October

If magic lived in a month, it would be October. I'll just start with Halloween because it was a dream. Our buddies came and I was the bell hop for a haunted hotel I set up. The kids were apprentices and had to complete tasks in order to receive keys that unlocked access to other areas of the hotel. Actually they were just cardboard doors with prizes behind them. The tasks were silly things like counting candy corn, untangling our giant spider from a web of string, and complimenting a trick-or-treater's hat. The best one though was finding 9 mini ghosts (the hotel residents) that I hid around the house and then doing a logic puzzle based on clues from the front desk log and notice board that helped them return the guests to their assigned rooms. The kids were effusively nice about the whole experience, although that is probably 90 percent reflective of upbringing and 10 percent reflective of the activities. That was not even the best part though because the friends wanted to go trick-or-treating, so they roped mine into it and that gave me the view from the front porch of a band of costumed children, glow stick shining, walking down a lamp lit street at twilight with candy bags swinging. The perfect view as I sat with my dear friend handing out candy to other costumed children on the very best night of the very best month of the year. 

Also this month I hosted my 4th and 5th grade Sunday school girls for a fall craft party. I think I had 17 show up. One of them brought her entire birthday party. They made pumpkins by wrapping fluffy yarn around pool noodles. I think it went well, but there were so many it wasn't quite the chill-and-chat party I was imagining. Craft part 2 didn't seem feasible for such a group so Daron got out the Gaga ball pit and we did a little of that instead. Everyone was on board with everything and were such a sweet bunch! 

Rory's class took a field trip to Camp Discovery. It is basically they hunt for macroinvertebrates water quality testing we do at Jones Gap for ALERT, so I was glad he got a little bit of that experience.

We went to the zoo with the neighbors. I was kind of worried no one in our party would be into it, but it ended up being the perfect weather and Rory took a picture of every single animal we saw.

Gigi sent us Halloween treat money we used one morning for donut holes.

Silas had his Halloween orchestra concert. I had to make him dress up. He came up with taping an M to a brown shirt and being M&M's with his friend Turner.

The Brouceks had us over for firepit smores.