Halloween




Loving the pumpkins!

Halloween ended up being quite a bit of fun around here.  We definitely were not used to going out trick or treating when it is 95 degrees - we are usually barely able to stay warm on an Idaho Halloween!  But before we get into much more, I will write a bit about the first part of our week.

Hilary was going to have the kids take the day off from school on Halloween, but since our final shipment of household goods came a bit unexpectedly on Monday, we opted to take Monday and Tuesday off instead so we could get a little better organized.  So, to the dismay of the kids, school was in session on Wednesday, Halloween morning.  I was able to take off of work to help unpack on Monday and Tuesday, so that was good.  By Wednesday morning, we mostly had the school area tidied up enough for school the next morning.  Hilary had been teaching at the kitchen table, so everything had to be moved and set up in our new school room.

There are a few pieces of furniture that we are going to give back/exchange, but other than that I think we are pretty settled and have gotten most everything put in a place.  We've crammed every nook and cranny.  It is hard to move from a 2400 sq. ft. house to a 1300 sq. ft. house even though we don't have half of our stuff!  That sounds horribly American, doesn't it?  We (especially the kids) have noticed that it is MUCH harder to keep the house and bedrooms clean when there is so many things to play with!

We ordered the kids' Halloween costumes several weeks ago, then about one week before Halloween, we received a second delivery of the same costumes again!  I checked my credit card and we had also been billed twice.  So I called the company and they told me that they had a computer glitch that day and it accidentally sent the costumes out again and charged again.  They were very good, and we got an email a couple of days later from the CEO saying they were sorry and that the charge would be removed.  I called back and told them thanks, but we still have the extra costumes.  So far we haven't heard back, so not sure how that will go...

Beaux was a "sweetheart skeleton girl" with a light-up heart on her shirt.  Jax was Wolverine and Jones was a sheriff skelebones.  Wolverine is the only known character.  We went out at about 6:30 to take some pictures and then headed out for some trick or treating.  There were a ton of kids out on our street, so the kids just kind of got in a pack (with the adults trailing) and went down the street that way.  There were probably 15-20 kids, we only knew two of them!  The Australian folk would typically have their candy and be sitting in a lawn chair at the end of the drive.  That made it real easy.  There are a lot of gates here, and Hilary and I are still trying to understand "gate etiquette" - it can be a bit awkward.  The kids seemed to tire quickly, due to the heat, so we got a lot less candy than we would have in the states, so that is good.  We got home around 8:00, so started handing out our candy then.  I am sure it was gone by 8:30!  There were more and more kids as the night wore on!

I guess this is one of the few places in Australia where Halloween is so big, due in part to the large American influence.  But the Australian kids love it! 

Australians often say "How are you going?" which usually makes us do a double-take.  We are expecting "How are you doing?" or "How is it going?" so we are taken aback when we get an apparent mix-up.

Hope everyone is doing well!

Trent

P.S. - for those of you with a weak constitution when it comes to bugs, there is a picture of a Black House Spider I found on our house one night at the end of this post.  It is about the size of a 50 cent piece.  They are venomous (probably similar to a Black Widow).  So don't scroll all the way down if you don't want to see it!



Moving paper pile

Box Pile

Pumpkin carving

Beaux and her pumpkin



Trick or Treators

Candy Time!!

 

Venomous Black House Spider - fitting for Halloween!