Halloween

 

This year the kids and I became Fablehaven junkies.  We seriously could not get enough of those books.  We were hooked line and sinker.  We started reading the series back in April and then over the course of the summer finished all 5 books.  Boy was I thankful for book #3.  That baby got us through 3 days of cross country driving on our move to the Midwest.  The kids absolutely loved the books.  So, when October rolled around and I asked them what they wanted to be for Halloween top of their list were Fablehaven characters.  Problem was that the characters they wanted to be meant they would pretty much just get dressed as usual and that didn't sound like much fun. 

 

 

However, in October we started reading Book #2 in the Harry Potter series and presto they were ready to be Harry and Hermione.  These were characters we could work with. 
 
We have so much fun reading one of these books each year.  I kinda think they are the best.  There is just something so endearing about the flawed but courageous characters in those books.  We always follow the book up with the movie and a fun treat.  Last year we had butterbeer and this year we made treacle fudge.   

These are Harry and Hermione's wands we made.  Pretty authentic even though they are just paper, paint and hot glue.



 

Making caramel apples is another Halloween tradition.

And so is our annual visit to a pumpkin patch.

You can see a Hogwarts robe in these pictures.  As soon as Hannah and Caleb got their costumes, they wore them all day long and everywhere we went.  They considered running errands a "Hogwarts field trip to learn about Muggles".

A week before Halloween, our church had a fun party and earlier that same day the kids had a blast going to a friends' Halloween Party.  Two parties in one day, talk about being loaded up on SUGAR!  But what child doesn't totally love that.

 "Eat slugs"

 The kids won 2nd place for best costume.  They sure did like those mega chocolate candy bars they handed out as prizes. 

 

The day before Halloween we carved pumpkins. 

We always toast the seeds too.



Pretty darn SPOOKY. 



On the big day we went trick-or-treating to historic St. Charles.  That's the Missouri river in the background. 

A wizards dual.

Historic St. Charles was a little like going to Diagon Alley.  It felt so authentic that the kids really got into character casting spells left and right. 

 

Home to sort candy, eat chili and play vampires at night.

 

 

Halloween, you gave us one "Spook"tacular month.