The Agony of Defeat

We lost.

Every year one of our kids wins a costume contest and this year, we lost. I was certain one of them would win because their costumes were awesome and yet we came up short. It's humbling. And I think it might have cured my competitive addiction.

You see, every year, when one of the kids wins, I come home already thinking about what they might be the next year. This year, I came home thinking, "Next year, I'm buying their costumes at the store."

And just like that, the Chaos Family reign has come to an end.

Here were Zoë and Noah in their costumes this year: (the lighting was awful inside and I couldn't get the settings on the camera right to save my life, so I caved and used the automatic function which of course used the flash, washing them out)

Lego Boba Fett from the Lego Star Wars game and Strawberry Shortcake to go with my daughter's red hair.

There were four categories for the costume contest- Most Original Boy, Most Original Girl, Most Original Family and Most Original Homemade.

Most Original Boy went to a little boy dressed as The Joker. I didn't get a picture because when they awarded the prizes, they could not find him.

Most Original Girl went to a little girl dressed as an old lady:


Most Original Family went to a brother and sister dressed as the regular, yellow Lego people- which were really cute:


And Most Original Homemade went to two boys dressed as a pair of dice:

But, at least one really cute moment happened. While some of the smaller children appeared a little scared of Noah since he looked like a robot, one adorable little bumblebee could not leave his side. She walked right up to him and held his hand the entire time they were on the dance floor.


This post is being linked with SITS day 3 of the Halloween link-up where one lucky blogger will win a Canon DSLR.

Hooooo Dat?

There is a FABULOUS contest going on over at SITS right now to win a Canon Rebel T2i. Saturday we were supposed to link a blog with pictures and the theme of Halloweens past. Today, we are supposed to show something crafty we made for Halloween and tomorrow, we will link up what our kids dressed as this year.

Friday, while my daughter was wearing her costume and enjoying a Halloween party at pre-school, my son was costume-less and enjoying a Fall Festival. His school opted out of Halloween celebrations a few years ago because they didn't like excluding the children that didn't celebrate Halloween. That meant, no more character days or costume parades and absolutely none of the cupcakes, cookies, candies or decorations could having anything to do with Halloween. We got a very specific letter regarding what was and was not allowed. Only fall and harvest-themed items. In addition, the letter explained that each grade was tasked with bringing a specific item. Second grade was awarded the cupcakes.

I had tons of ideas for cute Halloween cupcakes, but was really struggling with fall. I pondered it for a bit- What makes me think of fall? Leaves, scarecrows, owls, harvest moons and, ahem, HALLOWEEN! I let the last one go and then turned to my best friend for ideas- Google.

After looking at page after page of cupcakes, here is what I finally decided to make. I think they are adorable!

"Whooooooo's not a Halloween cupcake? We are, that's WHOOOOO!" [ba-dum-bump]

Because of peanut allergies in the school, everything had to be checked for peanut contamination labels. I used a cake mix and frosting that were peanut-free, the Oreos are peanut-free and the original idea called for M&M's for eyes and a cashew for the nose, so I substituted Skittles for both.

Now, whooooo's the cutest cupcake ever?

Alright, WISE GUY, I'm looking at you!

I don't give a hoot what you think, stop your screeching or I'm crying fowl.

Alright.. you can quit cringing, I'm done.