Happy Halloween!

I didn't grow up celebrating Halloween.

I do remember trick-or-treating once, maybe twice, when I was very little, 3 or 4.

And then we never went again. My parents felt it was not a holiday they wanted to celebrate. And that was fine, and I never minded.

(Although I did go trick-or-treating with my cousins when I was 15.)

However, for my own children, I love Halloween. I love carving pumpkins. I love lighting candles and making little tissue ghosts.

But what I love most is dressing my boys up in ridiculously cute costumes and parading them around in public. There is no other time of the year it is acceptable to do that. (There is also no other time it is acceptable to wander around in public wearing a tiara, either.)

This year, the festivities started with a Halloween parade at Roman's school. This is still new for me. I debated whether I should go, or get started on my paper. I decided to go. It turns out it was a good thing I did. The school was packed, music going, most of the adults dressed up as well. It would have looked bad if I had been the only parent within the school boundaries that didn't go. And there is no better reward than seeing your boy's face light up when he sees you in the crowd.

Roman at his school costume parade

Roman decided to be a cowboy this year. It says something that we have enough dress-up to put the costume together without buying anything. (I'm not sure what it says. Maybe that we've been a family for a while.)

Doesn't he make an extremely good-looking cowboy?

Stick 'em up!

My boys, the cow-pokes

Blaise was going to be a bee, and wear his costume from last year, since it still fit and there is not reason (other than wanting to) to buy a new costume every year. However, when Blaise saw us bring the bee costume out, he starting crying and saying that he only wanted to wear a cowboy hat. After the morning spent in the black sweats for his bee costume, we relented and let him be a cowboy.

We always go trick-or-treating at Keith's work and then at the mall. These are both safe places to wander around with our little kids, and are immune from the unpredictable weather of late October.

Keith, Roman, and Blaise
Ready for trick-or-treating!

The boys enjoy it, at least at first. But inevitably, Roman gets tired of walking. And Blaise gets plain tired.

I'm not sure,
but something is telling me
we are done trick-or-treating,
and it's time to go home.

I don't think it is exciting as door-to-door, but it is an efficient way to get candy.

And even though it is not as much candy as I remember getting when I was very little, it is PLENTY!