Halloween is over!

Well the pumpkins have been carved, the trick-or-treaters have all gone home, and the party was a success (I think). Hallelujah! Halloween is over. As you can tell Halloween isn't one of my favorite hollidays. I don't like the whole "lets get scared" mentality. I do enjoy the fun part of Halloween though, now that my kids are old enough to get their own costumes and make their own plans. This year Valerie was a vampiress, and Marie wanted to be a Hawaiian girl, complete with grass skirt that shed everywhere. I will be happy when that thing is back in the costume box (maybe never to return...).

Anyway, let me start off by telling you about the elementary school's "Parade of Costumes." This year it took place on Friday, because Halloween is on a Saturday. It was cold and snowing and my kids both thought they were going to wear shorts under their costumes. I suggested that they put on longer pants, but they were insistant that they would be all right...whatever. So I sent them out the door. I wasn't going to go to yet another parade, but after thinking about it for an hour, I decided that it was Valerie's last year in the parade and that I should go, especially since I didn't have to work. I left at 8:30, drove to the school, searched high and low for a parking place, parked across and down the street, came into the school, and waited for half an hour for the parade to even begin. It finally started and the kids start parading past. I must say there are always great costumes (parents with too much time on their hands), but they all speed by at about 100 mph. When Marie came by I tried to take her picture, but she couldn't wait, she had to keep moving. My camera has some issues and before I knew it she was gone. I was lucky to get the picture I did. Now it was Valerie's turn. Sixth graders are a little more mature as they go by. They saunter by as if they didn't really care that you were there at all (it's more of a social time), but they are use to the "stop while mom takes the stupid picture" wait. Of coarse my camera's flash wasn't turned on, so again I was lucky to get the picture of Valerie that I got. So much for the parade, but I was there to support my kids!

Saturday was fun though. We invited the family over for roast beef sandwiches. Mindy brought soup, Lesa brought brownies, Mom Higley brought relish tray and Mom Sorenson brought cookies. Jordan went to Kaden's house to play while Jessica hung out with the adults. The kids all went trick-or-treating together: Maddi, Marie, Valerie, Jaymee Owens, the Holmgren kids, and Dallon. Ryan came with us. I tried to tell him we would watch out for Dallon, but he was happy to come. We had barely got started when Maddi was decided she wanted to be done. She was hungry and wanted the sandwiches more than the treats, but I convinced her to keep going, after all we had just started. We got up to the Mountain Road with a plan to come back down the road to each house on the way back. Not Marie. She was finished. At first I am like, "Come on, we got to keep going!" Then I had to stop and think, "Why? Here is my chance to be done and I am feeling guilty for not going to all of my friend's houses, why?" So we came home. Ryan was relieved. The third game of the World Series was on and he wanted to see it, and I don't think he was having much fun trick-or-treating. At home everyone ate, talked and had a great time. One of the best parts was watching Oakley play with the trick-or-treater candy. I hope the trick-or-treaters don't mind a little slobber on their candy.

This was our second year inviting everyone over. I guess I really like it. It's more fun for us as adults because we get to eat something besides candy all night, and the conversation is good. We will have to continue this tradition...maybe Halloween isn't so bad after all.