Recap: Decorating and Halloween

Wow, no more Paris. So, it was time to gear up for halloween. Halloween is definitely not a main holiday or party time over here. Thanks to family we were able to have some crafts and still try to get in the spirit. We did our crafts while Mom and Dad were still here and the kids tried on their costumes and did a little dancing. The annual haunted gingerbread house:Erika is showing off her spider lantern. I think it turned out pretty cute:

Next up, gutting the pumpkins. We stripped the kids down to avoid any big messes or cleanup. I am actually stripped from the waist down too. Apparently I am a major mess contributor:

After the pumpkins, pumpkin lantern, spider lantern and gingerbread house, Erika shows off her princess costume. Note the Cinderella wand:

Grandma and Grandpa posed with all the decorations. Dad seems a little tired after the Monster Mash dance:

This one is self-explanatory. The kids dance for any event:

I guess it is Jodi that likes to do the dancing/horsey. On Halloween, we repeated the whole procedure (minus lanterns/pumpkins/gingerbread house) and got out the camera for the dress-up. Reese was not a fan of the whole ensemble, but was starting to warm up a bit to his costume (he actually loves to wear it now):

Since there is no 'real' trick-or-treating in Freiburg, Jodi devised a clever way for the kiddies to have some Halloween fun. She drew a map of the house and cellar and hid a whole bunch of candies everywhere, and then the kids went on a big treasure hunt. Reese was a little confused, but Erika sure loved the map, and Reese didn't complain when he continually stumbled upon candy:

Reese liked to try and crack open the individual packages of the German equivalent of Coke bottles. And then stick them all in his mouth. The lights in the cellar are on a timer, so the video ends in dark:

As a side note, check out Jodi's hand in the above video. She does a mean Chubbs Peterson impression with the fake, exaggerated-length forearm and hand. It also reminds me of Joe Clark when he talks with the stiff hand. Anyway, if you're not a Happy Gilmore or Joe Clark fan just disregard. And so concludes Halloween. We are starting to get a little caught up now. Still lots to go until the present though...

Jodi and Jeff