Pumpkin and raccoons

I forgot to mention!

The older kids went to a game night this evening, leaving Alex and Phoebe home with their boring parents. 

It was raining when Benjamin came home from swimming, which Phoebe was so excited about. She wanted to go outside to stomp in the puddles, but we had to have dinner first. And then the big kids left. 

And then she begged Alex to go outside to play in the rain with her, but he felt—given the darkness and possibility of foxes and other nocturnal predators (we get coyotes and bears around here, too, so...fair)—that they should probably have an adult with them. 

So I took them for an evening stroll...in the rain...

Phoebe wore her reflective vest (for safety; she's rather safety-conscious) and we brought a flashlight and...they thought it was the best thing ever.

And then we saw a creature lumbering across the road in front of us.

"Was that a cat?!" Alexander asked. "I've never seen a cat move like that! And it was so fat!"

"I'm pretty sure that was a raccoon," I said.

"A FOX AND A RATCOON IN ONE DAY!!" Phoebe squealed.

It. Was. A. Good. Day.

So, yes, she says "ratcoon" instead of "raccoon."

And this is probably a good place to mention that she says "punktin" instead of "pumpkin."

And when she says "masks," it's more like "maksksksksksks." She just doesn't know when to stop.