Four Little Hawks Celebrate Halloween

Normally, we carve pumpkins and Trick or Treat just like everyone else on Halloween. But this year we decided to do things a little differently.

You know that saying, "Necessity is the mother of invention"? I didn't actually invent anything, but necessity was the catalyst for a little more creativity on my part this year. With finances extra tight, I just couldn't see spending a small fortune on Halloween costumes the kids would wear for an hour, pumpkins we'd throw away the next day, and a ton of candy to hand out to our neighbors. I consulted my Little Hawks - what would they think of having our very own Halloween party at home? They loved the idea! So it happened that for about 1/3 of the money we would usually spend, we had about 10 times the fun we usually have!

First, we decorated treat bags. I bought the kids' favorites to fill their bags - no yucky 'throw away' candy this year!While the kids painted and colored their treat bags, I baked my sister's famous sugar cookies. Seriously, these are the best cookies! Then the kids iced and decorated some sugary masterpieces:

Josh doing some quality control:

The girls discussing possible decorating strategies for their next cookies:
With the baked goods all finished, we all went down into the basement to start our "party". We had pizza, sliced up caramel apples, and way too many sweets! The kids decided to watch one of the Harry Potter movies in keeping with our Halloween theme. Two of the four were passed out cold by 9:30, and the other two were pretty near joining them. All of them thought it was the best Halloween we'd ever had, and I completely agree. No rushing through homework and dinner and stuffing the kids quickly into their costumes and out the door with Joel for trick or treating. We had so much fun being together! I took alot of cute pictures of the kids having their pizza picnic, but they all turned out too blurry to post (grrrrr . . . )!

This last picture might seem strange, but I had to add it to this post. While I was clearing all the baking and decorating mess from my kitchen counters and table, I really stood and looked at the table. Now, I usually hate our table. It's falling apart, it doesn't look very nice, it's impossible to keep clean, and it's falling apart.

But standing there looking at the remnants of cookie crumbs, icing, sprinkles, and tempera paint, I had to stop and say a prayer of thanks. I was struck by all of the memories that are held by this table. Memories of four little pairs of hands drawing, praying, eating, and growing. Memories of four little voices raised in laughter. I was awestruck at how very full my cup is. All of the little worries I carry day to day seem so insignificant when compared with the bounty that surrounds my beautiful, dilapidated kitchen table.