Adventures in Halloweening

Hold on, man. We don't go anywhere with "scary," "spooky," "haunted," or "forbidden" in the title.

~From Scooby-Doo

The day began...well, it actually began about a month ago, when the Halloween decorations were pulled from storage to be proudly displayed. Among the decorations were costumes bought specifically for use this year - witches for Helena and Olivia, Hello Kitty for Julia, and a pirate costume for Nicholas. Except there was one problem: Nicholas refused to be a pirate. "I can just be a baseball player" he said. So the pirate outfit went back into storage.

As Halloween dawned the older three got their costumes ready for their school party. And all was well. But then they came home.

Helena kept her witch costume on. No problem.

Olivia decided to be a cat instead. After a little face paint, no problem.

And then there was Nicholas.

Problem.

He wanted to wear his glove holding a ball. But then we explained he couldn't hold his treat bag that way.

I suggested he wear his batting helmet instead. He complained he would get too sweaty.

I suggested that he could wear the glove, and hold a Halloween bucket instead of a treat bag. He complained he would spill all his candy.

He finally abandoned the idea of being a baseball player, and changed into olive green pants and a dark green shirt.

He said he was going as a Leprechaun.

"But Leprechauns dress in kelly green", we said.

"I am a Leprechaun in Fall.", he replied.

"But you don't have a hat.", we said.

"I am a Leprechaun who lost his hat.", he replied.

Valerie had a better idea. Keep the clothes on, wear some beaded necklaces and sunglasses, and go as a hippie.

"NO!"

"You can wear Helena's flowered leather vest..."

"NO!!"

"Okay, then you need to go get the pirate outfit."

"NO!!!"

Finally, exasperated, Valerie hit on the perfect idea. She took down one of her autumn swags, attached it to a necklace, and put it around his neck.

"You are going as an autumn tree."

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!"

But Mommy had had enough. Her decision was final.

Nicholas screamed so loud his grandparents probably heard him in Delaware.

"I AM NOT GOING!!!"

But he was going. I picked him up and carried him outside. As his sisters got into the van he just stood there.

"I AM NOT MOVING!!!"

So I picked him up and put him in his seat. And we were off.

We always trick or treat in the neighborhood across from the school. There are over 500 houses and a lot of the residents really get into the "spirit" of things. All the way there Nicholas snarled that he was going to just stay in the van. "Fine by me," I told him, "but you will not get to have any of the Halloween candy."

(For the record, we do not let our children gorge themselves on candy after Halloween. We usually let them have maybe one or two pieces a day, and that's if they have been good. Our Halloween candy from last year just ran out a few weeks ago.)

The neighborhood was filled with cars and trick or treaters as we entered. We stopped at the first few houses, and, sure enough, only Helena and Olivia got out to trick or treat. They came back talking about the treats they had received. We moved the car, and the girls got out again. I could see that Nicholas' mood was softening. By the time the girls got out at the third stop, Nicholas quietly informed me that he had decided to trick or treat after all.

Of course, I had brought an extra treat bucket for just such a situation...

Other than an emergency run to Walgreens for a potty break, the rest of the night passed without incident.

We saw ghosts riding atop pumpkins...

A clown giving out popcorn (unfortunately, not GFCF)...

And other spooky delights...

Nicholas even let me take his picture...

We spent over two hours in the neighborhood, and the kids were totally exhausted when we were done. After they went to bed, Valerie and I separated their candy. Not a bad haul this year - about 40% of the candy was GFCF, and thus good for our kids to eat. We'll see how long this batch lasts...

Oh, and I would be remiss if I didn't mention Julia. Hello Kitty was ready to go, but unfortunately Julia wasn't. She was so tired that she slept through it all, do doubt dreaming of the tricks and treats she will enjoy next year.