Joyfully Weary

It's probably a little late to be sharing these photos, but we had so much fun dressing up as Harry Potter characters for Halloween that I'm going to do it anyways. I can't believe it's already the middle of November! I make so many plans to visit this place...taking pictures and jotting down ideas of what I'd like to share, but time flies by and then the pictures and ideas seem old. Right now family and homeschooling can be all consuming some days. It's a season and one I'm trying to savor and not fight against. As much as I preach to myself, I still struggle to enjoy the moment instead of focusing on all the possible to-dos and what-ifs.  Anyways, back to costumes. This was the first year were everyone dressed up around the same theme. I loved it, and have been throwing out more theme ideas for next year. Nobody seems to be biting though. Harry Potter is a story we all enjoy, and it was easy to find characters that we all wanted to be.   Jeremy wen...

In years past we've done some pretty time consuming  elaborate costumes but this year we decided to keep things pretty simple.We didn't buy or make anything. Mini man was spider-man: he wore his spiderman pajamas and some fun goggles he received for his birthday. Big Buddy was going to wear some glow-in-the-dark skeleton pajamas but when the weather turned colder we convinced him (bribed him with sword carrying) to wear a knight costume from our dress-up basket. Little Lady's costume was my favorite: it's a hand-me-down her Aunt Emily wore a little over 20 years ago.  Little Lady was such a hoot to watch. She quickly caught on and would march up to every house, help knock, and quietly say "trick or treat". As soon as she made her way back down sidewalk though she'd insist on being put back in to the wagon. The whole time she held on to her treat bag for dear life and would squeal if anyone tried to take if from her. Her costume got her lots o...