October 2021 Highlights

 We had a fun-filled October! Halloween is my favorite holiday and my love for it has been projected onto Fox & Jane so now they love it too :)

October 1st I brought up all the Halloween decorations and got to work spooking out our digs and making everything bootiful.

Black Christmas Halloween tree!

Spooktacular!

Some of these decorations I've had since Fox's very first birthday party back in 2011.

Jane chose black, orange, and purple bands for her braces this month.

I dunno how she's even heard of "The Ring" girl but we thought it would funny to play a trick on Chris when he got home from work. She was standing right inside the door with this digital coloring she made and whispered, "Seven days...." Chris kept on walking and said, "I don't like it..." Too funny.

On October 2nd we went and saw Addams Family 2!

It was pretty cute and funny and also a little strange.

Yay for all things Halloween at Target!

We went to Spirit Halloween to ring in the holiday. Chris tried on this amazing jacket. He didn't buy it but now I kinda wish he had.

Fun times at Spirit Halloween!

My boo!

We went to a pumpkin patch called The Patch in Elizabeth and had SO MUCH FUN! I wrote a whole separate blog post about it HERE.

YAYAYAYAY! FINALLY!!! It was so good. Probably my favorite of them all.

This is Fox's signature pose for Halloween.

Kneaders for lunch one day, always yummy. I get the Thai Chicken Soup Bread Bowl.

My absolute favorite meal that Chris makes, Bethany's Chicken Tacos.

I got to have lunch with the kids at school! First with Fox and his friends.

Then with Jane and her friends. They each picked out a couple dollars worth of baked goods and we shared precious time together.

We played a round of Here to Slay.

We went to the Immersive Van Gogh Exhibit in Denver.

Margi loved it so much it brought her to tears, I'm glad she loved it!

A green room outside of the exhibit. I can see a reflection of Fox & Jane in one of the little mirrors hehe.

Gettin' my roots did.

And a couple other pics of me, the gal behind the camera. I got a loungewear set from Anthro and I'm currently living in it and an Athleta sweater in my favorite shade of pink!

I'm trying to get back on the exercise wagon. I feel so much better when I exercise 3 times a week.

We got a letter from the HOA to paint our fence the right shade of brown so I busted out the sprayer and got to work so we don't get fined. I actually like this color better than the orange it was before, so all's well that ends well.

Fox turned 11!!! HOW?!?!?!

He's my little buddy. Compassionate. Smart. Caring. Empathetic. Creative.

My parents drove all the way down from Seattle for a quick visit. We went on the Pikes Peak Cog Railway and stayed the night at The Stanley Hotel in Estes Park. I wrote a whole separate blog post about that fun weekend HERE.

While they were here my dad helped us with a couple things above my paygrade including moving the couch our kids have been using as a trampoline to the basement. Out with the old, in with the new!

"PIVOT!" I crack myself up :)

For Fox's birthday dinner he chose Texas Roadhouse.

We invited all the local Evans families and had a blast when the servers clapped & sung to him.

When I got this plant over the summer they said it would only bloom once. Joke's on them! :)

We went to Disneyland for Fall Break! You can read the whole 5-day recap HERE.

There was one song from one ride that is now forever ingrained in our brains and I found it on YouTube! "Honkin' honkin' honkin haul-o-ween!" Good times.

While we were away, our pet sitter sent us daily pics, be still my heart.

The day we got back, we picked up right where we left off. My little snugglers :)

The leaves totally burst into fall while we were away.

As I type this, all of the leaves have now dropped. That was a quick turnover!

We have an annual tradition of making Halloween cupcakes, here is one of this year's.

The kids went back to school after break and I got back to work!

We saw 3 movies in the theater in October: Addams Family 2 (cute), No Time To Die (awesome!!!), and Halloween Kills (good seasonal movie). Together we've been watching The Bachelorette, Criminal Minds, then falling asleep to Friends. I watched the Halloween Baking Championship with the kids. And then while I was working throughout the day and walking on the treadmill I watch/ed the Great British Baking Show (always love), The Haunting of Bly Manor (OMG!! SO GOOD!), Maid (OMG!! SO GOOD!), as well as my usual October standard movies (screenshotted below the collage).

Watching the Halloween Baking Championship together.

I booked Justin Bieber tickets for February with my sister in Vegas! Looking forward to it!!

Jane's orthodontist always has the best outfits. I tried to fit in :) She got her expander off, hooray!! I think I was more excited than she was lol. Just a few more months then she gets her braces completely off.

The Thursday before Halloween we went to the high school's trunk or treat!

It was the first time Fox & Jane put on their Halloween costumes and they looked too cute to spook!

Jane was Cinderella and Fox was Ennard from Five Nights at Freddy's.

I was planning to take myself to see the Antlers movie at 6pm (ended up not going from an upset stomach, too much candy lol) so I wanted to get to the trunk or treat early to make sure we finished in time. We arrived 19 minutes early and were told to park in the middle school parking lot. So we did, until we saw a golf cart pull up to the start of the treating line, a couple cars pulled up after it, so we quickly got in line, we were car #4 or 5.

We want candy!

And thank goodness we got there so early! Within minutes of us getting in line the cars started backing up as far as we could see. By the time we were finished, there were cars trying to enter from every which way, lined up for blocks, police were directing traffic everywhere, it was absolute chaos! It was supposed to go from 5-7 but Chris told me the high schoolers stayed until 9pm! (The daughter of one of his employers goes here, we saw her! It was fun!)

Super fun and creative trunks, I loved every second of it!

