Halloween 2024

After eating a quick dinner right after school, the kids got dressed and were out on the porch by 5:50 for Halloween pictures.  Since it has been a very rainy week, we were just grateful that it was raining lightly as we headed out for trick-or-treating at 6 pm.  We went with Ella's good friend and nextdoor neighbor, Poppy, on our regular loop around the neighborhood.  Since Lia has been fighting a really bad cold the past 10 days, she decided to head back home after just a few doors since she had homework to do and didn't want to get ever more sick before her two weekends of Mama Mia performances that start next week at her high school.  So Ron and I continued trick-or-treating with our three younger children and Poppy until about 7:30.  Like in previous years, we returned home to answer the door, eat candy, and watch our beloved, old-school, Disney version of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.  Since I just had the chance to visit the town where this story takes place during my trip to NYC with Lia last summer, it was even more fun to watch it again and picture what this quaint town looks like in person.  We all enjoyed answering the door while laughing our heads' off at the antics of Ichabod Crane. It was another fun and memorable Halloween evening for the books!

Emmett dressed as a darling pirate in Logan's old costume.

Ella dressed up as a cow wearing the Snuggie hoodie that she got last Christmas from Aunt Austin and Uncle Robbie.

Logan was supposed to wear the Poseidon costume that we bought him last spring for his Greek Mythology report that he had to present to his 6th grade class.  However, he changed his mind last minute, and only wore the robe we bought him along with the cool, light-up mask he got the previous year.

I requested that Logan remove his mask for a second picture of his face.

Lia wore her strawberry, Snuggie hoodie that she got from one of her friends last year at her Sweet 16 Birthday party so that she and Ella could be...

Strawberry Milk together!

Unfortunately, since Lia left early to go back home, Ella went back to being a cow for the rest of the evening.

All four cuties together and ready to head out into the night!

Mama with her kiddos.

Taking our annual picture in front of Donna's awesome, pumpkin statue that she makes every year out of corn stalks.

The kids about to ring another doorbell.

Emmett, Ella, and Poppy posing next to the hilarious pumpkin that Poppy and Ella carved the night before Halloween.  Since Poppy had such a large pumpkin, Ella suggested that she carve it like a hilarious picture we had seen online a few nights earlier when we were carving our pumpkins as a family.  Ella carved one of our little pumpkins to put inside the mouth of Poppy's large pumpkin to look like it was being eaten.  The finished product turned out to be so funny!

Carving Pumpkins as a Family

At the end of a busy weekend, we gathered around our kitchen table after Lia and Logan returned home from a ward fireside to carve and paint our pumpkins.  Ron opted not to carve his own this year so that he could focus on helping Emmett with his.  Lia stuck to painting her pumpkin again, and Logan carved most of his own pumpkin for the first time in his life.  So, I was able to just sit back and enjoy painting mine while helping Ella with hers from time to time.  As our children are getting older, this family activity is slowing becoming more enjoyable and fun instead a mad and frantic evening trying to help multiple children carve their pumpkins.  We put on music and spent a funfilled two hours painting and carving away.  Everyone was quite pleased with the final outcomes and we can't wait to put them on our porch to display for Halloween this week!

Lia hugging Emmett while he pretends to carve the face on his pumpkin.  Although Ron did all of the carving, Emmett helped scoop out the guts and did most of the painting of his Frankenstein face by himself.

Ella making a funny face as she scooped out the seeds and guts from her pumpkin.

Logan carefully carving the teeth on his pumpkin's very large smile.

Lia painting her emoji pumpkin.

Mama painting her autumn branches and seeds.

The pumpkin line up!

From left to right:

Lia's emoji face, Ella's fairy house, Logan's grinning maniac, Emmett's Frankenstein, and mom's artistic, autumn pumpkin.

Halloween Trunk-or-Treat

I had been watching the weather all week long to see what was predicted for Saturday evening's Trunk-or-Treat in our church parking lot.  Sadly, it ended up raining on and off all day long today and began to sprinkle as we left our house and drove to the church.  Luckily, we were able to grab a few umbrellas as we headed out the door.  Although we could tell that less people showed up due to the rain, there was still a decent amount of people who came to hand out candy from their car trunks.  The six of us still had a good time wandering around our church parking lot in the rain, checking out all of the decorations people put on their cars in addition to the kids filling up their bags with candy.  As we were finishing up visiting the last few cars, the light rain turned into a downpour, so we quickly headed to our car and left 40 minutes after it started.  Ella sadly commented that they didn't get to do their second loop around the parking lot like they have done in previous years to double their amount of candy.  As sad as this was, I pointed out how lucky we were to be able to finish one loop before it started pouring.  We will take what we can get!  The kids then enjoyed coming home and eating some candy and watching one of the Harry Potter movies that Lia considers to give off the most Halloween vibes.  Overall, it was a fun way to kick off the Halloween festivities this week!

The kids lined up outside of the church before the trunk-or-treat began.

All six members of the Hartland fam.

The kids standing in front of one of the decorated, pop-up tents that many people used to protect themselves from the rain while handing out candy.

The kids visiting another tent where a scary looking man stood and blasted kids with smoke from a fire extinguisher.

