Happy Haunted Halloween

I LOVED our costumes this year! (you can see why, i got to be the queen for a day!) It was Gretel's turn to pick what our family would be and she chose the medieval theme. Then the other kids got to choose (from an approved list ha ha) what they wanted to be in that theme. I'm so glad Cort is still willing to go along. I don't know how long that will last- doesn't he look awesome as merlin? Pace is a knight, he wouldn't keep on his crown, sword and shield, but loved to say, "I'm gonna kiw da dragon! Gretel and Daphne were fairies. (nice that they already had those costumes from their pictures in the summer. Ummm, would somebody please take this thing and get a picture of me? Look how darling I am!

We all meet around 4:00 on Halloween at my moms to quickly see everyones costumes before heading out. After trick-or-treating early, we go to Ty's moms house for a yummy dinner and to see the other cousins costumes and then do more trick-or-treating with them.

This is at the ward Halloween party. Everyone knows how much I ADORE halloween, so this year I got to be in charge of the ward Halloween party because the activities chairwomen both broke their legs! (I didn't mean that to sound like I was happy they broke their legs...) Cort had a soccer game and played so hard he got sick, so he didn't put on his costume. We had a dance off at the end to halloween music and everyone had so much fun and got down and crazy! Ended up with thriller- yeah baby!

During the day on Halloween we went to Beus' Pond up by Weber State for Saunders Family pictures. This little sweetie took half an hour (and about 50 pictures) to get to smile. It took a silly uncle, a passerby and his dog and twirling leaves to make this happen- it was obviously worth the effort though, look at that face!!!!

My wonderful family: Ed and Katy(aka mom and dad) in the middle top. To the left of them is My sister Kari and Casey Jones with Emett and Mia. Below them is my brother Brian and his darling wife Brookie. To their right my sis Kristy and Troy Iverson with Carston, Dax and Smiley Miley. In front is my sis Sheri and her husband Clint Norseth with baby Eva. I love my family with all my heart and am so grateful to have grown up with such amazing parents and sibs!

Tyler was acting insane to get all the kids to smile. I love this picture and I can just see him flopping around on the ground in front of them with Daphne's blankie on his head so he looked like a crazy old woman pretending to have a seizure. They loved it and this was the result. Even cute little Miley cracked her little wishta half smile!

The kids had a great time feeding the ducks and running away from the big, scary, hissing goose.

Emett is Pace's best buddy and they love getting into mischief together. Emett is the sweetest, smartest kid (next to mine of course ha ha) He knows all the latter-day prophets by their picture! Among other amazing feats of knowledge. I want to adopt him but Kari won't let me.

According to Pace, they are R dudes. Can you see how Pacers' scalp is orange? Refer to below..

I love this pumpkin hat. It's been through the three youngest kids. I am so sad that this is the only picture I got of Daffers in it.

Cousins Alec and Brinley Ferrin - Cort and Gretel's ages.

Jen Dixon- Ty's brother Matt's wife and their kids Isaac, Parker, Abby and Emma.

Cousins Porter and Jett Iverson

I got to dress up as a witch and go to the kindergarten to tell spooky stories. I became "Madelaine Stapley" and told how I trapped my sister Giselle inside my magic ring and the kids had to help me free her. It was so fun. I rigged some glitter containers to my broom and put spells on the class. Pace wanted his hair orange when he came with me and for some reason it didn't come out all the way. To this day (feb 2010) you can still see light traces on his scalp! You can't see my shoes very good in the picture, but i found these AWESOME coffin-heels on ebay.

Tyler always makes a cool pumpkin- his is the witch one- and this year i decided to try something other than a face. It was supposed to be a cat, but looks more like a gremlin- we'll just say that's what it is. Cort made that great spider. Pace was really having fun, he just likes to make mean faces.

The new principal at Pioneer wouldn't let the kids wear their costumes so I made pumpkin buns on Gretel and sprayed the kids' hair orange and they wore their Halloween T-shirts. Gretel and I have the cutest matching spider earrings but you can't see them very well.

It was a happy, haunted halloween this year!