3rd Annual Halloween Party

I love Halloween. I mean, what's not to like? Candy? Costumes? I'm SO there. Not only that but Dean and I kissed for the first time on Halloween. At a Halloween party, as it happens. And we went on our first date a few days afterward (a little backward, maybe, but it worked for us, apaprently). That was ten years ago. I remember thinking Dean was SO old because he was 26. Ah, to be so young and naive.... Anyhow, needless to say, Halloween definitely has a special place in my heart.

Adding kids to the Halloween mix is liking mixing peanut butter with chocolate. It makes something that is great in and of itself even better. Although there was very little fanfare for Ella's first Halloween (she was only 9 or 10 months old), Halloween has become an event since then. It's not just the trick-or-treating and the costumes. It's the party that precedes all of it. I'll admit it: I love to throw kids' parties. Actually, I'm not such a big fan of birthday parties. But the Halloween party that we've had for the past three years is a blast. I love every bit of it: the goody bags and the treats and the pinata full of neat stuff. I even dressed up this year, which was a first (if you can call Halloween tights and a witch hat "dressed up"). And apparently, Ella and Sadie love it, too, because they declared yesterday's party the "best Halloween party EVER EVER."

We even got my brother to make an appearance. I was worried he'd get some awkward questions from the kiddos, but he mostly just got a few double-takes. Ella is already so passe about it though: "Oh, he's getting a new leg soon," she told her friends. Like, DUH. Too funny. What's also funny is that while a few kids noticed my brother's leg, a few kids were completely oblivious. Kids are a strange breed.

Here are some photos. I'll try to upload the rest to my Picasa album tomorrow. Oh, and if you're wondering why Ella is wearing a mask with her Belle costume, all I can say is that all of our friends' kids are boys, and all of the boys were dressed as superheroes. This was the source of much drama leading up to the party because Ella wanted to ditch Belle and just wear a cape and a mask. But I could tell that she really SORT OF wanted to be Belle. There were tears over this. Which I'm nearly certain would NOT have happened if I were the mother of boys. Ella was so concerned over whether or not the boys would like her costume. And here's me, the women's studies minor trying to sell her on Belle by saying that the superheroes would need a princess to save (I honestly cannot believe I said that, but I was desperate to stop the tears so I could finsih the party prep.) In the end, Ella wore her Belle costume and a cape and mask. Whatever. All I can say is that the teenage years around here are NOT going to be fun. Good grief!