When Black Cats Prowl and Pumpkins Gleam...

...may luck be yours on Halloween!

I love looking back on what the kids - and Tom and I, once we started putting together themed family costumes - wore on Halloweens past.

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

Have a fun and safe Halloween, friends!

I almost forgot...check back next week to see pics of Tom's Halloween costume. He planned and coordinated it all by his big-boy-self and he looked fantastic!

Don't Leave Home Without Your Turtleneck

We discovered shortly after moving to Texas that one of the only ways to survive the heat is to wear fewer articles of clothing. Will and Hallie rocked it in their underwear for years (I believe Will coined the phrase but Hallie carried on her version: "Mama, can I just rock it in my unnerwears?"), and were both disappointed when I finally made them start wearing actual clothes to retrieve the mail and play in the sprinkler.

We also discovered that Halloween costumes aren't often designed with Texas temperatures in mind. To compensate we opted for our "wear fewer articles of clothing" strategy, but even when the kids wore just their underwear under their costumes, on the hottest of the October 31st nights, they could barely stand the heat. I guess ending the night drenched in sweat and covered with mosquito bites is just part of celebrating Halloween in Texas.

In case you were wondering, Halloween costumes aren't often designed with Wisconsin temperatures in mind either. My kids can't grasp this, given they've lived the majority of their lives in Texas, but up north, we had to choose our costumes chosen based on how well they would layer over a turtleneck. I guess ending the night drenched front the rain and unable to feel your fingers from the cold is just part of celebrating Halloween in Wisconsin.

In honor of Halloween week and for your viewing pleasure, I present to you photos documenting just a few of the times we ruined our Halloween costumes with turtlenecks.

Witch - black turtleneck.
Bride - pink turtleneck.
Ballerina - blue turtleneck.
Tin Man - long underwear.

American Girl Molly - blue turtleneck.

French Maid - black turtleneck.

Butterfly - white turtleneck.
Pumpkin - green turtleneck.

Nurse - white turtleneck.

Cheerleader - yellow turtleneck.

Jester - white turtleneck.
Dracula - black turtleneck.
Clown - red turtleneck.

Minnie Mouse - black turtleneck.
Gypsy - white turtleneck.

As Hallie exasperatedly expressed to me when she first saw these photos, "MAMA. Princesses and ballerinas do NOT wear turtlenecks."

High Five for Friday (10.26.18)

One
After weeks of hard work, Hallie and her fellow 4th graders performed their musical "Forever Learning" twice last Thursday. Hallie did a beautiful job with her duet, and even though she cried after both shows, the experience was overall a positive one for both Hallie and me. The many hours I worked in preparation for and during this show reminded me how much I enjoy musical productions; I love having an opportunity to periodically stretch these "muscles" while supporting the schools and spending time with Hallie.

Two
On Friday night a couple of friends and I threw a wonderful Noonday party at my house. We spent time admiring the jewelry of course, but we also talked and laughed and ate and drank and took a small but much needed break from our busy schedules and extensive responsibilities.

Three
We no longer build fireplaces for physical warmth. We build them for the warmth of the soul; we build them to dream by, to home by, to home by.

~ Edna Ferber

Four
We (all four Ferri) love cozying up by the fireplace on cooler nights. But one member of our family loves the fireplace more than the rest of combined...

Now that fall has arrived, Tux is once again living his best life.

Don't worry, as soon as I finished taking these pictures of Tux I thoroughly scrubbed the fireplace surround and screen, neither of which had been well cleaned since March. 😬

Five
Happiness Highlights

He has been growing his hair out for a while, and was
thrilled when it all (er, most of it) went back into a ponytail.

I think he looks pretty cool, and I love that he's comfortable
enough with himself and his style to rock this "do" proudly.

Our favorite Halloween event was postponed due to weather, so while
a trip to the pumpkin patch in no way replaced Pumpkinpalooza, it was
a fun way to spend Saturday morning. The kids and I rode our bikes to
the new HEB for donuts and then to the patch for photos and pumpkins.

Cheese!

Cuties. 😍

Will's new phone (we gifted him a very basic phone for his
birthday) has adorable emojis and gifs. I'm saving each one as
he sends them to me because mine aren't nearly as fun.

A stunning sunrise on our walk to school.

Sometimes I seal my lips when she gets dressed. It's
SOOOOO hard, but she looked happy so I was happy! 

On Saturday night Will and I went on a date to the fair while Tom
traveled and Hallie spent the night at a friend's house. Of course
we had to take the obligatory photo atop "our" wheel.

He rode almost all of the rides...I rode two. 😂

Happy Friday, Chasing Roots! 

Linking up with High Five for Friday here: