I may have created a monster {but really, just a butterfly}

We had a wonderful time getting all dressed up yesterday. I have been fairly creative but simple with Maren's costumes in the past. This year she specifically asked to be a butterfly princess. The princess parts all came from her dress-up box {easy and free!}, but I decided to make the wings. Wow...what an act of love! Maren is already talking about what she wants to be next year, and I'm thinking I just may have set the homemade-costume-creating bar a little higher than I'd prefer. There is something special, though, about watching your kid prance around the house in sheer delight as she tests out the new duds. As for Truett...well, he was impartial this year and got to wear Maren's hand-me-down monkey suit from her first Halloween. I'm pretty sure this will be the first and only time that ever happens, seeing as how Maren is wanting to follow-up her butterfly princess getup with a pink bunny costume next year. While the bunny part may change, I expect the pink part to stick around for another few years. And I'm pretty sure Truett won't be convinced that the pink and purple wings really do bear striking resemblance to a Batman costume.



We shared our evening with the 'cousins', who aren't exactly cousins but some second or third version...we've resorted to just calling them the cousins, though...here's all the kids ready to head out for some trick-or-treating...
...and here's a more accurate glimpse into a photo-session with 3 overly-excited little girls and 2 babies about to head out for some trick-or-treating...
I'm so thankful for my sweet family and these shared memories.
And, I loved coming back to the house early with this little guy to hand out candy. Really...does it get any better than a face like that next to a bowl of chocolate!?