HALLOWEEN '05

Dane (Dash) and Mick (hick jailbird) attended huge Housewarming/Halloween party on Saturday the 29th at our friends the Schultz's (complete with rented inflatable jumping tent, grilled oysters, potluck, and my friend Margaret hosting as Oprah; need to get a picture of that-- let's just say she looks nothing like Oprah when it's not Halloween). Aubrey (Cinderella) and Mom (well, Mom), on the other hand, stayed home to tend to Aubrey's 104 degree fever.

Halloween night wasn't much improved for little Aubs (a strange two-hour rash in the afternoon left us tentative about exposure to other kids), but the surprisingly mature and understanding duo contentedly stayed home with The Incredibles DVD from the library and a small bag of candy. Our first floor neighbors, Susan and Leila, heard the news of the nichts on trick-or-treating from Dane (they'd shopped specially for M&Ms for the kids earlier that day, so Dane trick-or-treated there for both kids), so when Dane got back from their apartment, Susan called us and said to send Dane down again as she'd forgotten something: two Creative Kids kits for making oragami and for decorating notecards. Leila has spent her entire life in a wheelchair (she's in her early thirties, like me) and it seemed that Aubrey and Dane's situation struck a chord with them. Before eating candy and watching the movie, the excited kids spent 45 minutes decorating notecards (and I spent some time grateful to have thougthful neighbors).