THE HAUL

It astounds me how delightful it is to take my little daughter trick-or-treating. She totally got the concept last year, so now that she is another year older and wiser she is like a Halloween professional. She would go up to the doors all by herself, give them a good knock and yell "Trick-or-Treat!" She was usually good at saying "Thank you" or "Happy Halloween" as well. She kept telling us how much fun she was having and loved running from house to house (at the beginning anyway). We decided this year to go through my parents' neighborhood, which turned out not to be a bad idea at all when Stella managed to snag a few full-sized candy bars while she was out. After being out for a good while, Ava was tired, but I asked Stella if she wanted to go home or to go to more houses. "More houses!" she yelled. And when she saw Ava head home: "Ava is too tired." However, as we went to those last few houses her pumpkin had gotten so full that she needed me to carry it in between homes. I was also pretty impressed as she would head up to the scary houses as well with no fear. She was, however, scared of some of the neighborhood puppies.

When we got back home to Papa, she showed him all her stash. She was mostly proud of her Princess cards that had Cinderella on them. But she did not forget about all that candy--she had sure worked hard for it!

[Editor's Note: This last photo is not Stella after being punched in the face, but rather, photographic proof that while M&Ms may not melt in your mouth, they will in fact melt all over your face.]