Baby's First Boo!

That is what DD’s first Halloween bib says. We were supposed to meet up with a Gymboree friend to go Trick-Or-Treating in Plano to collect money for UNICEF, but her friend came down with a temperature, so after much cajoling DH finally agreed to let us go to a nearby “rich” area of town to beg for money there. A few people thought DD was cute, when of course everyone should have thought she was the most adorable trick-or-treater out there (the only other baby I saw was a raccoon). We’d go up to a door and when they offered candy I said, “Actually, we’re collecting money for UNICEF if you have any spare change on you.” About half of the houses gave money (one person donated $5!!!), and some gave money and candy. One lady told me to return the next day (um, so not worth the gas unless she was planning on getting a couple of Benjamins out of the ATM today). We collected a total of $12.36 – not too shabby for only visiting maybe ten houses total.
The saddest part of all is how much Halloween has changed over the years. I remember when numerous children dressed as ghoul, goblin, witch, storybook, movie, or other character would be all dressed up and go from door to door in their neighborhood or a friend’s and score lots of sweets (except for the one house that always gave toothpaste & brushes to counteract said sweets, or the house that gave a quarter even though you weren’t collecting for UNICEF). Even when I was in college I hit Swiss Avenue a couple of times with the little ones just to relieve the fun. When I met DH he told me how he always TOT’ed at the mall – huh? I remember going to the Governor’s Mansion in Atlanta for some peanuts, but never the mall. Turns out a few of them in the area still have times when the store employees will give out candy. This can be dangerous though, as one of my pg employees was hit in the stomach by an upset TOT’er after she ran out of candy. Fortunately the baby was alright. I viewed this as a safe alternative to going door to door, so what really got my attention was when it seemed people would “reschedule” Halloween so that they weren’t TOT’ing on a school night. Come on; let the kiddos have some fun, will ya? I think it’s great when people actually go to the trouble to decorate for Halloween, even if it is seven o’clock that night. What is extremely sad, however, is how few houses distribute candy (or anything) any more. As I said, we only went to about ten houses out of thirty or more because they were all dark. I can tell you that my childless neighborhood is pitch-black every year. DH and I are the youngest homeowners in our area, and most everyone else has at least college age students, if not grandchildren by now.

I will say this, costumes have come a long way. I remember the plastic "covers" that served as the body with the plastic mask with elastic around it. Can't remember ever wearing one of those myself, but I remember seeing them in stores. This year’s saddest costume goes to the girl dressed as, I don’t know, herself, who was TOT’ing with her siblings, one a very well dress pirate, the other a basic Batman/girl. The most creative costume has to go to the boy with a knife and cereal boxes stapled to his clothes. I had hoped to dress DD as a Little Mermaid or Nemo sea character so I could wear my Ariel costume. One of my fondest memories of Halloween is the years my grandmother would accompany me – my grandparents alternated years so one could stay home to pass out candy, none of that leaving a basket on the porch business – because she would always wear a coordinating outfit. For instance, I was Pinocchio, she was Geppetto; I was Dorothy, she was the Wicked Witch of the East, and I want to continue this tradition with DD. Besides, I love dressing up. Remembering my Cast Member days in The Disney Store, I had DH go the Disney website to check out the costumes in August. They still had the previous year’s costumes up, and of the few we were able to find in DD’s Halloween size we decided on Tinker Bell for $5, along with a couple of towels since shipping would be more than the costume itself. I later found a Tinker Bell flashlight to serve as her wand that would triple as a light for the night a toy for everyday. I originally intended to be Wendy, but had trouble finding anything for my costume that wasn’t too expensive. Then while reading Cookie Magazine I saw how they put together a Captain Hook costume using a red coat, hat, feather, and eggbeater. Well, the read coat I had, so off to Party City to find a few pirate supplies, and I was set, all for what I was willing to pay for a Wendy costume. It wasn't an exact replica, but when all was said and done, especially with my little Tink by my side, you'd have to be pretty daft to not know who I was. When DD is old enough to play dress-up I’ll shell out the $80 for her princess costume, and mine, but till then we’ll make do with the sales.
For those of you with access, check out more pictures on Flickr. Anyway, Happy Halloween, El Día de Los Muertos, and All Souls Day!