Yes, we celebrate it - Juliette and Evie traditionally with our friends Amelia, Rachel, Ming and Korrinna. I have a few observations on last night.
1. Halloween brings the girl out in our girls. Yes, Juliette may give a death sentence to an ant or person (more about that in a future blog) , but she is really afraid of everything. Evie, our bolder child, is even MORE afraid of everything than Juliette. This is ok. It means they are not jaded or worldly-wise, or destined to become so by the time they are five. So it limits the houses we can visit (deemed too scary) and may include a walk around the block to avoid said scary house or a spontaneous bursting into tears, but that is ok. We want them to be little for as long as they can.
2. Mind control doesn't work, packaging does. When Juliette is presented with an enormous bowl of candy and is told she may have ANY SIX SHE WANTS she goes straight for the nerds, starburst, and laffy taffy. Meanwhile, her mother is inwardly screaming - ALMOND JOY, REESES, dump the junk, GRAB THE 100,000 Bar! The clever bright packaging is a cruel reality for a chocolate-loving mama.
3. Costumes are all about accessories. We got two-dozen compliments on our off-the shelf cow costume - all because of our cow bell and milk pail. There is a lesson in there for me - I'm sure it has to do with makeup and manicured nails, but I just can't quite get it.
4. Halloween is way bigger for parents than kids up until age 8. There were so many dressed up parents. 80% of the women were witches. Why? Why not Dorothy, or Pippi Longstocking or Lara Croft or Wonder Woman? What is it about witches that is so appealing to adult women? We all own a 70% black wardrobe - is it to cut down on costume expense? (No, I do not dress up. I can't believe you even wondered it.)
5. On the eating end, Halloween is bigger than any other holiday for our children. They could NOT believe their mother was letting them eat all of that candy. I caught several sidelong glances of disbelief as they plunged into another lollipop or box of nerds or twizzler. Six little girls, six sugar hangovers. No one went to sleep until 3 am. K
