Spooky Sports Doctoring

Not only was yesterday Halloween, but it was also Sports Day at SMIC.  Sports Day is a completion between classes and a big deal.  There is a 50m race, relay race, tug of war and a few other things.  The kids always look forward to it, although J is always run ragged by it.  It’s fun, though, and the kids are off the walls for it.  Last year, Kiddo ran in the relay for her class, but this year, she was the fastest girl in her class during trials and she was the ET3E 50m runner.  She got a bad start and almost falser started and then hesitated and then ran, so she finished last, but it was a good showing, even with the stumble at the start.  Her class dominated the tug of war events, however.  As you can see, it’s all smiles.

The kids have a half day and so at 11:45, I picked up Kiddo and we met J for a lunch before she headed back to do teacher stuff and Kiddo and I headed home to do home stuff.  I don’t know who’s day was busier.  J had her tasks to do, on top of grading, but Kiddo and I had clinic hours.  Ratchet, you see, got a nasty case of Curl-up-itous, which caused Rivet to come down with a bad case of Dia.  For those who don’t speak Ranzan (Kiddo’s made up world), Dia is a Ranzan condition that is caused when a loved one gets a serious illness and therefore YOU get some of the symptoms, on top of panic attacks, fainting, erratic heartbeat, and confusion.  It can lead to death.  However, in Ranza, you can’t die.  You just stop speaking and playing and become just a stuffed or hard friend, no longer able to have fun or act, you just sit, stuffed, and watch the world go on around you.  Seriously, this kid is going to work for Pixar one day and bring back animated movies that cause grown men to weep.  Her imagination is much.  As you can see, we had our hands full.

After all that, it was the day’s main event.....

Halloween and Trick or Treating.  Kiddo was HYPED for her costume.  She was… something.  Kind of a witch, but also a reaper, but also spooky.  YOU figure it out!  She was loving the costume and it was hard to get her to stand still for the pics.  

Her and J went out early to play and burn some energy off before the Trick or Treat event and since that was gathering and starting near the playground, it was a good time and they got to see everyone start to come in and assemble.  I headed out a few minutes before events with candy and to do my thing.  

Also, instead of kids wandering around all of LQ and doing the full scope of it, they had the participating houses set up outside in certain locations along the central walk way so the kids and parents could straight line it, instead of meandering.  Last year, I set up on our front steps and kids came by, but by the time they got around to us, some of these kids were spent.  They’d walked about 3km back and forth thru the complex to get to all the houses; This year, they solved that and it was a straight line.  Some people did tables and a whole set up.  I figured that the kids would give two poops and a clipped fingernail how I was set up, they were there for the candy.  I saw some of the tables and set ups people had and they were cool, but when the kids got there, it became a mob scene of hands and voices and kids and bumping the tables and pulling down lights to get to the candy.  Sometimes the set up in nice, sometimes, just give them the candy.  

Next up is Thanksgiving, at least for us.  Now that we have a grill and I’m getting familiar with it, I’m thinking that Thanksgiving meal might be a grill roasted chicken and fixin’s.  I can make a gravy easy enough, especially since I can get drippings from the chicken on the grill and use that.  Mashed potatoes are pretty automatic.  Add in a green and it’s done.  I might play with cooking some bacon on the grill in a pan and doing a green bean bacon thing.  Plus, I can incorporate some of the bacon fat to the chicken drippings and make a smokey, bacony, delightfully delicious gravy.  As of now, it’s an idea.  

After that we have Xmas and Kiddo is already on that bandwagon, although she has been leaning into the fall season and we are going to decorate for that.  So, come back and stay tuned for the house decorations.  Also, as promised, one of Kiddo’s new outfits.  She’s only had the chance to wear one this week, with the weather and sports day, plus Monday is a uniform day.  So, more of that to come as well.

Let’s go, Kiddo…. One holiday down, but it’s the holiday season and they are going to be coming fast and furious now.  Three and a half weeks until Thanksgiving, then three and a half until Xmas, then a week until NYE, then a month until the CNY and our family travels to Chiang Mai and Da Nang/Siagon.  Before you know it, Grade 3 is going to be more than half over.  Wow, time does fly.