Halloween...

Just an informal question...will you be letting your child (ren) go trick-or-treating and will the costume be store-bought or handmade?

Kris

Hi Kris,

I can't believe that it is time already to be thinking about Halloween costumes! Sigh ... I have absolutely no clue as to whether I will make them or buy them. It all depends on what they want to be and how expensive the costumes are. I am all for simple. I can tell you that my 5 year old is going to be a fireman because he wanted a fireman playset for his birthday last week! Other than that ... who knows.

We usually go trick or treating because we have a great neighborhood and a ton of kids. It has been very safe the last few years so I will do it again. Arizona is a fun place to trick or treat because it isn't cold. The kids can wear shorts if they want! Everyone is out and my kids see all their friends from school.

What are you going to do this year, Kris?

Robin

[houseelf]

O.K. I cheated and bought my son a costume last year at a post Halloween clearance sale. I can't sew so this is a GOOD thing, as Martha Stewart would say.

He will be a bumble bee and loves to play dress up. He goes to the mirror and kisses himself whenever we put him in his costume. Hey, at least he is developing some self love!

I know that he is too young to go trick or treating this year, but I'm contemplating NEVER letting him go door to door. It just seems so scary nowadays. I read somewhere that kids are 4 times more likely to get hit by a car on Halloween. Plus, it just seems like the world is a dangerous place. We don't really have that many kids in the neighborhood so I don't know my neighbors all that well. We live in a suburb of a big city, not the small town like the one that we grew up in.

Am I being paranoid? Should I just let a kid be a kid?

I know that the zoo has a program and so does the mall. Is this wimping out?

Signed,
Insecure parent

Kelly

Way to go Kelly of going to the after Halloween sale. That's what I would like to do too but I am always out of money by the time I get the current Halloween done. Oh well... last year I happened to stop at a garage sale that had a ninja costume that one of my sons went crazy about. They sold it for $2! I don't sew much so the Halloween costume has to be REALLY simple if I am going to make it.

I don't blame you at all for not wanting to let your boy go door to door. I never went trick or treating growing up for the same reason and I still have good memories. I think the zoo program could be a lot of fun especially if they do a lot of lights. We did the mall one year and, at least here, I wasn't impressed. Maybe it had something to do with the atmosphere for me. It was too light I guess and the sales people didn't have much enthusiasm (probably because they had to work on Halloween!) Maybe the malls there are better.

When I lived in Utah, I knew everyone in the neighborhood and trick or treating was very safe. Here, I don't know everyone but many parents bring their kids to our neighborhood to trick or treat and I feel pretty secure. Of course, I go with the kids and don't let them out of my sight.

There are a lot of ways to create fun Halloween memories without having to go trick or treating. My mom's best friend's son had his birthday party every Halloween and it was always a huge event. I have great memories of that. Then we would go trick or treating at one house because they made homemade cinnamon rolls and all the kids at the birthday party would get one. So... do what you feel comfortable with and take lots of pictures. I love Halloween pix. My kids always look so adorable! Slightly bias here!

Robin

I don't know what costumes we'll be doing here yet. Finny wants to be a witch...and we found this great witch's hat that has orange hair coming out of it at Wal-Mart. Andrew keeps changing his mind so I'm not sure. I used to try and make their costumes...or at least part of them...(though I'm not that great in the sewing department!)

I have mixed feelings about trick-or-treating, especially given everything that has happened. I think we'll go to the houses on our street because that seems safe to me....I'd like to decorate our front porch to be really scarey...I always loved trick-or-treating at houses that had haunted-house like themes. We bought some of the spider-web stuff from the dollar store and I also got this really freaky looking spiker thingy that jumps when you push a button...I was going to put it on the candy bowl and then have it jump out at the kids when they go to take a piece of candy

I wish I'd thought of costumes last year at the after-halloween sales, but like Robin, I'm always tapped out after the holidays. I do try and hit some of the after-christmas sales though....I stock up on the little soap and bubble bath gift sets, etc...to give as gifts throughtout the year hehehe

Kris