trick-or-treat

i remember halloween as a kid.  i remember the magic of it.  there was no question that the community would come together.  every child was included...no matter their age.  everyone participated.  most porch lights were lit, right along with the candle in their jack-o-lantern.

around the same time every year...the question from mom would come.  "what do y'all want to be for halloween this year" she would ask.

and the magic would start.

she would make our costumes...humoring us with tiny details that would make our transformation from an ordinary child into our new identity for the evening seem quite realistic.

I remember being raggedy ann, a doll, a black kitty cat, a pumpkin, a princess, and a punk rocker.  i know there were many more costumes...but those are the ones that make appearances in my memory when i think of halloween.

i remember our plastic pumpkin trick-or-treat containers.  i remember my dad carving the pumpkin the same every year.  i remember dumping all of our loot onto the kitchen table and my parents checking the wrappers for tiny holes.

but mostly...i remember the candle lit streets, the sounds of giggling children, the sight of excited kids running from house to house in little clusters exclaiming "TRICK-OR-TREAT" in happy voices at every door, with the conversations of moms and dads chaperoning their little ghosts and goblins from the curb echoing in the background.

i still love halloween...for all of the same reasons.

this year we had friends over for pizza, boo mix, and brownies...followed by turning our bathroom into a costume studio.  the boys dressed upstairs and the girls in my closet.  and then everyone gathered to have hair and make-up done, which transformed them from a kid in a costume into the real thing.

this was the only time she had the elmo hood on.  the rest of the time, she refused to keep it on her head.  that's ok.  she's 2.  she gets a free pass.

colton was captain jack sparrow; chase was harry houdini, aiden was little red riding hood (cape made by granna), and annslee was elmo, of course.

chad didn't dress up and i didn't press him on it.  i had my friend, cara who volunteered to look ridiculous with me.

i threw this costume together very last minute.  like right before we walked out the door, last minute.  i busted out my 9th grade homecoming dress and some blue eye shadow.

oh yeah.....

nothin like the late 80's.

aiden and her kiki were precious together.

right out of a fairytale...

why is she always looking annoyed that i am taking her picture?  little red riding hood needed to adjust her attitude to the paparazzi.  it's like she forgot who her obsessive mother is.

****

annslee, i mean elmo rode with her friend, kenzie the pumpkin in the wagon.

cara thought she was really dressing up with this 50's style outfit.

this did not go over well with me.

i looked ridiculous.

she looked normal.

i'm gonna remember that next year.

come on red........look like you're pleased to be goin to grandma's house.

that's better.

captain jack thought he may be a little old for trick-or-treating.  sadly...this may have been his last year to dress up.  don't worry though.  i think i can squeeze myself into this get-up next year.

uk walked along with trout.  they both did surprisingly well with all the chaos.

houdini and hood stuck close together.

jack looked like he had had too much rum (sugar).

"TRICK-OR-TREAT," they excitedly exclaimed.

daddy rocked elmo's trick-or-treat experience by carrying her to every door himself.  he was her own, personal chariot.

it was a fun night.

i can't help but wonder if we will have another little trick-or-treater to dress up next year?

i wonder what they will all want to be?