Trick or Treat.......

Gorgeous night for Halloween..... nice and warm and no humidity. We've had bunches of little kids come to the door-- all in great costumes. There was a little girl with a Juice-Box costume, very nicely made, except the little girl was so small that the box overwhelmed her and it wasn't comfortable. So her mom carried the costume and held it up next to her while the little girl said Trick or Treat!

There was also Spiderman and more than three Batman costumes, a pretty red ladybug, a pink princess, a black and white princess, a Lemony Snicket character, a bunch of hippies, and four soldiers. The best were two brothers-- the older one was dressed up in a hot-dog costume, and the little one was a bag of fries. Most of the costumes were homemade and very well done.

When the trick-or-treating started, we had to put Gracie in the laundry room. She barked the first few times the bell rang, but then got tired of barking and just settled down to sleep. The cats are all in the screen-porch... I never trust them not to run out the door while we're holding it open and giving out candy and surprises. I had lots of Halloween pencils this year, and the kids love them. My husband couldn't believe how excited they got over pencils-- I think it's just the "surprise" factor that they're getting something besides candy.

All of the little kids came with parents-- our curfew laws don't allow kids to go trick-or-treating door to door without a parent. One of the fathers was dressed up in a "Whoopie Cushion" costume... he had a little buzzer in his hand and when he pressed the button, the costume let out the appropriate noises.

Trick-or-Treating starts at dark here, and goes on for just two hours. By nine o'clock, all the kids have to be back in their homes. My husband and I were talking about Halloween when we were kids.... you got into your costume right after you got home from school. Out you went for Trick-or-Treating, then you went home for a quick dinner and an empty shopping bag--- then out you went again to all the places you didn't get to the first time.

There are lots of Halloween parties here, with the ones for kids held on Halloween afternoon or Halloween night. Most of the parents don't even let their kids go door-to-door, except to neighbors right close to their own homes. Along with the fun of Halloween, there is a certain sadness that it isn't as carefree a holiday as it was years ago.

My husband and I went out to lunch to the Thai restaurant today, then stopped at the bank on the way home. Every bank employee was either dressed up in full costume, or dressed in a Halloween-themed shirt or blouse. I didn't stop at the supermarket today, or any of the other stores, but I'm sure every employee was in some sort of Halloween costume or outfit.

I'm guessing that the adults have as much fun as the kids with the costumes, which is proven every year at our own Halloween party. I was looking through old issues of Mary Engelbreit's Home Companion magazine---- lots of ideas for decorations and table settings that I can't wait to try next year.

Most of our Halloween decorations have already been put away. The only ones still out are on the front porch and in the living room. Before this weekend is over, those will be packed away...... and next week, the Christmas decorations will start to come out. It will take nearly a month to decorate this entire house and get ready for our big Christmas party in December.

This year is going by very quickly. Jingle bells......