The weekend with Halloween

Hi,

What a great weekend - if a little hectic. Toby had his second swimming lesson of the term and we collected Mum on the way. Mike had Wadestown Residents Association duties - helping with the hard rubbish collection that happens once a year here. I think he really enjoyed himself, having declared afterwards that he had now achieved a life ambition to work on a garbage truck.

Mum, Toby and I went to Queensgate after swimming (where Mum was astonished to see Toby's class in the big pool for their lessons - I think this will work well for learning to swim).  We exchanged Toby's shoes for the next size up.  Mum and Dad bought him some new shoes during the holidays but he never wore them because they hurt his feet.  He got the next size up (size 3 UK - his feet are almost as big as mine already - three more sizes) and immediately wore them happily.  Hooray!  Ta Mum for taking them back.
 
Mum then wanted some supermarket food for the week and then we dropped her home just as ReMax were finishing off taking a group of people through her house.  Oooooo.  We shall see.
 
Then Toby and I relaxed for an hour before Toby was collected by Aidan for some Waikanae fun, culminating in a Halloween party at midday on Sunday.
 
Mike and I got ready for the trivia night with Vivienne (more fun - but of a different kind) where we came a credible 5th (there were loads of tables - maybe 25 tables or so of 7 people).  Vivienne won a raffle prize!  Then home to chat to John for a bit and pat Ramble.
 
Mike was up early for his day tramp from Johnsonville to Makara/Karori.  I dropped him at the station and then had a leisurely breakfast watching TV shows from the Food Channel that Mike will never watch.  Then I hopped in the wee green car and drove to Waikanae to help with the party.  I think I hindered more than helped.  But I was in time to be a "Mummy" for one of the games that involved wrapping someone up in toilet paper the fastest.  Me.  I got wrapped up. 
 
I enjoyed the games at the Tabor party.  They were great fun.  Toby was very good, despite his 6 hour sleep (apparently he was too excited to sleep the night before Halloween and then woke at 5.30am!) and even came close to winning a few relays for his team with his burst of speed as the anchor man.  The apple bob was hilarious though.  He would not give up (he was the tallest and therefore the last to bob) and eventually picked up and apple!  Good on him.  I got a nice lunch and a lovely cup of tea too.
 
Then we drove home int he green car - with the top down.  Toby covered himself with jackets and fell asleep.  When he got to Porirua, it started raining.  The rain never enters the car, so I was driving along with the wipers on and the top down.  Must have looked funny to other drivers.  By the time we got off the motorway it had stopped raining. 
 
I then dropped Toby off at William's party.  It was chaos there - loads of people in great costumes.  Toby's costume was lame!  The sheet kept falling off.  Next year will need to try harder!  Then Mike got home to help me prepare for 4 boys for trick or treating.  We collected Toby and then drove to Jack's house to collect them.  Turns out they had just got to our house.  Slight mix up.  But we were soon terrorising the neighbours and the boys got a lot of loot.  Jack, Charlie and a wee boy called Mitchell from Washing DC.  He knew how it was done!
 
Then home to Jack's place for fish n chips.  Toby will have a sleepover there on Friday and have a good view of the fireworks from a friend's place in Oriental Bay.
 
Home to bed and slept like logs - all of us.
 
Love,
Angela