So Thankful On Thanksgiving

It was the day before Thanksgiving.  School was out, the bags were packed, cat sitter was lined up and 6 people and one large dog were cozy in the van and ready for the trek up to Michigan this year. 

This is how Journey rides.  Blanky in one hand listening to her movie.

We arrived in the early evening, saw family, met a new girlfriend (always fun!) had an inflatable bed debacle that is far too long to get into but included four inflatable beds, four sleepy children that needed three of them, one missing air pump, one that my mom ran out for but we didn’t have batteries required, one pump borrowed from our neighbors that held a charge for about 5 seconds (literally), one very winded daddy after self inflating one of them and a partridge in a pair tree!  But, there were many laughs and memories made in the hours long process. 

This was taken at about midnight one night in a dark room.  The flash didn't even stir her, but she was so cute all balled up on her pillow!

My family heads to Frankenmuth MI for our Thanksgiving feast.  We get there early, wait in line and then feast on four courses of deliciousness served by a staff adorned in pioneer clothes and accessories.  It is Thanksgiving tradition in Michigan. 

Waiting in the long line!

My brother with his nieces.  I spent more time with my brother on this trip than I have the last ten years combined.  It was great to spend time with him, get to know him a bit better.

Journey is finishing up the ice cream at the end.  I am pretty sure it was her favorite part.

Lana, Skyla and Trinity eating up their ice cream.

My parents (pictured here), us, my brother and his girlfriend and my sister made a party of 11 this year. 

It was a great time and I am so thankful for so many people and things in my life today.  But wait!  There is more! 

This Thanksgiving I was given a very special gift.  I was given time with someone I love and have missed greatly.  When I was only a year old my dad passed away as a result of a terrible accident.  We stayed in contact with my dad’s family for a while, but then when I was around 7 years old my grandparents moved down to Florida along with my aunt and two uncles.  I had another uncle and aunt that lived in northern Michigan, but we hardly ever saw them before and then not at all after.  Over the years I haven’t seen much of my dad’s side of the family.  A random drop-in the summer I was 16 years old and then my aunt and uncle from Michigan came to our wedding.  I have talked with my grandma on the phone over the years and she was always SO positive and loving.  I honestly haven’t heard anyone tell me that they love me and how proud they are of me so many times as when I would talk to her.  My grandpa on that side passed about five years ago.  I kept trying to get down to Florida to see them all, but things would get in the way.  I was usually pregnant, or we couldn’t afford the trip, we were moving or we had little babies.  It was always something.

Through the awesome powers of Facebook I have been able to reconnect with family and found that my Grandma was staying up in Michigan.  I knew I was going up for Thanksgiving and wanted to see if it was possible to see her.  Wednesday night, at last minute, I connected with my aunt and uncle and we set up a meeting in Frankenmuth.  I was very nervous and excited to be able to see her after so many years and for her to see her great grandchildren. 

I caught up with my Uncle after we ate our Thanksgiving meal and then he brought me to my grandma.  She looks nothing like she used to, her mind isn’t sharp and she stays in her wheelchair these days.  But, when I saw her it was comfort that hit me.  She smiled brilliantly and looked in my eyes and said “I love you”.    

She was so tender and happy.

Grandma with all the girls

For 86 years old she still has a sparkle in her smile that is magical to be around.  We all talked for a while and grandma was very interested in the children.  She loved to watch them play and she wanted to hold my hand.  It was such a blessing to see her and the others.



She loved being with the girls

My Grandma

The girls did so well being patient while I visited.

I got to hear about all my cousins and their children and even those down in Florida.  Grandma is staying in Michigan now permanently.  I am hoping to see more of that side of my family in the times to come.  I have really missed them all over the years and it was just amazing to see some of them again… especially my grandma.



Time for goodbye

BIG hugs!

We said our goodbyes and walked around the very cute town, did some shopping, looked at the horses and went back to the house.  The rest of the days and nights of our stay passed and then we were on the road again only to turn around and go back up in three weeks for a couple days of Christmas celebration.  Ahhh...  the holidays!

