Wow. October flew by way too quickly. It seems we were just talking about getting Halloween decorations out, and yet here I am typing while listening to, of all things, Christmas music on the radio. November 4th and already the holidays are "here". The only part I really mind is the nagging feeling I get to get busy purchasing and wrapping gifts. I think my brother Justin had a pretty good idea once - celebrate Christmas without all of the gifts - just the spirit - but then go crazy at the after Christmas sales. Can you imagine how enjoyable the season would be without the worldly influence?? I think I would find more time to bake and share my goodies. Maybe I should adopt this idea in spite of the expectations of the season. At any rate, the Hallberg family is moving along well this time of the year.

Halloween went by without any hitches this year. No one had to stay home sick, although Ellie probably could have. My little cowboy, fifties girl, and pumpkin were absolutely adorable! The day started out pretty harried - getting 5 people out the door by 8:15, 4 of which had on full costumes. Yes, I got Joel to wear a costume to work. Woo-hoo! First time in 7 years of marriage. Although he only wore jeans and his BSU football fan gear, I would have to say it was a successful costume. He even allowed me to paint his face blue and orange. Go Broncos! At any rate, the day was filled with sugar, sugar and more sugar. And now my poor unborn child is reaping the benefits of those bags of candy - Mom has eaten way too much of the stuff! Sydney pretty much wore her costume all day - her "pun-tkin" as she kept saying over and over throughout the day. She seems to associate personally with them now - whenever she sees pumpkins when we're out and about, she points and says "pun-tkin" while pointing at herself. I hope that doesn't reflect on her self esteem in the future. :) Haddon enjoyed his first holiday at school - although he came home saying he can't wait until next year when he gets to be there all day. My sweet boy loves school so much! Miss Ellie enjoyed her party at dance the week before Halloween - she was so excited to show all of her dance friends how she could whirl around in her red poodle skirt. I thought she resembled a young Audrey Hepburn - black is a color that suits that beautiful brown skin! After a pizza and "spiders" dinner, the kids could hardly wait to run out and ring doorbells. A successful trick or treat ended with Sydney saying "tink-you" about halfway down the driveway. So cute! Needless to say we are all suffering from sugar highs and lows - Mom putting the candy up high, and the low stool being just the right height for Haddon to sneak "just one more".

On a more exciting note for me, I finally finished painting the new doorways and walls in the upstairs hallway. I'm partial, but I think it looks like a brand new house, well, hallway anyway! Now that the outdoor season is past, I'm keeping busy fixing up our fixer upper. Next we do Had's room. For his birthday he got stickers for his room that look like road signs from the movie Cars. He's practically driving us crazy begging to start work on his room, so that he can put up his stickers. When it's all said and done, the house should be looking great!

Speaking of birthdays, Haddon's went over well. He wanted a cowboy theme, so I got busy making boot invitations, brown paper bag vests, and a cowboy cake. We invited his Sunday school class, and at 3:00 the day of the party, I had a house full of 10 five and six year old cowboys and girls. We painted faces, mustaches for the boys, and yellow stars for the girls. Then the kiddos got to decorate their paper bag vests, and play a bunch of cowboy type games. The cake was a hit, but the "sasparilla" floats were an even bigger hit. The afternoon ended with all 10 kids playing with Haddon's new toys in my living room - mostly all hotwheels of course, while Mom and Dad cleaned up 3 spilled root beer floats and lots of wrapping paper. Next year I think we'll just have a quiet family party so that mom doesn't have to take headache meds again. Haddon's such a great kid though, that it was worth it!