Recap of the Evening

Happy November! I love the fall so very dearly...between back to school time, Halloween, Thanksgiving and football, it is easily the most exciting time of the year, especially with children around. My kids were so excited yesterday for trick or treating, the older two were both up before 6 am...and it was a blissful, beautiful, rare thing to see them all passed out, drooling on their pillows by 8:30 last night.

They had a great time and looked so cute. Two Minnie Mouses and an Alice from Alice in Wonderland. They each had school parades and parties, and it was such great fun to live vicariously through them again and remember that each year it was simply the best to be able to wear a costume and feel magnificent in it, and then be rewarded by running around in the dark, having people give you free candy.

Of course the evening would not have been complete if we had not encountered at least one notable quote from one of our kids. This occurred when my kind neighbor offered to take Erin and Meghan to a few houses to start Trick or Treating before I was ready to get on the way, having just gotten around to decorating the outside of the house and still needing to dress Lizzy and order pizza. The big girls left with our neighbor, and as they were walking away they passed by the sign on our lawn that happens to hold the names of the people for whom we will be voting in the upcoming presidential election*. She turns to my neighbor and says, "So, who ya' votin' for in the election? I'm votin' for that guy," and points to our sign, which had, unbeknowst to me, been adorned with a fuzzy spider and a rubber bat during our decorating party. Then later in the evening, she tells Jaclyn that she "absolutely loves her high heels" that were part of her Minnie Mouse costume and that she will probably walk around up on her tippy toes in all her other shoes from now on so that they all seem like high heels.

Priceless.

I wonder what it is about a holiday ending that while I was super-excited to decorate and get ready for it, as soon as Halloween night was over, I want all the decorations out of my face ASAP. I was just over it. I came down from putting the pumpkins to bed, and Pete had apparently read my mind, because there, on the island, sat all of the Halloween decorations from all around the house, ready to be packed away until next year. Up came the bins, away went the decor and on to Thanksgiving and turkeys we go.

So today we begin November with the Craft Fair and lunch out with all the girls, from my amazing grandmother on down to Lizzy Jo, on a beautiful fall Saturday. I treasure these times so much now, having had a year away from my familiar places and routines during these holidays, and I love that we will be able to share this day. I might even be able to squeak babysitting duties out of someone so Pete and I can go out with Jaclyn and Brian tonight. An all-around fabulous weekend...but for the incessant whining and perpetual sugar-crash that Thing 1 and Thing 2 are experiencing. It could be a great one, and it might really suck.

The same as any other day.

* Up to this point, I have decided to keep my blog politically neutral. I have strong opinions about politics, as I do about every topic under the sun. But I respect that my readers have equally strong opinions and do not need to be bombarded by my views in this place. I reserve the right to change my mind and outlandishly celebrate victory or mourn defeat on Tuesday. But for right now, consider me Mommy-Blogging Switzerland**.

**I'm laughing writing this because holding back my political views on my blog up to this point has been an enormous exercise in restraint, a characteristic that does not come easily to me. And I know it's not going to last over the next few days. But creating an aura of suspense is fun, and it will be good for me to step outside my comfort zone and keep my mouth shut about something. Even if only temporarily.