Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween! Here lies Emma and Ava's day of fun. We started the day with a leisurely morning. Our friend Claire came over and we baked ghost and pumpkin cookies. The best part was putting on the sprinkles and candy corn for Jack O'Lantern faces. Dad came home for lunch and then we had family nap time...Mom and Dad's favorite! Next, out came the splat mat and pumpkins. It was a beautiful sunny day, so we carved pumpkins in the front yard. Emma was a real helper with gluing the face templates while Ava just liked to look for things to put in her mouth..mostly pumpkin seeds and leaves. It was already time for dinner, so Emma helped Dad pick up a pizza. Then, it was time to get our costumes on. Mom always makes us take lots of pictures and this year was no exception (see forthcoming shutterfly album). Emma was quickly transformed to the cutest Dalmatian on the street and Ava continued to be a sweet little pumpkin. We headed down our block for some trick-or-treating fun. In St. Louis, there is a tradition that kids have to tell jokes to get their candy. Emma's joke was the following: knock knock...who's there (usually repeated by Emma)...boo....boo who....don't cry its just a joke (said very sweet and sincere). It was a gorgeous night and our neighborhood, St. Louis Hills, goes all out for the home decorating contest. Everyone sits in their front lawns with their neighbors, bonfires and cold beverages for the adults. We met our friends the Emkes and Ann for snacks and fun (some even noted that the infamous corn husk shirt didn't make an appearance this year), then it was time to head home. Mom and Dad stayed up way past their bedtime recounting how much fun it was seeing the smiles on their girls' faces and knowing that nothing is better than parenthood!