The girls watched a special show and had their popcorn balls as a snack... BIG mistake.  We will never again be getting brightly candy coated popcorn balls.  They were hard as a rock and made a huge mess!)

Grandpa and the girls made some cookies on our last day as a fun snack.

So... though the travel is long and complicated, the air beds are tricky, the popcorn balls are a hot mess and the stench of family drama can be sour there are always things to be Thankful for.  I hope you enjoyed a beautiful holiday with those you love.

 

The 3 Week Shuffle!

Now the kick off Thanksgiving feast is over, the big guy has officially come to town (even if he has been hanging out at some stores and shopping centers since before Halloween!) and we have 3 weeks to get our things together.  It is only those three little calendar weeks before most schools let the kids out for the rest of the year and the holiday dance kicks into full swing.

During these few weeks we have a house to decorate, holiday cards to be created, numerous school holiday functions to attend, bake for and/or volunteer at.  There are company parties, family events, church functions, and themed playgroups to host and go to.  The holiday theater events, choirs and concerts to attend with family members dressed to impress.  All of this AND we have gifts to buy and make and wrap and give. 

This list only takes us to the week before Christmas.  It is enough to send any sane person off the edge, but chaos as it may be is trimmed with holiday spirit (sometimes some special spirits) and it makes it all bearable…  at least in retrospect.  I love the holidays, I really do, but they are a lot to handle and it can get overwhelming quick if you don’t have a plan of action. 

Write it all out!  Seriously sit down and write out all of those expectations you have for yourself so you can actually get it all done.  Make a night out of wrapping with a good movie, maybe some wine and go for it.  Separate all your gifts into large bags based on location so you can just grab it and go when the time comes.  Write out a list of all the gifts you have to give so no one is forgotten and always remember to have a few extra’s stashed away incase the random neighbor pops by to give you a little something.

Make sure you are not double booked for any day or night and be sure to write down when any cooking needs done.  It is great to volunteer to bring a dish to a party, but when every minute of the day before is packed it is hard to squeeze in some baking time.  On that note, be sure to grab ingredients in your normal shopping trips so you don’t have to make any extra trips out and waste the time. 

We chose a day to decorate and an evening for cards.  I know many of you still write out cards, but we go the e-card route.  It saves time, money and trees and although I see why some still stick with the traditional ways I do enjoy my “click and off they go” cards. 

Other than the things mentioned above I would say the best holiday trick is to be as malleable as possible.  You will feel like you are being bent, squeezed, stretched and hit square in the face probably a couple of times, but you just have to roll with it and Be Merry!!! 

Good Luck everyone and may the Holidays be with you!

33 Minutes For Me

When you are going along a path for such a long time you forget to miss things sometimes.  This last Friday I was volunteering at my daughter’s school after a hectic morning and then decided to fill in for a couple of Girl Scout leaders that couldn’t make it to Daisy’s.  After what seemed like an explosion of paper and mayhem getting an excited group of first grade girls to make puritan bonnets and collars for themselves I was ready for a breath.  I had only about 45 minutes to find something to eat before I was due back at the school for the Daisy meeting.  I am hardly over on that side of town, except to go to the school, so I am unfamiliar with places to eat.  I found a McAlister’s and headed in.  I had a binder of work (fun work… work I love) with me to review if I had a few moments. 

My hands felt oddly light as I grabbed my purse and binder and headed toward the door.  I had a moment to think of what I may actually want to eat.  I ordered without interruption and the total was less than $30!  I jaunted over to whatever booth I wanted.  I picked the biggest one I could find and slipped in.  I looked around, took a few sips of my drink and just sat… quietly.  I then opened my binder and looked over notes and things I hadn’t looked at in months.  It is one of those projects I love, but somehow takes an easy backseat to everything else.  My monster of a salad came and I just sat and ate and read and drank and ate more.  It was so quiet, so calm, so surreal.  I can honestly tell you I have no idea when the last time I was at a restaurant, book store, coffee shop etc. all by myself just reading and having a moment was.  I used to go out for lunches in my working-out-of-the-house days, but obviously those are now replaced with making lunches for at least three little ones everyday.  I had forgotten what time alone really was.  Sure I have nap times, but those are always a punctuated state of quiet with different troubles and conflicts trickling downstairs in the form of little feet.  During that lunch the kids were all taken care of, I had no where else I had to be and I was doing something I wanted to be doing. It was almost an out of body experience!

