one of the boys Quinn talks about the most at home.  They walked hand in hand through the corn maze together, jumping in all of the mud puddles.  My poor kids don't have many friends around here, and so it was really nice for me to see this peer relationship for Quinn.  It also inspires me to work harder at nurturing more relationships here for my kids.

*Also, Quinn experienced a "first" on this field trip that I have to mention.  After getting the kids out of the patch, through all of the mud, stripped out of their muddy clothes, and buckled into their carseats, he announced that he needed to go potty, really badly.  We were half an hour from home, and there was no way I was going to lug him (and Kira) back to the patch.  I took a quick look around and didn't notice anyone else in the parking lot.  So, I held him up, parallel to the ground, and let him relieve himself.  All day long he kept requesting, "Can I pee in the grass?  Can I pee in the grass?"  Had I known what I was starting...

Admiring the chickens together. 

Quinn looking adorable in the corn maze.  Notice the mud.

There's just something about watching these two walk off together that makes me smile.  Little buddies.

This photo is to document how muddy Kira got.  She didn't seem to mind.

After the field trip we came home, got cleaned up, and let Kira rest so she'd be ready for an afternoon/evening of trick-or-treating.  Pat was able to work a short day, and made it home by 2:30 for us to head out and hit up some local spots together.  I was told that it's best to arrive by 3 when the festivities begin because by the time parent's get off work it gets too crowded.  We started at the local nursery because they bring in a professional photographer to get photos of the kids in costume, for free!  That would have been great if our kids would have had some sort of expression on their faces, but they didn't.  They just stared stone cold as if they'd never seen a camera before in their lives.  At least we tried...

See what I mean?  

Then we headed over to the Country Village for some family friendly trick-or-treating.  It's so cute seeing all of the kids in costume.  For me, the cutest stage are the barely walkers toddling around in their oversized costumes.  It is so adorable!  Kira discovered that chocolate is pretty delicious, and Quinn shyly muttered, "trick-or-treat" to each of the vendors.  It's fun to see Kira able to enjoy the holiday more than Quinn did at her age, since she has him as a model.  She gladly followed him around to the vendors, accepting the treats they were willing to hand out.  A highlight there for Quinn may have been seeing Batman.  He's been obsessed with superheroes lately, so seeing him in person was a real treat.  We went to say hello and Quinn gave him a timid high five while I coerced him into getting his picture taken.  Sadly, the look on his face doesn't exactly prove his excitement.  I think he was star struck.  

I know, he looks miserable.  Don't worry, he was not.  

This chicken wanted to join in on the fun.  The kids didn't mind.

Couldn't resist the dorky photo op.

Once we finished up at the Country Village we headed home for a little more trick-or-treating in our neighborhood.  Apparently not everyone gets to work a half day though, because our street looked like a ghost town at 5 when we attempted to go out.  We decided to eat dinner at home first and try again.  Within minutes the streets were swarmed with all of the neighborhood kids.  Quinn was so excited to help pass out candy to all of the trick-or-treaters.  And then, after dinner, we headed out again for our turn.

The kids were clearly pros by this point.  :)

His final stop.  Our house!  I just find Pat's (fake) enthusiasm too ridiculous not to share.  

Can't forget Piglet!

They couldn't even wait to get inside to dig into their candy.  

My favorite quote from the evening was when Quinn exclaimed, "Halloween is sooo HAPPY!!" He's in such a fun stage right now, and I was just bursting with love for him yesterday.  As with any parent (I think) I have my share of frustrating moments with him, but that just helps me appreciate the fun times that much more.  And seeing him so willing to share (granted he was loaded up on sweets himself), use his manners with few reminders, and love on those around him made me gush with pride.

It was a Happy Halloween, indeed!

I should end this post now, but I wanted to share a few of my favorites that I got with the DSLR (as opposed to our phones) for those without Facebook.  You're welcome, Grandmas!  Enjoy!