14 October 2017

Pumpkins, Downrigging and Ferraris - Oh My

You know how you share traditions with your kids?  Year after year, you honor the traditions you loved as a child by passing them on to your children, then repeating year after year, after year?  Well, at some point in our house we became busy, or distracted, or something, because I brought home pumpkins this year and said, okay everyone, let's carve pumpkins.  This is how I learned that JMichael has never carved a pumpkin.  He's nine!  Rachel and Samantha remember doing it a few times and Charlotte and Josephine could only remember doing it once. How does this happen?  In my meager defense, the big ladies did say they remember painting pumpkins and drawing on them.  Maybe I just didn't think they could carve....maybe?

Well, no painting this year - this year, we carve!  Samantha opted for a pattern of a cat in silhouette.  Rachel carved an R & E, with a heart.

JMichael was not a fan of the scooping the innards part of carving, but, he got it done, with some help from Rae and Charlie.

Charlotte did her initials.

And Josephine did hers, too.  While they were carving, JMichael was complaining about the sticky innards.  We decided that traditions were important and Samantha told him, just scoop it out, and enjoy it.  You're gonna carve that pumpkin and smile for Mom in pictures.  You are gonna scoop it and you're gonna like it.  Now get after it.  These kids crack me up.

The Saturday of Halloween there was another event in Chestertown.  Three, actually, but we only participated in two.  First there was a Harry Potter Festival.  There were people walking around dressed in their Hogwarts uniforms and qudditch brooms for sale.  There was even a lady walking around with a toilet seat around her neck.  I'm not sure what that was about, but, the other Harry Potter types seemed to think it was great.

The other event was just for JMichael.  I told him I would take him to see something he liked, but, it would be a surprise. As we walked down toward the river, he could see where we going - a Ferrari Show.  Right on the riverfront there was a roped off area with about two dozen Ferraris.  JMichael was thrilled.  We had to look at each one and he was even more excited when he got to some of them drive around.  They revved their engines and showed off a little for the fans.  He decided this red one was his favorite.  The owners were very gracious and let him look inside and opened the trunks to show him the engines.

Also at the riverfront was the Downrigging.  A downrigging is a colonial term for the gathering of ships to winterize and repair them.  In 2017, the downrigging is way to showcase the restored ships and discuss their importance in local history.  We couldn't board any of them, but, we got to see them in all their colonial glory.  Pretty spectacular.

At lastly, we have Rachel.  She had to work on Halloween, so she dressed up.  What is she?  (A bunch of her customers got it, but, some had no idea....)

0 screams from the fans...: