The lion, the witch and...

...Joe thought it'd be fun if he somehow dressed up as a giant wardrobe, but we never really followed that idea through. :)
Here are some pictures from Halloween 2010, which was a week-long celebration around here (not including the weeks of candy-eating following the big day).

The witch and her black cat


Putting on her tap shoes for costume day at dance class


Ava's dance class


Time to celebrate at preschool


Of course, Ava and her BFF picked the same costume


Finally, the actual night is here. I'll spare you the photos of Charlie crying while putting on his costume and attempting to pose in it with Ava. Here is one where he's literally pacified. He just visited the immediate neighbors with Ava before she went out "for real."


Some of the neighborhood kids ready to go


As much as Charlie wasn't into the trick-or-treating, he loved the people coming to the door (Oma and Opa got to join us, too!)


He carried his basket of candy around for the next couple of days - just taking everything out, examining it and putting it back (he didn't figure out, til a couple of days later, what was actually inside those colorful wrappers; then, there was lots of grunting and pointing whenever we came near the stash).


It was a fun week, and I ate more candy than a person should consume in a year's time, but hey, you have to look out for your kids' best interests - we can't have them eating all that junk!

Sibling love

It's been such a long time since I've posted, and not for lack of material; Ben and Katie's wedding was the highlight of our last month - unfortunately, I don't have any of my own pictures from the event, so I might have to copy and paste some of the ones I've received online. Also, Halloween involved a full week of photo opportunities, between dressing up for dance class, school and trick-or-treating.
But, for now, I thought I'd devote a post to the sweet relationship between Ava and Charlie. Literally every day, I am amazed at the unconditional love that Ava gives her little brother. I always imagined that she would be a great big sister, and most likely a little "mother hen," but I never could have imagined her unending patience and understanding with all of his toddler antics. And she doesn't just tolerate him, she actually seeks him out throughout the day to play with him and read to him. You can see how rewarding it is for her when he snuggles into her lap or gives her hugs and kisses (and how sad she feels when he insists on Mommy instead). Here are a few shots from the last month...

In their favorite reading nook (under my computer desk)


Reading after breakfast


Love this one!


I love seeing their different eye colors together


Yup, more reading...


Visiting Ava's classroom


Charlie was NOT happy to be in his costume last night - this is the best we could do! (Oh, and I don't know how to rotate it, because it wasn't on my camera!) :) But, you get the idea...