The clock then demanded I leave and return to my usual form of happy… my kids… and help with her Daisy Scouts.  That too was fun and it was great to be able to help out there since I hardly ever get to help out due to the time.  We did crafts, sang songs, gathered our things and headed out to our home full of little voices and needs that need met. 

For 33 minutes that day last week I was reminded what peace and quiet is like.  Time for yourself.  Would I want to trade it for what I have?  Never!  But, would I like a taste of that a little more often?  You betcha!

(This picture was taken about 2 weeks after we found out we were pregnant with Skyla.  We were on Oak Island.  This was the beginning)

The Four Corners Of A Square

This is how I would describe my children.  They are born from the same mother and father and presumably splash in the same gene pools, but their personalities could not be further from each other.  Somehow still, we all meld together to create a nearly smooth family soup with only some small wandering lumps and clumps. 

A couple of months back I was at a talk given by a woman who was using the book “Different Children, Different Needs” by Dr. Charles Boyd as the basis of her discussion.  That night’s talk was one of those I walked away from a little different than when I had come in.  In this book it defines, on an xy axis, the four different personality directions.  Imagine if you will, the Vertical axis being task oriented on top and people oriented on the bottom and the horizontal axis having slow paced on the right and fast paced on the left.  Now most people fall somewhere on the spectrum (sometimes a blend or a little more of something and a little less of something else), but I found, after listening to all the traits, that each of my children fell in the furthest points of every quadrant… making a perfect square when they were connected. 

The upper left quadrant would be the “D” Determined child, which is my youngest, Journey.  This is ironic because this spot is typically held by first borns, but if any of you know Journey you know she thinks and acts like a first born. 

The lower left area is for the “I” Influencing child.  The characteristics of this scream Lana’s name.

The upper right is for the “S” Soft-hearted child and Skyla, our oldest, fills this roll. 

Then there is the lower right that is for our Trinity and it is for the “C” contentious child.

It was seriously like someone took my children away for 6 months, studied their habits, nuances, gifts and burdens and wrote a book about the four of them. 

The speaker went on to explain the parenting strategies for nurturing and guiding these four unique personality paths.  It was eye opening to say the least and gave me a lot to think about.  Many times we think what is good for one child is good for all of them.  However, the way one reacts to something you do, or say, will be completely different than the way another child reacts.  Also, from their end, how they deal with stress, relaxation, work and criticism is all different even if their environment is the same. 

The book goes on to say the strengths, limitations, fears and needs of each type of child and also explains their communication styles, how they work under pressure and their common decision making techniques.  Again… these categories could have been named after my children because they were so point on to what I see everyday with them.  I was also told what each child needs to recharge and relax.  Skyla needs “nothing” time, which is so true for her.  She needs some quiet nothing to rest that mind that is usually going fast and faster.  Trinity needs some private time and Lana, our social butterfly, needs social time.  I learned about Journey’s power struggles and that she needs choices and direct answers from me.

“Weaknesses are strengths pushed to an extreme”.  This was a phrase she used and then went on to show how each group has their strengths, but when pushed and stressed, those same strengths turn into a downfall for that child.  This can all be applied to adults just as much as children.

This is an awesome book and highly recommended if you would like to learn more about where your kids might be coming from.  This is not intended to stick your child in a box with a pretty label saying “this is who you are and it’s not changing”; because we all know people change.  But, if you want to stop pulling your hair out because child B isn’t responding the same way to something that worked with ease with child A then this is something you might want to check out.  Limit your chaos by getting to know your children as much as you can.  Learning to optimally work with your child through the praise and the discipline will lower the stress in your home.

