If the hat fits...

So a chill swept through Southern Illinois this week. We actually had to pull out sweaters and find a hat and mittens for Calla. I refused to be the mom who sends her child to day care completely unprepared for outside play, forcing her to be clothed in the left-behind winter garb (ick.). Wednesday morning found Calla in a new down jacket, mittens and a hooded sweatshirt because I couldn't find a hat that would fit. She was well prepared for all the chilly day could bring. Good mom. Of course, that's why Wednesday afternoon turned out to be nice and sunny. Oh well, it will get chilly soon.

And when it does, now she'll have a nice warm hat to wear. At my baby shower, nearly a year and a half ago, Jessica (sister to me, Aunt Jess to Calla) gave me/Calla the first hat she had knit, and I've now dug it out of our cavernous storage area. Back in the day, we all laughed (gently, I'm sure) at how comically big it was. Good thing, because it now fits Calla's big noggin like a...well, a nicely knit glove. Calla thought so, too, and here she is showing it off.



Otherwise, we're all doing well here and enjoying the very sunny past few days. Since this is our first home in an actual neighborhood, we're anticipating some real life trick-or-treaters tomorrow night. To prepare, Calla and I hung orange lights on our outside front trellis and Joe hung some little illuminated ghosts. That adds to the eerily glowing skeleton skull and hands coming out of our front flower garden. Classy. Impressing the neighbors, I'm sure. Calla pronounced it "pretty" - it's really the only visual adjective she has, so not exactly high standards.

Tomorrow we're going back to day care for the toddler Halloween party and then home to NOT dip into the candy bowl until we turn off our festive lights tomorrow night. I ate nearly a whole bag of candy corn on Monday and ended up with a horrid post-sugar coma headache, so you'd think I'd learned a lesson. Except I do it every Halloween, so I guess not so much.

Happy Halloween to you all, and best wishes for good candy management and self-control.