The best month of the year...

What's not to like about October?

It's fall, but usually not too cold.

It has great birthdays:  a nephew, 3 friends, me, my godmother and my dad.

And then there's Halloween!

Our boys went as a bullfighter and a bull this year.

The idea came out of nowhere.  Our local library had a costume exchange, and Kaden fell in love with the bullfighter outfit.  Right away, he started yelling TORO TORO.  Of course we had to get it.

And then one of us came up with the idea of having SamCub as the bull.  His costume was super easy:  black sweats, a sock pinned to his pants for a tail, and a knit hat fixed up with felt.  He was kinda like Ferdinand, though- often looking anywhere BUT the red cape.  Inside was a different story- he'd crawl after Kaden, who was waving the cape and yelling TORO TORO again.  Fun times.

Around these parts, Trick or Treating isn't on Halloween Day (I don't understand, either).  So on 10-31, the boys wore other holiday-ish clothes.  I surprised Kaden with a teeshirt that had Darth Vadar and stormtroopers trick or treating.  He loves the Star Wars part, I love the incongruity:  win/win. And of course I couldn't pass up a Tigger costume for the babe.  He kept pulling off his hat, though.

Birthday selfie!  We adventured out to an alpaca farm... where a baby alpaca had been born an hour earlier!  and so they named her after me!  See?  BEST MONTH EVER.

Night in Bethlehem (preview)

Kaden and I have been having some GREAT conversations lately... but he's also at the age where he knows about "posting things online" and doesn't want everything up here.  So I'm not posting *everything*.  But I had to post this...

After seeing a box with a nativity photo on it, he asked what it was.

Me:  It's called "Night in Bethlehem."  It's a program we're doing at church this year.
Kaden:  really?  So, what grades will be in it?
Me:  All the grades are invited.
Kaden:  even FIRST grade?
Me:  yes.  (realizing he thinks it's a Christmas program the kids act out...) - Not like last year.  It's a little like a VBS night, for families, about Christmas.  So we make the gym look like the village of Bethlehem might have on the night Jesus was born.  And you come and get to walk through town and do fun stuff.

Kaden:  ALL RIGHT!!!  Will Mary be there?
Me:  yes.  at some point.  I don't know if you'll get to see her or not.  They were traveling, remember?
Kaden:  I know, I know.  HEY!  Does Sammy get to be baby Jesus?
Me:  No, silly, he's too big.  Remember when he was just born, how tiny he was?  Now, he'd be sitting up and waving and smiling at people, and Jesus didn't do that on his first night.

Kaden:  Yes he did, Mom.  It's in the story, remember?  The Drummer Boy (one of his faves).
Me: um. yes. well, that was probably not his FIRST night on earth.
Kaden:  I think it was, Mom.

~~~
There was more, of course, as the conversation unfolded to other Christmas memories and general celebrating thoughts.  After bedtime, I found out that he had a chat with JimDad just after he came home (about a half hour after our original chat).   Loosely translated:

Kaden:  Dad, did you know that we are doing a Bethlehem night at our church?
JimDad:  yes.
Kaden:  And Mom says that Sammy can't be baby Jesus because he's too big, and Jesus didn't smile or wave when he was born, but she's wrong Dad because remember the Little Drummer Boy?  Jesus smiled at HIM.  I think Mom is wrong on this one...