McCain and Palin

I thought we were special when we started getting e-mails from Senator McCain and Governor Palin, asking us to donate to their campaign.  But imagine our surprise when they showed up at our Halloween party last night!  It was great to meet them!  And you know, McCain really doesn't seem that old in real life (the camera must add on a decade or two) and Palin was really sweet and kind of shy, not the brassy/sassy personality you see on TV.  ;)

Trick or Treat... Take One

Tonight was our ward Halloween party.  We all had a really good time.  I made my sister's yummy chili recipe and it must have been good because I made a double batch, expecting to take home some leftovers, but all that was left was an empty crockpot!  lol

Our ward usually does a Trunk-or-Treat but this year they tried having it inside, letting people decorate small classrooms instead of their cars.  It was nice because we didn't have to worry about the weather (which was perfect, btw, but you never know how it will be) and none of the kids had to put on their coats so we got to see all of their adorable costumes. :)  There were so many people signed up to pass out candy that we didn't get a room - we had to take a space in the hallway between rooms!  But that's okay since we were last minute add ons; they weren't really expecting us.  (I was bad and didn't sign up since I couldn't be positive Ryan would make it.  If he hadn't been able to come, I was gonna forego hosting a room so I could take Rori around trick-or-treating.) 

Here are some pics of our fun night...

Ginny Weasley:


Truthfully, I was still not sure what Rori was going to be, even an hour before the party.  I had a few costumes to choose from and so I narrowed it down to three and let Ryan decide.  He chose this...

The Little Red-Headed Mexican Girl:


Ryan decided to go as a Patriot and was going to wear his Welker jersey, but I told him to wear his Brady jersey, slap on his knee brace, and take his crutches.  So he did.  Here you have...

Tom Brady, out for the season with a knee injury:


I didn't really have a costume, and that was my plan.  Instead, I was festive.  You can't tell in any of the pics but I've got an orange/black french manicure, cute dangly pumpkin earrings, and I'm also wearing a Halloween scrunchy in my hair for when my hat was off. 



This was a practice "Trick-or-Treat".  When the real trick-or-treating began, the lights were off, which was nice because I had a light in Cadi's spider jack-o-lantern and it wasn't showing up at all with the lights on.  Rori caught on right away and she was very cute; she even remembered to say "Thank you" everytime without having to be prompted.  I am beginning to wonder if my little hellion is turning into an angel?  lol



Our friend offered to take a family pic and had us all say, "Daddy has smelly feet!"  To which, Rori turned to look at her daddy with smelly feet and Cadi started thinking, "Is it really okay to say this with him right here?", so we have this:



Like I said, we had a fun time!  And now we're all warmed up for the big night tomorrow! ;)

Gnarly

Have you ever seen a pumpkin stem this awesome?  I thought it was pretty gnarly... in a totally cool way. ;)

Pumpkin Guts and Letting Your Light Shine

We almost always carve our pumpkins on the Monday night before Halloween, as a FHE activity.  This year was no different.  However, Acadia's is the only pumpkin that was carved.  Rori's was too little, mine was starting to rot already, and Ryan didn't know what he wanted to do, not to mention he was still not sure he wanted to clean out his HUGE pumpkin even if he did have an idea of what to carve. 

***Disclaimer:  Aurora is in a "stripping" phase.  On Monday, she took her pants off twice.  Finally, I just left them off since it was the end of the day and we weren't going anywhere. lol





Rori was fascinated with what Cadi was doing. 


But when we offered to have her help scoop out the guts, she kept saying no.  I wonder why?












And the finished product:


Since it was FHE, we did have a spiritual discussion about carving pumpkins.  (You can find symbolism in anything if you think about it enough. lol)

First we talked about what scooping the pumpkin guts out could represent.  Repentance and removing sin from our lives.  (Good answer.)  Sometimes that process isn't easy or pleasant.  But if your goal is to have a clean pumpkin, you have to go through the yucky process of gutting it. 

Second, we talked about what putting a candle or light in our pumpkin/jaco-o-lantern could represent.  "Let your light so shine."  (Good answer)  We read 3 NE 12:16 and 2 Cor. 4:6.  We talked about how we can't put a light in our jack-o-lantern when it's full of guts; we need to clean it out first.  Then, we looked at all the Halloween candles I had burning around the room.  They were cool and we liked to see them.  When I turned the light off, we noticed how much brighter they seemed, even though the flame hadn't changed at all, just the environment we were in.  We talked about how anyone can benefit from our light, even if they are surrounded by light already.  But when someone is in darkness, they can especially benefit from our light because it can help them see where they should go until they find their way back to the light.

"To make democracy work, we must be a notion of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain." - Louis L'Amour

I am sure you have seen the many blogs and e-mails regarding Prop 8 (California) and Prop 102 (Arizona), and this morning I came across another article on my friend, Stacey's blog which I hadn't seen before.
I support Prop 8 & 102, though I am not in those states to vote on them. If you live in one of those states, I urge you to vote. And if you live in one of those states and don't agree with me, I hope you still vote. Voting is our chance to make our voice heard. Whether your votes is the majority or minority, if you don't express it, it cannot be counted.

The elections next week are not only about the presidential candidates and their running mates; there are many issues that need to be voted on and, of course, other government positions, as well. I hope we will all take the time to study out the candidates and issues that we will be voting on in our cities and our states and then VOTE for what we feel is best and right for our community and nation.

The new "place".

I'm not sure what I'm going to put on the mantle yet.  I do have some ideas of what I'm going to put on it for Christmas though!  Decorating is going to be even more fun this year! :)

Sisters

Here is an inspiring story that will tug at your heartsrings.

If you're interested in reading their blogs, here is Stephanie's blog where her sister is continuing to post her story, and here is Courtney's blog where she posts updates on her sister and the experiences she is having caring for her sister's kids.

Reading this story and some of the posts on their blogs, really made me think of my sisters.  It's hard to live so far away from them sometimes, but we always try to have special "sister time" when we are together and I'm so grateful for those times! 

This story also made me think of my own husband and children and how much I love them.  It's a touching reminder that we never know when what we have might be taken away and how important it is to cherish the moments we have together.