Happy Halloween

Caeden was very excited to be Anakin Skywalker for Halloween!

 I took him trick-or-treating around town this evening. Sylvia stayed home and helped Jeremy give candy to our trick-or-treaters, and Annah was at the play cast party.

 Today is Annah's birthday!  FIFTEEN YEARS OLD!!!!

She did get to sleep in a little today, but spent the rest of the morning doing her homework.  She's a very responsible 15-year-old.

The angel food cake for birthday tradition continues...

 Annah LOVES balloons, so she got a few with her presents and cards.

G'pa and G'ma L sent a lovely card.

 I think she was most excited about her giant box of fruit snacks!

Some new concert black pieces... 

 Happy birthday, darling Annah.  We love you so incredibly much!

Red Ribbons, Role Models, and Actors

It was Red Ribbon Week for the elementary school, which also means dress-up days.  

Caeden's class on School Spirit Day...

Today, they had an all-school assembly.  They talked about making good decisions, how teachers can support them, and they had a special presentation...

...by the JH student council!  Sylvia has been excitedly telling me about it for weeks, and was so happy to be a role model for the younger kids.

The kids talked about how being involved in school activities can help you make good decisions, stay away from things that are bad for you, and make good use of your time. Sylvia and Kelsey were the example of how music can help you express emotions...

Sylvia and Caeden have been such good sports this week, going to school with me the past 3 nights and just hanging around while I helped with makeup, ticket sales, and concession sales at intermission of the play.  Caeden found a book in the bleachers last night and read it while he waited.

Annah had just a few small lines in the play, one of them being the first in the second act.  The kids were all so funny with their dancing in the party scene.  

Addie told Sylvia this week during rehearsals that she makes her feel so calm and comforted that she's like her "therapy cat."  Haha...glad she could be of service.


Addie and Annah after the show...sister-friends

Both performances were great, and it was just such a fun experience all around.  Jeremy volunteered to drive, Annah and Addie and Alexis in to town to Denny's after the show tonight to hang out with a bunch of the kids from play.  They all had a great time together these past couple months!

Spook House

Annah has loved being part of the cast and crew of the RHS fall play, Spook House.  They've been rehearsing for a couple months, and the performances are tomorrow and Friday evenings.  This evening, I went early to help some of the kids with makeup and took over 400 photos of the dress rehearsal.  

Annah helped Tyler brush his wig for the second act, when his character (a detective) goes undercover as a woman.  He is hilarious in this part!

Directors giving the pre-show reminders, instructions, and pep-talk...

One of these things is not like the others...

Annah doesn't appear in the first act, but is front and center at the beginning of the second act, which is a halloween costume party. She and Alexis cracked me up with their dancing.

 

The play takes place in the old mansion of college student Vickie Stein, who is a descendant of Dr. Frankenstein. Many well-known "monsters" (Count and Countess Dracula, Frankenstein and his bride, Cleopatra, Quasi Moto, a warewolf, Dr. Jekyl/Mr. Hyde, Witch Hazel, and Serpentine)  live in the house while Vickie lives in a college dorm, and the community assumes the house is abandoned.  At the beginning of the play, Vickie has just discovered she owes thousands in back-taxes on the house in just a few days, or she will lose it--and therefore all the "monsters" will lose their home.  Abraham Van Helsing and Monica Meyers are anxious to get their hands on the deed to the house.  Vickie and the monsters devise a plan to have a costume party for Vickie's college friends to raise the money for the back taxes. Another story line revolves around the Stocking Bandit and his "Mol" who are infamous and wanted for their robberies in the area.  3 couples come to the party dressed as the bandit and Molly, plus the 2 of them try to hide out there after their most recent heist.  It makes for a pretty hilarious scene when they all confuse each other!

 

Dancing at the party...

 

Extras and folks with small roles bow...

 

Full cast and crew bow...

Getting post-run-through comments...

 

Team huddle

 

These kids have worked hard, and it shows.  Their performances are going to be great!

Beautiful Sunday

It is SO beautiful here right now!  I got up a little early today to make a quick run to the store before church, and was completely in awe of the beautiful fall morning!

There were beautiful blankets of fog hovering over the fields on my way to town.  I had to stop and take a picture with my phone!

When Caeden found out only a week ago that his leaf project was due, Krampa was so awesome to collect dozens of leaves for him! They took a walk around the yard this morning to look at trees and leaves, and Caeden's project is all ready to hand in tomorrow.

After church, Gram made yummy tacos and an amazing cobbler.  We had to leave about 24 hours after we arrived, and the goodbyes are no fun, but it was worth the trip!

The "tree tunnel" outside of Logansport was incredibly beautiful today.  Annah snapped a few pictures through the dashboard window as we drove through.

A few precious moments

We enjoyed the evening at Krampa's and Gram's.  Cramp and Caeden watched a little football.

Annah and Sylvia took turns spinning Tessa around and around.

We ordered pizza and mama rolls from Papa's Place. Gram bought a cake, so we celebrated Caeden's, Gram's, and Annah's birthdays, and the 2nd anniversary of Krampa's surgery.

Uncle Earl joined us for dinner too.

Grayson and Caeden playing...

Sylvia and Bryce played some football in the sunroom...

There were many piggyback rides!

Some snuggles...

And Caeden got lots of help on his leaf project, which is due Monday.

It wasn't a long stay, but we packed in a lot of precious moments.  So grateful.