Halloween 2015

We had a fun & festive filled Friday (ooh look at that alliteration)! We kicked things off the night before with Liam & Conor carving pumpkins (read: Liam helped pull out some pumpkin goop and watched Conor carve) while I was in charge of baking the pumpkin seeds! This year I finally admitted to myself that I really don't like pumpkin carving. I am absolutely terrible at it. So instead I let the boys have at it while I cleaned up the seeds and did my thing. A perfect night. We put an excited Liam to bed that night who slowly fell asleep talking about trick-or-treating with his friends the next day. Conor & I both put the finishing touches on Liam's costume, which was probably our 3rd or 4th consecutive late night of this but so worth it!

 

Halloween day I knew I had to get Liam out of the house, because he could not stop talking about all the candy. I didn't buy any until the day before, because I knew this would be the case. Liam rarely gets candy, but when chocolate is in sight the boy cannot be stopped! To keep busy, we went to the aquarium where all the staff was dressed up in costumes and handing out candy...of course! At least it was some good trick-or-treating practice. Except Liam refused to speak a word... He would ever so slowly approach the costumed person with his chin tucked in and his eyes gazing up as if to say I'm being cute & shy, so just give me some candy! And it worked! 

Once back home, I had to calm down a super excited boy who only wanted to wear his dinosaur costume and get more candy. Somehow we managed a nap, thank goodness! The second we woke up, our evening was a flurry of putting on costumes (mine was a last minute decision), trying to make dinner, & keep Liam out of the candy meant for trick-or-treaters... I made pumpkin soup which seemed perfectly fitting for the evening and may be a new Halloween tradition!

 

Making Liam's costume was a bit more daunting than I initially thought, but I love how it turned out! The measuring & cutting of the fabric was one of the most time consuming parts, as well as all the embellishments that had to be sewn by hand. We pretty much followed this tutorial for the tail, although we made Liam's bigger which was completely unnecessary. I referenced this post for the overall look. In addition, Conor made some dino feet (which just slipped over Liam's shoes) for a little extra somethin' somethin'. 

 After snapping some pictures, Liam was off with all the neighborhood kids. He was the youngest of the group by over a year, but he did a darn good job of keeping up. He ran as fast as his little legs & long tail would allow, managing to make it up to each door step just in time. He assessed his loot after each house and wanted me to open a piece of candy every time. We settled for a sucker to make it through more than just a few houses. 

 

The weather was beautiful, so we sat out in front of house passing out candy 'til almost 9pm. Sugar highs are a real thing, and Liam was relishing in his. Conor says I was too... I definitely tapped into Liam's stash; milk duds & reese's pieces for the baby! It was the perfect end to one of the most beautiful Octobers I have ever seen! While I was sad to see the month end, I'm ready for November and some turkey! Pumpkin everything is still fair game, so I see some spice cupcakes in my future this week!

 

Hope you had just as fun with your littles!