pumpkins, #7 and charlie brown

this is the first year our family "got into " halloween.  oakley really did not know what it was to start, but he knew he got to dress up as whatever he wanted.  when we asked him what he wanted to be for halloween, he said, "a buckeye!"  (really, he did!  no coaxing!)  of course, brian was thrilled.  i was going to make his costume, but found one online for cheaper than i was expecting, so we bought it.  it is pretty big on him, so he'll be able to wear it for a few years (hopefully).  when we received it in the mail (i think brian was just as excited to open the box), the boys tore into the package and oakley was dressed in a matter of minutes.  it was so cute!  oakley loves it and has worn it almost every day since.  we were happy he still wanted to wear it when halloween rolled around a couple weeks later. :)

we carved pumpkins on thursday before halloween.  oakley loved pulling out the "gook" and was really into helping with the nasty chore.  he picked his pumpkin and assigned the other one to mommy and daddy.  he chose different shapes for the eyes and nose and said he wanted it to have "two teef!"  i found a couple of recipes--one sweet, one salty--for roasting the pumpkin seeds.  i have not done this in years, so it was fun!  they were pretty tasty, too.

did you get it all?

ours on the left and o's on the right.

we really need to work on his "cheese face"  haha!

so proud of his pumpkin!  every time he walked past it, he would touch it and say, "i just touch my pumtin, mommy."

 friday, we joined the thomas family (nathan, kelly and greyson) in night of the living farm at deanna rose farmstead (thanks for the tickets, christie!) for trick-or-treating and fun activities.  i dressed as oakley's mom.  i know, creative!  i was his biggest fan, wearing brian's huge #7 ohio state jersey.  oakley has #7 on his jersey, so it was perfect.  brian used his xbox headset and was the coach.  fitting, i thought.  we had so much fun!  greyson was the cutest charlie brown around.  what a doll, that boy.  the boys had fun running around, riding tractors, visiting the animals and going down the big slide.  i do have to say, i'm happy i know greyson because in about 15 years, he's going to be famous with his dancing moves.  yes, he is only 1.5, but that boy can dance! :)  there was a stage at deanna rose where they played dance music and we spent at least 30 minutes there.  it was packed.  oakley, kelly and grey spent some good time up there dancing.  it was pretty cute.

charlie brown!

"twick or tweat"

movin' and groovin'

halloween came and we went to a pumpkin party at the sorell household.  oakley had a blast being around the other dressed up kids and playing with asher's boy toys.  there were festive snacks, foam pumkins, mummy-making contests, and (my favorite!) balloons to decorate with glowsticks in them.  i had a good time meeting the other moms, too.  it was great seeing sarah after being gone all summer!

that night, we took oakley trick-or-treating in the wagon.  beanie got to come, too.  oakley had so much fun, yelling, "trick-or-treat!!!" at the end of the drivway and yelled it over and over until we got to each door.  he was so polite to say, "thank you" when they gave him candy.  then he said, "we going to next house!  bye!" to every homeowner.  we did that for about 30 minutes, then went home to hand out candy to the other kids.  i think oakley enjoyed this part even more.  if he saw kids coming up to the door, he screamed, "KIDS!!!  I HAVE CANDY FOR YOU KIDS!!!"  it was hilarious!  so cute to see him really get into the festivities!  we also had the opportunity to skype with brian's parents, which is always a "treat."

 the next day, oakley got to pick out three pieces of candy he wanted to keep.  while he was napping, "the great pumpkin" came to whisk the candy away and left a toy in his bucket.  oakley was thrilled and loves his new toy.  i'm glad it went as smoothly as it did.  we don't let him have much candy, but he had two pieces on halloween and obviously really liked it, so i was a little nervous to take it away.  i think we'll stick with "the great pumpkin" trick!

his new tube of african desert animals! (why they put a brown bear in there, i have yet to figure out)

well, there's our halloween week.  we had fun seeing oakley enjoy the "holiday"...even if it is a strange one.

today, i'm thankful for:

parents who love me unconditionally
catching up with friends
family who lives close
crockpot meals
a God who answers prayers