Halloween Rundown

We re-got cable about a month ago and ever since we've been watching a lot of Nat-Geo-Wild.  I love it because it's real, not as obnoxious as Mickey Mouse, and the kids are actually learning a lot.  I get sucked in to a good number of the shows too.  I've learned that Disney Nature spares a lot of the more realistic details while giving just as much educational value, but given we only have NatGeoWild on our cable subscription, the kids are getting an education in the facts of the food chain.  Even the baby watches it and has seen her fair share of zebras being eaten by lions.  She knows the sign for lion and roars all the time.

So, when it came time for picking costumes, we weren't surprised when Sean talked everyone into being "African Cats from NatGeoWild."  We found a super cute Zebra outfit for Sis, but once the boys started talking about "prey" we decided she also had to be a big cat.  The week of Halloween we took a field trip to the Zoo in Columbia to see the Big Cats up close and learn a little more about our costumes.

A Cheetah and a Lion

And a Tiger!

Tigers like milk.  

Lions like lollipops.

Cheetahs like to win cheap plastic toys at Halloween Festivals. 

Sean and I painted every single one of those spots on his costume.  It took about five hours to do the whole thing.  We've had a lot of time to talk about cheetahs over the last few weeks.  

A lion says ROAR!  (see background).

Sean actually went to a homeschoolers class at the Zoo for about an hour, so Jamesie had ample time to sit and consider the lion.  He loved it.  It was monday morning so the zoo was pretty empty, he had no siblings or parents moving him along, and he just watched that lion for about 30 minutes.  

Despite Annalisa's love for lions lately (she finds them in every book and roars all day long), when I first showed her a real lion she absolutely freaked out.  I guess all that NatGeoWild has taught her something about a lion's appetite for small mammals.  In the grand scheme of life, I guess this is a pretty appropriate reaction when faced with a lion (especially if you don't know how to run yet).  After this, I put her down and she insisted on sitting back in the stroller for the rest of our time by the lion. 

Bruddahs with an elephant. 

And a lion. 

Jamesie made friends with the giraffe.  He named him Giraff-y and spent about 25 minutes with him. 

Petting Giraffy.  

Goodbye Zoo.  Luckily, as we walked past the lion on our way out she had her two brothers to escort and protect her.  

Halloween night!  Yea!  Candy!

Our African Cats with a NatGeoWild Crew woman---- I think they spotted a vulnerable zebra in the next yard over. 

Trick or Treating in action.  So cute. 

By the time we got down to Mr. Peter's and Ms. Mary's (our turn around point) the kids were exhausted and asking to go home.  It was also about 80 degrees, and big cats get tired out in the heat with nothing but sugar to eat.  

And for good measure, we also celebrated All Saints Day today: 

We had 2 St. Damien of Molokais and 1 St. Clare.  Sean has been learning about a different Saint each week, and he wanted Sis to be St. Clare because she has short hair and St. Francis cut off all of St. Clare's hair.  St. Clare also wore no shoes, so we kept it genuine at the party we went to today.