Hallelujah, it's November.

Annual pinata party

The photos below are from some of our various October events. I apologize in advance for the rant.

What was that blustering gust of mayhem that just blew past? Ohh. Octohhhhhhh-ber. Is it just me, or does anyone else feel like October has become a contender for "Craziest Month of the Year"? I'm really not sure if even December beats it anymore. At least in December, you get a week of recovery time before New Years Eve, and even then there is always a sense of "it was all I could do to get myself gussied up for the evening. Hurry up and bring on January so we can put the holiday mania behind us" amongst the folks who still have enough energy left to celebrate (ie: people who are not the moms of 5+ children).

Pinewood Derby

October is different. It's like a whole month based on the supermarket check-out phenomenon that happens when every shopper in the store decides all at once at the very same moment that it is time to rush the registers. An electrical charge is in the air. Everybody tries to make their way up to the check stands looking as casual as possible, glancing via peripheral vision at the other shoppers to gauge whether they have the same intention and jockeying for position to be the first to reach the shortest line. Everybody has a plan in October. People who didn't want to hold their event in the summer or at back-to-school time want to beat the holiday rush. People who live in climates with changing seasons want to get their event in before the cold comes. Schools are administering mid-term exams and holding parent-teacher conferences. And every school, office, club, church, fire station, police station and gas station has to have its ANNUAL HALLOWEEN PARTY.

Cousins at Grandma's 90th

I'm the last person to knock Halloween. How can you beat a holiday that is based on costumes, candy, and scaring yourself to death? All wholesome pursuits. It has always been a favorite holiday of mine. But something happened to the Halloween I fell in love with so many years ago. When did the grittier Halloween that consisted of slap-shod homemade costumes and the aromas of burning pumpkins and shaving cream get commandeered by sexy nursery rhyme characters and over-priced bags of candy? Since grown-ups started deciding that Halloween is more about them than their kids, that's when! Come to think of it... when MY generation became grown-ups, THAT'S when! And I'm one of the culprits! Oh help me. What monster have we created?

School parade

This month our family attended 7 family/friend/church Halloween parties (had to decline one), the school parade, 3 class parties and a Halloween music recital . I love a good Halloween party, but anymore, by the time October 31st rolls around, it's almost anti-climactic.

If I were in charge, I would ask everyone to postpone all non-essential events until the first two weeks of November. If your organization regularly holds an event in October, ask yourself, "is this event needful, or are we only doing it because it is Halloween?" Needful stays. Halloween gets to be reclaimed by school kids and families and girlfriends who are having a witches night out at a local shopping venue (ahem). Also, if at the start of October you know someone who has already begun planning a Halloween party, you aren't allowed to throw one. Sorry, hold yours next year. Around September 30th, if you don't mind.

Abby competing at the FPC Ceilidh

(Just kidding, kinda. It would actually be ideal if we could just add another week to October to fit all the stuff in. Then again, that would just open up the possibility of even more stuff...)