halloween

Tonight as they said their prayers, all four of my verbal children thanked Heavenly Father for the blessing of Halloween. Wilson was thankful that Heavenly Father invented the holiday so kids could have fun dressing up and of course Cooper thanked Him specifically for blessing them with a large haul of candy. Wilson dressed this year as Death, Cooper was Pancho Villa the Bandito, Max was a vampire, Eliza was supergirl, and Marcos was the cutest little chick (pollito) I've ever seen.

The highlight of my day was when a little boy in Cooper's class asked what Max was. I told him he was Dracula and the little boy said, "he's not Dracula, he's Blackula!" Maybe "Balckula" will stick as Max's new nickname.

Tony was not on call this year (hooray) and really got into the spirit. He wore the lion costume and jumped out of the shadows on the porch. I'm sure he will be a legend around town tomorrow, particularly with the junior high kids whose screams could be heard for miles.

Grandma Sue came down to see the kids in their costumes at the school parade and inadvertently went home with half the costumes in her trunk. Tony was a real hero when he drove halfway to Spokane and back to retrieve the important wardrobe pieces.

I am feeling overwhelmed this week in two ways. First, I have a lot of kids now and I am felling the stretch. I know our family will eventually return to equilibrium, but I'm not going to pretend we are not having growing pains.

The second way I am feeling overwhelmed is with the amazing kindness everyone has offered us. I have such good friends who seem to be reading my mind and are helping in exactly the ways I need. Yesterday Betina came to can apple pie filling with me. I think I needed her company more than the pie filling and it was a great day. Today a friend called from the grocery store just to see if I needed anything. I have meals in my freezer and dear, sweet Audrey has cleaned my kitchen at least 3 times since we've been home. This experience has made me want to serve people more. I have a new appreciation for how much simple acts of kindness truly help.

I do spend a large portion of my day marveling at how wonderful it is to have Marcos home. He is an angel. I love his snuggliness, the sounds he makes when he is happy, his little hands and feet, his sideburns, and his little Guatemalan bum. Sometimes I wonder how our family ever lived without him.