Free them to be who they are designed to be and it will be a huge freedom for you as well.  We are here to help our children use their strengths and learn from their weaknesses and how can we do that when we don’t know exactly what they are.  Invest some time in studying how your child works and you might both be surprised at the outcome.

Methods To What Looks Like Madness

From an outsiders point of view it may look like I am a lunatic flying around the house twirling and whirling, but in all actuality I am getting 10 minutes worth of work done in 3 minutes.  It is the art of multitasking that I am talking about today.  Fortunately I am skilled in this… to some degree that is. 

Like with anything there are strengths and weaknesses when it comes to this endeavor.  One of the big tricks I can pass on to you is to think ahead as much as you can.  It will save you time and running around and who doesn’t want that?  When you stay calm and clear you can think of all the things you need to do.  

When I have activated “mommy mode” and the tasks are building up I figure out in my head what all needs done and go for it.  If I need to go upstairs for something I am taking anything else that needs to go upstairs, putting it away, doing whatever tasks are up there and then coming down with whatever it was that needed to come down.  If I am going to the office I will take things, do anything that needs done in there and then bring things out that need to.  The garage is a good example.  If I head out for the mail I take any coupons or things that need to go in the car out there, drop them off on my way out and then on the way in grab those things out of the garage fridge we need and come in.  I just went from three trips to the garage to one.  It is not easy to explain.  It is a dance with the rhythm of productivity and yes …it can be fun.  I do literally twirl and whirl sometimes as I do these things.  Give a kid a ride on the stairs, sing and dance.  I have told you before I always have music on in this house.  It is calming to everyone and can make tense times more gentle and controlled.

I do have my weaknesses when that red button is pressed and I burst forth in multitasking mode.  I can talk some, but don’t expect me to carry on a serious conversation!  Also, I find if I am running around, in what feels like a tornado of duties, and I see my husband playing Angry Birds over on the couch I might get a little frustrated.  So, I would say I might have a heightened irritability during this time as well.  I am working on it.  No one is perfect.

Those of us that stay home with our families during the day have plenty of time to make mistakes, correct them and try something different until we find what works best.  My home is my job right now and I always strive to do the best I can at every job I have.  The more I can do in the least amount of time gets me more time with the other things… the good things in life.  We all know that there is ALWAYS something to be done, but when you get enough of it done you can feel better about hitting that “pause” button.

Happy Multitasking!

What Does That mean???

It occurred to me yesterday that I started this blog and I have been running with it without actually explaining what the title is all about!  Leave it to me to hit the ground running without paying attention to the starting line! 

This title, consolidating chaos, has been with me for years because it has become my way of life.  It was the way I was able to cope (mostly calmly) with four children ages four and under.  It was the way I managed to live in seven different places with my husband, across the United States within eight years (that sounds exhausting to say out loud and yes, that was through children and pregnancies, not before it).  It is how I manage finances, volunteer work, the house and every other facet of my life.  I consolidate the chaos of that one topic, or area, so that I may better concentrate on other boxes of chaos that need opened at the moment. 

I get overwhelmed when I feel like everything is hitting me at once and so this is my survival mode I suppose.  Handle one thing, one crisis, one child at a time.  I have a time for everything and a place for everything.  This is not to say I walk around with spectacles bridged across my lower nose tapping intendedly at a schedule clutched in my hands, but I do keep a general schedule to my day and deviate rarely.  There is always a nap/quiet time in the afternoon except on a very rare occasion now that the girls are getting a bit bigger.  The girls get up at 8am and bed is at 8pm, with the exception of the our school aged daughter who gets up earlier.  There are three meals a day and a snack after naptime with two half hour shows a day (one in the morning and one after nap while they have their snack).  A schedule limits, and consolidates, the chaos from so many different angles.  The kids understand the schedule and it is second nature to them.  They know exactly what happens everyday and what to expect.  There is no uneasiness of the unknown and no bartering for anything different.  A schedule equals peace in many ways.

