I don’t know why Halloween decorations elicit more squeals of glee from kids than any other holiday, but man alive, our kids are pretty darn excited about ours. And the sad thing is that we are skimpy as can be when it comes to Halloween decor.
But I’ll tell you what, what we have, they love.
And so does the rest of the neighborhood.
(Let’s just go ahead and ignore that inch of dust on that table in the background…Gracie’s obviously been slacking on her job. Don’t ever buy a glass outdoor table.)
You may have met our two favs. back here, but let’s just fast forward from there:
Our kids were devastated last year when Lucy was so scared stiff by “Mr. Bones” that we had to finally take him down. The poor girl, she really just couldn’t handle the scariness of that little jig he does when anyone clapped or closed the door.
But Halloween just wasn’t quite the same without Mr. Bones around.
(Do you like how it says “love more” above a skeleton? I think it’s just the right Halloween touch.)
So this year, the kids took all the precautions they could to introduce that Mr. Bones just so…carefully maneuvering what they said to make Lucy fall in love with him.
Well, it didn’t work. She wouldn’t walk past the front entry without me covering him up and kept asking me to take him down.
But the other kids? Well, they begged and begged with puppy-dog eyes for him to stay.
Luckily a couple days after we put the stuff up Lucy got to have some friends over.
They were nervous about Mr. Bones themselves.
And especially about our face-changing witch.
I could almost see the thoughts working up a plan in Lu’s head: “Hmmmm…these kids are scared…maybe I can be brave and show them it’s all really pretend like my brother and sisters keep trying to tell me.”
Yep, those gears in her head are working well. She perked right up and showed those friends a thing or two about how fun those Halloween whippersnappers can be.
The witch was first. 
They all fell in love with her.
Then when I was on the phone a little later and our house was splitting at the seams from so many extra kids pouring in on a half day, I heard shrieks of pure delight. Everyone came running full speed into the kitchen and announced Lucy touched Mr. Bones. I wish I had a video of Lucy’s face beaming as she ran up to me to tell me the good news with a humongous smile stretched across her face.
It just goes to show the power of peer pressure.
And now I can’t tear her away from these guys.
Here are our other not nearly so interesting things:
I’m just happy these few things are doing the trick of delighting our kids. We’ll hold on to that while it lasts!
The perfect touch 🙂
I'm not to big on Halloween decorations….but I LOVE LOVE LOVE your Halloween garland you have. Did you make that??? I just love it.
I am very proud of Lucy for touching mr bones. She is very brave. I think I'd stay as far away from him as I could. hee,hee
Hope you have a great day.
-Leah
Ewwww, those spiders are nasty! I don't care if Pottery Barn likes 'em or not, I just can't handle spiders. Living or not.
My Sariah is not a fan of skeletons or any other Halloween decor. This is the time of year when she keeps her eyes closed while we shop, because she doesn't want to see anything scary. Ironically, her daddy decorates the exterior of our home for Halloween as if he's been hired by Disney. Last year, he remodeled the attic so it could house some animated touches. It is insane. I'll have to post a video, this year.
I have hardly any decorations as well, but I'm working on it. It would be much more fun if there were kids around to enjoy it. I love the pictures of Lucy staring at the witch…so cute!
Yeah for Lucy!
But I have to admit those spiders would freak me out all the time! A little too real and freaky looking for me!
Love your garland on the stairs too.
I agree those spiders are freaky.
And I know it's not Halloween, but I love the huge fork.
It's just the perfect amount! We have a Mr. Scary in our front yard. I'm glad Lucy is ok with Mr. Bones!! She is just too darn cute:) But I'm sure you already know that!
Too funny, glad she isn't scared on anymore!
On a random note, we have a daughter who also has kidney reflux. We just took her in for tests and she has not outgrown it, so will have to have surgery. I was wondering if you had any thoughts on which surgery you would recommend. I seem to remember your daughter having surgery and it not being successful. Which one did she have? We are trying to find out more information and you are the only other mom I have heard of whose child has the same condition. If you have time to respond, I would appreciate it!
PS – I found out your dad was the mission president in my dads mission right after my dad left. He said he heard great things about him!
Oh man, you are inspiring me to put out our Halloween decor! These holidays always creep up on me w/out kiddos around to push the issue. So far all we have are scarecrows around the house and a "boo to you" sign on the door. This weekend I'll visit our holiday decorations section of the basement and haul some stuff up 🙂 Your house is too cute!
just found your blog and i really love it. thank you for sharing your life and that love more sign is really the perfect thing to see as you leave the house.
LOVE your decorations Shawni..but I think the spiders would creep me out a bit. 🙂
okay, so I know this has nothing to do with Halloween, but I remember when you painted your cabinets white and I have maple cabinets and am considering painting them white but am worried about the white being a pain to maintain, trying to clean 'em with all my cute little peanut butter fingers that will maul them. How are yours holding up? any tips? And, yes, I love the "just the right amount" Halloween decor.
Em d., I don't know another way to contact you sp here you go: I love my white cabinets. They were painted with really strong latex paint so they hold up well. I thought I'd have a tougher time keeping them clean but they are pretty low maintenance. Good luck!
so funny em d. posted a decor question because I have one, too!
First, let me say I'm new to your blog and absolutely love it.
I grew up in a family of 5, my husband is the oldest of 6 and we love big families. It's the greatest expression of the Kingdom.
ANYWAYS…we're painting our bedroom a more neutral color and i love the color in your foyer and dining room and kitchen area. Do you happen to know what it is? Is it lighter or darker in real life compared to your pictures?
(i understand how busy you are so really, don't feel bad if you can't get back to me!)
jessicaikiehn@yahoo.com