The kids posing in front of a trunk decorated with Chinese Lanterns owned by the man who always hands out packs of Top Ramen soup every year.

Emmett's Last Soccer Game of the Season

Emmett wrapped up his first outdoor season of rec soccer by playing in his last game this morning in a total rain storm.  Since Ron was in Seattle with Logan for a XC meet, and Lia was at a play practice, and Ella was at gymnastics, I went alone to cheer on our boy.  Like every other game this fall, Emmett was amazing and just went after the ball every single time he was on the field.  In addition, it was amazing to watch how the rain, cold, and mud didn't affect him at all.  While other kids froze and cried and were miserable due to the weather conditions, Emmett wasn't phased by it and played his heart out, making several goals.  

Emmett has been an incredible soccer player this season.  It simply is amazing to watch his natural talent out on the field.  He made several goals in every game he played in and outran all of the kids on both teams every single game.  Two of my favorite memories this season was watching him kick the ball from one end of the field so hard that it flew down and went into the goal at the other end without anyone even touching it.  My other favorite memory was when he had to throw the ball back into the game after it was kicked out of bounds by the other team.  After trying to find a teammate to pass it to, he decided to just throw it back in to the field towards his goal where no one was standing.  He then ran back onto the field so fast, that he passed everyone else, and kicked the ball into his goal and scored.  Needless to say, Emmett has had a fantastic season and we can't wait to cheer him on from the sidelines when he plays soccer again next year.

Emmett chasing down the ball with an opponent at his side.

Emmett and a teammate kicking the ball down the field.

Emmett smiling at me after making a goal.

Emmett getting ready for a big kick.

Throwing the ball back into the game.

Sprinting down the field as the rain poured down.  I just love this action shot!

Emmett leading the pack.

My drenched soccer playing giving me a big smile after his game was over.

Way to go, Emmett!

Disney on Ice: Magic In The Stars

As Disney on Ice tickets were about to go on sale this fall, I checked in with the two middle kids to see if they were still interested in going again after so many years.  Logan gave me an enthusiastic "yes" and Ella agreed to go if she could buy an overpriced snow cone with her own money.  Since this would only be Emmett's second time going, I knew that he would be all over it.  So, I went ahead and bought tickets for the four of us when they first went on sale at the beginning of September.  Since Ella now has gymnastics on Thursday and Friday evenings and we had our church trunk-or-treat planned for Saturday, the four of us piled in the van and drove up to Kent to see the show on a school night for the first time ever.  We got there with plenty of time to peruse the souvenirs and buy Ella's treat before settling into our seats that ended up being a few rows closer to the ice rink than in previous years.  We ended up having a great time as this show turned out to be one of our all-time favorites.  They added several special effects and extra stunts that made this show so entertaining to watch.  It was also so fun to watch Emmett's reactions to so many of the numbers that the skaters performed.  Overall, we spent a wonderful evening together, singing along to some of our favorite Disney songs while watching many of our beloved characters skate and twirl around on the ice. 

The three kids standing in front of some of the many Disney souvenirs for sale.

The kids and me inside the venue before the show began.

The kids in their seats waiting for the magic to start.

Asha, from the movie Wish reaching out to touch the star.

Rapunzel giving us a cute pose during her skating number with Flynn Rider.

Lightening McQueen and Mater on the ice!

Isabela from Encanto stepping down from her floral swing.

Moana and Maui waving as their boat sailed past us on the ice.

Annual Trip to the Pumpkin Patch

Since we had the day off of school today after a week of parent-teacher conferences, I decided that it would be the perfect time to take the kids for our annual trip to the pumpkin patch.  Although Lia and Ron no longer go, the four of us still had a good time traipsing around Spooners, although it was raining for most of the time.  We enjoyed looking at the pumpkins, walking through the barn, racing the ducks, and buying some fudge to eat on our way out.  I'm grateful that I still have a three kids who are young enough to enjoy these fun, holiday traditions with.

Our annual, family picture in the "pumpkin house."

The kids behind one of the picture cut-outs.

Standing in front of one of the giant spiders.

The kids and some baby piglets.

Ella supervising Emmett while he raced ducks against Logan.

How tall this fall?  These kids just don't stop growing.

Lia's Fall Choir Concert

After taking Ella to gymnastics in Auburn and getting Logan out the door to XC practice, I drove off to Lia's high school to attend the first concert of the school year.  Since Lia moved up to Concert Choir this year from Choraliers, she is finally in a large, co-ed choir which she loves being a member of.  It was so fun to hear sing in a big, loud choir compared to the small, quiet one she sang with last year.  They did a great job singing four numbers including the South African song, "San'bonani/Namhla Kudibene," which they sang in the Zulu language.  The choir clapped while they sang this song and were accompanied on the conga drum by Lia's friend, Jared.  They finished off their set with the hymn, "A Mighty Fortress is Our God."  I always enjoy any chance to watch Lia perform and loved listening to her sing with this more advanced choir.

Clever Ella

Every Friday, Ella's 5th grade teacher sends out a digital newsletter for the parents to read.  One of the sections in this newsletter is titled, "Kids Being Hilarious," and she always includes one or two stories from the week of when a student has said something funny.  Ella was featured in today's newsletter and I just wanted to include it in our blog so that she can remember this cute story forever.