"Party! Party!"

Last night, Mallory and I headed over to Colleen's house for her Annual Halloween Pumpkin Carving Party. It was our second year going and just as much fun as I remember. Even monster was pumped up on the drive over chanting, "Party! Party!" from the backseat every few minutes. Have I mentioned how adorable she has been lately; I love hearing her mind speak!

We got a little more creative on the costumes this year than last. Last year I put her in some pajamas that looked like a ladybug and called it good, and didn't even take the time to put myself in anything other than comfortable clothes. This year I at least used some actual costume-type props to make her look more like Minnie Mouse, though I can't take all the credit as the ears were a gift from Nama and the tutu was recycled from her one year birthday party. I'm cheap, what can I say. For myself, I took an idea from a Google search of 'DIY Halloween Costumes' for a Mad Scientist. Most of the items I needed I found around the house, and picked up the rest for less than $10 at Target.

We brought along with us a platter filled with cute, Pinterest-inspired mummy cupcakes to share, of course partaking in some ourselves. Colleen made her famous chili which was even more yummy than I remember. Monster and I didn't do any pumpkin carving - we had our fill last weekend - so we enjoyed watching others get dirty with guts and seeds instead. She was having fun being the little entertainer for those standing around, dancing and jumping on laps and playing hide-and-seek. When the carving was complete and the pumpkins were lit, Mallory broke out in the 'Happy Birthday' song; fitting I guess considering it's that particular pumpkin's first Halloween. Mal was acting like such a rockstar that we ended up closing down the place and were the last ones out the door. We had a lot of fun and look forward to next year's festivities.