Halloween 2013



The Abel Family, Halloween 2013

  Happy Halloween Everyone!
We hope your evening was appropriately frightening. This is a little late but here is our annual Halloween picture. Our costumes were celebrating Day of the Dead. The kids were skeletons and Scott and I were their Keepers. Or Grim Reapers, your choice.

Finn's face glowed in the dark and deeply resembled that face that flashes- for a split second- in the movie "The Exorcist". It was very simple yet disturbingly scary and he really didn't even know why.

This was the first version- which he found unacceptable.
He told me to redo the make-up and to, this time, not make it so shabby.
Everyone is a critic.

Georgia, the kindest and gentlest of our kids, always seems to have the best evil faces. That is a scary thought unto itself.

This was G's version the night before at a Halloween party.

Olivia had a day look AND a night look. (Beacuse we had nothing else to do on Halloween aside from re-doing perfectly good make-up.) The full makeup was her day look for school.

The day look.

We hope you had a great Halloween!

New York, New York

Scott and I checked off one more thing on our Someday List: visit New York City. Check! We travelled with our good friends and frequent partners in crime Will and Wayne. We were helping Will celebrate a landmark birthday and celebrating our own anniversary. Hilarity ensued!

The Fantastic Four acting like weirdos in an elevator
Clockwise from the top: Lumberjack, Honey Chac, Busy and Scooter

We walked miles trying not to look like tourists (fail). We saw Times Square. We were at the top of the Empire State (day) and Rockefeller Buildings (night). We walked the Brooklyn Bridge. We visited Grand Central Station and the NYC Library. We visited the 9/11 memorial. We ate every 2-3 hours- partly in an effort to replenish energy and partly so that we could sample all the city had to offer.  We saw a few shows. We bolted through some museums and art exhibitions. We rode the subway and walked though Central Park. We did a little shopping.

I actually overheard someone with a deep New York accent ask "How you doing?",  say "Forgetaboutit" and exclaim with affection "Oy, bubbe, that baby is adorable!" I honestly thought that those were stereotypes that only existed on film or TV. I was wrong.

New Yorkers were very friendly. That shouldn't have surprised me but it did. We had several offers of directions when we were clearly not sure where we were going.

But mostly we laughed until our stomachs hurt and admired, what is arguably, one of the most impressive cities in the world. I get it now. New York was awesome!

Looking downtown from the top of the Empire State Building.

9/11 Memorial, South Pool

The Brooklyn Bridge, looking towards Brooklyn

The colours of Central Park.
(I think this is the prettiest pictures I have EVER taken.)

View into the park from the Upper West Side.

Rockefeller Plaza, getting ready for Christmas

There may have a been a few yarn and comic stores visited. :)

LH Mitten admiring the view.
Hold on tight, it was a long way down!

From all of us: Thanks for the good time, New York. Until we meet again...