And… Mom… no… of course our dear dog is not "allowed" on any of our beds :o)

This year I honestly didn’t think that I would be able to say that Halloween came and went with my children disguised, with our house & lawn decorated, with candies given out that didn’t come directly from my children’s newly collected stash. But I can. And… we even had freshly roasted pumpkin seeds to boot. Amazing!

An incredibly unfriendly night here — cold and pouring rain (but no snow!) with a wind that kept blowing out the candle in the too-openly-carved pumpkin. I saw a couple of people walking the streets carrying their patio table umbrellas for shelter and I later saw some of the same folks coming back with the same umbrellas sort of now inside out. But … the children came and went “anyway” in a parade of the definitely willful.

Today the children in our school board have the day off of school. It is the "Professional Development Day" otherwise known as "save the teachers from sugar-laden, sleep deprived gangs day". Yes. So… the teachers are spared. Our children, as our animals, can rest. And, we the parents can pick the freshly sewn costumes up off of the floor and can gather the soggy pumpkins on our way out to work completely, profoundly pleased that we love our children this much. Because most of us do. Thank goodness.

(And… I started to write about goodness and American elections but thought that I had better not. I have one more day to believe that there is no way that Bush can be re-elected. I hope.)