PRE-HALLOWEEN ESCAPADES

Our family enjoys celebrating!  We love any excuse to play!  We believe that to have a fulfilled life, we should work hard and play hard....  So Halloween is a great excuse to participate in "wholesome, recreational activities!"

So on Saturday, we attended the ward Trunk or Treat.  And, of course, we came in costumes!  This year we decided to dress-up as board game characters!  (We love board games too!)  It was creative and was a great conversation starter.

A Jeweler from Splendor

A Monk from the Middle Ages - Biblios

Katia nailed the scientist from Pandemic!

Of course, my "adopted/kidnapped" kids were at the party as well... And I can't help but take pictures of them:

Can you tell I love my girl?!

Marmalade made her own costume: a fox!

Apple Pie is the perfect Ant Man!

Jelly Bean is a transformer!

And Raisin with long blond hair is Rapunzel...

Then on Sunday, we decided to watch an episode of X-Files since it's "kinda" scary.  Loved this shot of Raisin with my husband and daughter:

And these two cuties were pretending to be wolves and headed to get in the car... This is what I saw:

Jelly Bean and Apple Pie

Last night, for Family Home Evening, Katia, Scott and I went to the Jack-o-lantern Spectacular. 

Ready....

Hard to take a selfie in the dark....

This was just one tiny spot on the long walk of jack-o-lanterns!

And it WAS spectacular!  Over 5000 carved pumpkins... some of them were extremely extravagant.  I wanted to take pictures of EVERYTHING....  But I narrowed it down to layouts of my favorites:

I loved the sentiment: Changing the World One Pumpkin at a Time!

Les Miserables and Dumbledore!  Amazing!

Edgar Allen Poe and Disney!

Dinosaurs and wolves...

We ended our outing with hot chocolate!  YUMMMMM!

I love our little family!  We missed Kiara and Cody....  But thank goodness for face time!

And look at these beautiful flowers in bloom:

EU TE MAO BRASIL

Maria, Heather, Duda, Kyle and Scott

It has been a rough month - health wise.  We've been fighting bronchitis, colds, etc.  But even though we were sick, we thoroughly enjoyed our annual Brazil Bash.  These four friends served their mission in Brazil - and Duda is FROM Brazil.  We love the food!  The drinks!  And the company!

What Brazilian dinner is complete without Arroz e Feijoada?

Behind the beans is the Estrogonofe de Frango.

Torta de Frango - Coxinhas - Salada de Cebola e Tomate - Pao de Queijo 

Guarana!

I finished reading all of the Harry Potter books again!  They are definitely worth re-reading often!  The books are soooooo much better than the movies!  I love re-visiting Harry and the gang!

And I read Addicted to Outrage by Glenn Beck.  I actually really recommend this book!  Glenn Beck delivers powerful insight into the way that the media, social media, and our own need for confirmation are feeding the division of the country.  He discusses tough questions and encourages introspection and growth. 

SECOND ANNUAL SOUPS AND SWEATERS

We celebrated fall with some of our dear friends and family here in Kentucky last night.  We ate delicious soups, and visited with friends, and made s'mores, and played out-door games.  It's a fun tradition that started last year....

This guy worked so hard to make sure everything was clean, beautified, decorated, etc.

He was even sick...  He is truly amazing!

I'm so blessed to spend eternity with this guy who makes me better than I am!

Being silly before everyone shows...

Scott was worried about rain....

Katia and Karmel waiting for friends to show.

Here are the friends who came... (alphabetically):

The Bettenhausens

The Calls

The Fieldings

The Places

The Schmids

The Smiths

The Waltmans

The Wentzs

The Youngs

Lots of random shots:

Even kids love soup!

Halloween decore provided by nature...

Nathan freaked me out with those bugs.

These girls are the sweetest!

Seeing the kids play in our yard was so happy for this future grandmother!

I LOVE this joyful sight!

Could they be sisters?!

I wouldn't mind adopting the one on the right!

I'm already blessed to have the one on the left as my own!

Aren't they adorable?!

These two boys loved playing hillbilly golf with Scott's creations.

And they are so cute to boot!

I love it when dad's are silly with their daughters!

"Go Team!"

Like father like son...

Mmmmmm, s'mores!

A highlight for the kids!

Last year, Scott and Katia thought it would be fun to celebrate the season with soups and sweaters and friends!  Soooo... a new tradition began!  The Second Annual Soups and Sweaters was a hit!  We love y'all!