The Weekly Digest

Happy almost-Halloween! I dropped off the kids at school in costume this morning and was reminded how much I love seeing all the kids dressed up. Little figures dressed as big ones from history, as animals and scary beasts. Such fun! I remember the Halloween parades from Elementary school so well, still. My best friend Jenna was ET and I was Marilyn Monroe and we were such a funny pair together.

I have a ton of Halloween posts in the archives on here if you need some last-minute inspiration. I’ve got some of my favorite of Aron’s and my costumes below, too. We’ve got something fun planned for this year, but I’ll share some photos later.

In the meantime, have a great weekend! Some items of note…

In defense of maternity and paternity leave—White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki with Newsmax reporter Emerald Robinson.

Pediatricians say the mental health crisis among kids has become a national emergency

Masks Are Changing How Kids Interact. This article suggests some changes that might help mitigate the impact.

The Virtual Years by Stella Blackmon was such a sweet, 7-minute watch. “A short film directed by my 15-year-old cousin Goldie and I. It was made by just the two of us with a camera in the last weeks of a Missouri summer, and it features an original score by my 17-year-old cousin Mabel (plus a piano accompaniment by her mom, Millie).”

Always looking for not-too-scary Halloween movies. Mother shared the Common Sense Media list.

I just showed Hudson Tremors (which I LOVED as a kid!) It still holds up, but there’s a lot more swearing than I recalled—probably because we taped all of our movies off of TV and there were no bad words in anything! Here’s a YouTube look back at the movie that I look forward to watching—so I can’t vouch for it yet. I should note, I’ve never seen a single sequel and there are five or six!

A great round-up of illustrated chapter books! (Thank you, Susan!)

A lovely little pinched ceramic for gifting with flowers.

I took the kids to a mall for the first time in forever and it’s always crazy to me how this place that figured so prominently in my childhood is such a rarity in theirs. Some fun thoughts on malls.

Speaking of first times in forever… We went to a movie in a theatre! Not Dune or Bond, alas, but a kids’ movie. Still, we all enjoyed Ron’s Gone Wrong.

AND I saw Tre Burt play. Watch for this guy—he was wonderful! He’s moving from Sacramento to Nashville next month.

Related: Facebook is now Meta. Or rather, Facebook is now one of the eight brands Meta builds. Hmmm…

Also, Analyzing the Health Risks in James Bond Movies. Made me laugh.

I finally got Blundstones! I love them but my feet didn’t. Aron and I went on a walk and he had to run home to bring me back a different pair of shoes and a band-aid. The break-in period definitely takes a focused effort. My friend suggested soup cans as ankle expanders and it helped A LOT!

This is so cool! Would love a less pricey version for kids!

Luxe car diffusers are a thing?

Last minute Halloween activities to do at home.

Maybe try making Pumpkin Delight! Or Creepy Crudité

What do you do with the candy?

Never tire of these dogs as pandas. More dogs being humiliated in costume—a favorite genre around here.

Some favorite costumes of ours from over the years…