I realize it is 10 days past Halloween…I am trying to catch up, still!

This year, Halloween was very different from past years, but it was probably the best Halloween we’ve had since becoming parents!!

Halloween has always been a HUGE neighborhood event in my parents’ neighborhood – even when I was a child! They have 300-400 Trick or Treater’s that come by every year!

Every year we go to my parents’ house for Halloween, eat soup and then head out to the driveway where we sit and pass out candy to the hundreds of kids.

This year, for various reasons, we did not go my parents’ neighborhood and instead stayed home and took the girls Trick or Treating in our own neighborhood!

I absolutely LOVED the atmosphere in our neighborhood. There have been a couple houses in my parents’ neighborhood that have, in recent years, started putting up “dark” Halloween decorations. I am a firm believer in shielding my daughter’s eyes from such things. I won’t “shelter” them but there is NO reason a 3 year old needs to have those images in her head. When she is older and can understand more about evil and Satan, we will teach her about such things. But at this age, I will shield her eyes. So I was actually thrilled that my parents couldn’t do Halloween in their neighborhood this year because I knew shielding her eyes from those things would be virtually impossible this year.

Our neighborhood was the perfect environment for Trick or Treating with young children! No scary houses, nice neighbors who were so happy to see a little fairy and a lady bug and no crowds of teenagers that were Trick or Treating and dressed in “dark” costumes.

Sweet Pea rode in the stroller but since she had started walking just the day before, I wanted to let her have a chance to walk!

She toddled along for a little while, even walking up to this house with big sister! Not long after this picture, several more kids came up and Sweet Pea got a little overwhelmed. I swooped her up in my arms and she was fine after that.

We had some friends join us in our neighborhood this year! I was ecstatic when my friend, Sarah, asked one day what our Halloween plans were. I knew I’d be missing my parents that night and it helped to have friends join our fun!

Is that not the cutest Thomas the Train you’ve seen?!

I was so surprised at how many house had a bucket of candy on the front porch with a note that said “take one”. And people were actually coming up and taking just one and not dumping the entire contents of the bucket into their candy stash.

We went to Aunt Amanda’s house! Dave’s sister lives just down the road from us and Little Bug was eager to go there. Aunt Amanda had her famous “Trick or Treat, Smell my feet” sign up.

Aunt Amanda, Grandma and Grandpa were waiting for Little Bug to come by! I love how she automatically stepped right into Aunt Amanda’s house but did not step into any of the other “stranger’s” houses.

Grandma didn’t want Sweet Pea to be left out and came out to put a piece of candy in her pumpkin! Sweet Pea was just taking everything in from the comfort of her stroller.

I love this picture. How many times did I dream about doing these kinds of things with my own children? Those dreams started when I was barely past being a kid myself. This Halloween, for me, was a time when I watched my daughter doing something I remember doing as a kid and having so much fun doing it. Little Bug is a kid---there is no baby in her. It excites me to think about the upcoming holidays and how Little Bug will understand so much more this year! She picked up quickly on how to Trick or Treat! She would walk up and say “Trick or Treat” and then “thank you” every single time. At the end of the night she told me she wanted to Trick or Treat again tomorrow.

It was such an enjoyable night and we even got a decent family picture at the end of the night!!

Our attempt at a picture of four kids ages 3 years and under, didn’t go over so well…

The Fairy got to lick a lollipop before bed. A HUGE treat.

Poor Sweet Pea. By this time, she just wanted her blankie, thumb and bed!

Actually, I don’t think she got to bed super late that night. I think she was in bed by 8pm.

I told my parents about our Halloween and told them that I think our tradition needs to move to our neighborhood from now on!

- Elaine