halloween

It's hard to believe we're already in November! It seems like we start seeing Halloween decorations in August, but it came and went so quickly this year! I grew up carving pumpkins, planning costumes, and trick-or-treating my heart out (followed by a strict dump-and-sort by mom, and probably a little bit of sort-and-snatch by dad). My dear husband grew up celebrating Halloween by picking something out at the toy store, I think. And while I have a strong affinity for pumpkins and all things Fall, I have never been enamored by the celebration of all that is bloody, evil, undead, etc...

Our compromise has been to find ways to celebrate cultural traditions, without feeling like we're dedicating too much time and energy into the things we don't find gospel value in. This year we chose to spend Halloween with some close friends eating a fried turkey and collecting candy at a local trunk-or-treat. To be honest, I was a little skeptical of the trunk thing, hoping it wouldn't be lame in comparison to the usual neighborhood trek. We were surprised on our arrival to realize that we'd conveniently chosen a trunk-or-treat that was only one part of a huge fall festival, hosted by a local church, and it was a blast! We got the kids in and out in a reasonable amount of time (it was way too cold here in Nashville!) and people got really creative with the decor. Just when Lorelei was losing steam, we came upon a woman dressed as a sheep, and Lorelei excitedly yelled, "Sheep! Baa!" right in her face, haha! Reenergized, we happily made our way through the remaining cars. Every so often she would ask us, "Where my bag?" ensuring the candy was safely in our custody.

 Here are some photos of our little "shooting star" in her costume.