Like our schedule, other things are planned out as well.  I have the grocery list pre-printed with check boxes so I just have to walk over whenever we run out of something and mark it.  I know before I go to the store to take a second glance to check inventories.  I pre-plan my month of meals out so I know I have all the ingredients for each night.  Sure we deviate from it often with switching days or skipping them when we go out, but it was always a huge stress to figure out dinner everyday and now I just do it once a month.  The chaos of cleaning a house of six people is consolidated into sections and managed easily (See my cleaning series “My Secret Recipe to a Clean House” from September).  I keep a planner, of course, to keep up with the doings of this crazy crew.  We are far from a stagnant group and so we need a central calendar to refer to (ie. my planner) for all of the multiple school functions, doctor appointments, vacations, visitors and social events.

I also keep folders for many things to cut paper clutter down.  I have a file cabinet with the usual suspects in it like tax folders, medical insurance, financial things and house things.  I have folders for the other things as well though.  There is one for each school my kids attend, each group I belong to, each hobby I have etc.  In this way I can literally close the cover on one subject and open the cover to another. 

My house is a great example of how I use consolidating chaos.  The girls, guaranteed, have the play room crazy by 9am and that is fine.  They are supposed to do that. But, come nap time the chaos has to be consolidated to the play room.  There is a threshold of carpet/hard wood there and the toys need to be on the inside of the playroom. The rest of the house is in order and I can sit, have my lunch and relax and let the chaos be in there.  I consolidate it to the other room and it is crazy with a capital C in there, but it is all in THERE, not where I am.  When it is time to clean up the playroom, as we do every night together, we just have to work in that one room and not all over the house. 

Of course there is the literal folders/boxes of chaos and there is the figurative.  That talk you are going to have with your child or husband can’t effectively happen when the dinner is being made and backpacks are being emptied in all of the evening’s pandemonium.  Wait, find a time and then you can focus on the subject at hand.  The homework, the work outs, the errands and everything can have its own time.  Sometimes those times overlap and that is where the wondrous thing called multitasking comes in, but even that can be calm.  You just need to learn how to work through everything.    

There are so many different areas of our lives and I know mine has more than I can think of at any given moment.  But, we don’t have to deal with them all at the same time.  Life happens, things shift, the unexpected becomes normal, but organizing your chaos into manageable portions makes life that much easier.  Do what you can to make the work of life less cumbersome so that you can concentrate on the fun in it.      

Hang Loose

One of the biggest problems many parents have, me included sometimes, is that we forget that our kids ARE kids and we need to let them be so.  Even more than that though, we need to be kids with them sometimes… or a lot of the time.  Sure we have more responsibilities now, have the weight of finances, jobs, volunteer work, big life choices etc., but if we forget what it is to be a kid then what is it all for?  The best memories your kids are going to have of you when they are older is of you playing with them, laughing with them or teaching them something amazing.  They will have no idea if facebook was checked that day or if the kitchen floor was spotless.  Get out there and share in their little lives, immerse yourself in them and don’t just be the figure over them to make sure they do everything the “proper” way.  Kids have some mind boggling ideas they can share if we would just listen and many times we are wrong and they are right.  It is ok to let them know that sometimes. 

Stuck on ideas of new things to do?  Here are some recent things we did with ours that turned out to be some of those great moments to remember from the year. 

-         Sandcastles and burying in the sand at the beach was a big hit.

-         Hide and Go Seek is always fun.  Even if they are too young to count one can be with the child while the other hides and the seeking can be done in tandem.     

-         Dancing!  We always have music on around here over the house speakers and so it is common place to cook with a beat or break out in song and dance.  The kids think it is awesome.  It also teaches some rhythm to some of our not so rhythmic children.

-         The other day the girls were handing out “tickets” to their play “In the Moon Light” and said to be there in a few minutes.  My husband and I ran to our closet and dressed up for the occasion.  Brian had on a shirt, tie, suit coat and a fun hat from our honeymoon ages ago.  I put on a nice dress and we headed downstairs arm in arm.  The girls jaws dropped and they put on a great show.  Bravo!  There was a second show only minutes after the first ended and we had GREAT seats.

-         Play on the swing set with them. 

