My family has always celebrated Halloween with costumes, popcorn balls, caramel apples and loads of other goodies and good times. Even though we lived in the boonies, my parents took us trick or treating to a few houses in our very rural neighborhood. The thing I remember most is that country neighbors generally gave out homemade treats which were so much yummier than store bought candy. As we grew older, we usually had Halloween hayrides and hot dog roasts. And, of course, lots of ghost stories.
My nieces were born in 1994 and 1996. My sister carried on our family traditions with her daughters as long as they lived in the little town where my sister and I grew up. I had such fun going trick or treating with the girls. MC and HM are all older now and they no longer live where I do. I miss their cute, little girl costumes and all the Halloween fun and excitement I shared with them.
This is MC and HM in their Halloween finery in 2000. Most of the time their costumes were handmade or put together from thrift shop finds, but HM saw this “50’s girl” outfit in Walmart and she just had to have it. My sister tried to talk her out of it because it doesn’t even really look like something from the 50’s, but HM couldn’t be persuaded. A pink satin poodle skirt trimmed in feathers with a sheer feather-trimmed top just made her little 4-year old heart go pitter patter. MC wanted to be a “blues brother” although I don’t remember how a 6-year old knew what a “blues brother” was. Surely she hadn’t seen the movie.
Isn’t she too cute for words?!!! I’m not sure what the significance of the arm and hand positioning is, but…….
whatever big sister did, little sister had to imitate. Awwww…. she’s such a cutie, too!
Happy Halloween!!!
Candid Karina wants to know what our security blankets are; the things we can’t leave home without. So…..here goes…….
Taking my purse and one or two giant bags filled with school supplies, materials, music and the like, is a given when I leave home every morning. I can’t even imagine leaving my ‘bags’ behind. Their contents are absolutely essential to my day.
I have to be wearing some earrings. Can’t leave home without ‘em. These are three of my favorite pairs.
On the rare occasion that I forget to put my earrings on, I feel out of sorts for the entire day. Seriously, if I forget my earrings, my students remark about how ‘different’ I look. I wear earrings when I mow the yard, carry out the garbage, exercise, whatever. The only time I take the earrings off is when I go to bed at night.
I gotta be wearing a watch. Can’t leave home without it!
I travel to three different buildings within my school district every day. Keeping track of my time is imperative. I have three watches so that I’m never caught with a dead watch battery and no watch to wear. Summer vacation means leaving that watch off and no schedule. Ah! What sweet freedom that is……..
Now, I leave my precious babies behind every week day morning, but it is a very hard thing to do. Jasper has the forlorn, neglected doggie look down to a tee. He sits on the front porch step or behind the front door screen looking out and puts on his pitiful face and it just about breaks my heart. He really turns on the drama when I have to go on a weekend choir trip. And leaving him at the kennel really makes me sad. 
Africa sometimes sits and watches me leave, but most of the time I honestly think she could care less. That’s a cat for ya! She does love to snuggle in my lap when I get home though and so does Jasper which is why I have to eat so much to keep my lap so nice and wide….ha!
Now, boogie on over to Candid Karina’s and check out some other folks’ security blankets.
Well, another junior high all region audition day has come and gone. Nine of my junior high students made all region choir which puts the total this year at 18 ( nine senior high students made all region choir on October 13). Not bad, if I say so myself! Sixteen junior high students auditioned today. Competition in the girl’s voice parts was brutal. A total of 221 young ladies auditioned for a spot in the alto section of the all region choir. I had two altos who made the cut one of whom is Tiggerlane’s lovely daughter, Amber. A total of 235 young ladies auditioned for a spot in the soprano section and three of my sopranos made the cut. All four of my young men who auditioned made the all region choir. All in all a very good day!
