"Out of Breath"

Wow! What a weekend I had! It was Nana and Papa Halloween weekend and even though 4 of our 7 grandchildren were tied up with H.S. activities and couldn't make it this year, the show went on with the 3 youngest.

The weekend started at Harrison's swim meet and Presley's soccer game. Hudson had an earlier soccer game but I was tied up trying to get last minute details in order.

Then it was home to start the fun-which always means starting with photos. Even though it is sometimes hard to get good pictures because of the sun in their eyes, the kids actually enjoy these shots and usually co-operate so we can move quickly.

Then we were on to the really fun stuff. We started the day with a bit of a science experiment. The kids drew ghost and pumpkin faces on sandwich bags (me too) and then we filled them with vinegar, corn starch and food coloring. Next we added a baking soda bomb, sealed the bag and watched the magic happen. The bag slowly expanded and then "blew its top" fizzing all over. We did this one by one and were enthralled with the outcome every time-really don't know who enjoyed it more!

And then of course, there were crafts. The kids actually ask if they can come do crafts at my house. Of course, without my helpers here, I tried to keep it to things they could handle themselves so I had time to stay one step ahead. And, I like to have them make things they can keep. I though that tissue paper covered lanterns would be good because you really can't mess up gluing on the tissue-even if it goes on uneven, it will "seal" itself when you apply the top layer of glue. The kids drew their own faces but I helped Presley cut hers-she is still working on perfecting that skill. Once they were dry, we put battery candles in them and they can use them as night lights in their rooms through Halloween- or Mom can group them together on a table for a cute decoration. The kids also colored wooden masks and played with the pumpkin pie play dough I made. It was a nice, laid back afternoon and they each worked at their own pace and had fun. If there was down time for one, they headed to the Legos or Barbies.

Then we were on to dinner. Again, since my helpers were MIA (as well as Papa who was trying desperately to finish up tax returns), we went pretty easy on dinner. The kids wrapped up some mummy hot dogs and made witch finger carrots. We added some Trick-or-Cheesy mac and cheese (thanks once again to Kraft), broccoli and Ghoul Aid. Then we made graveyard pudding cups for dessert.

While the kids watched "The Dog Who Saved Halloween", Nana and Papa watched the Gator game that they had TiVoed. We ran through it in fast motion-and quite frankly even that wasn't fast enough! After that, we climbed into bed and read some of our favorite Halloween books. Then it was fast off to sleep because we had another really fun day planned for tomorrow. Stay tuned.

And yes, there will be MORE pictures!