Alaska Trick-or-Treating

Back in Anchorage the Trick-or-Treating was about to begin.  Sarah and Jacob came over and while Sarah took Jacob and Zach out to fill their candy bins, Doug manned the door at our house.

Pete, Tori, Kinsey and Tristan would also stop by to say hello.

A big change from last year when we were Trick-or-Treating in the Florida heat with Papa and Mema!

Jacob and Zach

Pete, Tori, Kinsey and Tristan

Foy Addition Trick or Treat

We went Trick-or-Treating in the neighborhood.  The problem was the neighbors were so excited to see David, Sam and I that they gave Sam way too much candy!  After about 6 or 7 houses his bucket was half full. 

Sue, the neighbor across the street, is like me in that she loves Halloween.  She had all her decorations out.

Sue and Sam.

Dave and Sue.  Sue had put together a special gift bag for Sam - a book, orange Hot Wheel car and animal crackers!  Thank you for no more candy!

HyVee and Old Stories

Mom and Dad have a great grocery on Sycamore Road between Sycamore and DeKalb called HyVee.  The seating area is a like a regular restaurant.....and the cooked food is homemade, the real thing.  Really good.  So, went for breakfast and really enjoyed it.  A lot of food, none of us would be hungry for lunch.

Mom and Dad knew quite a few people there.  I saw the mom of a high school friend and Dad said hello to Milt and Laura Duell.  Milt had been the personnel manager for DEKALB for a number of years when Dad worked there.  I don't think that I had ever met Milt; he seemed like a fun guy.  Dad mentioned to Milt that when Mom was pregnant with me, Dad had overheard Milt call someone named "Renee" into the office for an interview.  Dad liked the name and that is where my name came from.

Milt then told the story of having the office next to Dad......before computers, all the artwork was done by hand and Dad's markers would make a "squeeking noise".  All day long.....squeeeeeeek, squeek, squeek, squeeek, squeeeek.  It drove Milt nuts.  Dad got a new office down the hall and Milt was surprised one day to hear that squeeking sound. He went to investigate and found that Dad had tape recorded the sound and had it playing in the old office.  Milt came walking down the hall to Dad's new office with a tape recorder going "squeeek".  That is hysterical!!!!  Good one Dad!

ADEC Halloween

Doug's work group got into the Halloween spirit!  Doug, Lorie, Marty, Kit.

Kit, Doug, Marty

The lederhosen outfit is great!!  The real thing.....something my brother, David, brought back from Germany when he lived there.

Critters in the Yard!

Dad and Mom have a real raccoon problem!  They have a trap out next to the deck and it is amazing how many they have baited with some marshmallows!  They are nicely relocated to wooded areas further from the house.  The raccoons have become a joke between Dad & Mom and Jeff & Susan across the street.  They have a "life size" stuffed animal raccoon that travels between the two houses at random times dressed up!  As Dad said "that raccoon has a larger wardrobe than me."

Sam thought that was pretty neat and was hoping that something would show up in the cage during the night. This morning the cage had a critter.....an opossum!  Sam thought that was the greatest thing ever!

Before going for breakfast, we took the opossum out to the Sportsman's Park.

Pictures of some recent visitors.

This one was caught the day after we left!  They are so cute, but you can't have them living under your deck!

Magic Show!

Doug, Zach and the Cub Scout group met at the library tonight for a magic show in the auditorium.  The kids had a great time.  Another meeting.....done!

Books & Zach's Play

The Sycamore Library just completed a major renovation - it is really nice inside!  Mom, Sam and I went to check it all out.  While I walked the building, Sam played with some other children in the kid's area.

In the evening we watched Zach's German play and relaxed.  What a great time with family!

Dave could flip Sam upside down and have him "walk" on the ceiling - Sam thought that was pretty neat!

Ben and Susan

Ben and Susan came for lunch today.  It was great to see them and get caught up on what is going on in Rockford and with Susan's children and grandchildren.

Sam and Mom & Dad's stuffed animal raccoon watched a movie while us adults talked about "boring" things in the the other room.

Mom made an AMAZING pot roast for lunch....thanks Mom!!

Shortly after lunch, I could see that Sam was getting tired. I put him into David's bed and he was quickly asleep. Not much of the life of the party today!

Windy today!  That is the wind from the storm "Sandy" that caused so much damage in New York.

Wetzel Park

Wetzel park is about 6 houses down the street from my parent's house.  A major renovation happened a few years ago and the playground equipment is beautiful!!  A good place to let Sam run!

Elleson's Bakery

Elleson's bakery in downtown Sycamore has the best donuts!  Plus, it is a lot of fun to sit in the big glass windows and watch the world go by.  The building has been a bakery for as long as I remember it.  In was originally a dress shop and the mannequins with dresses would be in the raised glass sides where we now like to sit. Later we would go into the library and on the wall is a 1955 picture of downtown Sycamore - the dresses in the windows could easily be seen.

In Anchorage, a quarter will get you 12 minutes of downtown parking.  In Sycamore, I think a nickel gets you 30 minutes! 

Halloween Concert at NIU

Tonight the Kishwaukee Symphony Orchestra was having a free concert and trick-or-treating at the NIU (Northern Illinois University) music building.  It was a fun event!  The kids went trick-or-treating in the hallways of the music building and then we enjoyed a concert with the musicians all dressed up.  Linc Smelser, a well known conductor, lead the group in 7 fun songs from The Empire Strikes Back, Lord of the Rings, Halloween movie, The Dark Knight, Harry Potter, Rosin Eating Zombies and Symphonie Fantastique.

Sam went in his snake costume!