You Have To Be Kidding - It's Hallowe'en Again this year??!!

The challenge of a blog that lasts for more than 365 days, is that it comes time to reflect again, on a topic previously pondered.  I re-read my 2013 Halloween blog post and by God, I loved it!

PUMPKIN BRIDGET

There is a HUGE Halloween Skeleton Hanging in my Closet:

http://tenajsllew.blogspot.ca/2013/10/huge-halloween-skeleton-hanging-in-my.html

How can I top this?  Then I realized that I certainly don't have to top it.  I am just going to allow the story to grow

 I have lots of memories of Halloween gone by.   Unlike last year's post, I will recount the best.  I will not whine about Halloween.  I vaguely remember"happy/scary" faces sketched on a pumpkin and icy seeds and muck to be scraped out.  I am remembering clowns and leprechauns Harry Potter and a Mad Scientists.  Slowly costume choices became less adorable.  With time we moved from clowns to vampires.  It is a sad day when an adorable baby boy decided to become Dracula.  It is a sad day when a tween daughter wants to go out as a hooker and doesn't even think to ask to borrow her mother's clothes.

Every year was just more creative than the last. I recall fancy pillow cases and the yellow popcorn bowl filled with a variety of choices, from chocolate bars to rockets, caramels to suckers hoping to  satisfy even the most challenging food restrictions.  We had last minute face-painting and costume malfunction saves. Yes, I admit, we had tears and they weren't all mine.  Little ones anxiously waiting for 6 pm to burst out into the night with one parent and the  inconspicuous "traveler mug". The parent left to "shell out" could oohh and awww over the cute little costumes.  It is quickly learned to avoid guessing the costume. It can be difficult to distinguish between and angel and a princess and it is really important to be right.  The end of the night was children's fantasy free for all.  After bedtime there was a no holds barred pilfering of the best of the best.

I ROCKED HALLOWE'EN.

I did not rock Halloween, but I think I faked it admirably.

Now I have moved from the front line, just trying to get through another Hallowe'en without revealing the true Skeleton in the front closet.  "Of course Mommy loves Hallowe'en.  What's not to love?".   I am no longer drowning in anxiety, trying to meet my self-imposed expectation that my children's  Halloween be amazing, or at the very least, neither physically or emotionally damaging.

Pumpkin Carving by some Creative Hallowe'en Colleague

Now I can sit with an all-knowing smirk of a veteran.   I wear rose-coloured night vision goggles. I smile as I hear of the preparations that young parents are making.  Some really do rock Halloween and my witch hat goes off to them. The pumpkin carving competition showed me that there are many adults who take this day very seriously.   I see entire web sites dedicated to costumes for children.  I didn't even know what DIY meant until recently.  I always Did It Myself, but trust me, the creations of my mind did not compare to the ideas on the web.  My answer to Halloween was a good pair of super man pajamas with a tea towel as a cape.

NOT MY FAVES BUT GONE

 I see all the candy at the store and try to delay the inevitable purchase as I always have.  It seemed back in the day, that if I bought treats in anticipation of Halloween, they were gone before the 31st.  I guess the difference is that when there are no chocolate bars this Friday night "I only have myself to blame". The age old question is "how many is too many". There is (a) weight watcher count of x # of calories per piece, so "count your points ladies". Then there is the next plan (b) Enjoy a few, until just nicely satisfied.  Then of course, (c) "eat until you barf".  I try hard to stop between b and c.  My strategy this year was to try to buy my "less than absolute favourite" chocolate bars, in hopes that I will hold off force-feeding myself late into the night.  I try to convince myself that if I buy M&Ms rather than Smarties, I will not demolish them.  If I choose Snickers over Kit Kats then some will be left.  I will buy Twix bars instead of Caramilk.   Little did I know that Casey is a fan of the Twix bar, which I really consider more of a cookie, myself, but she begs (literally) to differ.

LOVE ME, LOVE ME

Our children will be elsewhere this weekend, celebrating in style.  I feared they would chair a support group of Adult Children of Halloween Party-Poopers, but they survived.  The girls like their crafts and their make up.  They are busily stringing beads and glue-gunning as we speak. I know this as I received a SnapChat from Kate.  Yes, I am such a cool mom, I get SnapChats. For those who are not cool enough to understand SnapChat (like I wasn't last week), it is a picture text on my phone that showed Katelyn creating a  (DIH) Flamingo costume. (If I could I would include the photo, but SnapChat is by design a snapshot which disappears forever in about 10 seconds). Just to give you an idea though, there were feathers, beads, lace and, wait for it... a glass of white wine.  THE KID is BRILLIANT.  She is not even a Mommy, but she has a helper.  I applaud her.

GUMBALL MACHINE

Bridget explained that she could come home neither last weekend nor this weekend, as it is"Halloween".  How did this October 31st celebration come to span a 14 day window?  I am happy for her and am overwhelmed by her level of creativity as well.  She is "going out as" as a camp counsellor.  Just to be clear, from July to August this summer, Bridget WAS a camp counsellor at the Toronto Island.  I thought this Halloween costume choice was a bit of a cop out.  However, I am pretty sure Bridget's camp counsellor costume does not strikingly resemble the outfit she actually wore to camp.  Weekend # 2 requires a different costume.  God forbid she should repeat herself.  Weekend #2 she is truly showing off her creative and less than modest nature.

Kevin does not have the creative touch of his female siblings. I am not crafty and the apple didn't fall far from the tree.  I am not sure whether he is "into the Halloween thing".  We introverted Trick or Treaters have a harder time with costumes and revelry.  I am sure if Kevin does dress
up, it will be an understated and very clever T-shirt of some sort, that requires no more than a marker and a cape.

SUPER KEV

 That is more his style than pink feathers and short shorts.  It struck me as interesting and just plain wrong, somehow, that there are actual websites that will provide people with ideas for exceptionally clever  DIY Halloween costumes.  I maintain that if a costume is to be considered clever, the person wearing it really should have cleverly thought of it himself.

Although I am  a self-proclaimed Halloween Grinch, I will to try to embrace this Halloween weekend.  Kate, Kevin and Bridget are grown and they now are more than capable of dressing up, as Kate would say, "all my byself".  I am not consulted and my approval means almost nothing. My job here is done.

SUPER CUTE

We now live in a rural neighbourhood of about 30 houses surrounding 2 lovely ponds. This will be our first Halloween away from our family forever home in Orangeville. I am very curious to see the Halloween rituals in our small community of colourful characters. There are some children here, much to other's chagrin.  Most of the wee ones are on the "other side of the pond".  I am hoping they will be out on

Friday night with strong flashlights and painted faces.  I expect there will be some pets also dressed up.  Many of the dogs here have their own fall wardrobes, so I expect they will have costumes.  I found an entire web site devoted to dressing up your pet for Halloween.  I am speechless. And here I naively  thought I was done.

Friday night in our new community, we will try to turn over a new leaf.  We will have copious amounts of the "less popular" chocolate bars. And yes, I have eaten the entire 50 small Snickers. Please don't judge.  We will have pumpkin-shaped dog treats for trick or treating canines.  I will wear my crazy fire engine red rubber boots. Some may think this is my costume but sadly, as many are figuring out,  it is not.  Casey the dog will dress up as Mai the cat and vice versa.   I will decorate our new home with  50 cent pumpkins and Corn on the Door and hopefully for those with traveler mugs,  we will become known as the house with the Halloween Whine.

WELCOME NEIGHBOURS