Exactly one week before Halloween, we attended the annual Halloween carnival put on in the old Zurich stake center and run by some fabulous ladies in our ward, and a few extras thrown in for good measure. :) At first, I was kind of disappointed that they wouldn't let us use the building right on Halloween, but when it came down to it, I was glad for the week break in between. Spread the fun out over a longer time and let us celebrate our usual Halloween at home without being rushed.
Aunt Liz had brought some fun costumes for the girls from America and that is what they ended up wearing to the carnival.
Sarah was a cheerleader, in my high school's colors, no less, and Sophie was an adorable Native American girl, but NOT Pocahontas, as she told anyone who asked. Noah was Dracula, but since he refused to let me or anyone else put makeup on him, it was a bit hard to tell. Nick wore his werewolf costume from last year, which made me feel good since I had spent so much time sewing it. Amelia was going to be Heidi, but then her mom brought her an adorable Halloween shirt, socks and hair ribbons, so she went as the Halloween Spirit. Alexandra refused to put on her pumpkin costume, but decided that her ballerina tutu was just perfect. At least no one cried over their costume. A first! I went for comfort this year, after learning my lesson with the slinky witch costume from last year. Looked great, but was absolutely not compatible with the booth I was running. Pajamas and slippers are much better for running around picking up knocked over cans and tracking down far flung candy corn bean bags! And my bottle filled with water was a nice touch to the costume, but also kept my throat from getting too parched. Next year I either need to wear the same costume, or run a different booth.
There was a spook alley again this year, after not having one for at least one year. It was just scary enough to be fun for the older kids, and completely tear-inducing terrifying for the youngest ones. Noah only even entered the room because there was homemade root beer at the end of it. I loved the black lights and thought they did a great job putting it together. They even turned the lights on after it was over to show the younger kids what it was really made of, so they wouldn't have nightmares afterward. Very thoughtful. 🙂
After we had helped clean up, we gathered up all the kids and headed home for dinner. The kids couldn't wait to start trading candy, and I couldn't wait to get them all into bed! It was a fun day, and I am so grateful for all the ladies who help put it on every year.