We drove up and down one side of the high school collecting candy out the window.

Then we drove up and down another side collecting even more candy! It was an absolutely beautiful afternoon, so warm that we had the AC on.

20 minutes of trunk-or-treating yielded more candy than I've ever seen!

The next morning the kids had their parade and parties at school.

Sweet Jane gave me a curtsy as she passed by.

I dunno why but Halloween parades bring me so much joy :)

Hi Fox!

I couldn't go to their parties but parents shared pics with each other and here is Fox in class mummifying his friend.

And some pics of Jane at her class party playing games.

In the evening Jane went to her friend's house for a Halloween party.

The Saturday before Halloween we went and saw the Halloween Kills movie then dropped off a birthday present at Jaylie's house. We ended up not going to our church trunk-or-treat because we still had so much candy from the high school trunk-or-treat, but I still love the advertisement for it.

For dinner we got our traditional pumpkin-shaped Papa John's Pizza.

HALLOWEEN AT LAST!

Festive outfits for the sabbath.

We went to church in the morning and Fox participated in his last Primary Program - in January he'll be a deacon! Unfathomable!

Time for trick-or-treating! Yippee!

Fox's best buds came over so I asked them to be in some pics.

Then I took Jane over to her friend's house. Not gonna lie, I missed her SOOOO MUCH. Halloween is MY holiday lol.

From the pics her friend's mom sent out it looks like Jane had a wonderful time. But I still missed trick-or-treating with her!

It was 37 degrees so I dressed appropriately. I may or may not be wearing the world's cutest Halloween costume underneath hahaha.

Off we go!

The boys had so much fun collecting candy.

Someone took the time to attach a red balloon at almost every drain in the neighborhood. I wish I could give them a hug, they're my people. "They all float!"

Chris stayed home to do candy duty. I love the costumes of these trick-or-treaters.

We lasted a good 2 hours, by then most houses had run out of candy. Back at home the kids traded treats. Snickers are a hot commodity.

Candy coma!

Such a fun and memorable October! Now I need to get crackin' on my October 2021 Mini Album!

Before moving onto scrappy updates, here are a whole bunch of Amy & Jill photos! The kittens have brought me so much joy! So much so that I never want to leave home :)

I spy a naughty kitty.

Need a hint?

They are complete and total snugglers, how did we get so lucky?! Watching the Halloween Baking Championship.

Binge watching Maid.

As I was setting up Halloween decorations on October 1st, they hopped into the empty tree box. Always exploring and getting into mischief.

They love and cuddle everyone, it warms my heart. 

Seriously?!?! Can't. Handle. The. Cuteness!

Two little loafs.

Amy is my little lovey.

Her smile!

I love the way she looks at me, hehe.

Napping with me as I scrap.

Jillybean is a bit more independent but still appreciates cuddle time and is never far away from her sis.

Adventures of Amy.

How does she even get into this position?

One night we found Amy in bed with Joey lol. Maybe they'll be besties?!

Ready for tricks or treats!

Lots of vet trips this month to get them up to code :)

I still miss Rachel and think about her often. I wonder if that will ever subside. It sure does my heart good to have these two little furry companions constantly with me though.

On the scrappy front! I shared 6 creations here throughout October:
October 2020 Mini Album // Embroidered Quilt Layout // Small World Layout
One Fine Day Layout // Capture Mini Album & Virtual Class // Our Happy Family Layout

I designed and gave away 9 cut files - 5 in my Happy Scrappy Place Facebook Group, 3 in my Newsletters, and 1 for the Scrapbook & Cards Today Magazine blog.

Also speaking of cut files, yesterday I wrapped up the 20 Days of Halloween Cut Files and today the 1st of the 20 Days of Stitching Cut Files goes out! Stay tuned for the 25 Days of Christmas Cut Files 2021!

I did a Bungalow Lane giveaway on my instagram:

I loved pulling out all kinds of colorful threads for the promo image for my 20 Days of Stitching Cut Files which start TODAY!

We found some Bungalow Lane at JoAnn! Looks like the display was still getting stocked up.

I taught another mini album virtual class on YouTube on October 20th. Always fun times! The class can still be viewed and purchased HERE.

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On Halloween I went through all of my October Mini Albums and found pics of Fox & Jane in their costumes since 2012 - 9 years and counting!

2012 - Fox as Buzz Lightyear & Jane as a cute Halloween baby

2013 - Fox as a ghost & Jane as a not-so-spooky witch

2014 - Fox as Thor & Jane as a princess

2015 - Fox as Captain America & Jane as a witch

2016 - Fox as a scary guy & Jane as a bat

2017 - Fox as Nightmare Foxy from Five Nights at Freddy's & Jane as a bat again

2018 - Fox as Master Chief from Halo & Jane as a witch

2019 - Fox as a creation from a Five Nights at Freddy's fan game & Jane as a unicorn

2020 - Fox as Nightmare Freddy from Five Nights at Freddy's & Jane as a devil girl

🎃🕷️🕸️👻🦹

My heart is overflowing with love for preserving these traditions in mini albums. I can't believe how quickly a decade has gone by! Thank goodness for scrapbooking to remember all the little things!

I announced my next layouts virtual class that I'm teaching on November 19th. All the info can be found HERE.

That wraps up an epically awesome October! Here's to a perfectly splendid November! I'm going to focus on a daily attitude of gratitude. I found every single one of these leaves within a 20 ft square area of our backyard. So much beauty and color surrounds us, I want to remember and focus on our blessings.

Also, my brother and his cute family are flying out for Thanksgiving so we already have something to look forward to!