Evil Twins

This evening while I was getting ready for my workout (kickboxing. Ugh!) I heard hysterical laughter coming from the front entry way. I hustled downstairs to see what was so funny, and found Taylor and Kellen in front of our big mirror. Kellen has been talking to imaginary friends lately, and tonight the imaginary friends were the faces in the mirror -- the evil twins, Tyler and Kevin. Taylor would make a super silly face while looking at Kellen's reflection (Kevin) and make it look like he was hitting him etc. Kellen would then laugh and exclaim, "Hey, Tyler! You be nice to my friend, Kevin!" Taylor's physical humor is so amazing! If Kellen was looking at Tay's reflection he would go into his contorted evil twin face/voice, and would switch back to regular Dad face/voice when Kellen looked up at him. It was like watching Jim Carey -- You know, how he can jump from one character to the next in a split second! Jane and I joined in the fun, and our evil twins were quickly named Jean and Maria. I love having kids around! I used to make faces in the mirror with my brother Dave for hours! (He's a pro!) All the silliness made me late for kickboxing! What nuts! :)

Happy Halloween!

This Halloween has been a really fun one for us. It started with the ward Halloween party and trunk-or-treat. We all dressed up-- Tay was a pirate, I was a bat, Kellen was Spiderman, and Jane was a spider. At the party everyone else was also decked out and ready to have some fun. Everyone brought a crock-pot of soup to share, making over 70 choices! Yum! Then for the entertainment a group of ladies danced to Micheal Jackson's Thriller, me included. It was a lot of fun, and I think a big hit. After that it was time for games, provided by the young men and young women. They had also made haunted house in one of the big rooms. They went all out, but made sure it wasn't gruesome or anything like that. Kellen even went through, and was very proud of himself afterward. We finished off the evening with the grand trunk-or-treat. People get way into it here, decking out their cars with lights, decorations, and sometimes music. Kellen was the most exuberant kid there, always shouting a perfect, "trick-or-treat!", followed by an equally loud, "Thank you!" He also found it necessary to remind everyone that he was Spiderman, in case they couldn't tell from his costume. Then he would show them his muscles or superhero moves. What a nut! :)
Jane, of coarse, just had a great time running around the gym behind the bigger kids. She is so doted on by the members of our ward. People who barely even know us were taking her picture. She was a pretty cute little spider.
On Friday night Tay and I decided to go to a haunted house. We invited a load of people to come, but no one was able to swing it, and it ended up being just the two of us. At first we were bummed that no one else could come, but it was actually nice to be alone for a change. Halloween time is special to us, because that's when we first fell in love, back in the day. We first held hands at the Logan Pumpkin walk, and our first kiss was on Halloween night. So, needless to say, Halloween always takes me back. It was fun to be scared and hold onto Tay for protection, although I probably dislocated one of his limbs or something. (Sorry honey! I was pretty scared, especially when that bungee-jumping-skeleton-guy jumped out of some trees and grabbed my hat! CRAZY!)
On Halloween night we went to the Starkey's annual harvest party, where we enjoyed good food, and even better company. We left at about seven to take the kiddos trick-or-treating in our little subdivision. Kellen loved it, but by the end was pretty tired. He had several more houses to hit, but said with a sigh, "Mommy, I fink I gots a-nuff canny." I agreed. We returned to the Starkey's to enjoy stories and jokes by a campfire. What fun neighbors and friends we have here. I am constantly thanking the Lord for these good people in our lives. They have made life in Idaho so fun, and helped fill the void from missing our extended family.
Anyway, fun times! Now the Holidays are approaching, and I'm so excited! Having kids breathes new life and magic into all of the old festivities. It's fun to try and make things special for them.