Meredith Carson... Across the Pond and Back Again...

Perhaps you can imagine how thrilled my two year old was when Scooby Doo came to her house a couple of weeks ago.  It was so exciting; all of the grown ups were dressed in fabulous costumes.  Shortly before the party started, she asked me to put on her Pablo (from the Backyardigans) costume.  Of course I obliged, fastening all 77 snaps, then realizing I was off by one when I got down to her feet.  I was slightly frustrated by the time we got the costume on properly, but I felt it was important that she was involved in the fun.  Lili looked at herself in the mirror, giggled, and then, in one quick motion, tore open all of the snaps and declared, "Now I want to be a princess!!" "No."  was my simple answer.  I still had to get myself dressed and arrange all of the Scooby Snacks on the table. She settled for a princess night gown.  Still it was all very exciting and, as it turns out, also a little confusing. Everyday since I hostesse...

My life has been a bit stressful and serious lately which is why Halloween came at a very convenient time this year.  It is difficult to feel gloomy when introducing a toddler to her very first jack-o-lantern.  Wouldn't you agree? (The eerie shadow on the left was totally intentional.  I am an excellent photographer.) And even though I am a self-proclaimed hater of crafts, and pumpkin carving is clearly crafty, gathering round the table with my family, each of us wielding sharp knives, made me feel very happy and loved.  With my husband's artistic pattern I was even able to carve this top notch Cookie Monster-o-lantern making my excited toddler even more excited... My nine-year-old impressed us all with her super cool dragon-lantern.  She worked tirelessly (and probably a bit too late into the school night) on this fantastic design.  She is a little bit of a rock star fireball, you know. All of this wonderfulness happened the night befor...