Lots of Tricks and Treats!

Devi: "Mom, on Halloween can I eat Ivy?"
Mom: "Why would you want to eat ivy?"
Devi "Because, bears eat oats, and does eat oats, and little lambs eat ivy!"

We've blown out the candles in our jack-o-lanterns, put our little lamb to bed, picked up the remains of several treats, turned back our clocks and are huddled in front of the fireplace trying to once again feel our frozen toes. It has been a long couple of weeks preparing for the big event and tonight, even after Dev was done going trick or treating for herself (all of a half a dozen houses), she shrieked with delight each time someone rang our door bell yelling out the magic phrase. Handing out treats was just as fun as going door to door for her.

I am not too keen on the whole idea of bringing home 10 pounds of candy, but was glad to find that Devi still has no idea what most of it is. She finds it much more exciting to take it out of the pumpkin and count it, sort it by shape, then color, stack it and then put in all back into the pumpkin, only to start the whole process over again, without ever considering eating any of it. Our dear neighbors always manage to tuck extra special little toys into her pumpkin too...spoiled rotton by them, she is.


Months ago, we somehow arrived on the lamb costume idea which the three of us constructed by gluing cotton balls to a sweatshirt Add ears, a tail and a big pink bow and viola she became a lamb. No matter the age, once a costume goes on, one naturally falls into character. Devi was Baa-baaing all night and Pat and I uttered an occasional "howdy partner" as we were her farmer side kicks.
We had several Halloween activities planned this year, but it all got kicked off by the annual pumpkin selection. We headed out to the Double R ranch this year singing over and over, "I saw a little ghost, and he saw me. I waved at him and he said Boo." Once there, we found a wonderful supply of fresh pumpkins, in spite of the fact that a shortage of them has been reported this year. We also managed to arrive in between rain showers, which was an extra added bonus.

At a carving party, where Devi decided she
wanted a surprised look on her jack-o-lantern this year,
similar to these faces.

Reaching in to touch pumpkin guts.

Dad and I, with our little lamb's help, carved ours at home and
they all made a "pumpkin family" as Devi would call them on our front stoop.

Nothing like a couple of jack-o-lantern pancakes to fuel a girl who will be
trick -or-treating in a matter of hours.



Dad and Dev being goofy with a couple of the masks she made this year.
She is a lion...hear her roar!

Although she really wanted me to go as mommy-bo-peep, and daddy to
go as daddy-bo-peep, we managed to convince her that every lamb
needs a couple of farmer's to feed them.

As her third birthday is just around the corner, we once again see how much she is changing and maturing. These are a few of her latest Tricks and Treats!

Tricking mom and dad is one of her latest fun things to do. She laughs herself silly by singing, "Baa, baa YELLOW sheep..." We play along by saying "Nah...that's not it. Are you sure?" So she'll sing it again with another color inserted . This can go on for hours while she cracks herself up.

We drove by a field of soccer players and birds on our way to music class last weekend and Devi said, "Look they let those crows play on their team!"

Today at coffee time and story time, daddy was reading an animal book to her. Daddy pointed to a picture of a baby horse and called it a colt. Devi corrected him, " Daddy that is incorrect, it is a foal!" A know it all at three...should I be worrying?

The funny that take the cake occurred during bath time last week. She asked if I would soak my feet while she took her bath. I rolled up my pant legs and put my feet in. This is the conversation that followed.
Devi: "Mommy, why did God give me beautiful brown skin and make you polka-dotted?
(My skin has lots of moles).
Mommy: " I don't know"
Devi: " Scrubbing might help", She began to try and scrub off a mole on my knee with her fish shaped sponge and shook her head when she said " I guess He just painted you that way."