October 30

Balance. We are striving for balance in our family. Hopefully we will find the correct rhythm soon.

One week ago we shopped at our favorite thrift store and discovered Halloween costumes and Louis L’Amour books. Both are incredible finds. Underfoot decided he wanted to be a cowboy. We found a cowboy shirt just his size. Hurricane found a Thomas the Train costume and fell in love. Both costumes were put to use yesterday at our ward’s trunk-or-treat. Trunk-or-treat definition: A group of people come to a parking lot and open up their trunks as children pass from car to car collecting candy.

The reason for the trip to “Dillards,” as we called it, was to find an appropriate cowboy costume for Underfoot because he was not going to have me pull out a plaid shirt from his closet to be a cowboy. Underfoot caught on that his Mama makes Halloween as simple as possible by using what we already have. Hurricane decided at the last minute to change his costume to a cowboy (moments before the trunk-or-treat. Unlike his brother, he was okay that I pulled out a plaid shirt from the closet to be his “cowboy” costume with his cowboy hat. He then put Thomas the Train over the top of the cowboy get-up and was a Thomas the Train cowboy.

Before the trunk-or-treat, a lovely family hosted a party and DINNER!!! It was lovely to go and let children play while adults chatted. I was very excited about not making supper.

Our week held its regular activities of Joy School (with Halloween party), work at Raytheon, music class, and Scouts. We have also been getting ready for our community yard sale. We are going to participate this time and have been collecting, cleaning, and labeling the odds and ends we hope that others will think are great treasures. The new discipline tactic is that if the toy doesn’t get picked up it will be labeled and sold this coming weekend. There have been more tears and prompt responses when that threat has been issued. Only a few things have been labeled and tucked away.

Underfoot, at his t-ball game, got the ball after a hit. He promptly pick it up and held it high. He yelled, “I got it!” He was so proud.

Hurricane pooped in the potty. He has no interest since then.

Sweetheart rearranged out library. From our Dillards visit we found a desk for me. Now Sweetheart will have space on his desk instead of me using it and walking away and leaving the papers on it. It also removed one of the two computers that was on it. We are very excited to have some personal space. We will put a table in the room for the boys to work at and hopefully make it our school room.

No crazy home preservation projects this week.

Be Well.