Halloween-y Activities!

Fall really does make me want to jump around and revel in the wonders of nature, Halloween, pumpkins, candy, and the like. I just can't get enough! I'm glad that others share my sentiments (Megan). Otherwise I'd have no one to marvel with in the delights of the season! Kenny likes fall, too, but I think his enthusiasm is best expressed in watching horror films and eating Halloween candy, whereas mine finds expression in carving pumpkins, wandering through corn maizes, and taking pictures of just about every cool tree I see. Okay, that's not fair - Kenny did mention to me a particularly beautiful area of gold-leafed trees and crimson bushes, then made sure to drive past it to show me. What a sweetie. It's just great to have a twin, though, who shares my undying enthusiasm for Halloween music, decorations, and fall colors!

To be sure to maximize my Halloween enjoyment throughout the whole month, I decorated my desk at work near the end of September. Everyone likes to stop by it and comment on how fun it is!

The right side of my desk:



The left:



Where I sit:



Megan and I hit the Draper Library last week for some scary stories. Camryn loved looking at the scarecrows on display (and by looking, I mean touching whatever her little hands could reach until I steered her away, afraid the displays would topple over!).

The windswept view of the mountains from the library parking lot:



An enthusiastic reader ready to look for books!



Where is the stuff I can touch? Hurry, Auntie Katie - my monkey leash is only so long!



On Thursday, my department at work had a get-together at one of our bosses' homes. We were amazed by all the gorgeous and ghoulish decorations Lance's wife had out! She made the most delicious harvest soups, salads, and our "party planning committee" brought pumpkin pie and carmel apples. Although we had planned on playing some games, everyone got absorbed in the pumpkin carving contest (and the food!) so we spent the evening gathered around the kitchen island admiring master carvers at work.

The dining room table all ready for Halloween!







Festive signs adorn the dining room chairs:





Entries in the pumpkin carving contest:

Halloween kitty (mine):



Mike and Becca's Oogie Boogie (from "The Nightmare Before Christmas"):



Travis's Headless Horseman:



On Saturday, Megan and Karl invited us to roam through a local corn maize (yes, that is how they spell it!), carve pumpkins, and have dinner at their house with them and Stephen and Melinda Taylor (and little James!). The weather was perfect and we had a wonderful time. They rented "The Changeling," a spooky movie that I had once seen as a freshman at BYU (long enough ago that the suspense was killer!) and we carved pumpkins and enjoyed pot roast, tasty salad, and Melinda's spice cake. Yum! If only we could have stayed long enough to see how the movie ended!

A pyramid of pumpkins greets us as we enter the festivities*:



Ready for some fun*!



A rule breaker if I ever saw one*!



The Taylors are ready for the maize*!



Rocking out to "Monster Mash" with some shaved ice*:



Which way?



Come find me!



Look! Corn!



At least we know the general direction of the way out - overlooking Thanksgiving Point:



Camryn approves of my choice of pumpkin. She likes the one her mom picked out, too:



*Photos courtesy of Megan Taylor