Halloween 2013: Part 1

We finally did it my way this year.

We all went to a Halloween pop-up store and bought costumes for everyone.

The result... a pretty wacky looking family when we headed for the PS39 Spooktacular party last night.

Marni was a cute zombie Robin Hood. Stella was a very convincing zombie bride. Daddy was an adequate escaped prisoner. But mommy!

Lisa dressed as a sexy cop and the results were amazing. Eyes popped. Tongues hung out. And many didn't even recognize her.

Some ladies even wanted to borrow the outfit later for their own Halloween hijinks.

I'm pretty sure the kids are gonna get kicked out of school tomorrow.

Selena Gomez

The groupies

I don't think I went to my first rock concert until high school or college. I'm sure it must have had something to do with either Aerosmith or Genesis.

But my 21st century NYC chicks are having a much, much different upbringing.

Broadway shows.  Radio City. Professional sporting events.

So the girls were more than ready for their first "rock concert" when we brought them to Barclays Center to see Selena Gomez earlier this month.

The girls got dressed up in their concert finest and ascended to their nosebleed seats. After surviving the sonic assault of a local opening act, we went foraging for expensive arena food and then retuned to our seats for the opening act, Emblem 3 (Yes, I know. Who?)

At 8:30 Ms. Gomez hit the stage. Very punctual. She must realize that a great deal of her audience needs to go to grade school in the morning.

Marni is shaking it

I warned them that this would be the loudest thing they ever heard. So they were pretty prepared for the noise. Marni was up and dancing. Stella was a bit more reserved, but was enjoying herself in her own special way.

By about 9:30 Marni was beginning to get a bit bored by all the songs she didn't know. I convinced her to stick it out for a couple more songs because I knew the encore would include her two favorites.

She did. And they loved it.

By 10 we were heading home. Luckily, the arena is a 10 minute subway ride home.

The girls were in bed by 10:30 and were able to function normally in the morning for an on-time arrival at school. Stella wore the $40 Selena Gomez t-shirt we bought for them.

The concert was pretty good. Selena is a very talented gal. And Stella keeps telling me over and over again how she wishes Selena was her older sister.

Me too. I can certainly get used to a millionaire daughter.

She's down there somewhere

Columbus Day in Maine

One of the great things about Cottage 2.0 is that it has heat! And insulation. So we can use it even when the weather turns chilly. And in Maine, the weather turns chilly in late August.

This year we took advantage of the Columbus Day weekend to visit OOB. Our special guests were Lisa Stefanoff, Ron, and Kathy (on a stick).

The weekend weather was somewhat brisk, but totally sunny and dry. As usual, the kids got right back into the swing of things as if they never left... except with an extra layer or two of clothes.

There was time for seafood, time for a movie, time for shopping, and time for the beach. We even had a great night at the fire pit (which was never broken out during the summer).

While visiting Camp Ellis, the girls discovered a dead shark washed up on the shore. Very exciting stuff!

We headed back to Brooklyn on Monday afternoon, but there wasn't much sadness in leaving because we knew we would be back for one more visit at Thanksgiving.

Ya gotta love a winterized cottage!

S'mores at the fire pit.

Our Camp Ellis album cover.

Stella and her dead shark.