Because I never really got around to updating the blog for most of October, I'm subsequently dumping a bunch of photos on here in almost mid November and calling it a wrap-up post.

Life with a 3-month-old.  Sigh.  We ride the struggle bus daily.   

In October we went to the pumpkin patch, Boo at the Zoo, made Spooky Bark, Pumpkin Glow, and had an amazing Halloween.  It was also super exciting to celebrate Natalie's first Halloween!  No one was more excited than Katherine. 














October is the best month.  Hands down. 

It's no secret that I love Halloween.  It's my favorite time of year (and my birthday), and it will be Natalie's first Halloween.  The costumes are picked and there's a pumpkin in every room of the house.  There's even a touch of Halloween in the girls' rooms.













I'm so excited for Natalie's first Halloween!  I don't know who's more excited, me or Katherine.  That girl loves Halloween.  That pumpkin didn't roll too far off the vine. 

Here's another Halloween recap blog post to add to your weekly reading. 

This was our first Halloween in our new house, and we had heard from neighbors that our neighborhood (and the one a street over) went all out for this holiday.  They were right.  We had the best Halloween, trick or treating with Katherine and catching up with neighbors. 


Monday was also my birthday, so we started the day off with birthday lunch followed by birthday cupcakes. Luckily our local grocery store carries our favorite cupcakes from Jilly's. 


Later we headed out to the driveway to participate in Halloween festivities.  My parents came by for my birthday and to hold down the candy fort while we took Katherine trick or treating. 



Katherine did pretty well on the candy front, bringing home pounds of candy. She won't be coming down off her sugar high any time soon. 

Now I've got to go get my shorts out of the storage box in the basement because it's 82 degrees outside.  Happy November!

I'll keep this post short and sweet.  We've all got Halloween things to do.

Jason's work schedule this past weekend caused us to alter our plans slightly.  Instead of two fun days of events, we did it all in one day. 

On Saturday we headed to the city for Trunk or Treat at my brother's church.  Katherine transformed into Princess Elena of Avalor and loaded up on lots of candy and treats. 





After trunk or treat, we headed to the cobblestone streets of Main Street St. Charles for Pumpkin Glow.  This is one of our favorite events each year, and we get to stock up on our favorite Main Street treats while we're there (flavored popcorn, Grandma's Cookies, caramel apples, etc.).






Like I said.  Short and sweet.  Just like Halloween. 

Happy Halloween, friends!

Even though I love Halloween, and it's also my birthday, I don't always actually dress up on Halloween.  Each year is hit or miss with costumes for me.  Some years I've gone all out with a costume, and some years I just don't. 

Last year's costume was epic, both visually and creatively.  I'm still exhausted from pulling that one off, so this year Katherine has an awesomely store-bought costume. 

I decided to go back through the years and see what our costumes looked like.

So I give you:  The Ghosts of Costumes Past


My senior year of high school, I was Christina Aguilera (pre-dirty).  I wore a black sparkly suit that once belonged to Sheryl Crow.


Many years later, I was another celebrity.  Kat Von D.


The next year was an election year, so I pulled together a super simple "Sarah Palin" outfit. 


One year I referenced this costume to become the "Angel of Death."  I guess I was having a "dark" year.


Another year, I raided the costume closet at my mom's school to wear this gem.


The year I was pregnant was fun because I was Juno. 


Katherine's first Halloween costume was awesome.  When I posted it to Pinterest, I was shared soooo many times.  Social media loved her costume that year.  It was also our first family costume. 


Katherine was a Kitty Cat the next year.  I explained the process of making this super simple costume here. 


Which brings me to last year, when we were the Three Amigos.  Best. Costume. Ever.  I don't really know how I could top this one. 


Katherine chose her own costume this year.  She's Princess Elena of Avalor.  She'll be one of thousands of Princess Elenas this year, but she loves it. 

As of right now, I will not be dressing up.  But there's still time, I suppose.