-         Explore anywhere from suburban to forest.  There are always great discoveries around.

-         Climb a tree and show them how it is done. 

(He would do well with coconut trees!)

(She had fun climbing)

(Do you see me?)

(Coming down was a little more tricky)

We were all there once, no matter how many years ago and it is all still in us.  The wonder, the fearlessness, the acting without thought of every consequence and the lightness of everything.  Some can access it without trying and others will have to dig deep. 

The chaos of everything can wait, sometimes you just have to play.

A New Normal

Have you had to readjust your life, probably more than once, to accommodate a different set of circumstances thrown your direction?  Our family is experiencing this today.  In the middle of last week my husband’s grandfather passed away.  This was not unexpected.  On the contrary, it was very expected.  He had been hanging on without life support for 11 days in my in-law’s home under hospice care.  His last few years were interrupted with doctors visits and tests, diagnosis and declining prognosis.  It started with prostate cancer which led to bone cancer, clots in his lungs and pneumonia.  For more than a week before he died he was unresponsive.  We all knew it was coming, but nothing ever really prepares the family to say goodbye.   

(These were both taken at grandma and grandpa's 50th anniversary party.  They have eight children, 14 grandchildren and 15 great grandchildren)

Grandpa Bill was visited by his three out of state son’s just weeks before he passed, while he was still mobile and lucid.  His five other children, including my mother in-law, are relatively close and were able to handle responsibilities and care for him.  My in-laws had created a beautiful space for grandma and grandpa to move into over the summer, but their adamant and stubborn ways (understandably seen by so many of the older generation) kept them from moving in.  Seemingly spontaneously Grandpa announced their moving date and hustled preparations were made.  They moved in just two weeks and two days before he died.  Grandma now has a place that she can feel safe, even after he is gone, and is settled.  I think moving was the last grand gesture he gave his wife.  They celebrated their 60 year wedding anniversary at 10am on October 27^th.  She held his hand and wished him a happy anniversary.  But, it wasn’t until All Saints Day that he was able to let go and be with the angels. 

Family and friends converged from all over time and place.  Those that had known him all their lives to those that he touched years and years ago as a basketball player for Butler University, couch at Bloomington High School or teacher and education role model.  I only knew him as grandpa, and great grandpa to my girls.  When I had no grandpa’s left in my life he walked in and filled the seat.  He was funny, loved kids and being a kid and gave some great hugs.

(Skyla was just a few weeks old here)

(grandpa with my neice, one of his great granddaughters)

The viewing and funeral passed with some of those “only at a funeral” stories.  There are the random people no one really knows that talk your ear off and sometimes serenade you with a random song about a town in Ohio named Morrow.  Yeah, I was the victim of that one.  There was Skyla examining the body of her great grandpa and trying to figure out what parts were not as stiff.  When it appeared as though she was giving his poor body chest compressions my husband called her away.  Then there was the priest who accidentally hit grandpa’s casket when covering it with smoke from incense lantern.  There are a few other stories that are o’ so memorable, but not so appropriate for distribution.

But, then there was the beautiful flowers, the hugs, the pieces of his life that were there for all to see, the laughter and the tears combined into a collage of emotions.  The generations of the family painted across the room with the youngest members splattered  here and there unknowing of the true depth of the occasion.  There were connections made from years past and new connections made as strangers shared how Grandpa had woven into their lives.    

(Last Christmas he gave all his great granddaughters these HUGE dolls.  He was so excited to give them out that night)

So what now?  The treatments are done, the doctor visits are over, the visitation and funeral are in the past.  The surroundings are different for grandma and my in-laws.  A slew of paperwork and dutiful responsibilities are all that remain.  A new normal will begin, but no one really knows what that means.  It will be invented as we all go along.  His wife, his children, grandchildren, great grandchildren and good friends will think about him, remember him, laugh and miss him. 

Snow White, A Cat, A Giraffe And Whatever The Little One Won’t Pull Off!

