I just finished painting the dining room a creamy white or
as the card says, ‘courtyard tan.’ I really wanted to paint it a dramatic dark,
dark teal, but Dustin vetoed that idea quickly. So, cream. We’ll see.
It felt
good to finish something. I’ve really
struggled lately with the nature of my position as a housewife. My work is just
never, ever done. Painting a wall did a lot to remedy that.
Remember last October I posted this picture on this blog:
Well, here’s this October:
Can you believe that? So much more happens in the life of a
child in one year than in adult lives, don’t you think? I mean, Blake was
barely a bean, and now, look at him!
Also, Halloween and bears. So, on Halloween Dustin was
out-of-town and the afternoon just dragged into eternity for my excited 5 and
3-year-old. I mean, percentage-wise, those 6 hours between school and
trick-or-treating. Well, they are just so long. Finally, (finally!), we were
putting on costumes – giraffe heads, and jaguar ears and whiskers and LOTS of
lip gloss because, well, because we can, and fifteen more minutes of waiting
seemed completely unbearable now that my little animals were all dressed up. I
heard neighbors calling to each other out in the cul-de-sac, so I sent Claire
and Avery out to wait with them (we were planning to go with them anyway). Out
they went with breezes of excitement swirling all around their fresh little
faces.
I mean, I’m sure the bears felt them coming from all that
excitement.
Yes, bears! (Probably these very same bears who were in our trash the day before:)
I proceeded to gather last-minute
items and dress Blake as a monkey. Then, I hear a shout, and I feel the breeze
of excitement rush into the front door in an explosive burst of WINDY excited
fear.
“Mom! There’s a bear!” Claire
exclaimed.
I poke my head out and hear the
neighbor shout:
“Sally! The mama bear and her
cubs are going up Margaret’s driveway!”
I turn my head and in the dusky
light see that big mama bear and her rowdy cubs lumbering up my next-door
neighbor’s driveway. The very neighbor that I was meeting up with to
trick-or-treat at that exact time. 6:30.
I shut the front door with force
simultaneously realizing that I had literally just sent my children out to
the
bears.
Just breathe, right?
After some phone discussions and
waiting and watching, we decided to venture out as planned in our very large
trick-or-treating group. I waited at the front of Margaret’s (do you recognize
her name? she just had BEARS in her driveway) front stairs with Blake in his
stroller. The girls went inside.
The breezy excitement encompassed
the adults as well. Only it was very tinted with a jumpy fear, so when another
neighbor trudged up the drive to trick-or-treat, I sensed before I saw:
The MAMA bear is back. She is
coming down the driveway of Margaret’s neighbor straight toward me and baby
Blake!
What have I done?! My baby and I are
right in her path! So, I grabbed Blake’s car seat and ditched the stroller and
we went inside, too.
How was trick-or-treating for
you?
P.S. We did go trick-or-treating
after all, but when we left the group a little early because our kiddos are the
youngest, well, that walk back to our house. .
. It was a little more spooky than a
normal Halloween if you know what I mean.
