Halloween Events part 1...

We had a very festive weekend!  We kicked our weekend off with our annual "Michael Jackson's Thriller living room dance party" and dinner out at Los Tres Amigos.  I'm loving the fact that the boys ask to go there for dinner now!  We came home and got our pajamas on to watch, "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" and "Toy Story of Terror".  It was a really fun evening!

Saturday was a busy one!  Evan had a soccer game at 11:45am, we grabbed lunch in a drive-thru, and rushed to Sean's game at 1:30pm to have it be cancelled a few minutes into the game for crazy storms.  I took the opportunity to take the boys to get their haircuts done at Lady Janes by our house before we had to all get ready for dinner at Buddy's in Dearborn and the Hallowe'en Event at Greenfield Village with my parents. 

Unfortunately, it was cold and rained the majority of the time.  Two years in a row now we've gone while it was raining.  We bundled up in a million layers and enjoyed our little breaks with hot cider and hot donuts, but I think this was the quickest we've gotten through it since the crowds were much lighter than usual.

The boys wanted to stop and watch the magic show this year, which was nice for a change and I loved the addition of "Oz" from the Wizard of Oz toward the end.

I think we all enjoyed being able to get out of the cold and get into some dry clothes.  Although, the added laundry from wet soccer games and wearing layers I could have done without.  We had to get the costumes dried and ready to use again on Sunday for the Pumpkin Palooza and a birthday party.

We had intentions of going to church Sunday morning, but we left Evan's mask from his costume with my parents, so we had to meet halfway.  Scott and Sean cranked out the grocery shopping and we were both back home in time to get back into costumes and eat a quick lunch before the Palooza started. 

The key to this event is to arrive 15 minutes before it technically opens.  You get the best parking spots and you get in lines for candy and games before most people show up.  We were done with full bags of loot by 12:45pm.  It was fun, even though it was colder than previous years!

We came back home to hang out for a bit before we had to go to Ethan's Halloween-themed birthday party at his house.  They had a bounce house and encouraged the kids to play outside, which I didn't realize.  They didn't have hats or gloves and it was really cold.  Within an hour and a half we were ready to go home and warm up.  The boys had fun with the donut on a string game and with the "Trick or Treating" stations she had set up.  The chili was delicious and I appreciated the spiked cider. 

A very fun, but busy weekend is in the books!  This weekend we don't have as much planned.  Both boys have their final soccer games.  I'm hoping to bring the boys with some friends to the DIA to see the Ofrenda exhibit and to eat an early dinner in Mexican Town.  We'll be carving our pumpkins too!  I'm hopeful Evan can shake off this cough he has before anyone else in the family comes down with it.  Tis' the season...

The full swing of fall

Once all the birthday festivities were over, we got the chance to just enjoy the fall and the cooler temps that came with it!  We're leaving the house in warm jackets and coming home in long-sleeve shirts since the weather can vary so much over the course of the day.  But, the leaves are falling, the colors are changing, and it's my favorite time of year!

It's hard to believe, but the boys' soccer season will be coming to a close in two a week and a half with two games left each.  In fact, I have to pick up the team medals for Evan's team tomorrow.  Evan's team has been improving so much over the season!  They still have so much to learn about playing in position and working as a team, but it's fun to watch the transformation for some of the boys. 

Sean's team has only lost one game (against a tough Brighton team!) and they tied one game with Dearborn.  Since they're officially ranked this year, it's been a much more intense season, but we love it!  Sean has been playing great and has had shots on goal almost every game.  Still waiting on that goal though.

Sean's been a busy guy with Catechsim on Mondays, swim on Tuesdays, and soccer on Thursdays and a game on the weekend.  This year is especially exciting with his First Communion in January and again in April with the entire class.  He had a "rehearsal" already and got to taste his first host and sip of wine.  He was not a fan of the wine.  His homework nightly consists of a lengthy math worksheet, spelling practice (or a worksheet), and reading.  So, he's definitely got a full plate this fall.

Evan's been doing well in Kindergarten!  Having gone to Young 5's last year, he's definitely feeling like a pro.  His teacher doesn't assign homework, but he has had a few small projects to do.  He's currently making an alphabet vest out of a brown paper bag and pictures of things that start with an E for their alphabet parade next week.  He keeps busy with swim on Tuesdays and soccer on Thursdays with a game over the weekend too.

We've been trying to make the most out of fall weekends while still saying sane.  I took the boys to my school's Homecoming game and tailgate on a Friday night after a long work week.  They had a blast!  We only made it through one quarter of the game before they were tired and wanted to go home, but I'm glad we went.

We have a few traditions we like to do every fall like the Fire Station Open House.  The township does such a nice job with this event and this year we ran into several friends from Farrand.  The boys loved being able to hang out with their buddies!

This year we hosted a "American Ninja Warrior Junior" party since House Party sent me a free box of goodies to pass out.  We had the neighbors over for pizza with Corey and Kellan from across the road too.  After dinner, they watched the new show on TV.  It was fun, but probably a bit much after a busy work week.  We kept Corey and Kellan for a bit afterwards and took them to the spooky houses over on Bassett Street.  They do an awesome job decorating and with a small donation, we can walk around the yards and look at it all!  It was so fun to go when it was dark this year.

We're really getting in the Halloween spirit over here with two weeks to go!  The boys painted pumpkins using some of the pumpkins that we grew this year.  Evan chose to do Jack Skellington and Sean did a zombie.  The house is decorated both inside and outside, the costumes are bought and ready, and we're excited for the Greenfield Village event on Saturday night and the downtown Plymouth's Pumpkin Pallooza on Sunday!