What crazy family would put these four things together?  Us of course!  When it comes to Halloween I am as simple as you get.  I know there are many out there that make their kids costumes starting the day after the fourth of July, but I am not one of them…  not to say I haven’t been caught jealous seeing those crafty moms with their beautifully, and creatively, adorned children.  We do not do too much as far as decorations either.  We have a scarecrow, some lights, a witch on the door and the last minute carved pumpkins.

(These were Brian's masterpieces.  Everyone submitted their sketches to him via paper or ipad app and he carved away.  It was a two hour process...yep, his hand was sore.  This, of course, was done on Sunday)

With Birthdays coming out of our ears in October Halloween always seems to creep up us.  Then the Halloween party lists at the schools are sent home and we are reminded to get our tails in gear because the day is coming, ready or NOT.

(This is Trinity and lana's school party that Journey was invited to.  This was their Halloween-take one princess costumes)

So, what do you really need for Halloween when you peel it all away?  A costume, candy to give out and a sac to get the candy that you collect, right?  Or, if you don’t have kids then you just need a costume and plenty of alcohol probably.  Those days are way behind and ahead of me, so I won’t pretend to be an expert there.

Being in a house with four little girls we have an entire overstuffed bin of dress up clothes and my kids just think it is awesome to go and pick some funny outfit and wear it outside.  They couldn’t be happier and well, me either!  The outfits that Trinity and Lana have on have been their costumes now for three years because they LOVE them.  Trinity would wear a cat costume everyday of her life if she could and Lana thinks dressing like a giraffe is awesome.  Skyla adores the new Snow White dress and held onto it since her birthday.  Then there is Journey.  Journey usually keeps dress up things on for about 1-2 minutes before asking to take it off, but this skirt (as long as it doesn’t touch her belly) she will wear all day.  So, skirt, colorful sweater some face paint and she is good to go as a cute… little… wingless… fairy… girl.  Sure that is what we will call it.

For a bag you can use just about anything from the classic plastic pumpkin container, to a pillow case.  Your choice.  We had some pumpkin bags, but they are a little harder for the little ones to open and so I think I will get the bins next year.

(Journey was a trooper and walked/ran all around with her sisters for over an hour.  By the last stretch she was feeling it, but she didn't want anything to do with me carrying her bag for her.  This is another reason we need new sacs for next year...  we had quite a few small holes when we got home.)

So, now that costumes and bags are done, we need candy.  The trick to candy, IF you don’t want to be sitting there eating it yourself, is to buy stuff you don’t like.  Suckers are a good buy too because then it takes a bit longer (and you can get organic and more healthy ones…  just throwing it out there) and so you aren’t stuffing yourself.  With four kids collecting I know there will be plenty to go around when they come home.

(Trick or Treat!!!)

We trick or treat earlier when the sun is up and then eat dinner afterwards when the rest of the trick or treaters come to the door.  This is a perfect system to quickly go through all of the candy, keep what you want and redistribute what you don’t.  That way you are left with a basketful of what you will actually eat.  Freezing the chocolates is a great idea too. That way you have longevity of the candy and you don’t have to stare at it for weeks.  A garage freezer is great for this because then it is even out of the main house, but nice to pull out every once in a while for a treat.  If you are stuck with a bunch, you can give it to a food pantry for donation, return unopened bags to the store if you kept your receipt, or sell it to an area dentist for them to then send overseas to the troops.  You can find dentists by going to http://www.halloweencandybuyback.com . 

(Trinity's loot)

All in all, you just want the kids to have a great time using their imaginations, running around from house to house, not minding sidewalks for once, and getting more candy than they know what to do with.  It is all about quantity on Halloween for the kids, the quality is your job as parents to figure out.  Splurge after the collection, but not to the point of revisiting the candy later, and then teach them about rationing out pieces to make it last and to be healthy about it. 

We spent our evening with some great friends and ended with our tradition of delivered pizza.  We only get it once, maybe twice a year, so it is an event here.  Costumes off, faces washed, pajamas on, teeth extra brushed and a quick story for all four at the same time tonight!

Goodnight girls, goodnight Halloween.  See you again next year…