Halloween 2026

Wyatt was working, so Goldie and Isaac came over to visit for a bit while we carved pumpkins. (Though that gives no proper explanation for the face she is making.)

A lot of recently dried tears in this next picture (as her carving didn't go according to plan).

Penny showing me, by her expression, the expression I am meant to see that her pumpkin is making.

"It's a rock fact!" (Daisy's nod to Over the Garden Wall.)

Octonauts anyone?

At some point between pumpkin carving and trick-or-treating, I must have fallen asleep for a moment. I have no recollection of having been surrounded by all of these children, and I have no idea what they were all doing. I only remember waking once, later, alone, and thinking, "It's awfully cold in here." (Looking through these pictures later I saw why. [Pay special attention to Hans.])

Someday we might have a headboard or something lovely hung on this wall; for now, we have these three Halloweeny items that Starling hung. 

Only two little elementary kids left! (Waiting for the school bus.)

Daisy was ... Daisy from Mario. (Rather perfect of her.)

Abe got plenty of attention for his final year wandering BYU's campus as Darth Maul--showing up in various BYU social media feeds, etc.

Kenya texted us: "An uncommonly known fact: Darth Maul actually has a day job."

Kenya ran a Halloween Half Marathon on Halloween morning.

Isaac was a bit of a pumpkin for most of the day and a shark later on. (Or, perhaps he wasn't the shark, as Abe pointed out: perhaps he was being eaten by a shark.)

Ash Ketchum from Pokémon. 

Penny, if you must know, was Rodrick Heffley from Dairy of a Wimpy Kid (who is part of a band with a terrible name). (I myself have never read--nor yet ever encouraged the reading of--Diary of a Wimpy Kid.)

That's Anders in the bear head. He purchased it for himself because ... who wouldn't want to buy a bear head for themselves to wear?

Jesse was missing from these pictures because he was slow coming out front, and Mette was missing because she went trick-or-treating with friends this year. 

Jesse (Charlie Brown--as usual) finally joined us.

Summer is a flying squirrel (in case you weren't certain). She was also an excellent tourist for the ward trunk-or-treat the day before, but it was raining so hard I didn't try to take any pictures. 

We are getting an older crew of kids, aren't we?

Ash catching a Pokémon? 

And then we all went to the Zilleses (who own the pumpkin patch) to roast hotdogs and chat with neighbors (while our kids anxiously asked to get going). Then we took the kids out trick-or-treating in Mendon. 

Although Mette wasn't with us, she did put together a perfect Little Miss Muffet costume for school. (She said very few kids knew who she was! What? Does this generation not grow up with nursery rhymes? It seems ... bad to not somehow--like they'll never develop properly. Haha.) And with her friends she was a panda. 

Happy Halloween! (And now my thoughts are shifting to Christmas!)