It's strange to have older kids.

A few years ago, probably two or three, I stopped decorating for Halloween. Neither Matt nor Lyssa seemed all that excited about the holiday anymore.

When they were younger, we bought the big bags of polyester spiderwebs, plastic pumpkins, witches and other window clings, and things that made spooky noises. There were spiderwebs all over the tree out front and strung along the fence.

They decided what they wanted to dress as by August usually, and I made their costumes. I think I still have a couple Simplicity patterns stashed away somewhere. I learned that one can use a pattern for the Grim Reaper cape to make a gossamer cape for a sorceress. I found out that the basic one piece suit for a bunny can also make a purple dog or a Pikachu.

I loved making Alyssa's costumes especially. I always chose a soft fabric and reinforced the seams so she could wear them to play in.

And she did. Back in the days before I had a digital camera, I snapped a picture of her sitting at the computer in her blue bunny suit. Maybe someday I'll take a pile of pictures to Walgreens or Target and get them on a disk. I'd like to be able to have them in digital form.

I did help her a bit with her costume this year, though. She had been working on making her own when she talked to her two friends and learned that they were still planning the same costumes they'd discussed back in June.

So Saturday morning, we ran to Goodwill. She wanted a black skirt with some lace on it. We couldn't find one, but I found a black dress that I cut up and elasticized around the waist. She found a black t-shirt that she could rip up and put a bunch of safety pins on, and we were set.

I didn't even sit down at the sewing machine until Sunday afternoon, though. I had awakened with a migraine, medicated myself and gone back to bed. Didn't get up until eleven.

I have a box of decorations on top of the freezer. It has a three year layer of dust on the top of it.
I think it's time to unload it, don't you? Off to Goodwill with it. Off to Goodwill with a lot of other stuff, too. I keep saying that. Maybe if I say it often enough or forcefully enough, it will happen?

Now the problem with dropping donations off at Goodwill is that after I do it, I park my car and go into the store and do a little shopping.

Tomorrow is a day off from school for the kids in the district where I work. That means that there will be what's called a 'non-school' day. It will be held at our site. I won't be working. Sunshine asked me if I could, but I told her I had other plans.

That was truth. I'll be taking a test for my possible new job tomorrow morning at 9. In my researching of the test online, I've learned that one can expect to spend at least two hours taking this test, so I probably won't be home until just a little before noon.

Since Sunshine has a small boy to take out trick or treating, she asked if I could come in and close. So I'll wander over about 4:30 tomorrow afternoon and start putting stuff away. We close at six, but I'm guessing many parents will be picking up early so they can take their kids out.

::sigh::

As much as I enjoy my older kids, I do miss the little ones at certain times. This would be one of them.

And, because I do enjoy wandering off topic, I have to let you know that Tami called me last night. I wasn't expecting to hear her voice until at least Friday or possibly Saturday. The nature of the surgery makes it difficult and painful for her to speak for awhile.

She called me because she said that she had forgotten to wish me luck for tomorrow's test and she wanted to call while she was thinking of it.
The woman got up at 4 AM, was in surgery for three hours, and in all kinds of pain, on drugs, miserable... and she took time to call me anyway.

Some friend, huh?