I didn't have any expectations for Halloween, other than hoping the kids would have fun in whatever way they wanted to. I didn't care if they went to our town's parade, wore their costumes, or danced naked in the street. OK, I might have cared if they danced naked in the street.
Max decided it was his job to put candy into the basket for trick-or-treaters.
Lightning McQueen was looking pretty good, despite the fact that Max has had the costume on nonstop since last Thurday. Except for bath time, and even then he clung to it for dear life.
Sabrina couldn't wait to be a skeleton. Black, she tells me, is her new favorite color. Great. Goth Girl at age 6.
Our town's Halloween parade is a rather insane event consisting of a bazillion candy-scrounging kids, and it tends to freak Max out. But he said he wanted to go and that it was "not scary." So off we went.
Max's willingness to go to the parade turned out to be a ruse. The second we hit town, he dragged us to the ice-cream store. All he wanted was a chocolate milkshake. Dave and him hung out there, and Sabrina went off to be a candy-scrounging kid.
With a new friend
After dinner, we went trick-or-treating in our 'hood. Immediately, Max spotted a neighbor, Sam, dressed up as Harold and The Purple Crayon. And Max decided Sam needed a purple crayon handler.
Soon after, Max decided the purple crayon was rightfully his because, you know, it was purple. "INE!" ("MINE!") he declared, and tried to make a fast getaway. I was somewhat mortified but secretly impressed by the fine-motor skills it took to carry that thing. Max screeched oh-so-charmingly when we pried the crayon out of his hands and returned it to Harold-Sam.
Once we were past Crayongate, Max got into trick or treating. He only went for bags of M&Ms and put them all in the pocket of Dave's jacket, preferring to keep his precious purple bucket candy-free. At one house, a guy had one of those fake plastic hands sticking out of the candy bowl; Max grabbed it and started to walk away, cracking up. Trick!
One of the most fun parts of trick-or-treating is having a valid excuse to peek inside other people's homes. Just call me a Peeping Mom.
Back at the ranch, Max handed out candy to kids and sampled the chocolate. Right before bedtime, some late-comers arrived on our porch; Max pushed open the front door, growled and scared the heck out of them. Max is getting very good at tricks.
It was an excellent Halloween. What did your kids dress up as or do?
